Westbury Middle had a great vibe, and she’d felt included from the get-go. The kids were passionate and determined—for the most part—and so much more worldly than she’d been in her small, rural middle school. One of her favorite things about Westbury Middle was that it had a book club tailored to kids who were dyslexic, and Olivia had gone to all the meetings since she was hired. She loved bonding with the kids and being able to be sympathetic to struggles she knew so well.

If she was lucky enough to get a year-long contract from the school, she’d be comfortable getting an apartment lease of her own, maybe even something around here in the historic Soulard area just south of downtown. She loved the character in the quaint and historic redbrick homes and buildings around the school.

She could almost taste the relief of what it would be like to know for certain that the life she was building here in St. Louis could turn into something permanent. Not just be a Band-Aid to get her through until something opened up in southern Missouri, which she’d called home for so long. To live here where not only Ava and Aunt Becky were, but also Gabe.

It was premature, she knew, to assume he’d be in her life long enough to worry about her permanency in St. Louis affecting their relationship. But it would also be a lie to deny that what had passed between them last weekend had been something not quite ordinary.

When the bell rang, she headed for the door and gave high fives to any of the kids who wanted them, which ended up being most. A few, like Brody, were too cool and just gave a curt nod.

“Remember to see what service projects they need,” Addison reminded her as she left.

Olivia promised she would. Once the class emptied, she packed up and headed out for the weekend. To stave off the afternoon munchies and get her through till dinner, she choked down the last of the Triscuits in her lunch bag and rationed out the last of the water in her Contigo water bottle.

Without traffic, it was just over a twenty-minute drive to the shelter, and the closer she got, the more excited she became. She wasn’t usually so quick to make decisions, but just the same as with Gabe, something about volunteering at the shelter had felt right during the impromptu tour Megan, the director, had given her after she and Patrick had gotten the pointer settled Wednesday morning.