I love the friendship (and maybe something more someday) between CB and Lainey and this fic is mostly focused on their relationship and how they bond through helping one of their students. I based some of the storyline on the episode "Pressure" of My So-Called Life, which was an amazing show from the 90s that was canceled after only one season. Hope you enjoy this fic!
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"Let's talk about sex, baby
Let's talk about you and me
Let's talk about all the good things
And the bad things that may be."
~Salt-N-Pepa, "Let's Talk About Sex" (1990)
~.~
It was April 8th, 1990-something, and Lainey Lewis was wrapping up her music appreciation class for the afternoon. Her students had spent the past hour presenting their reports on their favorite modern musicians, and Aaron Rubin was reciting the final words of his report on Elton John when the dismissal bell rang.
"Great job, Aaron! I never knew Sir Elton's middle name was Hercules, but, hey, even teachers can learn something new, right?" Lainey called to her students as they began to file out of the room. "We'll finish up the rest of the reports tomorrow... oh, and Tom Scott, don't even try to sneak out of here without turning yours in."
Tom froze by the classroom door on his tip-toes, his shoulders sagging with the realization that he'd been caught.
"I'm sorry, Miss Lewis, but I haven't finished my report just yet," he replied shyly, his cheeks turning beet-red, and adjusted his glasses.
"And why not? You've had two weeks already." Lainey folded her arms across her chest.
"I've been going through kind of a rough patch with Lana lately," Tom admitted and pulled the strap of his backpack onto his shoulder.
"Ah, trouble in paradise, eh?" Lainey laughed, trying to seem sympathetic, but not too sympathetic. She needed that report turned in.
"Something like that," he answered, his eyes lighting up when he spied Lana in the hallway. He began to panic. "There she is, Miss Lewis. Gotta go! I promise I'll hand it in tomorrow!"
"It better be on my desk at 8 am sharp and not a second later, Tom Scott!" She yelled after him, rolling her eyes, and then mumbled under her breath. "These kids and their doomed romances are going to be the death of me."
"Miss Lewis?" A familiar voice jolted her from her thoughts.
Lainey spun around only to find Claudia Caughlin standing in front of her. She was wearing her normal black attire complete with a red flannel shirt tied around her waist and combat boots.
"Claudia, hey!" Lainey said. "Is this about your report? I loved hearing all about Courtney Love even though she needs some serious help in the fashion department."
"Actually, I was wondering if you'd help me with something a bit more personal," Claudia replied, seeming rather uneasy. She nervously glanced around the room. "Can we talk somewhere in private?"
"Oh, sure, absolutely," Lainey agreed, immediately concerned, and led her down the hall to her office. She hoped this wasn't about Claudia's mom; as far as she knew, everything had been going quite well for Claudia at home these past few months.
After shutting the door, Lainey sat down at her desk, and Claudia took the empty seat across from her, setting her backpack on the second chair beside her.
"So what's up?" Lainey leaned forward and laced her fingers together on the surface of the desk, trying to seem professional.
"Well, I've been seeing this guy…" Claudia began, glancing down at her hands.
"Damn, these teen romances are going to be the death of me." Lainey sighed, slightly annoyed. Then, she saw the solemn look on her student's face and felt instantly remorseful. "But I'm here for you. Please continue."
"Well, like I said, I've been seeing this guy… he doesn't go to school here, so you wouldn't know him…" Claudia looked away, almost as if she were afraid to continue.
"He's not hurting you, is he?" Lainey sat up straight in her chair, ready to rip the guy-in-question a new one. "Cause if he is, I'll break his-"
"No, nothing like that, Miss Lewis." Claudia laughed at her teacher's eagerness to defend her honor. "I'm fine… it's just he's been pressuring me a lot lately to… you know."
"Oh. Oh." Lainey gulped, her mouth running dry, when the realization hit her. "Oh, that."
"Yeah," her student answered. "He's asked me to meet him at this old abandoned house somewhere downtown. He said there's plenty of rooms and all the kids go there so their parents won't find out."
"Oh" was all Lainey managed to force out once again. She found herself completely lost for words. Her mind began swirling with all the possible pearls of wisdom she could offer Claudia, but she just couldn't think of anything that sounded reasonable at the moment. And she as sure as hell didn't want to lead Claudia down the wrong path.
"Miss Lewis, are you okay?" Claudia reached over and placed her right hand on top of hers.
"Sure, I'm fine," Lainey dismissed her thoughts, tossing her blond hair over her shoulder. "Never better. Now, what were we talking about again?"
"Should I have sex with my boyfriend, Miss Lewis?" Claudia asked point blank, somewhat irritated by her teacher's lack of attention to the matter at hand.
"Right. Well… can't you talk to your mother about this? I mean, didn't you two make up a while ago?" Lainey deflected, trying to ultimately rid herself of the responsibility to offer her advice.
"Yeah, we're great, but I can't talk to her about this kind of stuff. She'll ground me for life or make me wear a chastity belt until I'm eighteen. Please, Miss Lewis, you're the only one I can talk to about this sort of stuff," Claudia pleaded with tears in her eyes.
"Okay, fine," Lainey huffed, giving in. She was delighted that Claudia had trusted her enough to ask for her advice, but felt highly unqualified at the same time. "I guess, if you feel you're ready - and I mean, make sure you're definitely ready first - make sure he wears a, uh, condom."
"Really? You think I should go through with it?" Claudia asked, dumbfounded. "I thought for sure you were going to tell me not to."
"Well, like I said, only if you're ready," Lainey added. "If you're not, I'd definitely say no then."
"How do I know if I'm ready or not?"
"I guess you just... know."
"How did you know you were ready, you know… when you did it the first time?" Claudia picked at the black polish on her fingernails.
Lainey felt the fire rising up her neck and into her cheeks. And did they have the heat on full blast in her office today or what? She'd have to speak to Johnny Atkins about that when she finished her conversation with Claudia.
"Ugh… well, Claudia, that's a little, uh, personal." Lainey cleared her throat and attempted to steer the conversation away from her. "But please if you decide to go ahead with it, just make sure you're safe, okay?"
"Okay." Claudia nodded in agreement, somewhat addled, and stood up, grabbing her backpack. "Um, thank you, Miss Lewis."
"You're welcome," she called to Claudia as she left.
Lainey pulled a file folder out from one of her drawers and began fanning herself. She wasn't expecting her conversation with Claudia to delve into her own personal issues, and she definitely did not want to share that part of her past with a teenager, especially one she'd grown so close to.
"Well, that was all kinds of awkward," she said out loud and sighed. And seriously? Who turned up the heat in her office? Wasn't it spring?
"I'll say it was." A head popped into the doorway, and she rolled her eyes for the upteenth time that day. "Uh, Lainey, can I speak with you for just a sec?"
"Of course, CB, since apparently everyone's seeking out my advice today, how may I help you?" Lainey, still fanning herself, plopped her feet on top of her desk and crossed her boots at the ankles.
"Oh, I don't need your advice since it obviously sucks balls." CB stood in front of her desk with his hands on his hips, looking down at her judgingly.
Lainey scoffed at him.
"Just what in the HELL were you thinking, Lainey?"
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Oh, no, CB the Lurker strikes again! I have 3 more chapters of this, so I hope you'll stick around. Thank you for reading and let me know what you thought of this chapter!