Total pages in book: 65
Estimated words: 59489 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59489 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
“It’s fine,” I said. “I know you’re busy.”
We all made our way inside, and after a few minutes, Victor and Melanie made their arrivals, completing the group of friends and children, who all disappeared down into the game room in the basement to play. It had been a big project of Ryan’s to build. All of us had pitched in to help over the course of the last year, and now that it was done, it was the perfect place for the kids to hang out while the adults had fun upstairs. There was even a nursery in its own soundproof room for the babies.
“Man, this is great,” Graham said as he watched the kids play downstairs. “I haven’t seen it since I came over to help lay down the flooring.”
“It took a while, but yeah, it’s done and awesome,” Ryan said. “But let’s get over here into the kitchen where the adults can have some fun.”
Everyone seemed so happy for us as a couple when they spoke to me or both of us. Kristen fit in so smoothly with everyone that it was like she had always been a part of the group, and she often was spirited away by the other girls for whatever it was they did when they were away from us guys. It felt like the perfect situation, and I was pretty close to a monumental decision. But before I did that, I wanted to get some advice from Ryan and Graham specifically. I pulled them aside while Mark and Vic went down to play with the kids for a little bit and check on them.
“So, you think you’re going to propose?” Graham asked.
“I mean, that’s the next step, isn’t it?” I asked.
“Look,” Ryan said, looking over his shoulder to make sure the girls were still in the kitchen. Laughter floated out from the room almost as if on cue. “Kristen is great. Like, great. Allison loves her, and I think everyone else does too. She’s perfect for you. You need to be open for change in your life, man.”
“Yeah,” Graham added, “I know you’ve always been the hesitant one. The planner and stuff. But this girl is perfect for you, dude. And you can tell how much she adores you too. If you think she’s the one, don’t dick around. Go get her.”
“I second that,” Ryan said, taking a sip of his beer. “Don’t dick around.”
I nodded.
“It’s weird feeling impulsive,” I said.
“Don’t worry about it,” Ryan said. “The way you talk about her, the way you two interact with each other and everyone else, there’s only one question. Do you love her?”
“Yes,” I said.
“Then get along, little doggy,” Ryan said. “Set yourself free of all these worries about being responsible all the time and overplanning everything. Just be you. Take the risk.”
“She’s worth it,” I said. “But I have to plan something.”
“I knew you’d say that,” Ryan said, clapping my back.
16
KRISTEN
Iclosed the laptop for the final time of the day—I hoped—and rubbed the bridge of my nose for a second while I rested my eyes. The virtual program was going extremely well, but it did involve a bit of extra work I hadn’t really considered. All things considered, I didn’t really have to edit the footage from the class together, but I figured if everyone was giving me such a special opportunity, I should make it worth their while and put the effort into it.
So, after every class that I recorded, I went into my office and loaded the footage onto the new media desktop computer the school had bought for me. Then I loaded it up, edited it, and posted it to the forum for the students at Van Hope. It meant a couple extra hours at Slater Community, but it was worth it to know that I could be proud of my work and wasn’t just phoning it in.
Plus, the response from the students had been great. Some of the Van Hope students had started a study group where they could watch the video together and field questions as a group that I could answer, rather than responding to dozens of emails about the same thing over and over. Their self-motivation led to me creating a better structure for the next semester, making sure that things went the same way when I did this again. As time would go on, I was sure I would refine it and tweak it until it was like second nature for me and the students who were learning remotely.
To say I was pleased with how things were going was an understatement, and I wanted to share some of the success with Camden at lunch. He had been pestering me about going out to this little sandwich shop that had opened up on campus for a few days and now seemed like the perfect chance to give it a shot. I told him that as soon as I was done with the editing of the lesson from this morning, I would text him and meet him down there.