Checkmate

“What was that all about?” Raven asks me as soon as I step outside.
“Mr. Gaskarth just wanted to know where my black eye came from. I went ahead and told him it was Dad’s doing, but he said he wouldn’t tell anyone because I told him not to.”
“That was it?”
“Well, I kind of made a deal with him.” I start walking down the sidewalk. Raven stands there for a minute before catching up with me.
“What kind of a deal?”
“He’d let me come over to his place to play guitar, and in return, I’ll learn how to play chess to play against him.”
“Jack! You can’t do that! Besides, what if you’re parents found out?”
I stop in my tracks and turn to her. “Raven, you have to help me with this.”
“Why should I help you? This is a stupid idea. You don’t know anything about him.”
“I do know that he seems to care. I know that he must be lonely. I know that he has secrets, but I have them too. Please. You have to help me with this. All you have to do is go out and say you’re with me whenever I go over to his place. Please.”
“Fine. I’ll help you, but if he hurts you in anyway, I will not stand back.”
“You act like we’re dating...”
“Whatever. What time do you want to go over there?”
“I was thinking of Saturday. That way I can stay longer in order to learn chess. I really have no idea how to play. Is it like checkers?”
Raven laughs, and we start walking again. “It’s nothing like checkers. The only thing they have in common is the board that you play them on. I know how to play. I can help you too if you want. I can tell you some strategy that he doesn’t when you actually start playing.”
“That’s sounds like a good idea, and thanks.”
“I guess that I really can’t say no to you. I never have been, and I guess that I never will. Although, I’m going to look this guy up.”
I chuckle. “You’re being like a mom, but I’m fine with it.”
“Good because I’m going to be like a mom to you. I’m just going to be one of the ones that are also friends with their kids like my mom.”
We talk the entire walk and exchange numbers. When I get up to the door of my house, I wave goodbye to her. I open it to find Little Raven waiting for me like always. She follows me as I walk into the kitchen to grab a bottle of water. I see my mom sitting in there reading a book, and she’s not paying any attention to me. I grab a water out of the fridge and just stand there for a second.
Am I really going to do this? Am I really going to lie?
“Hey, Mom?”
Her eyes leave the words on the page to look up at me. “Yes?”
“I was wondering if I could hang with Raven on Saturday.”
She gives me a warm smile. “Oh course you can hang with her on Saturday. I’m sure that you still have a lot of catching up to do and that will help you do it. You can hang with her as much as you like. It brings our families closer together anyway.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
I run up the stairs as fast as I can to get to my room to tell Raven about this and Mr. Gaskarth. I don’t know what it is about him, but it’s like he has me under his spell. It’s weird, but I guess it is normal to be excited about hanging out with a cute guy even if that cute guy is your teacher. When I reach my room, I go inside and shut the door behind me as soon as Little Raven gets inside. I know that no one is going to check on me, but you can never be too sure. I pull out my phone from my pocket and sit down on my bed. Little Raven wants up too, so I pick her up and set her next to me. I decide to text Raven first.

Me:Mom said that I can hang out with you on Saturday.

Raven:OK. I’ll let my mom know where I’m going. I think we should go to the mall.

Me:Sounds like a plan.

It’s probably a good idea that we text like we actually are going to hang. I know that my parents aren’t going to look at my phone, but I don’t know about Raven’s. They probably won’t, but she also has a couple of siblings. I don’t know if they’ll try to look at her phone. You can never be too sure though.

Me:I can hang on Saturday.

A.W.G.:I’m not doing anything that day, so you can come over.

He sends me his address.

Me:OK. Is there any time that you want me over?

A.W.G.: No, you can come over whenever you can.

Me:How about 3?

A.W.G.: That works. I’m going to work on the lesson plan now, so I’ll talk to you when I can.

Me:Do I know what we’re going to be doing in class?

A.W.G.: LOL. No, but I promise that it won’t be that bad. TTYL.

It feels really weirding texting my teacher. I think the weirdest part is the fact that he’s a teacher and he used “LOL” and “TTYL”. Well, I guess that it’s not all that weird. He’s not that old. I look down at my little dog, who is just looking up at me with curiosity in her eyes. I have her lay in my lap while I stroke her soft fur.
“Well, you got what you want,” I tell her. “I talked to Mr. Gaskarth today. He’s having me come over to his house... No, it’s not that weird. He’s going to let me use his guitar and teach me chess... I’m learning chess as part of our little deal. He doesn’t have anyone to play with, so I’m going to learn and play with him. I don’t mind, but I’m probably going to suck at it. Now, I’m going to work on my writing assignment... I’m writing a song since that’s what I know best... No, it’s not a love song. You’re just like the real Raven.”
I talk a little bit more with Little Raven before I grab my notebook out of my book bag and start working on the song. As I work on it, I keep thinking, “I wonder if Mr. Gaskarth is going to like it.”

Notes

Sorry this took so long, but I hope you liked it!