"So Miss. UNC Grad. what part of North Carolina are you from?" Justin takes a long swig of his Pepsi and gives me a lopsided, lazy grin. We've been sitting I this booth at a local sandwich shop for the last 25 minutes talking, about random things. It's great getting to know him.

"Actually, I'm from New York, but I left for school. I just never went back." I shake my head and reply. "I really love it there."

"So... why did you leave and how'd you end up here?" He raises an eyebrow at me. "This isn't exactly a place people go searching for."

I laugh, it is a valid question. Suddenly uprooting from a place I obviously loved, to jump halfway across the country to the middle of no-where Tennessee. He's right though, this definitely isn't a place you'd imagine people would search out. Memphis, yea. Nashville, sure. But somewhere in the middle... po-dunk towns with no claim to fame aren't any kind of mecca for people to pray to.

I've often wondered myself why this was the place I picked to flee to, however that's another topic for another day... maybe. Right now I just have to come up with a passable answer.

"I don't know. I suppose I just went where there was a job." I shrug and reach for my Diet Coke.

"There weren't any jobs closer to home?" He asks.

"Well, there were... but I took graduation as an opportunity to try something new." I can tell he's mulling that over and it seems to pass whatever test he had for it, but just to be safe. "My family's still in New York, and my friends all took off too so I opted for something different."

"A kindred spirit huh?" He grins, "I like it. Adventurous. I hope we're all you're looking for."

"So... what about you?" I ask. I'm suddenly very happy about my slightly neurotic ambition to settle in at school so early. I really like Justin. And no, it's not that I want to date him or anything, although he seems to be a pretty amazing (and pretty hot) guy. I just really appreciate his warm welcome.

"I'm a native." He shrugs with that lopsided grin of his. "It's all I've ever known. But I like it, for the most part. I pretty much know everyone and yea its a little strange because I'm working with some of my old teachers but its comfortable. I'm not quite as daring as you." He chuckles.

"To each his own. And it must be nice, having everyone you know so close, you're probably married to your high school girlfriend... two point five children living the American Dream." I smile.

He holds up his left hand and waves it in the air. "Nope.Not me. " He replies. "You have pretty much all my best buddies pegged though. My high-school girlfriend literally ran off to Hollywood to 'find herself.'" He added the air quotes for good measure, before continuing. "and in a place like this you don't get to many new faces so..." he trails off and shrugs his shoulders.

"Ahh." I nod, pretending to know what he's talking about. For a moment the conversation lulled and I hoped I hadn't said anything wrong but then he smiled and spoke again.

"so second grade hmm?" He asks, rubbing his hands on a napkin and crumpling the sandwich wrapper into a ball. I wanted to laugh when he started tossing it from hand to hand.

"Yup." It wasn't much of an answer but then again, his question wasn't much of a question.

"Truth be told, and I know we're not supposed to pick favorites... but I really love that age." He leans back, tossing the wrapper in the air and trying to catch it but it ended up hitting the edge of the table and rolling across the floor. His face broke into that lopsided, only now slightly embarrassed, grin again and he stood up and ambled over to grab it and toss it in the garbage, taking my trash too.

He sat back down across from me, "I've been teaching second since I got here, but they needed someone in third and they asked me to take it. I didn't necessarily want to but they managed to convince me." He chuckled and I wondered what was so funny. "I guess you're my replacement."

"I guess so." I smiled.

"Well, you ready to get going? I know you've got one helluva mess to tackle." He was already standing, keys in hand and grinning at me. When I looked up at him he winked.

"Hey...shut up." I smiled and reached for my purse before standing up.

"shut up." he mocked me before waving his hands in a gesture towards the door.

Another twenty minutes later, we're standing in the hall outside my classroom door.

"So, do you need any help moving anything around? I'm pretty much done down there, it's the same room I've always been in and everything stays the same, except the names on the desks."

"You don't move it around, mix it up from year to year? Just to give yourself a bit of a change?" I ask him. I find it hard to believe that someone like him would be so habitual. He just doesn't seem like he could be so conventional.

Then, it's like he does a complete 180. I hope it wasn't something I said, and I don't think it could have been but his expression changes. His jaw sets and his eyebrows furrow as he steps from foot to foot. "Not often." He pauses and claps his hands together glancing back and forth down the hall quickly before looking back at me. He clears his throat and looks like he's thinking about saying something more, but instead of elaborating on why he just changes the subject.

"So, do you need help?"

"Um, yea I will. Do you want to finish up and just come back when you're done. Give me a chance to figure out where I want everything and clear some room." I laugh lightly and smile at him, hoping to break the unexpected tension that's hanging in the air.

He doesn't answer me right away. He's got this blank look like he's staring into space. "Um. Justin?" I raise my hand up and wave it in front of his face and he shakes his head quickly, and breaks into that predictable grin, although it's slightly less authentic.

"Sorry. What did you say?"

I sigh and laugh, "Just come back here when you're done."

"Right." He nods. "I'll be back."

True to his word, about a half hour later I hear a knock at the door and a now somewhat familiar voice calls my name and in an oddly familiar twist of fate the files in my hands drop to the floor, papers flying everywhere.

"Man, I come in and you become butterfingers. Is this going to become a habit?" He chuckles and walks across the room and bends down to help me put it all back together.

"Only if you plan to keep scaring the crap out of me every five minutes. Damn someone needs to get you a bell or something... you're like a cat."

"Let's just assume that at any given moment I could walk through that door, and you should be ready for it." He smiles and hands me what he's collected as we both stand up. He looks around.

"Wow, you really got it together in here." He says. He's right, compared to where I started I've done a pretty good job getting it all together. There are still some boxes of various things that I haven't figured out what to do with yet, but I do have things up on the walls and a lot of papers filed away. With the exception of the mess he just caused.

"So what are we doing with these desks?" He claps his hands together and looks around.

"What do you do with your room." He proceeds to explain his arrangement and after very little convincing indeed, I tell him to feel free to do what he thinks might work best and if I need to move it later on I'll make sure to get his help, you know, for the grunt work. He is a man after all.

He pushes the last set of desks into a table and then casually sits down on one of them. He looks down at his hands briefly, and then up at me. "Look good?" He asks, who would have thought he would be seeking approval from me.

"Yea." I nod, "I guess, I'll let you know once the kids get in it." I smile and he grins back at me.

"Fair enough." he nods and then looks at his watch. "Well Callie, it was wonderful meeting you today, but I have a date with my suitcase." He smiles and stands up.

I force a smile back at him, although I have to admit that I don't want him to leave me alone here. It's all becoming very real, very fast and he's the only friendly face I have right now. "Alright. Thanks for everything today." I step towards him.

"Well, I'm sure you're foot isn't very thankful."

I laugh and look down. "Pain aside, I'm actually very happy you knocked on my door. I'm not as nervous anymore."

"Good." He nods. "So I guess I'll see you on the First Day." He emphasizes those words and grins at me.

"Yes you will. Provided I don't go into hiding first."

"It's really not that bad. You'll be great, and I'll be right down the hall if you need me."

"Thanks."

He just shakes his head as if to say, 'don't worry about it.'

"Have a great time on your trip. Where are you going? If you don't mind me asking?"

"Florida. I'm taking my younger brothers to Disney World." He smiles.

"That's so sweet." I say.

"Yea, I do it every year and trust me on a teacher's salary thats extremely hard to do. But I'm sure you've anticipated that."

I nod. "Every year? Wow. Aren't you bored of it yet? I mean isn't there only so much mouse you can take?"

"I don't know. They like it. We have a system worked out and it's something to look forward to right before school starts you know? For me and them."

"Ah. Well have fun." Seriously, I can not get this guy figured out. He's flirty and sweet and for the most part he's outgoing and certainly friendly; but at the same time he's very methodical and collected. It's like he's worked out his entire life, right down to the moments he allows himself to let go. It's very strange.

A paradox if ever I've met one. A puzzle I'll probably figure out in one way or another.

"Okay, seriously, I'm going to get going." He says again. "Have a good night and give yourself some time to relax before the big day. Because once it starts, you'll wish you did."

"I'll remember that." I say. "Goodnight Justin."

"Goodnight." He replies and as he walks by me, I feel his hands squeeze my shoulders and I turn my head and watch him walk out the door.

I kind of feel like I'll be seeing a lot of him. And I don't mind a bit.