Chapter 35

Something about what Jackie said stuck, and on Wednesday morning I was early to English once again.

Mr. Hayes looked up as I entered his room. "Two days in a row, John Robinson? Soon you'll have me believing you actually care about English."

I smiled. "We can't have that, now can we, Mr. Hayes. No, something a friend said has me curious. Why did you have me read Sonnet 91 yesterday?"

"Would you believe quid pro quo?"

"Not for a minute," I replied, still smiling.

Mr. Hayes sighed. "I thought not. Okay, it was obvious from the way you asked to move that the trouble in paradise wasn't your choice. I happen to think that you and Miss Harmon are a very good couple. Good for each other and good for this town. I've been teaching here a long time, Mr. Robinson. Morris Harmon was one of my favorite pupils. After he graduated, he visited frequently. He was a lot like you. I knew Annabelle, as well. She was smart like her daughter, but she never applied herself. It was such a shame. I know Morris saw it too." He sat down on the edge of his desk, his eyes looking years into the past.

"Then Melissa was born, and it was so obvious that she had inherited both beauty and brains from Morris and Annabelle. Morris was proud of Melissa and he tried to provide an atmosphere where her brains were as accepted as her other talents. I think he succeeded. I think you've helped. I've watched the relationship between you and Melissa blossom. I wasn't sure it would work, especially after the interlude with Miss Eastman, but somehow, beyond my understanding, it did. I'd like to think that Morris would approve of you. He's not here to keep his daughter on track, so I took my shot. I think Morris would approve. I know you agreed with Shakespeare. I saw it on your face after you finished reading. I think Melissa did too. She was watching and listening as you read."

"You meddling bastard," a soft voice from the doorway said.

Both Mr. Hayes and I turned to see Missy standing there with a tear streaming down her cheek. I felt my heart lurch into my throat. I didn't have a clue what to say.

Mr. Hayes was smooth. "Good morning, Miss Harmon. To what do I owe the pleasure? You've never been early to my class."

Missy brushed the tear off her cheek. "I came for the same reason John did. I wanted to know why Sonnet 91. I was sure it was John who picked it out. He took four pages to write what Shakespeare wrote in those few lines."

Mr. Hayes smiled. "Old Willie sure had a way with words, didn't he?"

I readily agreed and turned to take Jackie's seat. "Not today, Mr. Robinson," Mr. Hayes said. "You two disrupted my lesson yesterday, but no more. If you have a problem, solve it outside my classroom. Okay?"

I shrugged and turned back toward my regular seat. "Thanks, Mr. Hayes."

"Thank you, Mr. Hayes," Missy echoed. "We won't disrupt your class any more."

I watched as she sat down beside me.

"Can we talk later, John?" Missy asked. "At lunch, perhaps?"

"I've been eating out by the oak tree," I replied.

She nodded and the bell rang.

"I should hate you, John," Missy said as she tossed four pieces of paper at me. "Every damn word on these pages is the truth, isn't it?"

"Of course," I replied, reaching for Missy's books. She sat down next to me gracefully. With our backs to the oak tree, we had to turn to see each other. With a sigh, Missy put her hand on my shoulder and turned, curling her legs underneath her.

She took a deep breath and smacked me when she noticed that my eyes drifted downward. "You are such a guy, John Robinson. I don't know whether to kiss you or beat you."

"Can't you do both?" I quipped.

Missy frowned and took another deep breath. "You told me once that I tilted the world on its axis a little back in September when I spent time with you. I know now that your perspective was wrong; it wasn't me that tilted your world, it was you tilting mine. I'm so sorry, John. I've been a first class bitch to a lot to people for the last week or so, but especially to you. You never deserved it. You've been a rock. You were my rock. I didn't know how to handle things, so I tried to shove everything, everyone, away as a way to avoid the problems. While there might have been a lot of ways to handle what was happening, my way was probably the worst."