Go cheap

You glance at Brian and he shakes his head, his look clearly indicating that the restaurants are out of his budget, as they are yours.

"Some place cheaper," you tell the cabbie, who nods and drives further into a more mundane commercial part of town. He pulls up in front of a older looking diner and stops the meter.

"Don't look like much, but the food is good. Try the burgers or the meatloaf," he advises as you get out of the cab.

The place has a worn look, but it smells great. You sit in a booth and a portly waitress hustles over with water and menus. You order burgers and coffee and take your first real looks at each other. You've been in each other's company for a few hours, fucking the hapless Valerie, but somehow it seems you're looking at him for the first time.

He's tall and lean and athletic, handsome in a hawkish way. He seems to be constantly slightly on edge, as though waiting for something to happen.

"You were a ballplayer before you were a teacher," you say.

"Yeah. In college and two years in the minors," he agrees. "Washed out. This is my first job as a teacher. Not how I expected it to go."

"Surprised me too. Things kind of got away from us. But we should be ok, if I'm reading her and what I've heard correctly."

"You've been teaching a while?"

"Just got back into it. I've been working as a labourer for a few years. I had some trouble and started drinking heavily. Got fired a few times, and couldn't get work. This was a chance to get back into it," you sigh. "Maybe I'd have been better off staying a labourer."

"I'm just starting out, but it seems to me that if you love something and you can get back to it, you're crazy not to."

"Like you're still getting back to baseball?"

"I would if I could. But that chance got taken away. It was tough to move on, but I think I can do this."

"You handled young Valerie pretty well," you laugh.

He looks surprised for a moment, then grins. "It was kind of fun. Hell it was a lot of fun. Just not what I expected."

You laugh as the burgers arrive, the stocky waitress fussing as she puts them down. You're just picking yours up when a woman's voice breaks your concentration.

"Excuse me for butting in, but are you guys from up at the school? Pink Rose Academy I mean?"