"You can't be serious." I said, staring at her. She looked right in my eyes. Mr. Moskowitz looked really excited. Mr. Smith agreed with me.
"Rachel, Joe's right." He said. "A dance? Remember the last one, it turned into a code black."
"And we've confirmed that the threat was not escaping the building, like we thought."
"Where did she go?" I asked, afraid to ask. Rachel tried not to laugh.
"This might get awkward, but this-" She pulled something out of her bag, "was found in the hallway. Next to the tapestry of Gillian's descendents." I felt my face get warm, like Mr. Smith's, Mr. Moskowitz, and Madame Dabney's were. Professor Buckingham laughed at our uncomfortable shifting and looking anywhere but there; in Rachel's hand was a strapless bra.
One owned by none other than Cammie Morgan.
And that was the most embarrassing thing any one of the Morgan's had ever done to me. Including the time Dave pantsed me in the middle of his fifth anniversary party. Luckily, I got payback with ice cream, and it running down his back.
"So, we'll just-" Rachel threw it away. "There. I know the feeling… oh, like you've never seen a bra." She said. They laughed.
"Not one owned by my best friend's daughter." I said.
"Not one owned by a student." Mr. Smith said. I nodded in agreement.
"I haven't, actually. Er…well, I mean, not…" Harvey looked down at his hands in embarrassment. "I'll just shut up now." Rachel smiled softly; she had a soft spot for the most naïve, gentle, yet smartest teacher at Gallagher Academy. I turned back to Rachel.
"And you all have to be there." She looked at me. "And I mean all." I groaned.
"Last time I was at a school dance that wasn't fun, I wound up in the middle of Code Black and ran around asking people questions. Not to mention the conversations between the girls." I shuttered.
"Well, that won't matter. This one's casual." Oh, geeze. Now she expected me to wear jeans. Joe Solomon does not wear jeans. Kakis were casual enough, I'd wear those.
"And try to dress as down as possible, make them feel comfortable with it. Please?" She asked. I internally sighed; Rachel didn't ask a lot of me, especially after Dave died. She really wasn't asking a lot. At least I wasn't being forced to wear those ludicrous skinny jeans the teenage boys wear now. I suppressed a shudder at the very idea of it.
"Meeting dismissed." I stood up, and went back to checking my papers in my classroom. I sat at my desk, and worked until the bell ended the class. I left the room, ready to make an entrance again in a few minutes. My students started to fill up the class.
"I doubt it, Bex." That was Cammie. She was laughing. "Liz and Jonas? Maybe, but me and Zach? Forget it."
"Then why did he want to go out with you to the movies when we go into town?" That was news to me. I'd have to have a word with Mr. Goode….
"Look, Bex, drop it." She said, going into the room.
"Do you think it's true, that Mr. Solomon is dating Cammie's mom?" That was a rumor older than the sun. I rolled my eyes. They went in. The bell rang. I stepped from my hiding spot, and went into the room.
"Counter surveillance is one of the most important techniques of a spy's life." I said, walking in. They fell dead silent instantly. I liked having that effect on a bunch of hormonally challenged teenagers. Zach was sitting in the back with Grant, who was staring at Rebecca Baxter's head. "There are tailing opportunities everywhere." I looked at every one of them. "What is the most vital thing to spotting a tail?" I turned to Cammie. "Ms. Morgan?"
"Notice things." She said, looking me in the eye.
"Correct." I said. "It's not rocket science, ladies and gentlemen. It's simple." I sat at the edge of my desk. "Close your eyes." They did. I was silent for a moment. "Let's say you were supposed to be spying on me." Zach smirked and opened one eye to look at me. I rolled my eyes. "What is my predominate foot?"
"Your right foot." I was interrupted before I could say "Correct, Ms. Baxter."
"You do everything with your right, but you're left handed."
"Very good, Ms. Morgan." I said, blinking in shock. "I have a tie on. What color was it two days ago?" Silence, then.
"Black." Zach said.
"All your ties are." That was Rebecca.
"My vision is not twenty/twenty. Why don't I wear glasses?" I asked. Silence.
"You don't wear contacts either." I looked at Anna Fetterman. "You must have reading glasses."
"Open your eyes." I looked at my students. "Remember that very first lesson we had?"
"The one you showed up five minutes late to, and kicked us out forty-five minutes early?" Cammie asked. I looked at her.
"Yes, Ms. Morgan, the very same." I stood, and gripped the back of the teacher's chair. "I said notice things, and nobody could tell me a thing about me. You've picked that up easily." He said. "I started to notice that after our second or third lesson." I watched them figure out easily that they were being complimented. "Pop quiz, tonight, seven. Meet me in the foyer." I said. "Dress…sensibly." Hopefully, this time nobody wound up with push-up bras and their faces caked in makeup. Cammie seemed to have caught my train of thought. She smirked at me, and glanced at Rebecca.
"Like that'll ever happen." She mouthed at her. Rebecca grinned. I turned towards the board, and smiled.
That night, I lead them into the cool night. Cammie and Rebecca were the only two who listened to my "dress sensibly" warning. We jumped into the school van, and Harvey started the car. I stayed in the back of the car with the girls. I sat on the floor, one leg up, the other bent, but lying in front of me. Zach sat with Cammie, chatting aimlessly with her. Rebecca was talking with Anna Fetterman. Tina Walters was whispering to a group of girls.
"What do you think about the dance on Friday?" They were clearly excited. I clearly wasn't. Grant sat next to me. We listened intently.
"Do you think the teachers will have to dance?"
"Like Mr. Smith would dance." Cammie, Rebecca, and Anna had joined in the conversation. They laughed.
"But, like, there are others…" I suppressed a blush as I realized they meant me. Cammie slyly glanced my way.
"Oh, because I'm sure Mr. Moskowitz would turn us down." Rebecca said, realizing where the conversation was going. Harvey blushed.
"Oh, you girls." He said bashfully. They giggled. Nice save.
"But, what about…er… Doctor Fibs."
"Ladies." I said. They turned around. "You're not very observant. I figured out a long time ago who you really meant." They looked at me in horror. I hope they realize that Joe Solomon doesn't dance with his students. "Teachers are there for chaperone purposes. Nothing more, nothing less." Cammie was smirking, trying not to laugh. I caught Tina's expression. "What is it, Ms. Walters?" I asked innocently. She blushed and turned around. Grant waited until the others turned around, before leaning over and offering me a fist. Knowing they weren't looking, I connected my fist to his in a knuckle touch, popular at Blackthorne, even when I went there. Zach sat down next to Grant.
"Where are we going, exactly." Cammie sat next to him.
"You don't know him very well." She said. "Joe Solomon has never given away any location for a pop quiz." I grinned.
"She's right, Mr. Goode." I said. Zach looked at me. I smirked. He shook his head. Rebecca sat next to her.
"What do you think Liz is doing right now?"
"Knowing her, experiments." I said. "And lots of them." Watching those two reminded me of the younger days with Dave and Rachel and Abby. They grinned.
"With Jonas, nevertheless." Grant added.
"Is he as accident prone as Lizzie?" Cammie asked.
"He can be. Wait, Liz is accident prone?" Cammie and Rebecca stared at him.
"We're talking about the girl who can't walk past the Sublevels elevator without knocking over the suit of armor at least once a week." Cammie said. I was curious about all that clattering. I turned around. Harvey was watching the silent GPS system.
"We almost there, Harvey?" I asked, trying to be gentle.
"About ten minutes Joe." He said quietly. I nodded, wondering the weird change in him suddenly. I turned to them, and handed them all comms units.
"Don't be afraid to use them." I said, watching them put them in their ears. "Tonight, you'll be going after one tail. Zach and Grant will be after you at the same time." I said. They looked curious.
"Who are we tailing, Mr. Solomon?" I cracked a grin.
"Me." I said.
I had hidden in the hallow of a tree.
"Joe, we've got almost all of them. Cammie and Bex are the only two missing."
"Then go find them, Zach." I replied. I snuck around and dropped, rolling straight into a bush. Bex passed right by me. That was close. Grant caught her instantly. I caught Cammie, sitting in a tree, hidden, but not. I smirked. Zach passed right by her, and followed Grant, helping him with Bex. I was almost good. Cammie was gone. I slowly got up. I found myself pinned to the ground.
"Caught you." Cammie….
"Well done, Ms. Morgan." I said. Her comms unit was gone, and her clothes were soaked. I turned my unit off. "Why are you all wet?"
"Well, I kind of fell in the river." She said. I laughed.
"Well, that wasn't supposed to happen." She shook her head. I offered her my jacket. We had a bit of a hike back. We went slow and steady, making it seem more drawn out than originally planned.
"Thanks for the jacket, er, Mr. Solomon." I nodded. She seemed warmer.
"Look, Cammie, I never properly apologized for mentioning your father in class. I didn't…well, it's still a touchy subject for myself as well." She nodded. I realized she was biting back tears. "Cammie, look." She stopped. "I meant to mention him. See, your dad was my best friend." Her head shot up.
"That's how you know my mom?"
"Absolutely." I said. We kept walking. "And, I hoped you'd guess that meant I had known your father, Looks like I was wrong."
"It's not your fault. I thought you were assuming Dad wasn't…"
"Good enough? Cammie, you caught me. Who else did? Nobody. That's not your mother, that's David Morgan." She smiled slightly. She shivered under my jacket. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer, trying to keep her warm. She looked at me.
"So, are you going to dance?" I knew what she meant. I looked at her.
"Cammie, listen, and listen well. Joe Solomon doesn't dance." She laughed. "Especially with his students."
"Even with my mom?" She smirked. I raised an eyebrow at her. "I saw you two at that party in town."
"And I saw you with Josh, Bex, Liz, and Macey. Big deal."
"Accept I wasn't dancing with your mom." She said. "Face it, Mr. Solomon, when the..er…good looking CoveOps teacher gets cozy with your mom, whose a hottie, you start to get a bit suspicious." I blushed and laughed.
"Well, thank you for the compliment, but trust me, we were scoping out for you." I retorted.
"You liked my compliment? Wait till you hear the other girls talk about you, Solomon, they're just down right mind-scaring-for-life." I laughed again.
"Don't worry, I've heard a lot." I said. The look on her face said otherwise. "What do I miss when you are supposed to be sleeping?"
"If I told you that, you'd want everyone suspended." She replied. "Or kicked from CoveOps."
"Then, I'll keep my mouth shut."
"Wise choice." She said. Another Dave comment if I've ever heard one.
Friday night…the night of the Dance. I pulled a fresh undershirt on, and my one pair of jeans. Rachel gave our signal knock. I opened the door and let her in. She took in my wet hair, my lack of a decent shirt, and my bare feet.
"Are you…?"
"Almost ready, Rachel. Don't worry." She smiled and nodded. I pulled on my favorite white button down, and added a purple tie (A/N I can't describe the color. It's what I'd refer to as Bieber purple, because it's the color of purple Justin Bieber likes. Don't ask) and two socks; one was green and one was blue.
"Um… Joe?"
"It's an old tradition. Dave and I did it a lot." I said quietly. "Like, good luck, but something more." I wasn't really a superstitious man, but I liked a good tradition. She laughed. I pulled on my dress shoes, and I went in the bathroom to brush my teeth and dry some of the water still dripping from my hair and down my back. We went from the Sublevels into the Grand Hall, where we had set the place up for a dance, with a live DJ (which explains the Code Red) and some flimsy crepe paper for decoration. The kids wouldn't arrive for a few minutes. Dj Mike was doing a sound check, playing a slow song.
"We're testing the lighting on the dance floor, would you two mind going out there to test it yourselves?" Dr. Fibs asked us. We walked out there. I grabbed her without her expecting it, and started to dance with her.
"All good. I can see." I said. He nodded. We kept dancing, until the song ended. We left the dance floor, the students getting ready to come to the dance. Nervously, a few seventh graders came in, followed by Cammie and her crew. Cammie was on Zach's arm. That surprised me.
"Well, don't you ladies look nice?" Rachel said. I winked at Cammie. She grinned.
"Thanks Mrs. Morgan." Rachel nudged me. I looked at her, stared at her for a minute, and proceeded to walk away. She laughed.
"So, Harvey." I said. They all laughed. He looked confused. "Sorry, trying to get out of an awkward conversation." He grinned.
"No, I understand." He said quietly. "You think it'll go well?"
"Well I'm going to dread it." He looked surprised. "Joe Solomon doesn't dance." He laughed.
"Harvey Moskowitz does, but he's not very good at it." We grinned. I had easily discovered his small crush on Rachel Morgan. I think it was something about him knowing Dave. It took a few days, but I caught it. Some of the ladies waved at us. I gave a half nod, Harvey waved back enthusiastically. They smiled at him. He nudged me in the side, almost like my father used to. "You think I should ask her?" He blushed slightly. "You know, to dance?" I feigned my confusion. "Don't look at me like that, Joe, I know you know who I'm talking about." He said, in spy mode. I blinked in surprise.
"I would. She'd like a good dance." Besides, nobody would be suspicious of that, they'd love it. Whenever people talked to him, they'd walk away saying "he's so precious" or "how adorable is he?" Honestly, whatever possessed me to work in an all girl's school…
My eyes met Cammie's and I knew then exactly what had. A song played that everyone knew. I recognized the lyrics to the ever-famous "Cha Cha Slide." Oh, boy…
Rachel grinned at us, and joined us. "Harvey, don't you dance?"
"Not much, I'm not very good." He admitted, blushing slightly. I looked at her.
"You know I don't dance." She laughed.
"Yeah, yeah, get over it, Joe." I smirked. "I'm making you. You used to."
"Yes, however competitive break dancing isn't the same as slow dancing."
"Which you're also good at." I give up. I went over to the refreshments table to open a bottle of water. I took a swig from it. After another set of dances, Rachel beckoned Cammie to her. They spoke quietly for a few moments. They nodded, and giggled. Harvey looked at me in total horror, and mouthed "run away, now." Oh boy… I turned to leave. At that moment, I was literally flying through the air, and landing on my back. I groaned.
"Mr. Solomon, you aren't going anywhere." That was impressive for, you know, a sixteen year old girl flipping a forty-odd year old man who was six ten and weighed 200 pounds from mainly muscle. I stood up.
"Was that neci- Rachel?" And here I thought it was Cammie flipping me. I better start paying attention. "You sound a lot like your daughter." I said. "Was that really necessary?" She grinned. A slow song came on. Harvey looked flustered. "Excuse me." I went up to him.
"You okay?" He nodded his head.
"Just fine!" He clearly was not fine.
"Go on, ask her." I said. "She wouldn't mind." He looked reluctant. "Twenty seconds of insane courage is all you need, and I promise you that something good will come out of it." I said. Harvey nodded, and went right up to Rachel, tapped her on the shoulder. She turned around and asked him something. Suddenly, they were on the floor, dancing.
"That's kind of…weird." Cammie was at my right elbow. I nodded.
"But, he likes to make people…happy?" Was that the right word. Loved. "Well, I'm not sure what, but he knows sometimes your mother still…." I trailed off, glancing at her. She picked up my train of thought in an instant. Zach was at her side.
"Want to dance, Cammie?" She nodded, and allowed herself to be taken to the dance floor. Harvey was quiet and enjoying every moment of it. I leaned against the wall, scanning the crowd with my eyes, noticing how some of the girls were dancing with each other, giggling and laughing, making a joke out of it. Why did I agree to teach at an all girls school again? My eyes rested on the object of Dave's fatherly affection, and I thought Oh yeah….because of my Goddaughter…. I took another drink from the water bottle, and closed it. Dr. Fibs stood next to me, Dr. Steve across the room trying to pick up Madame Dabney. He would….
"You seem…thoughtful." Dr. Fibs may have some really scary and downright dangerous experiments, but he was more observant than most spies. Then again, he knew me well…
"Just… thinking about what Dave would do if he saw Cammie dancing with a Blackthorne boy." I said, grinning. Mr. Smith, who stood on the other side, laughed.
"He'd kick your butt into France." I laughed.
"Or kill me, whichever urge was stronger." I replied. They laughed. Cammie was in a seemingly good conversation with Zach, until he smirked cockily. She said something (her back was turned at this point) wiping the grin right off his face, and being replaced with a look of astonishment. Rebecca Baxter laughed, dancing with Grant. I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes at the death glares she was receiving from Tina Walters. Knowing fully well what she thought of me, I had a sudden idea. Suddenly, I wasn't too adverse against dancing with someone. There was a break, and the Cotton-Eyed Joe came on. I knew the dance to this one by heart, but it wasn't one I'd do. Cammie did that, and got a drink. She chatted with some friends for a few songs, and went back to dancing with Zach, who twirled her around, and was a bit too close to comfort, especially seeing as I was more of a father figure to the teen. The next slow song came in. Time to wreck havoc…. I put my water bottle down, and walked straight up to them and tapped on Zach's shoulder. Cammie looked at me in total shock.
"Zach, you don't mind if I cut in, do you?" His face didn't betray the shock that was in his eyes. I knew what Rachel meant when she said men were bad at showing their emotions in their eyes.
"No problem, Mr. Solomon." He walked away. I took Cammie's waist, and hand, slowly rotating her around.
"Um, Mr. Solomon….why?" She sounded confused.
"Because, Ms. Morgan, it appears that your mother is forcing us all to dance, and seeing as Mr. Moskowitz has claimed your mother's attention, I figured I'd come dance with you. Besides…" I smirked mischievously. "Do you see the look Ms. Walters is giving us?" She slyly glanced over and smirked at me.
"Nice." She was trying not to laugh. I looked her dead in the eye.
"Trust me?" Before she could answer more than a confused ,"Yes" I had put one hand behind her back, supporting her, as I dipped her in the middle of the room, and pulled her back up.
"Er…why?"
"Because, I know a thing or two about ballroom dancing." She raised an eyebrow at me. "Not my idea, believe me. No teenage boy wants to spend two hours in a tuxedo twilring around a bunch of girls around who keep trying to…shall we say, seduce you into more." She burst out laughing. "What? Are you laughing at me?"
"No, that just sounds like something Grandma Morgan would have forced Dad to do." She giggled again.
"She did, actually." She looked surprised. "Her theory was because she wanted him to be a gentleman when it came to proper dancing." I adjusted her in my harms, trying to make it a little more comfortable. "In actuality, your Grandfather believes it was because she wanted him to get off the couch and actually do something." She giggled, then became quiet. After a couple of songs, I noticed she still was quiet. "You're awfully quiet, Ms. Morgan."
"It's just…how did you meet him?" I was surprised. She rolled her eyes. "Let me guess, I'm not classified."
"No, actually. I was thrown off guard by your question." She looked up at me. "See, when I met your father, I was part of a travel team for baseball." She looked surprised. I bit back the urge to roll my eyes again. "Believe it or not, I like to play sports." I said. "I may have the tendacy to keep to myself, but I'm still human." She rolled her eyes. I grinned. "Anyway, your father had a friend on the team. I was out, I had shattered my elbow at the game before. He was the water boy, and caught my eye. He sat down and said, 'What happened to your elbow?'" I smiled slightly. "My natural instinct should have been to shut him out, block him from my life. Instead, I said, 'bet you can't guess.' Being a teenager who just loved bets, I made it. He looked at the sling, took one look at my swollen elbow, stared me in the eye, and said, 'Shattered.'" She looked impressed. "Later on, a few years later, I had moved closer to your mother, having known her for quite some time. And that story is classified. Not by the CIA but by your mother." She giggled. "Well, I met a few others, and, lo and behold, who comes along, but this guy from the baseball tourney that recognized me, and could only say, 'So, how's the elbow?'"
"And, just like that?"
"We were inseparable." I replied. She nodded. The song ended, and Zach cut back in. She smiled. I smiled back, and walked towards my abandoned water bottle, taking a swig, and tossing the empty bottle into the recycling bin. Rachel, who had been passed from Harvey to Mr. Smith, to Dr. Fibs, was quietly watching her students. The song had picked up speed. I went over to her.
"You all right?" She nodded.
"You seemed to enjoy your conversation with Cammie."
"I like talking to her, it's like talking to you, but with a different insight to life." I said. Tina Walters was watching us. Rachel noticed this, too.
"You want to cause some ruckus?" I asked. "Start a few rumors, make a few girls crap themselves from shock?" She burst out laughing.
"What, another idea?"
"Yeah, but nothing horrible." I said, grabbing her hand. "Just a bit of a dance." She looked at me in surprise.
"Wait, I thought Joe Solomon didn't dance."
"I don't, but i want to hear a few new rumors. Like me strangling people with certain types of female garments, and killing six people with my bare hands." She laughed.
"What, embarrassed by pantyhose?" I struggled to fight the blush that made my ears turn red. She rolled her eyes. "Typical male." I laughed, and lead her to the dance floor. We were dancing together, laughing at the shock on the students faces. Cammie looked at us. I winked. She laughed. By the looks on everyone's faces, rumors would be flying before breakfast. I would go into the safe haven of the Sublevels, so it would be a while before I heard anything… fortunately. I danced (awkwardly, I might add) with Rachel, until, she smiled, truly smiled, something I hadn't seen sense Dave and I decided it was safest for me to not stick around, especially when he was involved in my work. And that was when Dave was still around. I pushed that thought from my mind, and twirled her around. She laughed.
So far, so good… queue snarky smirk.