“Somehow you’re not making me a believer.” Alex lifted Jorden gently onto the bed. It seemed natural to feel the softness beneath her. Their movements kept tempo with the rain until Jorden could no longer hear the raging winds. Afterward, they held each other a long time. Jorden slowly slipped off to sleep.

Morning arrived. It was sunny. A good day for driving. Jorden left first while waving goodbye. She drove for hours, glad when she managed to get back to Columbus just before sunset. Again, she made three stops to break up the ten hour trip.

Madison was at the apartment when she hauled her suitcase upstairs. “Where’ve you been? You should have called—I’ve been worried.”

“The weather turned terrible. No way could I drive back. I’m sorry, I should have called. I’ll shower, then I’ll fill you in.”

Thirty minutes later, Jorden rejoined Madison. “I feel better now.”

“What happened?” Madison asked.

Jorden covered the details. She began with where they stayed, what they saw, and the horrendous storm. She talked over an hour—but never mentioned her intimacy with Alex. Jorden knew Madison would lecture her about taking chances—of course she was right.

Chapter 35: January 1970

Chapter 35

January 1970

A white-haired gentleman seated next to Jorden stretched his hands out. His fingers had been leafing through a stock market portfolio. She recognized several of the stock symbols and had to smile as she thought back to April of the past school year.

***

Previous Year – April-May 1969

Jorden immersed herself in the final stages of their stock market project. She and fellow teacher, Jim Stone, developed five different tests covering the material for each grade level, seventh through ninth. Jorden made comparisons and combined her results with Jim’s. She wanted her classes to be fairly tested using the same questions.

“I’m ready to see what our students have learned. Friday is the big day. I’m betting on high test scores!” Jim exclaimed.

“I’m sure they’ll become millionaires and outshine us,” Jorden replied.

Nora and Cheryl had also been preparing. Every afternoon Nora plopped down at Cheryl’s kitchen table. The two girls were quite a sight. Nora’s black hair was pulled back in a ponytail, bobbing with her movements. Cheryl’s long blond curls flowed forward, touching the tabletop. Lines tightened around Nora’s jaw and furrows deepened between her eyes. Back and forth they covered the stock market handouts as they continued to concentrate on their notes. Nora and Cheryl were a classic balancing act, supporting each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

The eighth graders walked into Jorden’s classroom and took their seats for the final exam. Cheryl filed in while Nora quizzed her on the stock market terms.

“Well girls, sounds like you two are ready for this test.”

Nora’s face lit up. “We are Miss Marshall.”

“We’re going to ace this one,” Cheryl added.

“Let’s go for it!” Nora exclaimed.