Lessons to Learn

Chapter 9

A/N: I am sorry for the late update. Here is finally Chapter 9. I will change my upload schedule, so there will be a new chapter every second week. I hope to be able to guarantee a certain continuity of updates like that. Thank you in advance for your understanding! I hope you enjoy this new chapter. I have had some struggles with it, so reviews are very welcome!

Robert sat on a window seat in the corridor, his laptop on his knees, in front of the room where Cora's conference took place. He could hear the muffled discussion inside but was focused on the content of his screen. He had arrived a little early but when the door stayed close at 6 pm he decided to use the time properly. At the moment he was typing an email to give John a protocol of their weekly meeting. John was still on sick leave and Robert made it his responsibility to keep his friend informed on their progress. It was partly a selfish act because Robert hoped for John's support at work as soon as he was back. It seemed Mr Carson was occupied with the usual duties at the local branch most of the time. It was nothing unexpected and Robert held him in high esteem for still coordinating the system setup. But the bulk of the execution was on Rosamund's and his shoulders at the moment. John should recover completely but Robert left nothing to chance when it was about John's appropriate preparation about what was expecting him at work.

The rattling of Robert's keyboard was disrupted when the door in front of him opened. The conversation, however, seemed to go on like before, and as he lifted his gaze, he saw Joseph Molesley slipping out of the room carefully. He closed the door behind himself immediately and at turning around he took in Robert on the window seat. His eyes lit up and he lifted a hand.

"Oh, hello, Robert!" he greeted.

"Hey, Joseph. Is the conference still going on?" Robert inquired.

Joseph nodded. "Yeah, there seems to be more need to talk than anticipated. But after all, we want a proper school fair, right?" His tone was purposefully light-hearted and somehow he appeared undecided if he should approach Robert or make his planned way as fast as possible.

"Of course. But can you make a rough estimate of how long this will take?" Robert asked and pointed his head to the door. Joseph touched his forehead and let the inhaled air out of his cheeks.

"Oh, well. It surely takes another ten or fifteen minutes I think." Joseph's eyes affixed Robert now thoughtfully. He still stood next to the conference room at quite a distance to Robert. Robert, noting Joseph's unsure and tentative demeanour, raised his eyebrows and leaned forward slightly.

"Is there something else, Joseph?" he questioned.

"Uh, well…" Joseph uttered and made a few steps to the window seat. His eyes snapped to his watch and back to Robert. "I have to go in a minute to make my appointment but just let me say I am happy to see you here."

"… Thanks," Robert said in slight confusion. Joseph's eyes darted across the corridor, avoiding direct contact with Robert.

"Cora will appreciate you being here…?" Joseph continued, his tone unsure.

"Is that a question?" Robert inquired but the shrugging of Joseph's shoulders wasn't what he expected. He tilted his head, boring his eyes into Joseph's intensely. The other man squirmed under Robert's scrutinising gaze and decided to better take a seat next to him. Without the direct confrontation, Joseph's slightly rigid posture relaxed a trifle and he took up talking again.

"I was just confused by a conversation I've had lately. It gave me the impression of... well, I don't know how to put it." Joseph's way of stammering reminded Robert of the last time he had met him. Back then, Joseph had told him about some weird rumour about Cora. A rumour Robert was sure had issued from some kind of misconception, a rumour that surely was forgotten long by now. Actually, Robert hadn't thought about it all the while but Joseph's uneasy bearing transferred him back to their last meeting.

"I thought that there would be more distance between you and Cora at the moment," Joseph admitted and the words came out rather fast. Robert's brow wrinkled and his eyes traced the grain of the wooden door that divided him from his wife.

"But Joseph, I don't know why you are worrying so much about this. I told you a few weeks ago that we are doing absolutely fine," Robert retorted irritated. His index finger brushed across the letters on his keyboard as he hoped this conversation would find a fast and contenting solution. The way Joseph's words took him by surprise irked him.

"Yes, I am sorry," Joseph responded hurriedly. Robert saw from the corner of his eye how Joseph wrung his hands, certainly uncomfortable about upsetting another person. "And I totally believe your words. There was just something else someone said yesterday, and you know, there was some time in between your affirmation and this news," he explained.

"What news?" Robert inquired. He felt an unpleasant bubbling in his veins running through his chest. He tried to keep his voice even, tried to keep the cool he had owned minutes, no, even seconds before. But there was a nasty feeling of foreboding enveloping him.

"Well, I talked to Oliver during break time, you know, chitchat, but then he mentioned the attention he was receiving from Cora. I was really surprised when he said she was being openly flirtatious. That's not how I know her."

"No..." Robert growled.

With a snap, he shut his laptop and turned in his seat. Joseph jerked at the sudden sound.

"Who was the colleague you said?" Robert demanded.

"Uh... Oliver. Oliver Franklin. You know him, right? Cora surely told you when he was new here," Joseph said.

"When was that again?" Robert asked, never having heard the name before. He was sure of that. But Joseph didn't necessarily need to know this.

"A few months ago. Last year sometime before Christmas I think," Joseph replied with a shrug of his shoulders. Robert simply acknowledged it with a short nod.

"And what is he like?" Robert asked. "How do you perceive him?"

"Oh, he is a nice fellow. He tries hard to give good lessons to his students and he's very willing to do his job well. And Oliver's a bit clumsy," Joseph chuckled a little unsure at this. "But once he gets familiar, he focuses on giving support to others. You know, I think he would make a great liaison teacher." Silently both men brooded for a moment.

"This must be some kind of misunderstanding then," Robert spoke first. "But I'd appreciate it if you'd tell me when you should hear something like that again." He fixated his eyes on Joseph's. Now Joseph nodded quietly.

"I am sorry for unsettling you," he said while rising from his seat.

"No, no. Don't be," Robert waved away the apology.

"I better make my way," Joseph stated and pointed down the hallway.

"Of course. Have a nice day."

"You too."

Robert was left alone with great confusion clouding his mind. Joseph's stories made no sense at all. But it wasn't like Joseph to get lost in scheming rumour. That such an unlikely rumour about Cora prevailed was odd somehow or other. Cora was part of the staff for a long time and had been valued by her co-workers after no time at all. Oliver was new, yes. But Joseph had affirmed his good-natured character. This 'clumsy' fellow surely wouldn't be one for nasty gossip, right?

Robert really couldn't make anything of this. There was no way he would be able now to resume his work, so he put away his laptop.

For a moment he sat there unoccupied on the window seat, his hands gripping his knees. He didn't want to think about this rumour that was doing Cora unjust and he didn't want to think about Cora being 'openly flirtatious', but his mind couldn't be distracted at the moment. The stone, that had dropped from his stomach deep into his abdomen, made sitting any longer impossible. He rose, pinched the bridge of his nose and paced the corridor directly in front of the conference room. He hated to not understand what was going on. It made him unpleasantly confused and he wanted to bring order back into his head. An explanation from Cora would definitely help to close this case. He desired to abandon this topic preferably in the next second. But it had to do to wait for her and ask her as soon as she was with him. This attempt at a solution calmed his unsettled thoughts a trifle and he turned to the window, gazing out into the invading darkness. He clasped his hands behind his back and his brow hosted serious wrinkles. Robert focused on the lit windows he could spot afar across the yard and the street. It was a task that distracted him well enough for the following minutes. The loud voices that poured from the opened door made him turn around.

Robert nodded at a few familiar faces he recognised in the bulk of teachers that exited the conference room and the question, if Oliver was beneath them, popped up in his head. He dispelled the thought in an instant and felt his heart lighten when he noticed Cora.

She was the last to leave the room and she said goodbye to some women Robert knew by sight while she switched off the lights and locked the room. Robert approached her and he buried his hands in his pockets. He was impatient to be alone with her, to talk to her in peace, to be with her without any oppressing thoughts. She hadn't noticed him yet, and he observed how her slightly bent-over form slumped a little more as she exhaled. The keys turned swiftly in an often-performed motion and Cora lost no time to turn around, her eyes wide and searching. Her face lit up as she saw him walking towards her slowly. She pressed her papers and keys to her chest and met him halfway, her smile widening with each step.

"Hey," she whispered. Her soft voice soothed him. The tone it had adopted had something concluding about it. It was the tone a mother used to hush all the child's worries. It also quietened Robert's worries.

"Hey." He mirrored her.

"I am so sorry it took so long," Cora apologized and her voice was still quiet. It was nearly always like this when Robert met Cora immediately after lessons or parent-teacher conferences. She took advantage of the opportunity of not having to talk loudly anymore. She only whispered to him and it set Robert in a particularly perceptive and attentive state. Her soft voice somehow enhanced her other features even more and if Robert was her student, she would only have to whisper to him because his attention was highest then. When she appeared especially worn-out Robert had the impulse to encounter her with gentle touches and lift her and tuck her in on the sofa and serve her a hot cup of her favourite green tea.

He now noticed that he had missed parts of her breathed apology of why it had taken longer.

"... so I did it for her and somehow I hadn't been able to end it on point as authoritative as she."

"You ran the conference?"

"Yes, I hope I haven't kept you waiting too much," she looked up at him with slight worry while they started walking down the hallway towards her office.

"Don't worry about that, please," Robert tried to reassure her. She nodded and sighed quietly.

"I thought maybe I can make some pasta after all," Cora changed the subject as they slowed down in front of her office. "I am sure the girls will be hungry and I don't want to listen to their complains if there will only be bread on the dinner table," she explained. They entered the room for her to fetch her coat and bag. The slump of her shoulders indicated her lack of energy. She had been active and running around all day.

"No one will complain and no one has to starve, Cora. You worked till dusk. There is no need for you to stand in the kitchen," Robert declared firmly. Cora looked up from where she stuffed her bag. It seemed she hadn't expected any objection.

"You don't want to eat anything cooked?" she inquired softly; her tone held a hint of disbelieve. His first response was to tell her he would of course prefer something warm but didn't want her to drudge in the kitchen. However, he swallowed this answer because he knew better. Cora would cook nevertheless if she knew he would like it better.

"No, I am not very hungry since I went to the cafeteria with Anna today. I think bread is ideal for this evening," he lied. His lunch at the cafeteria was hours away and he would have loved to eat a large steak now.

"Alright," Cora relented and approached him to slip her hand into the crook of his arm. She hadn't bothered with the buttons of her coat and clutched her lapels together with her free hand instead. She leaned slightly against his side as they made their way out of the school.

Robert felt it wasn't right to ask her now about Joseph's strange story. He didn't want to torpedo the peace he had tried to seed in her seconds before. Maybe he could find peace tonight as well without asking her explanation for the odd story he had been told.

"Robert?" her quiet voice sounded from his side. They crossed the asphalted yard that was lit by two street lamps. Her body was warm beside his but he sensed the shivers that shook her.

"Yes?"

"Did I actually tell you about my new contract?" Cora asked.

"New contract? No, I don't think so," he replied. Why were there so many things he had never heard a single word about before today?

"Well, Elsie offered me a little change and want to go with it."

"Did you already sign?" Robert inquired. He couldn't suppress the irk spreading in his stomach as he considered that it was indeed possible, she was making such choices without him.

"No, but I accepted," her tone was light and the sprinkles of elation that accompanied her report worked a little to neutralise the irk. He couldn't snap at her now. He knew this would be unfair. But the irritation, that seemed to manifest tonight, prevented him from inquiring further information about that impending change in her job. He only hummed in response.

Their ride home was mostly silent. When they stopped at a red light after half of the way was covered, he dared a look at her. He had calmed enough to face her. The back of her head fully rested against the seat and her eyelids were heavy. She seemed to enjoy the silence and Robert was glad about that. When they ascended the few steps at their front door, Cora hung at his side again and leaned her head against his shoulder. Robert was completely sure now; it was right to not discuss anything tonight.

Cora strode down the hallway on Friday morning. Fridays were always filled with lessons. She barely had time to do anything else in between and it reminded her of being a student herself. Only back then, she didn't have to do all the additional work that comes with being a teacher. Cora had therefore scheduled her weeks so that everything necessary was prepared before Friday. Friday was a day where she just had to execute.

She had a little moment before her first lesson started and she went to pass it in her office. With a sigh, she sank onto her chair and her chest deflated entirely as she leaned against the backrest. Why did she already feel jaded when her day of work had not even started yet? She pressed her fingertips into her temples and, closing her eyes, she sighed again. A headache dawned and she didn't feel ready to face all these classes with a constant pounding against her skull. So, she bent down to her bag searching for her reserves of painkillers. When her fingers finally fished the pack of pills from the bottom of her bag, she noticed that they were empty. She groaned and flipped the packing into the bin. Cora decided to go with another cup of coffee. This sometimes helped to suppress an arising headache. Feeling rather tired today she had prepared a thermos flask of coffee before she had left the house, even if there was a machine in the lounge down the corridor here at school. Somehow, she needed the safety of coffee at hand. Cora retrieved the homemade coffee from her bag and filled her cup. Her eyes wandered over the faded photo on the front of the cup. She grinned.

The photo had been taken in the grand hall of her in-laws' manor. The whole family had been there that summer and Rosamund had insisted on taking a photo of her brother's dear family when they had been on their way out to enjoy the summer sun in the wide gardens. Mary was standing patiently between her parents while Edith was at Cora's side seeking her mother's solace after some petty argument. In the faded state of the photo, it wasn't visible anymore, but Cora knew the stilled tears on Edith's cheeks despite her attempt at a smile. Sybil was bouncing on the balls of her feet on the other side of the photo. Robert had grabbed her hand to prevent her from running out of the house in excitement. Rosamund had managed to capture a moment where Sybil was grinning widely at the camera and stood still enough not to create a blurred picture.

Sybil had chosen a nice and telling photo for Cora's Christmas present this cup had been years earlier. Cora had been touched when she had received it but its value increased with every passing day.

She finally took a sip after tearing her eyes from the photo. Her fingers brushed over the inscription, she knew was at the back, while she drank the hot beverage slowly. Sybil's scrawly handwriting appeared before her inner eye. Her baby girl had been so eager to learn how to write. Robert had told her how Sybil had insisted on making a present for Cora where she could write something for her. Signing the cup with a permanent marker had been a contenting solution for little Sybil. Now her baby girl was escaping her guarding arms. The internship at the hospital would only be the first step and Cora was sure the rest would happen faster than she was able to comprehend.

After a moment of daydreaming, Cora decided to start working. She turned on her computer and the first thing she noticed was the new email from Elsie. It was an answer to her acceptance of the job offer. To read a message from Elsie was a good way to start work. Cora opened the email and propped her chin on her hands as she began to read.

Hello Cora,

First of all, I am very grateful that you chaired the conference for me yesterday. It is nice to have someone step in so reliably. I read the protocol from last evening and it seems the responsibilities for the school fair are well distributed. Thank you!

And now, long overdue, my response to your acceptance letter.

I am happy to read you're willing to give the breath of change a shot. You know I am pleased to have you by my side in the council in the future, but I also think we can make this work for you as an opportunity for reorientation. I hope it will be a task you can start with fresh energy.

As I already told you, we'll have to cut down your lessons. It would have been great if we could have had a look at it together, but I am afraid I have to disappoint you on that score. I had to confirm your position in the council immediately (it would be great if you could come to my office sometime today to sign the new contract) and your new working hours are already defined. I am sorry to tell you that your 'beloved' English final years are still your responsibility. We had been able to relieve you of a few Art classes. I think I already found a substitution for you. I will send the colleague to you as soon as it's settled. You can discuss everything about the 'handover' then.

Your new contract will start next month, which is apparently already in less than two weeks' time. I took it from the enthusiasm of your acceptance letter that it would be all right with you, but you still have the choice to not sign the contract. Please don't hold back to express any concerns you might have. Otherwise, it would be nice to complete the change as quickly as possible.

And about our date to talk with a little more time, I still haven't found a free slot in my schedule but I'll email you an appointment as soon as I find one.

I hope you are doing all right and you are fine with everything I settled for your new job.

Best wishes

Elsie

Cora leaned back in her chair again, taking in the content of Elsie's email. Somehow the world moved faster these days than Cora's mind did. She had the feeling of always being behind things. The more Cora tried to catch up on all the tasks and expectations she was confronted with the faster they renewed and updated. She felt like a little girl having to eat a bowl of porridge that constantly refilled itself. She was spooning the porridge faster and faster and her stomach filled and filled and Cora grew sicker and sicker.

Now she had accepted the change of job under the impression that she was forming her future with her own hands and in the course of a few days, the conditions around her had altered again already. She wasn't blaming Elsie for any of the irritation that welled up in her. Not at all. Elsie was surely trying to mould Cora's new job and contract in the most pleasant way. Cora knew she herself was the one who needed to get a grip on things. She could make this work if she wouldn't start whinging just because the class, she ended up teaching wasn't her favourite one or because people decided things for her without asking her. Of course, she could make this work. She always did. It was nothing new that things didn't go as planned and that others had a finger in the pie. These were daily little nuisances she managed to smile off usually. Why was she so short-tempered now?

She had no opportunity to brood any longer because she had to make her way to her classroom. Executing her own plans was one thing she felt capable of today, so teaching wasn't the worst activity her day could be crammed with.

It was in her lunch break after she had been to Elsie's office to sign the contract in her headmistress's absence who instructed the elder secretary to instruct Cora if necessary, that someone knocked upon her door. Cora was rewrapping the second half of her granola bar she was eating.

"Come in!"

Oliver peeked around the door with a smile. Cora waved him inside.

"I hope it is not untimely right now," he said as he approached her desk and wrapped his hands around the backrest of the simple chair that stood on his side.

"No, it's not. I am on my break obviously. What can I do for you?" Cora said and she returned his smile.

"Well, Elsie said I should just come by and see if you have time. I don't know, did she tell you I will be stepping in for you in some Art classes?" he added the last question when her face took a thoughtful expression.

"She said she had someone in mind but I didn't know it was you," Cora explained and pointed to the empty chair. Oliver sat down silently and watched her still musing look.

"Is it a bad surprise?" he inquired while tipping his head to one side.

"No, no," Cora hurried to say. She must have made him insecure with her moderate reaction. "I just didn't think it could be you because I thought you only teach Geography," she explained. A wave of relief washed over his features and his smile returned, wider than before.

"Oh, I see. Well, actually I am teaching both, Geography and Art, but when I started here the school wasn't in need of any new Art teachers so ended up with only a bunch of Geography lessons. It is a nice opportunity to have some Art classes to teach again." He grinned happily at her and it gave Cora some peace that her new job managed to settle some things right. "Let me congratulate you on your somehow new job," Oliver added. "I heard it's some kind of promotion. You have definitely earned that," he assured.

"Thank you," Cora gave back softly. She felt the candour in his words.

"May I ask what it is exactly that your new job includes?" he asked gently and brushed a majority of his dark fringes to the side. It seemed to Cora that it was the first she was able to look at his face properly. The dark shade of his eyes, that she had noticed already before, was framed by thick lashes every woman would envy him for. His eyebrows were dark as well and nearly met over his nose. His complexion was very light and emphasised all the dark features in his face. His handsome cheekbones only were notable when the entirety of his face showed. The timidity she had often perceived at him had vanished with his fringes now, and he radiated a caring and confident aura. Cora had already sensed this side of him every now and then, but she was happy to see him being so entirely in his element.

"I will be part of the school's council to advocate the interests of the Arts department. Actually, it is just an administrative job, which is by no means any more idyllic than what you are doing," Cora answered his question gladly with a light chuckle.

Oliver inquired further, asked her what she meant with idyllic and what she would dream of as an ideal job. These questions surprised her. A little she had been pondering them over the last weeks but being asked so openly she wasn't sure what to answer exactly. She was even more surprised when he didn't care about her vague answers and just waited for her to elaborate. He leaned back in his chair and encouraged her with a soft smile. They never got to discuss the Art classes he would soon take over. Cora just chattered a little and dismissed him with a smile when she noticed that her next lesson was approaching.

Thick clouds covered the sky and every once in a while, their shade changed from dark grey to dirty white. Cora so hoped for them to free pretty white flakes instead of buckets of flooding water. But as it was the pure rain quickly mixed with the dirt of the streets and resulted in washes and puddles of icky hurdles one had to take as soon as one entered the London streets this December. The wish for a white dream of winter hadn't been granted for Cora this far, and if she was honest, she didn't see it coming soon.

She shook herself as she stepped into the dry shelter of the school building. Cora would have never thought she would possess such a piece of clothing that was sticking to her now and was her most important item for the last weeks, a waxed raincoat. It was one of the things she probably wouldn't waste a thought about if it wasn't for her decision to go to England and stay there at the side of the man all her thoughts revolved around. She had to deal with questions like what the ideal raingear was, but that was a price she was willing to pay.

Cora now slipped out of the coat, still standing on the foot mat in the entrance of the school, trying to avoid the trickles of rain that ran down the entire outside of her yellow coat. She balanced the taken-off garment on her index while putting her handbag back on her shoulder what she immediately regretted because her blouse was instantly soaked with the water from her wet bag.

With a sigh, she made her way down the hallway. She parked her bag and her coat in her office and sought the teachers' lounge to boil some water for her tea. She watched the building of bubbles in the glass kettle, first slowly then jolly, and the conversation of some of her colleagues in the background was something she heard but she didn't listen. She poured the hot water into her favourite cup and waited for the tea to steep. Her thoughts were wandering away from school and she recalled all the presents she already had prepared for Christmas. She wanted to start early this year but she hadn't put into practice most of her ideas.

When she took her tea to leave the lounge, her headmistress approached her, a young dark-haired man in tow.

"Cora? May I introduce? This is Oliver. I don't know if you two already met this week," Elsie said. Cora shook her head, not having seen the young man until now. She clutched her cup of tea tighter to warm her hands while briefly sending a warm smile at Oliver before returning her gaze to Elsie.

"He started Monday and will be teaching Geography. This week he is still sitting in on courses but next week he will relieve Margaret from the classes where she did the substitution for ages." The headmistress rolled her eyes at the increasing extent of teacher shortage she had to deal with daily.

"Oh, that is great! Margaret will be pleased," Cora acknowledged. Her eyes went back to her new colleague. He stood a little awkwardly beside Elsie, kneading his hands. His eyes wandered back and forth between the speckled linoleum floor and the conversing women. As soon as his gaze met Cora's he averted his eyes and hid a foolish grin behind his dark fringes. Cora decided to liberate him from the attention he apparently felt uncomfortable with and turned back to her friend.

"Yes, I am sure about that," Elsie agreed. "I have a question for you, Cora," she continued.

"Go on."

"Oliver is still figuring out his way here at our school. I know that it can be a little hard to get around here since we are a slightly larger institute," she smiled understandingly at the new colleague.

"Oh, yes. I know that. I remember being on edge when I started," Cora interjected. She laughed shortly. "But that was years ago. We are definitely the old squad now, Elsie," Cora said with a chuckle.

"Yes, I am afraid so. What I wanted to ask was if you could imagine helping Oliver to settle in."

"Oh, sure," Cora agreed. "You will get the hang of it in no time," she directed at Oliver and bent her head slightly to smile at him encouragingly.

"Well, thank you." It was the first thing he said. He looked directly at her for a moment and Cora noticed the dark brown of his eyes that was in stark contrast to his light skin.

"If you have a moment now, I can give you a short tour of the school," Cora proposed. She turned to Elsie who nodded at her in agreement.

"Alright," Oliver answered and Cora waved him out of the teachers' lounge into the hallway.

"You probably have already seen the central places, so just interrupt me if there is something you already know."

Cora guided him through the school and pointed at some rooms with her right hand every once in a while, her left hand holding on to the cooling teacup. Oliver didn't say much. He never interrupted her, only nodded in understanding or prior knowledge, Cora wasn't sure. Somehow, he seemed pretty lost to her and she hoped he wouldn't struggle too much to find his way.