~A Once and Again Series~
Now and Then
Chapter 3// At the window
"Hello class. I'm Mr. Dimitri."
Grace sat up straighter in her chair and forced herself not to gape at this oddity. This couldn't be happening. She must be having a delusion of some sort. Maybe it was something she had eaten. She was hallucinating. She must be. Mr. Dimitri couldn't be standing less than five feet away from her, looking so normal.
"I will be taking the place of Ms. Smithson. I hope I will be an adequate replacement. Two things you all should know before we go any farther. One: you will have to read in this class. Two: you will have to write in this class. If you are not willing to do either of these, feel free to walk out that door." Mr. Dimitri gestured towards the classroom door with a smile on his face. He looked around the room, waiting to see if there were any takers. No one moved. Grace flinched as she felt his eyes land on her. She forced herself to meet his glance, and she saw the recognition in his eyes. But it didn't falter his speech. He continued on, unfazed.
"Good. I hope you all kept your word now, and read and write when I ask it of you. We will be doing 4 main essays and two short stories. Yes, that's 6 papers you have to write. Plus a few short essays when needed. Again, if anyone isn't prepared to give me that, then this class is not for you. I will expect you all to give me your best effort in your works. There will be plenty of chances to restructure and edit your papers, but if you don't have a good base to work from, you'll end up with a nicely structured piece of crap."
Grace watched him talk. He was so elegant. He was so wise. He had so much grace and there was a mystery to him, where you never could be sure of what he was thinking. Mr. Dimitri liked to sit back and let you solve a problem yourself. All he had to do was look at you with the smallest expression, and you found yourself tumbling words out of your mouth. Words you never thought you'd let go of. Grace had found herself unable to not tell him what she thought. Back when he was her high school teacher, her play director, her mentor, and her friend of sorts. And he could have been something more. Grace had wanted him to be something more. She remembered the words just falling out of mouth without thought, without hesitation. She didn't stop and think, no she had said just what was on her mind. She had said what she wanted and he turned her down. It had been the night they were going to see the movie, Rashomon. Mr. Dimitri had thought that it was going to be a group outing, that Grace had invited two other people from their class. But Grace never quite invited the other people. She knew he wouldn't mind. When she got to his house and told him the other people weren't coming, he didn't question it. And that gave Grace a push of confidence. Finally she just said it.
(memory flashback***)
"I just realized something," Grace blurted.
"We can't miss the beginning," Mr. Dimitri had said, pulling on his coat. Grace wondered if he got it yet.. if he understood what she wanted. He must. There had definitely been some moments between them. Nothing had happened yet, but Grace wanted it too. She wanted it so bad. Well, if he wasn't going to make the first move, she would. "What did you realize?" Dimitri asked.
"That I've never seen the rest of your house," Grace said. He had to get it now. He had to see that she didn't want to go to the movie, that she wanted to stay here with him, alone.
"Yeah, you have," Dimitri was moving towards her coat. Grace knew she had to say something more bold, or he'd never get the picture.
Grace looked him in the eye and said the words, "But I've never seen where you sleep."
Mr. Dimitri just looked at her. Grace heard him inhale softly, "Grace."
He finally got the picture. "Well, I haven't," Grace managed, "And I really want to."
Dimitri stood there, his mouth slightly ajar and then looked down. Grace found herself wishing she hadn't said that. "If you laugh at me right now, I swear I'll never speak to you again," Grace said half-heartedly. She already sensed things weren't going to go the way she wanted. It was too soon, and he was too scared. She was his student and if anything happened between them, he would be in big trouble.
"Ah, I'm not laughing," Dimitri says, a stunned look on his face.
Grace gave it one last try. Maybe what she sensed was wrong. Maybe he would sweep her off her feet and carry her to his bedroom like a knight in shining armor. Or maybe he at least would agree not to go to the movies. "So, can we just not go to the movies?"
Dimitri looked at her, and Grace waited. He was considering her offer. Grace watched as he shook his head and looked away. He was rejecting her offer. "No, we can't," He says firmly.
Grace walked closer to him, "Please. Okay, I know I'm doing this really stupidly--"
"No, you are doing this alarmingly well, and I'm extremely honored, however- -"
"Oh, God! Don't say that!" Grace exclaimed. "No, just.. please." He was talking like a teacher once again. He was turning this into just another one of her stories she gave him to read over. Or one of his exam questions. He had read over this situation and found it not to his liking, and so he was giving her his comments, trying to put her down gently. But no matter how he put it, it was still a rejection, it was still a big red 'F'.
"Grace."
"I've given this a lot of thought.." Grace argued.
Dimitri held up a hand to silence her. "Grace, listen to me, okay?" Grace listens. "We really can't be late."
Grace looked away and crosses her arms. It was ending. Her chance was over. They were going to go and watch a movie and he would be Mr. Dimitri and she would be his student. He wasn't going to cross the line. He wasn't going to take a chance on her. Grace felt rejection, she felt like there was a big 'L' on her forehead. Why couldn't he just give in to temptation? She knew he was tempted. But he held strong.
"Come on," Dimitri said. "It's a ground-breaking film. It's part of your education." He moved closer to her and gently smiled at her. "See, Kurosawa takes one event and he plays it over and over and over from four different points of view. You can really see how each person has their own view of what happened."
"I made a total fool of myself just now, didn't I?"
"Well, that's not how I see it," Dimitri said softly. "Come on." He picked up Grace's jacket. "Let's go to the movies, okay?" He held out her coat and Grace lets him help her put it on. "You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah," Grace answers, her voice sounding stronger than she felt. Dimitri was still so close. Grace felt his hand reach out and lightly touch her shoulder, picking off a pick of lint. Dimitri patted Grace's right arm twice, his hand lingering on her. "I am a little hungry though," Grace said as she zipped her coat up part-way. If he was going to play 'normal' than she would too. Dimitri's hand slowly moved off her arm. Grace pretended she didn't notice his reluctance to take it off her. She had to keep up their game
"Well, then, I'll buy you some popcorn." Dimitri says, and Grace forced herself not to roll her eyes. They were playing normal quite well. Instead of a kiss she was going to get popcorn. Goody.
(***end of memory flashback)
"Okay, class. Now, remember you do have assigned reading for Friday. And, yes, you still have time to drop this class." Mr. Dimitri smiled at the class, and gestured towards the door. "See you Friday."
Grace watched the rest of them go. She was frozen to her seat with shock. Since that first glance of recognition, Dimitri had been careful not to look at her. He had gone though the class, going over the syllabus, and talking about the books they had to buy and never did he make any sort of action that showed Grace he was thinking of the same things she was thinking of. Of their missed chances, the Rashomon movie, the inscription he wrote her and that one final goodbye kiss. No, he was still good at playing the role of the perfect teacher.
Finally the last student trailed out and it was just Grace and him. She stood up and looked at him. He was at the window, looking out on the wonderful view of the parking lot and surrounding streets. His shoulders had slumped slightly, and he no longer looked so completely normal. He was human after all.
Grace walked over to the window and they both watched below as students and teachers walked to various cars. Two cars narrowly missed colliding as they both turned the corners too fast. Grace heard the muffled sound of horns beeping. She pointed towards the last row. "Fifth car in on the last row, the red Honda is mine."
Dimitri finally acknowledged her presence. "Birthday present?"
"Yeah, a birthday - slash - graduation present from my parents and Rick."
"It's nice. It fits you." Dimitri said softly, still facing the window.
Grace turned to him, wanting to say so much, but instead feeling the need to update him on her insignificant life. "I have a baby brother now. He's 1. His name is Dominic."
Dimitri finally turned to her, giving her a forced smile, "That's nice." He moved towards his desk and began packing up.
"So, what's new in your life?" Grace asked. "I didn't know you were teaching here. I, mean, you never told me where you were going."
Dimitri nodded, "Yes, because I never went any where." He shrugged. "I still live in my house, I just switched schools."
"Oh, I didn't know," Grace said, feeling guilty. Why had she just assumed he had left town? Why had she never gone to see him at his house after their kiss? Why?
Dimitri closed his briefcase with a final click. He gave Grace a lasting look. Grace felt his eyes taking her in and wondered if she had changed at all in the past year and a half. No, not really. Her hair might be longer, but that was it. Grace moved uneasily under his eyes. Dimitri looked away, and at his watch. "I guess I'll see you on Friday, then?"
"Yeah," Grace called, he was already halfway towards the door. Grace watched him go, speechless.
* * *
Now and Then
Chapter 3// At the window
"Hello class. I'm Mr. Dimitri."
Grace sat up straighter in her chair and forced herself not to gape at this oddity. This couldn't be happening. She must be having a delusion of some sort. Maybe it was something she had eaten. She was hallucinating. She must be. Mr. Dimitri couldn't be standing less than five feet away from her, looking so normal.
"I will be taking the place of Ms. Smithson. I hope I will be an adequate replacement. Two things you all should know before we go any farther. One: you will have to read in this class. Two: you will have to write in this class. If you are not willing to do either of these, feel free to walk out that door." Mr. Dimitri gestured towards the classroom door with a smile on his face. He looked around the room, waiting to see if there were any takers. No one moved. Grace flinched as she felt his eyes land on her. She forced herself to meet his glance, and she saw the recognition in his eyes. But it didn't falter his speech. He continued on, unfazed.
"Good. I hope you all kept your word now, and read and write when I ask it of you. We will be doing 4 main essays and two short stories. Yes, that's 6 papers you have to write. Plus a few short essays when needed. Again, if anyone isn't prepared to give me that, then this class is not for you. I will expect you all to give me your best effort in your works. There will be plenty of chances to restructure and edit your papers, but if you don't have a good base to work from, you'll end up with a nicely structured piece of crap."
Grace watched him talk. He was so elegant. He was so wise. He had so much grace and there was a mystery to him, where you never could be sure of what he was thinking. Mr. Dimitri liked to sit back and let you solve a problem yourself. All he had to do was look at you with the smallest expression, and you found yourself tumbling words out of your mouth. Words you never thought you'd let go of. Grace had found herself unable to not tell him what she thought. Back when he was her high school teacher, her play director, her mentor, and her friend of sorts. And he could have been something more. Grace had wanted him to be something more. She remembered the words just falling out of mouth without thought, without hesitation. She didn't stop and think, no she had said just what was on her mind. She had said what she wanted and he turned her down. It had been the night they were going to see the movie, Rashomon. Mr. Dimitri had thought that it was going to be a group outing, that Grace had invited two other people from their class. But Grace never quite invited the other people. She knew he wouldn't mind. When she got to his house and told him the other people weren't coming, he didn't question it. And that gave Grace a push of confidence. Finally she just said it.
(memory flashback***)
"I just realized something," Grace blurted.
"We can't miss the beginning," Mr. Dimitri had said, pulling on his coat. Grace wondered if he got it yet.. if he understood what she wanted. He must. There had definitely been some moments between them. Nothing had happened yet, but Grace wanted it too. She wanted it so bad. Well, if he wasn't going to make the first move, she would. "What did you realize?" Dimitri asked.
"That I've never seen the rest of your house," Grace said. He had to get it now. He had to see that she didn't want to go to the movie, that she wanted to stay here with him, alone.
"Yeah, you have," Dimitri was moving towards her coat. Grace knew she had to say something more bold, or he'd never get the picture.
Grace looked him in the eye and said the words, "But I've never seen where you sleep."
Mr. Dimitri just looked at her. Grace heard him inhale softly, "Grace."
He finally got the picture. "Well, I haven't," Grace managed, "And I really want to."
Dimitri stood there, his mouth slightly ajar and then looked down. Grace found herself wishing she hadn't said that. "If you laugh at me right now, I swear I'll never speak to you again," Grace said half-heartedly. She already sensed things weren't going to go the way she wanted. It was too soon, and he was too scared. She was his student and if anything happened between them, he would be in big trouble.
"Ah, I'm not laughing," Dimitri says, a stunned look on his face.
Grace gave it one last try. Maybe what she sensed was wrong. Maybe he would sweep her off her feet and carry her to his bedroom like a knight in shining armor. Or maybe he at least would agree not to go to the movies. "So, can we just not go to the movies?"
Dimitri looked at her, and Grace waited. He was considering her offer. Grace watched as he shook his head and looked away. He was rejecting her offer. "No, we can't," He says firmly.
Grace walked closer to him, "Please. Okay, I know I'm doing this really stupidly--"
"No, you are doing this alarmingly well, and I'm extremely honored, however- -"
"Oh, God! Don't say that!" Grace exclaimed. "No, just.. please." He was talking like a teacher once again. He was turning this into just another one of her stories she gave him to read over. Or one of his exam questions. He had read over this situation and found it not to his liking, and so he was giving her his comments, trying to put her down gently. But no matter how he put it, it was still a rejection, it was still a big red 'F'.
"Grace."
"I've given this a lot of thought.." Grace argued.
Dimitri held up a hand to silence her. "Grace, listen to me, okay?" Grace listens. "We really can't be late."
Grace looked away and crosses her arms. It was ending. Her chance was over. They were going to go and watch a movie and he would be Mr. Dimitri and she would be his student. He wasn't going to cross the line. He wasn't going to take a chance on her. Grace felt rejection, she felt like there was a big 'L' on her forehead. Why couldn't he just give in to temptation? She knew he was tempted. But he held strong.
"Come on," Dimitri said. "It's a ground-breaking film. It's part of your education." He moved closer to her and gently smiled at her. "See, Kurosawa takes one event and he plays it over and over and over from four different points of view. You can really see how each person has their own view of what happened."
"I made a total fool of myself just now, didn't I?"
"Well, that's not how I see it," Dimitri said softly. "Come on." He picked up Grace's jacket. "Let's go to the movies, okay?" He held out her coat and Grace lets him help her put it on. "You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah," Grace answers, her voice sounding stronger than she felt. Dimitri was still so close. Grace felt his hand reach out and lightly touch her shoulder, picking off a pick of lint. Dimitri patted Grace's right arm twice, his hand lingering on her. "I am a little hungry though," Grace said as she zipped her coat up part-way. If he was going to play 'normal' than she would too. Dimitri's hand slowly moved off her arm. Grace pretended she didn't notice his reluctance to take it off her. She had to keep up their game
"Well, then, I'll buy you some popcorn." Dimitri says, and Grace forced herself not to roll her eyes. They were playing normal quite well. Instead of a kiss she was going to get popcorn. Goody.
(***end of memory flashback)
"Okay, class. Now, remember you do have assigned reading for Friday. And, yes, you still have time to drop this class." Mr. Dimitri smiled at the class, and gestured towards the door. "See you Friday."
Grace watched the rest of them go. She was frozen to her seat with shock. Since that first glance of recognition, Dimitri had been careful not to look at her. He had gone though the class, going over the syllabus, and talking about the books they had to buy and never did he make any sort of action that showed Grace he was thinking of the same things she was thinking of. Of their missed chances, the Rashomon movie, the inscription he wrote her and that one final goodbye kiss. No, he was still good at playing the role of the perfect teacher.
Finally the last student trailed out and it was just Grace and him. She stood up and looked at him. He was at the window, looking out on the wonderful view of the parking lot and surrounding streets. His shoulders had slumped slightly, and he no longer looked so completely normal. He was human after all.
Grace walked over to the window and they both watched below as students and teachers walked to various cars. Two cars narrowly missed colliding as they both turned the corners too fast. Grace heard the muffled sound of horns beeping. She pointed towards the last row. "Fifth car in on the last row, the red Honda is mine."
Dimitri finally acknowledged her presence. "Birthday present?"
"Yeah, a birthday - slash - graduation present from my parents and Rick."
"It's nice. It fits you." Dimitri said softly, still facing the window.
Grace turned to him, wanting to say so much, but instead feeling the need to update him on her insignificant life. "I have a baby brother now. He's 1. His name is Dominic."
Dimitri finally turned to her, giving her a forced smile, "That's nice." He moved towards his desk and began packing up.
"So, what's new in your life?" Grace asked. "I didn't know you were teaching here. I, mean, you never told me where you were going."
Dimitri nodded, "Yes, because I never went any where." He shrugged. "I still live in my house, I just switched schools."
"Oh, I didn't know," Grace said, feeling guilty. Why had she just assumed he had left town? Why had she never gone to see him at his house after their kiss? Why?
Dimitri closed his briefcase with a final click. He gave Grace a lasting look. Grace felt his eyes taking her in and wondered if she had changed at all in the past year and a half. No, not really. Her hair might be longer, but that was it. Grace moved uneasily under his eyes. Dimitri looked away, and at his watch. "I guess I'll see you on Friday, then?"
"Yeah," Grace called, he was already halfway towards the door. Grace watched him go, speechless.
* * *