AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story takes place sometime in the past. As the reader, I leave it up to you to decide the year...or decade. The story features large age differences and student-teacher dynamic. If this sort of story is not your thing, skip this. For everyone else...please enjoy!
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The once balmy air and vibrant, fiery hues of an unusually pleasant Indian summer gave way to the rainy, chilly beast of fall that devoured this particular October Friday in one great gray gulp. The morning and early afternoon started out partly sunny with a light comfortable breeze carrying the delicious scent of nutmeg, cinnamon, and a hint of burning leaves. But by the end of the school day, the cheerful balmy weather gave way to a more somber mist and cold. It was a gnawing, bone-chilling sort of cold.
During the last class of the day at Talcott High, Emily Franzen watched the chilly raindrops chase each other down the window while her English teacher, Miss Tunison, explained the directions on an assignment about writing satire. This last week had been spent reading and discussing "A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift. Now each student was supposed to write a satirical poem or short story which would be due on Monday. Satire and homework were the least of Emily's concerns at the moment. This weekend her parents were out of town, and they weren't due back home until Monday. As the heavy raindrops fell outside, her mind was in overdrive thinking of the possible ways to spend her free time. And just when she thought she'd go crazy trying to decide what she wanted to do first, the bell rang for dismissal.
Emily Franzen is a gorgeous amber-haired senior. To many people, classmates included, she appeared to be the gregarious cheerleader type overflowing with beauty and school spirit. But deep down, Emily was shy, pensive, and quiet. She preferred books over people. This was a thing she shared in common with Miss Tunison. As she gathered up her belongings and started to leave, her gaze settled on her teacher as if by instinct.
Miss Lillian Tunison is a pragmatic woman; bookish and prim to a fault. At 40 years old, she maintained a perpetually haughty guise which was amplified by her short, impeccably styled hair, modest make-up, and obligatory pearl necklace that accentuated her slender neck. She was never without a light cardigan, and almost always wore the most beautifully tailored dresses and natty dress flats to match. Yes, Miss Tunison certainly fit the image of the classic uptight schoolteacher. As a matter of fact, most of the kids at Talcott referred to Miss Tunison as downright frigid...and that was putting it kindly!
But Emily disagreed with the perception her classmates had of their English teacher. After spending who knows how many days after school with Miss Tunison, helping the teacher grade papers, and sometimes doing homework while they talked, Emily discovered that she and Miss Tunison had quite a bit in common.
They both enjoyed reading short stories and spending countless hours in the library downtown. One Saturday afternoon, Emily discovered Miss Tunison sitting at a table on the third floor of the library in downtown Thatcher Blake. It was during summer vacation, and it turned out to be one of the most memorable afternoons Emily had spent with anybody. Her cheeks went a little flush when she recalled how Miss Tunison whispered aloud an excerpt to her from "The Well of Loneliness" by Radclyffe Hall. She had no idea her otherwise prim and proper teacher read such things! Just the same, Emily felt a sort of closeness develop between them that afternoon while they read together and traded secrets. It was a closeness she'd never felt before with anyone—not even her best friend, Heidi Solverson. Deep down she hoped that she could experience more of that same closeness with her teacher very soon.
She stopped and wished Miss Tunison a good weekend on her way out the door. After a quick stop at her locker, she saw Heidi and asked her what she was doing after school. Heidi is on the varsity cheerleading squad, and tonight there was a football game. Emily heaved a gusty sigh of disappointment. Oh well, she thought. Maybe she'd just stay home tonight and work on her assignments. Besides, the faster she could get her homework done, the faster she could fill up her free time doing fun stuff later.
"Maybe tomorrow afternoon we could head over to the Comet and bowl a few games." Heidi said. She slung her book bag over her shoulder and slammed her locker shut. "Who knows? Maybe Roy will be there too. I mean—he'll be too busy to talk tonight and all..."
Yeah, sure. Heidi has been trying to get Royal Hendricks to notice her for ages. Royal is co-captain of the varsity football team. Past that, Emily couldn't see what was supposed to be so great about him anyway. Boys are so immature and gross! Emily cast a glance down the nearly empty hallway towards the stairwell. The afternoon light cast from the window was gloomy and gray. The rain for now seemed to have let up. A drab, boreal mist replaced the rain. From Emily's perspective, the gray haze obscured most of the outside world. She zipped her jacket up tightly and shrugged, trying to seem indifferent about having to spend this first night of freedom alone doing homework.
"Tomorrow sounds good I guess." She replied. "I'll meet you there around four, okay? Well...hope your game doesn't get rained out!"
The gloom and misty bleakness of fall threatened to devour Emily Franzen in a single bone-chilling gulp. The beautiful 18 year old senior exited the school through a side door and stepped out across the faculty parking lot in the direction of her house.
"Sheesh, it's so cold out!" She muttered through her teeth. "Wish I would have brought my umbrella—or a sweater!"
With a trembling fist, Emily bunched up the front of her windbreaker. She readjusted the load in her book bag and scrambled down two different side streets before veering off to the right down another.
About a block and a half away from her house, the rain started. Enormous splashes of freezing cold rain fell from the overcast sky, soaking Emily's hair and clothes. As she jogged through the worst of it, the icy water formed several puddles on the sidewalks and sloshed over Emily's shoes. She silently cursed herself for choosing to wear knee socks instead of tights to school today. The wind and rain blew up underneath her dress, delivering a kiss of cruel, chilly air across the backs of her bare thighs.
At last Emily made it home! Never before had she been so glad to see that cozy brick two-story house with the large front porch. The other day, her mother set a few potted mums out on the porch. Their vibrant orange and gold petals added a bit of welcome warmth. Emily cracked a smile now as she ran up the porch steps and dropped her book bag to fish out her house key.
"Oh no! Where is it?" Emily gasped. "Don't tell me I've lost my key! I made sure I had it with me this morning!"
The low-grade panic Emily experienced quickly gave way to full blown horror and despair. She emptied her book bag on the porch, not caring that some of her belongings were starting to get wet. She pulled her pencil bag out now, dumping out the contents and scattering things everywhere. Inside there were a few ink pens, a pencil, her favorite lip gloss, and a small hairbrush. Her house key was nowhere to be found. The beautiful senior snatched up the nearly empty book bag. She tossed her English notebook aside and discovered some loose change, but no key. There were a couple dimes and a nickel. Emily fished these out from the bottom of the bag and thought about what to do next.
She could probably use the dimes to call someone, but she'd need to find a pay phone. For what seemed like several minutes, Emily stood there on the porch, staring in the general direction of the nearest street corner and wondering what to do next.
"I guess I'm not too far from the shopping center." She muttered softly.
Calloway Shopping Center was within a reasonable walking distance, Emily figured. There were a few pay phones outside the Woolworth's. If she hurried, maybe she could get a hold of Heidi's parents and ask them to come pick her up. By the looks of things, that football game isn't likely to start anytime soon! Emily shoved her belongings back into her book bag. With another gusty sigh, she stepped off the porch and headed down the street in the direction of the Calloway Shopping Center.
She stopped for a minute or so and stared up at the sky while the darkened gray clouds rolled along. The icy deluge persisted. Huge cold drops of water splashed Emily's face and soaked her hair and clothes. But out of the corner of her eye, she saw a familiar sight rolling into view. It was a car, a Plymouth Satellite sedan. And inside that shiny red car was a woman wearing a light colored coat and a rain bonnet.
"Emily Franzen? What a surprise to see you!"
