Page 25 of Unsupervised
A glance at the clock reminds me I need to get moving if I don’t want to be late for work. My books get tossed on my desk, and I throw my lunch bag into my backpack. Slinging it over my back, I head out on my bike, leaving Zara and Serena still discussing the men they’re setting me up with.
I should be excited, I suppose, but it’s kind of nerve wracking too. It also feels a little pathetic if I’m being honest. Like I shouldn’t need my friends trying to hunt down someone who might be interested in me. Shouldn’t it happen more naturally?
What does excite me is something that shouldn’t. Mr. Aldrich will be back tonight for his lesson and the thought stays at the front of my mind while I rearrange stock, clean, and help customers in between giving two piano lessons.
He’s my teacher, and I know nothing could ever happen with him, but that doesn’t keep my daydreams from leading me there. Being lost in my head makes my shift pass quickly and before I know it, I look up and see him watching me from the doorway with a smile.
“Oh, hey.” There go those stellar social skills again.
“I didn’t want to interrupt. You looked like you were really concentrating.”
If he only knew.
“Come on in. I was just looking for the next song to teach you. Happy Birthday shouldn’t take you long to learn.”
“You may have more faith in the coordination of my hands than I do.”
He sits beside me on the piano bench, and I bring out the sheet with the notes marked. I’ve also put the corresponding stickers on the piano so we’re ready to go.
God, he smells good. It’s some kind of cologne that I’ve noticed before, when he was showing me how to light the pilot on the water heater, but there’s another lighter scent that just seems to be…him. Being this close to him is distracting. I have to get it together.
“Okay, first you find middle C.” He watches as I point it out. “You’re going to position your right hand like this, where your thumb is over middle C.”
His first lesson isn’t difficult and despite his claim of being uncoordinated, he doesn’t seem to struggle with anything.
“Let’s go through it one more time,” I advise, when it’s almost time for him to go.
His hand starts in the wrong place and he stops, recognizing the wrong note when he plays it.
“Like this,” I correct and take his hand, lining his fingers up with the right keys. His hands are nice. Big, with long fingers and smooth skin. I hate to let it go.
He plays through it again, slowly and carefully. “Good. I think you’ve got it. You just need to practice at home. If you play it enough times, you’ll build muscle memory and it’ll feel more natural. Also, sit up straight. Pay attention to your posture as you play. It’s easier to begin that way than correct it later.” Just because he may not be planning to learn more than a few songs, you never know. Music has a way of grabbing you and pulling you in.
“Yes, Ms. Bryant,” he says in a teasing voice, straightening his back.
“How the tables have turned,” I laugh, getting to my feet.
He returns his keyboard to its bag. “Do you work tomorrow night?”
“No, I’m off on Wednesdays.”
There’s a hesitant pause before he adds, “I’m going to visit my grandmother tomorrow evening if you’d like to come with me to play for them. The activities manager should be there if you want to talk to her about volunteering.”
“Yeah, that sounds good. Do you know what time you’ll be going?”
“Would five o’clock work? I can give you a ride.”
The last thing I want is for him to start seeing me as a loser who needs a ride everywhere. “Thanks, but I can manage.” One of the girls might be home and willing to take me, but if not, I’ll Rideshare. Like it or not, I’m not going to be able to ride a bike everywhere and I’ll have to budget some money for Rideshare sometimes. I’m glad I still have some emergency savings from before I left home. Dad wasn’t able to take that since I had my own account. It’s not enough to buy a car, but enough to get me around until I figure something out.
“I’ll see you there, then.”
Once he leaves, I finish up a few things, and sweep the floor before calling to Mr. Cooper to let him know I’m done for the day.
The night air is cool, and I enjoy my bike ride home. The streets aren’t busy, and the stars are out. It strikes me again how drastically my life has changed.
Not everything has been easy, but I think I’ve done well adjusting to my new normal. I’ll take this existence, this day of working at a job I enjoy, riding my bike home with no one asking me where I am or telling me what I’m supposed to do, over my old life any day.
Serena drops me off at the retirement home the next day, and I see Mr. Aldrich park his truck just as she drives away. He’s changed from the slacks and button up shirt he wore to economics class today into a pair of dark jeans and a fitted tee. I’m not sure I heard more than two minutes of today’s lecture. My mind was too busy daydreaming about how it would feel to kiss him. It’s odd the way I seem to see him as two different people sometimes. The teacher and the hot guy.