* * *
As they walked out of the wind and into the school, Sam kept his arm tightly around Josie, and David concentrated on helping Aldys. Josie was dazed and weak, but she realized that Sam was practically carrying her as she helplessly leaned into him. Just inside the front door, Sam helped Josie to a bench and gently released her to set her down. She still looked pale and he could see that her arm was hurting her by the way she held it to her side. Sam would never have used the word "fragile" to describe Josie, but he marveled at how light and delicate she seemed as she had relaxed into his strong grip.
Aldys sat down next to Josie. They were all out of breath and all three were concerned about the way Josie looked and acted. Aldys turned to look at her friend. She had never seen Josie look so pale and disoriented.
"Josie, is your arm hurting you?" she asked kindly, putting her hand softly on Josie's other shoulder.
Aldys' voice helped bring Josie to her senses. She suddenly realized that they were all worried about her.
"N-n-no, I'm fine - I just um, I just felt a little light-headed for a minute. My arm's okay - I think maybe I should have eaten something earlier." She smiled a little at Aldys and glanced at Sam. She realized that Sam looked even more concerned than the others.
"Just sit there for a minute, Josie. I'll get you something to eat." Sam said and was off for the teacher's lounge to get Josie some crackers and soda before she could even respond. He was almost beside himself with worry and welcomed the opportunity to do something to help her.
Part of Josie's light-headedness had to do with being so close to Sam so his departure helped her regain her composure somewhat. She looked at Aldys and David. They looked a little wind-blown, especially their hair. Other than that they looked pretty close to normal.
"You guys�please don't worry about me. I feel better now. How are you, Aldys? You fell into the car, didn't you?" She was concerned about her friend and wanted to change the focus of the conversation.
"I'm fine, Josie." She said it and looked at David. It was obvious that David and Sam were fine, just shaken and worried about Josie.
"David landed on top of me, but I didn't get too squished and my glasses aren't broken so I'm pretty much okay - I know I broke Dave's fall so he's all right," she teased.
David rolled his eyes. "Sorry, Aldys; I just lost my balance. I didn't mean to put the 'moves' on you or anything." All three giggled at the idea of David attacking Aldys.
As Sam walked back with a pack of crackers and an orange soda, he could see they were all smiling and thankfully the color had returned to Josie's cheeks. He opened the soda and handed it to her.
"Here, Josie, drink some of this and eat some crackers." He opened the pack of crackers and gave them to her as well.
"Thank you. I feel much better now. Please don't worry about me - any of you." She looked at Sam. "I think I'm ready to go finish up the Prom music now." She couldn't believe how kind and caring Sam had been to her.
"No, Josie, you eat the crackers and drink that and then we'll see," Sam said forcefully. He still felt guilty about the fact that she'd bruised her arm so badly while protecting him. He could see that she could move her arm now, so that was a relief. At least she hadn't broken it and she was starting to look much better, he realized.
Josie obediently sipped her soda and nibbled on her cheese crackers. She was amazed by Sam's thoughtfulness and caring nature. All three of them were happy to see that Josie looked more like herself now. Josie felt embarrassed by all the attention as she regained her strength.
Sam looked at the three of them and glanced outside. The wind had lessened but it was still definitely blowing. He still had some significant concerns about Josie.
"Can I give you three a ride home? I, um, I don't want any of you driving by yourselves in this weather," Sam offered.
"Thanks, Mr. Coulson, but my dad is picking David and I up on his way home from work - around 6:15, " Aldys said. Then she added, "He can give you a ride home too, Josie, if you want."
They all looked at Josie again. She really did look much better now, Sam realized, but he wasn't about to let her go home alone.
"Thank you all - I have a ride and I don't want your dad to go so far out of his way, Aldys. I'm supposed to meet my er�friend, Rob, here after his team meeting at 6:30 and he's dropping me off." She noticed that Sam looked a little disappointed and Josie regretted not being able to ride alone with Sam, but she'd already made her arrangements with Rob.
Sam persisted. "Okay, but if Rob feels uncomfortable driving, I'd be happy to take him home, too," he offered. "I suffered through more than one hurricane during my time at Yale, so I know how to drive in this kind of stuff. I'll be in my classroom until 7:00. If any of your rides don't work out come get me, all right?"
They all nodded.
"Promise me you'll do that," he insisted, looking at Josie in particular. He felt a twinge of jealousy about her riding with Rob even though he sensed they were just friends. He had never actually spoken to Rob and saw this as an opportunity to find out exactly what was going on between Rob and Josie.
"I promise," she nodded looking him in the eye. "I'm ready to finish boxing the Prom music now. Thanks again for the soda and crackers - I feel a lot better," she smiled at Sam reassuringly.
Sam was trying not to think about how it felt to hold her in his arms. But now that he knew she was all right and the worry was subsiding, he was feeling an unbelievable yearning to have her close to him again. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down and return to more rational thoughts. Although he was usually a very easygoing person, lately he had felt like he was on an emotional Ferris wheel, in danger of spinning out of control at any moment. He had never felt so attracted and attached to anyone before and although it was an amazing feeling, at times it scared him to death.
"Are you sure you feel up to it Josie? Because I can finish from here on if you don't."
"I'm fine, really and I want to help you finish, if it's okay." She looked at him and thought again about how thoughtful and kind he'd been to all of them. She'd never met anyone quite as wonderful as Sam. He really was the sweetest man she'd ever known.
"We have time before my dad gets here, so we'll help too," Aldys offered, breaking into Josie's thoughts. David nodded his agreement.
They all walked to Sam's classroom and worked quietly and finished boxing the CD's. Josie noticed that Sam kept glancing at her and he smiled when she met his gaze. After about fifteen minutes it became obvious that they had completed their task.
At that point Aldys said, "Well David and I'd better go out front now. My dad will be here soon. See you later, Josie. Bye, Mr. Coulson. Thanks for dinner and everything."
Sam thanked the two of them again and they said their goodbyes. He and Josie were alone again in his classroom and he didn't know quite what to say or where to look. They were both quiet. She pretended to study the box of albums they'd already looked through, because now that they were alone she was afraid to look into his eyes.
"I guess we're pretty much finished," he said nervously, glancing at her. "I really appreciate this, Josie. I guess you have to meet Rob soon, right?" He looked at the clock on the wall, then the floor.
She looked at her watch. "Yes, I need to meet him in about 20 minutes, more or less. He's usually late, though."
Sam swallowed, "I meant what I said - I, I'd be happy to give both of you a ride if you'd feel more comfortable or if Rob would with this wind and all�"
"That's really nice of you. I'll check with Rob and see," she said quietly. "You said you were staying until 7:00?" she asked.
"Yes, I do have to be here until then. Why? Do you have somewhere you need to be, Josie?"
"No one is waiting for me except my turtles, if that's what you mean." Josie replied, not able to keep the wistful sound out of her voice.
Sam looked at her, thinking how much he envied those turtles.
She continued, "And Rob's just dropping me off on his way to his friend's house." She was thinking about taking him up on his offer and seriously considering telling him everything about herself and about Rob.
Sam felt a need to explain what was going on, "The reason I have to stay until 7:00 is that my friend's wife is supposed to drop off a key for me, so I'm waiting here for her. I'm moving in with them for the summer at the beginning of next week."
Josie looked at him and hesitated, but then couldn't stop herself from asking, "Oh, um � I thought you were moving to New York?"
"No." Sam said it firmly. "I'm not going to move to New York. I'm staying here in Chicago." He noticed that Josie looked like she couldn't quite understand what he was saying. Her eyes were open wide and she stood there staring at him for a moment.
For her part, Josie was overwhelmed with hope and joy. Suddenly she was afraid to say anything because she was conscious of the camera. She felt in her heart that Sam did have feelings for her, especially after she had heard the Reba McEntire tape in his car.
If he had seen her skate to the Reba McEntire music, she realized he had to have been watching her for more than two hours, not just a few minutes. That meant he had spent close to three hours watching her! When that realization had hit Josie, she was completely floored. She couldn't imagine him watching her that long unless he was interested in her somehow. But she still wondered about Lara. She knew she could never compete with someone so perfect and so confident. Maybe there really were problems in that relationship, just as Anita had suggested. And perhaps Sam was feeling at least a little of what she was feeling towards him.
She felt that the time was right to be honest with him and take her chances. First she knew she needed to get rid of the camera so that she wouldn't lose her job. Looking at Sam, Josie suddenly knew what she wanted to do.
"Excuse me for a minute - I have to go to the Ladies' Room," she said, he voice wavering, trying to get up her nerve.
"Oh, sure, I'll just finish up here," he replied. He watched Josie as she left the room, and couldn't help but feel that something important was about to happen.
Josie went to the restroom and removed her wings camera as usual when she went in the stall. Only this time she 'accidentally' turned it off and put it away. She figured she'd tell Gus she'd forgotten to put it back on and that nothing had happened anyway.
Josie looked at herself in the mirror and brushed her hair then took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. She figured she'd just tell him the truth about her assignment and her age first and beg him to forgive her. Then if he reacted positively, she'd tell him about her feelings for him. She closed her eyes for a moment and held on to the sink and tried to think positive thoughts.
* * *
Sam had finished boxing up the albums and CD's they weren't going to use. He heard the door open behind him and he heard her footsteps, but something was different about the way she walked. She was walking faster, more purposefully, he sensed.
He suddenly realized she was walking directly towards him, only she wasn't stopping. His heart was pounding as he felt her touch him and put her arms around him. He froze momentarily, but he knew he couldn't resist her or hesitate anymore. He felt something was not quite right, though. He nervously turned to face her and take her in his arms.
And then he slowly opened his eyes.
Only it wasn't Josie who had her arms around him.
It was Lara.
* * *
At that moment, Josie mustered the nerve to turn the knob and go into Sam's classroom. She closed her eyes and said slowly and deliberately, "I have something important to tell you that I hope you will understand�"
She stopped suddenly, sensing that Sam was not alone. She realized he was standing in front of her, holding Lara in his arms. As he turned his head to look at her, Josie assumed that Sam's angry expression was a response to her interruption of a private moment with his girlfriend. And strangely enough, Lara looked like she was about to burst out laughing.
Josie stopped in her tracks, involuntarily covering her mouth with her hand. " Oh, please excuse me, I didn't realize you were busy� I'm going now," she managed to sputter. She winced in pain as, in her haste to get out of there, away from the vision of Sam holding Lara in his arms, she misjudged the distance and bumped her injured arm against the door. She composed herself enough to grit her teeth and walk out of the room before either Sam or Lara could respond. Josie felt completely humiliated.
Sam felt like he was in the middle of his worst nightmare.
A dazed, defeated Josie managed somehow to make it to the front door of the school. She was having difficulty breathing and felt like she needed to get air, to get away. She was in so much shock she didn't see a young dark-haired woman come in the front door and they almost collided.
"Excuse me," Josie gasped.
It was Jonathan's wife, Joanna, dropping by on her way home from work to give Sam the key to her house. Joanna recognized her and immediately sensed that Josie was extremely upset about something.
"Josie, right?" Joanna began.
Josie nodded.
"Hi, I'm Joanna Richards - Sam's friend - he's moving in with my husband and me for the summer. I saw you across the store in Home Depot with your mom a week ago. Anyway, I'm bringing him the key to our house." Joanna thought Josie looked like she might faint.
"Josie, are you okay?" Joanna also noticed her badly bruised arm and the way she was rubbing it.
Josie swallowed trying desperately to control her emotions. "I feel a little dizzy - I uh� just think I need some air. I bumped my arm and this has been an awful day."
Joanna took her by the hand and walked her outside and sat her down on a bench. It was still windy and cold. She could see that Josie was trembling, but she didn't think it was from the cold.
"Josie, what's wrong?" Joanna asked kindly. She could tell the girl was making a valiant effort to control her emotions.
"N-n -nothing. I made a complete fool of myself, that's all. I feel better now. Th-thanks for helping me." She tried to smile at Joanna.
"Is Sam here? Does he know you're upset?" Joanna had the feeling that somehow this involved Sam, and that feeling was confirmed as she saw tears form now in Josie's eyes at the mention of his name.
"He, he- he's with his girlfriend, L-L-L- Lara," she managed to say, "In his classroom�room 214."
"Lara's here!?" Joanna looked upset too now. "Why that stinking little witch!" she said before she had time to think about what she was saying.
Josie looked shocked. Had Sam's friend just called Lara a witch? Had she heard that right? She felt so confused.
Joanna saw the look on Josie's face and put her out of her misery. "I can't stand, Lara," she confided. "I think she's the worst thing that ever happened to Sam. I'm sure he didn't invite her here."
Josie blushed furiously, remembering what she had seen. "I um�I walked in on them - they were uh hugging - I think she may have surprised him, but he was hugging her, s-s-so I don't think he was unhappy about it. I um� Well - I was so embarrassed - I feel like such a fool bursting in on them like that. He looked really furious at me," Josie said miserably.
She was glad now though that she hadn't blurted out the truth to Sam and Lara. Thank God she'd opened her eyes in time, she thought to herself.
Joanna was about to explain that Sam had broken up with Lara and was most likely angry at her for being there, but she didn't get a chance as she noticed a cute guy in a baseball uniform walking up to them. He looked genuinely concerned about Josie and immediately sat down and put his arm around her.
"What's wrong, Jose?" He looked at Joanna. "Hi, I'm Rob - You two must be freezing!" He took off his jacket and wrapped it around Josie, trying to warm her. He looked at Joanna and smiled teasingly, "You can have my shirt if you want it�"
"No, no, thanks anyway I'm fine, don't take your shirt off!" He was starting to unbutton it. "I'm Joanna - we just came out for a little air," she explained, not wanting to embarrass Josie further. 'What a sweet gesture,' she thought to herself with an amused smile.
"I was going to give Josie a ride home. Can I give you a ride, too?" he asked kindly looking at Joanna. He kind of squinted at her when he smiled, she noticed. She thought he was unbelievably nice and thoughtful towards both of them. 'Wow, what a sweet, cute guy' she thought to herself. 'A little goofy too, but adorably goofy.'
Joanna smiled at him. "No thanks, Rob. I have to drop something off with a friend of mine here, Mr. Coulson." She noticed Rob nodding and looking at Josie with that squint again. "It was really nice meeting you and you too, Josie." She wished she could have explained things to Josie, but it looked like Rob would take good care of her. She wondered if Sam knew about Rob.
Josie looked at Joanna. "Nice meeting you too, Joanna. You were so nice to help me. Thank you."
"You are so welcome, Josie. I'm sure I'll see you again very soon. Bye Rob." Joanna smiled as they got up and started walking to their car. Rob waved goodbye to her and squinted that squint again. And Josie smiled a little, she noticed.
Rob had his arm wrapped around Josie as he practically carried her to the Buick. Joanna could tell that Rob cared a great deal about the young woman. She wondered if Sam realized that they were this close. And Rob seemed awfully mature for a high school student she realized - mature and very attractive. 'Snap out of it, you're a married woman!' she said to herself, shaking her head with a smile as she turned to go in the school.
* * *
After she and Rob got into her Buick, Josie looked in her glove compartment and found a couple of grungy napkins to dry her eyes with. 'Rob sure didn't waste any time messing up my car,' she thought to herself, 'but he is a good brother,' she realized. It was certainly nice to have someone to lean on when everything went wrong.
"Josie, what is it, why are you crying? I thought everything was going our way!" Rob looked at her perplexed.
At that moment, Josie burst into tears. "I was going to tell Sam� Mr. Coulson, the truth about everything and I walked in and he was hugging his girlfriend!" Josie sobbed.
"Wait, Josie, what? Why would you tell him the truth? Mr. Coulson has a girlfriend? You mean Joanna?" Now Rob was confused. He couldn't have been mistaken about the way Mr. Coulson had stared at his sister. There was no doubt in his mind about that one.
"Yes, he has a girlfriend - not Joanna, she's his friend's wife. I walked in on him and his girlfriend, and almost made a total ass of myself, throwing myself at him in front of her�and now he's angry with me and probably hates me," Josie said miserably. "His girlfriend's name is Lara and she lives in New York and she's perfect and tall and everything I'm not."
"No way!" he sputtered. Rob was shocked that Josie had feelings for Mr. Coulson. But knew for sure that Mr. Coulson had feelings for Josie. He knew he wasn't wrong about that either. This was a roadblock Rob hadn't anticipated, but Rob was a problem solver and he knew what his mission was.
"What have I missed here, Josie? Two weeks ago you were miserable because you weren't popular and couldn't get your story. Now you're one of the most popular girls in school - you're a cinch to be voted to the Prom Court and with my secret plan, you are guaranteed to be Prom Queen. You are a new woman and you're even, well - attractive - and you have everything you need to get your story." She started to question him, but he held up a hand.
"Wait, let me finish. Guy is taking you to the Prom. He thinks you're fantastic - he's even writing a song for you. He absolutely raves about you. He's eighteen, Josie and a nice guy - for the time being you need to focus on him or you'll blow the whole thing. Listen to me here, you need to give Guy some attention, at least until the Prom. You at least like him don't you?"
Josie nodded. "I do like him, Rob. He's very sweet, but�"
"No buts, Josie. I'm telling you what you need to do or you'll ruin this for both of us. I haven't steered you wrong yet. You don't have to have sex with Guy or anything�" Josie made a face of horror of the mention of sex with Guy. "I mean it, Jos� You do have to be nice to him. And I don't care what you walked in on� Mr. Coulson is crazy about you! But - and this is a big but here, Josie - you have to forget about Mr. Coulson for the time being and you cannot - do you hear me? - You cannot tell him the truth yet! He's nuts about you! He'll understand when this is all over�" He saw Josie shaking her head.
"Josie, I'm a guy, trust me. I've watched Mr. Coulson looking at you. He's totally in love with you. I've never seen anything like it. I didn't want to say anything because I knew you wouldn't believe me and I didn't know how you felt. You hide it much better than he does. I had no idea that you liked him that way, too�" He trailed off as he saw her frowning. "What?"
"But Rob, I saw him hugging his girlfriend and he looked really angry at me�"
"I'm sure that whatever you saw is not what you think it was. Have I been wrong yet?" When she didn't answer right away, Rob pressed, "Well, have I?"
"No," she admitted. "But they were hugging each other and . . ."
"Are you sure he was hugging her and it wasn't some sort of goodbye thing or something more on her part than his? Or maybe it's just sex." He saw her shocked look. "Josie, in the real world guys need sex, maybe that's all it is. He's just using her for sex� That has to be it!"
"Not Sam, I mean Mr. Coulson. He's not like that. He's a wonderful person, he wouldn't use anybody," she defended.
"He's a guy, Josie, and it's not like you're giving him any." She punched him in the arm at that one. Rob was not to be deterred. "Josie, who could blame him?" She gave him a dirty look.
"Quit scowling at me, Josephine. When this is all over you can tell him you're twenty-five and have sex and everything will be fine� really you'll be a new woman and he'll forget about whoever she is."
"Rob, I'm not going to have sex with anyone until I meet the right person, and I think you have to really get to know someone in order to be certain they're the one. When you find the right person you'll know it and you'll feel this way, too� like you were meant for each other and you have to be together no matter what. I think, no - I thought that Mr. Coulson might be the right one for me and I wanted to tell him the truth about everything so we could get to know each other honestly and then see what might happen. I'm not just going to jump into bed with him right away. I can't believe you think like that. I'm sure that he doesn't think that way."
"Josie, you had better prepare yourself� He's in love with you already, but he's a guy and when he finds out you're twenty-five, he's going to expect you to have sex with him or he's going to find it somewhere else. Those are the rules."
Josie rolled her eyes. "Those are your rules Rob, not Mr. Coulson's. And I think you should get some new rules because you might miss finding the right person while you're having sex with all the wrong ones. I can't believe you are saying that� Honestly, Rob!"
Rob smirked and squinted at her. "It's universal, Josie, like the law of the jungle. Whatever, I think you need to focus, remember you told me to focus? Well you need to focus now on your story and Guy Perkins. He won't expect you to have sex right away, since he's younger. Quit frowning at me! Forget about Mr. Coulson for the time being! He's not going anywhere and maybe when the truth comes out he'll understand and everything will be fine. But if it isn't, then he's not the right person�and that's by your rules, too. What's the matter now? You look sad again. I promise you, Josie, he's not going to let you get away, not the way that man looks at you. Maybe he'll even wait for you, like you say."
Josie was still doubtful. She and Rob had totally misread everything about Sam's feelings, she decided. At least she hadn't told Sam she loved him or that she was a reporter. For all he knew, she was still seventeen. 'How could he be interested in me, anyway?' she thought miserably to herself, not really listening to Rob now.
She felt that to survive now, she had to face facts. She'd faced things before and moved on, she knew she could do it again. Sam had a girlfriend. Lara was probably moving to Chicago, she thought miserably. Maybe he could be her friend someday, but nothing more. She couldn't hate him. After all, it wasn't his fault that she had an overactive imagination. Why, she wondered, did she ever believe that she could read signals from a gorgeous man like Sam? She felt like the biggest fool�losing what she never had in the first place. And that angry look on Sam's face had shaken her to the core. He was obviously totally out of her league, no matter what Rob or anybody else said.
As Rob started the car and they pulled into traffic, she told herself that Rob was right about one thing: her first priority had to be getting her story. She was thinking about how going back to high school had helped her find herself, although with what had just happened she felt like she was back to where she started eight years ago with Billy Prince. At least Sam and Lara hadn't thrown eggs at her, so maybe that was a little progress, although this had hurt Josie much more than Billy Prince ever had.
Josie realized that the only way to accomplish her goals would be to concentrate on what brought her to South Glen South in the first place: getting a chance to be a reporter and getting her story. She looked at Rob fondly. No matter what, she knew she could count on Rob, even if he did live by some weird rules.
* * *
As Sam watched frozen in horror, a panic-stricken Josie ran out of the room. Lara couldn't resist sneering, "Looks like I arrived just in time to keep things from spiraling out of control, huh Sam? Tsk, tsk. Josie did look awful, though, didn't she?"
Sam came to his senses and angrily pushed her away. He was totally crushed. "Goddamnit, Lara�get out! We have absolutely nothing to talk about!"
"I came all the way to Chicago to try to make it up to you, Sam," she purred, laying a hand over his heart. "After five years, can't you just give us one more chance? She's not your type anyway." She laughed derisively. "Did you see how clumsy she was?" Lara laughed again, thinking that there was no way that girl could be considered competition. "I think you owe me some consideration here, Sam."
Lara snaked a manicured hand across his arm. He shook her off, moving away. Just being close to her made him feel sick.
"I don't think I owe you anything, Lara. I'd rather be alone than be with you!"
"So, have you slept with her yet, Sam?" Lara took his deathly glare to mean no. "I mean, really�I have so much more to offer you than she does! Can't you see that?"
Sam had had enough. Taking a hold of Lara's arm, he gave her a little shove toward the doorway. "Get the hell out of my classroom!"
Lara's expression turned spiteful. "You'll regret this, Sam! How could you go after such an obvious loser, anyway?"
"The only loser here is me�for having stayed so long with you! Now leave!!"
Lara turned on her high heels and marched out, slamming the door behind her. All Sam could think of was Josie. 'What had she wanted to tell him?' he wondered. He felt miserable knowing he'd hurt her again, albeit inadvertently. Regardless, he still felt overwhelmed with sadness and despair. He winced remembering the look on her face as she bumped her arm and left.
Lara, in contrast, was quite pleased with herself. She went into the restroom to touch up her makeup and fix her hair. She could still make it for Happy Hour with some of the attractive well-to-do men that she'd met that day at work, she realized, admiring her reflection in the mirror. And she'd managed to put a damper on Sam's little 'relationship'. She actually had to be in Chicago on business, so she figured the least she could do was ruin Sam's day. Seeing Josie and upsetting her like that had been a bonus. She hadn't really thought that Sam would get back with her, but it was worth a try since she had to be in town anyway.
She was debating whether or not to call Josie, but she figured by the look on the girl's face she wouldn't be having any warm and fuzzy feelings about Sam anytime soon. 'Yes,' Lara thought to herself, 'she'd had quite a productive day so far.' She was smiling to herself as she rounded the corner in the hallway leading up to the school entrance. To her surprise, she met face to face with Joanna.
"Joanna, darling, so nice to see you!" Lara smiled, obviously pleased with herself. "Does Jonathan know you're visiting Sam after hours?" she asked pointedly.
"Lara, go make somebody else's life miserable and leave Sam alone. He deserves much better than you. Why don't you just go back to your precious New York and give everybody a break?"
"Don't tell me what to do, Joanna. I'm here on business - I'll do whatever I want and go wherever I please! I should have known you'd be in favor of Sam's pathetic little teenage romance!"
"Does your boss know you're here harassing Sam, Lara? I could call him and tell him you're making a jackass out of yourself here in Chicago bothering your ex-boyfriend, how would that be? Is your boss paying for this little excursion, hmmm, Lara?"
"You wouldn't dare call my firm," Lara sputtered.
"Just try me! Before you even think about bothering Sam or anybody he cares about, you'd better be prepared to deal with me and with Jonathan! What is that thing called that people get, yeah, a restraining order - how would it affect your job and reputation if Sam were to take out a restraining order against you? Believe me, I'd be behind him 100% on that one, Lara! I think I'll suggest it to him right now!"
Lara glared at Joanna and stuck her nose in the air as she stomped out of the school. Joanna could tell though that she had Lara thinking about her threats. Lara didn't look nearly so smug and confident as she had a moment ago. She also realized that Lara had aged quite a bit since their last meeting. 'Probably related to her drinking and mean disposition,' Joanna thought to herself. 'She sure can't hold a candle to Josie.'
Joanna started walking to Sam's classroom. She knocked quietly on the door and opened it. Sam sat slumped at his desk, his head in his hands: the picture of dejection.
"Oh, Sam. I'm so sorry, are you okay?" Joanna asked, concerned about how he looked.
"Hi Joanna. I'm okay. I'm just worried about Josie. She hurt her arm earlier, and then she walked in on me and Lara and hurt it again. Lara was clawing me at the time and I think Josie misunderstood what was happening."
"Oh God Sam, how awful! Actually I saw Josie on her way out."
Sam was alert now. "You saw Josie - was she okay?" Now Joanna could see what Jonathan had meant about Sam. He was hopelessly in love with this girl.
Joanna looked at Sam and sighed. She felt so sorry for him. "She wasn't okay at first Sam - she was pretty upset - she was hyperventilating and a little dizzy. And I think she may have been in pain from her arm." Sam cringed.
"I took her outside and sat her down for a few minutes and then she felt better. I think she was kind of in shock at first, Sam, but then she insisted that she was okay. She seemed most upset about you being angry at her." Sam shook his head in dismay. "She said you looked like you were really mad at her."
"I was angry at Lara, not Josie. I was afraid that she misunderstood that. Oh God!"
Joanna looked at Sam and hesitated. She knew he wasn't going to like what she had to say next. "I have to tell you this, Sam. A young man named Rob came up to us and he seemed to genuinely care about her. He was really sweet and kind to her. He seemed very mature for a high school student. He put his arm around her and gave her his jacket and walked her to his car. They seemed to have a close relationship - more like a bond between them and she seemed to really trust him. I was really impressed with both of them." She noticed Sam's wounded look. "I liked her a lot - she's a really sweet person, Sam. I could tell that she cares a lot about you, too, (she noticed him brighten at that) by the way she talked about seeing you with Lara. It's a shame that Lara is so mean and spiteful; that she can't leave you alone."
"Josie was about to tell me something important. Did she say anything about that to you?" Sam looked at her hopefully.
"No, she didn't, but she did tell me she thought she was an idiot and she told me you were in the classroom hugging Lara, when she interrupted you - that's why she thought you were angry." Sam looked close to tears at that one.
"Oh, by the way, Sam, I ran into Lara too and I told her I'd suggest you get a restraining order against her. If you want me to help with that I'd be glad to. She shouldn't be allowed to harass you like this! I think she was a little taken aback when I threatened her!"
"Thanks, Jo. I appreciate the support," Sam sighed heavily. "Lara didn't see Josie again did she?"
"No, Sam, Josie had left with Rob by then and he was taking care of her. And you know I could tell that Josie is a really sensitive person - she was really shaking at first as upset as she was, but she still was polite and thoughtful to me. I think you can tell a lot about a person when you see how they cope with a tough situation. She wasn't angry or lashing out or anything like that. It was like she was blaming herself for . . . something - walking in on you, I guess. Does she know you broke up with Lara?"
"No, I mean I haven't told her that directly. I told her mother that I was going to do it and I had just told Josie that I'm not moving to New York. She went out for a minute and when she came back in she was saying she had to tell me something important, but then she saw Lara pawing me and she left. The timing of it couldn't have been worse," Sam finished helplessly.
"And you can't really explain things to her because she's your student - oh, Sam, I am so sorry. Is there anything I can do? Talk to her for you maybe? I really liked her Sam."
"Thanks, Jo, but I think I have to be the one to tell her the truth about how I feel. I just hope she doesn't already hate me Josie is such a wonderful person�" he said sadly.
"Sam, that girl couldn't hate anybody - she blames herself, not you. She said she felt embarrassed and foolish. If I had to guess I think she was about to tell you how she feels about you, when she saw you with Lara and figured there was no point to it."
Sam looked a little hopeful at that. "Josie said she hoped I would understand whatever it was, I just hope she'll understand how much I love her and that I never wanted to hurt her."
Joanna decided to level with Sam and tell him her opinion. "I think you and Josie have to both get to the point where you can tell each other the truth about everything. If you don't do that soon, I don't think there will be much hope for a relationship. After meeting Josie and seeing her reaction to you and Lara, I don't think you can wait much longer to tell her. I disagree with Jon on that Sam. I don't think you can afford to wait. At least tell her that you have broken up with Lara and that you'll wait for her to graduate, but that you want a relationship with her. Maybe tell her that you aren't trying to pressure her, but just let her know how things are. I think if you hurt her any more she'll withdraw from you and you'll lose her for good. That would be a shame because I think you both care about each other so much."
"I know what I need to do," Sam said definitely. I just hope I'm not too late."
To be continued�