Substitute Love

“Ok, kids. Don’t forget about the science project that it’s due next week & you should be working on that” I say, hearing the last bell of the day ring through the hallway. Everyone starts gathering their stuff. “Have a nice day” I say as a few walk past my desk, saying their farewells. I start gathering all my stuff, placing the stack of tests that I have to check between some of my plan books.

“Ms. Forbes?” I hear a small voice say & turn to look at Gavin standing in front of my desk.

“Yes, Gavin?” I ask him. He flashes me a shy smile, blushing.

“I just wanted to tell you that I’ve been studying hard so I do better in science like I promised you” He says, looking down for a second. “My Uncle Zacky has been helping me” At the mention of his name, my heart skipped a beat & I feel all these funny things in my stomach. I can’t stop the smile that creeps unto my face. I wonder if he feels the same.

“Well, I’m glad. & I’ve seen your grades improved. But I know you’re able to get an A on science. Have you started your project?” I ask him, searching for the key to lock my desk. I turn to see him nod slightly. “I’m sure it’s gonna be great. I’m really looking forward to see that” I say, taking the keys from the bottom of my bag.

“Yes, my dad says I’ll have the best project” He says, grinning. I smile at him & see that he kinda looks a lot like Zacky. The door opens up & I see a small girl walk in. She must be Gavin’s sister cuz they look exactly the same.

“Gavin, Mom is outside” She says walking in. “Uncle Zacky is here too” She says, grabbing her brothers lunchbox. I smile just knowing Zacky is outside waiting for me.

“Really? Uncle Zacky came?” He says in disbelief. The girl nods. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Ms. Forbes” Gavin says racing through the door with her sister in tow. I gather the rest of my stuff & walk outside, locking the classroom. I walk outside & see Zacky standing by his car, with Gavin in his arms. I give him a smile when I see that he looks at me. I start making my way over there, before I’m stopped by Mrs. Becks, the P.E. teacher.

“Victoria” She says. “How are you doing?” She asks me. I answer to her politely. I have talked to her a couple of times before. I glance over to Zack quickly & I see her sister staring at me & nudging his side. Guess I’m the topic of his conversation right now. I start paying attention to the woman in front of me, making small talk as all the kids run around, looking for their parents, or going to line up for the buses. “That guy can’t keep his eyes away from you” She says, making me turn to look at him & I see Gavin & her sister going to the playground while the 2 adults start talking. I give her a knowing smile & I know I must be blushing. “It’s not against the rules to date a relative of the kids, you know. As long as it’s not a parent” She says, brushing my arm as she moves away. I let out a laugh & start making my way over to where the siblings are hugging. I feel nervous to meet one of Zack’s siblings. I know it’s not like meeting his parents, but for me, it is a big deal & I don’t want her to have a bad impression of me. Especially with how fast things happened between me & Zack. When Zack pulls away from her sister, he notices that I’m standing next to them. I shyly smile at him before he comes up & kisses my cheek. I feel my face hot. I didn’t know he would do that. He delicately pushes me forward with his hand resting on my lower back.

“Victoria, I would like you to meet my sister” He says. “Zina, this is Victoria. She’s Gavin’s teacher” He finishes.

“I’m just the substitute teacher. I’m covering Mrs. Cooke while she’s on maternal leave” I clarify, extending my hand. Zina, as I already knew her name, shakes it. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Gavin won’t stop talking about you” I add & I see an emotion cross her face. A proud feeling. & I know that my words are getting to her, so I decide to throw something else. “He’s a really nice kid. Very smart & very polite” I finish up. I feel Zack’s hand rubbing softly my back, comforting me.

“Nice to meet you too. Gavin won’t stop talking about you either. He really likes you” Zina says, getting a better grip on her kid’s backpacks. “So… you & Zacky, huh? How did that happened?” She asks, with curiosity written all over her face. I start blushing cuz I honestly didn’t believe that Zack would fill her sister with what happened so quickly.

“That’s gonna be a story for another day” Zack says, saving me the embarrassment of telling his sister that I have been a cock tease to his brother. “Kid” He call the small kids playing on the swings. They stop for a second, before sprinting toward us.

“Say goodbye to your Uncle Zacky & to Vic-, I mean, Ms. Forbes” Zina quickly corrects herself. Guess she doesn’t want to take away the almost authority figure I somehow am. Zack kneels down to kiss the kids that I know means so much to him.

“Goodbye, Ms. Forbes” Gavin says, looking up at me. His eyes are so innocent & you can see in his face that not an ounce of evil is etch on this little boy.

“Goodbye, Gavin. Be good & do your homework, ok?” I say, ruffling his hair a bit. He nods & start walking away. When they were a good couple of feet away from us, Zack suddenly turns & kiss me, surprising me.

“Zacky” I say, in a panic voice. “Not here” I say, glancing around to see if any of the teachers, parents or kids where looking at us. The last thing I want is to get fired for doing indecent things on school property. Luckily for me, no one was paying attention.

“What?” He says in an amused tone, laughing a bit. I stare at him playfully, knowing that he must be enjoying watching me not being so confident as I act when I’m with him alone. “I can’t resist you” He says, capturing me in his arms. But this time… I don’t push him away. Because I love the way his arms feel around me. He stares at my eyes while I stare back at his hypnotizing green eyes. They are so beautiful & so playful that I can’t help but get lost looking at them. “Want to get out of here?” He asks softly, his breath smelling of mint & cigarrette & I nod my head. He opens the passenger door & I lean up to kiss his lips, before getting inside. He closes the door & I see him walking towards his side. I don’t know why but I just feel the need to kiss him. He gets on the driver side & turns to look at me. I smile at him & he leans to kiss me one more time. It was supposed to be only a small peck, but I grab the back of his neck to deepen the kiss. Those small kisses are not my sort of things. When it comes to Zack… I need more. We pull apart & run my hand through his black hair. It’s something that I like doing. “What do you want to do?” He asks me, starting the car & backing up from the parking spot.

“How about some ice cream by the beach?” I proposed. He nods & head towards the beach. I reach for his hand through the car console, lacing his finger with mine. I stare out the window, really not thinking about what I was doing. All I’m thinking is that I cannot wait to know everything about this guy that has stolen my heart so fast.