Page 59 of Heartache & Playdates
My phone vibrated a moment before the text came up on my computer’s screen.
Nick:Holy shit, bro! Is it true?!
Word must have gotten back to him that Peyton was Hannah’s new teacher.
I typed back,yeah. What else was I supposed to say?
Another message came up on my screen.
Nick:What are you going to do?
What was I supposed to do? I honestly didn’t know what to feel about this development. Everything was telling me that there was still something between us, but she’d made it clear she didn’t want anything to do with me. But now she was Hannah’s teacher.
I responded,nothing.
There was nothing I could do. Right?
As I sat back in my chair and ran my fingers through my hair in frustration there was a soft knock on my door.
“Come in.”
The door opened and Lina stepped inside. Her hair was styled in two French braids, and she wore a white turtleneck and wide leg jeans. I’d never instituted a dress code at the company. I’d always thought that people worked best in what they were comfortable in, still, a lot of employees dressed in business casual at least through their internships. I was happy to see that she didn’t feel the need to do so even on her first day.
“Hi,” I said, wondering why she was there.
My inner thoughts must have been evident on my face because she glanced at her Apple watch. “Are we early?”
We?
Early?
As she asked her question Kyle, Wendell, and Julissa all walked in behind her.
Shit.The interns lunch. I had lunch with the interns on their first day. It was tradition. How could I have forgotten that?
Why hadn’t Samara reminded me? I checked my phone and sure enough, she’d sent the reminder at 7:55. The exact time Peyton had walked out of the room to collect the kids.
“No, you guys are right on time. Come in.”
They all filed in as I stood. The food delivery, which Samara always took care of, showed up as we all took our seats around the conference table at the back of the room.
The first five minutes or so of the lunch, I went through my normal speech telling everyone a little bit about where the company started, where I saw it going, and letting them know that I was excited for them to be an integral part of the future.
Thankfully, I’d given this speech dozens of times since we had several groups of interns each year, one for every fiscal quarter, so I was able to get through it without missing a beat even though my head was miles away.
Every time I’d given the welcome speech in the past, all the interns hung on my every word. Some even took notes. A few had asked to video it on their phones. Today, I thought would be no different. But I was wrong. As expected, Wendell, Julissa and Kyle were completely enraptured, hanging on every word I said. But then I noticed Lina, who was seated beside me, looking down, not up at me.
At first, I thought it might be a social tic or something but then I saw the reflection of the screen in her glasses, and I knew that her phone was on her lap and that she was typing on it. She glanced up every once in a while, but then her eyes dropped right back down.
Strangely, I wasn’t insulted by her lack of interest. Instead, I was curious as to what was more important than her new boss giving a welcome speech.
After finishing my spiel, everyone started eating and talking. Kyle, Wendell, and Julissa all got into a heated debate over whether or notHouse of the Dragonlived up toGame of Thrones. Kyle was the sole man on the side that it did. Wendell and Julissa argued against.
I was slyly attempting to spy on Lina when she let out a short inhale with a smile, lifted her head, and began eating.
“Is everything okay?”
Her eyes darted to me, and she stared at me blankly. It was almost as if she’d forgotten I was there.
