Startled, Jorden almost dropped the jar. She laughed and leaned into him. They sat at the dining table eating their sandwiches while they talked about their future plans.

The next morning Jorden started her school day without much sleep, but it didn’t seem to matter. The time with Alex made up for missed slumber. The weekend zoomed by and in no time it was Sunday night.

“Can’t you stay a few more days? It seems like you just got here,” Jorden pleaded.

“I want to, but I need to get home.” Alex untangled a long strand of Jorden’s silky hair. “My family wouldn’t understand. Remember, you’re coming to meet them soon. May 15 isn’t far away. We’ll have a long weekend together.”

“You know the weekend will fly by,” Jorden argued. “I know how important your family is, but please think about spending a couple days in Columbus before you leave for Vietnam. We have so little time left.”

Alex got up and paced the small bedroom.

“I’m not asking you not to go home—just spend your last couple days with me in Columbus. Think about it,” Jorden appealed to him. Why does he make such a big deal out of this? She could see a veil forming over his face.

“I’ll think about it—is all I can promise.” Alex held both her hands and kissed them gently. “I can’t wait for you to get to Albany.”

“I hope your family likes me. It makes me anxious.”

“They’ll love you!” Alex whispered, pulling her closer.

Alex left early Monday morning for Albany. Jorden began the week tired but happy. She couldn’t wait to begin the trip to New York. She already had her airline reservation and ticket for next Thursday. She was scheduled to arrive in Albany around nine. Her principal had been good about letting her take Friday off.

Jorden was pleased the majority of her students did well on the stock market exam. Nora received the highest score with Cheryl a point behind her. The girl’s bright faces brought a sense of accomplishment to Jorden. They did it! She loved seeing their sense of pride. Soon after the test, the students turned in their results from the sale of their stocks.

Wednesday, May 14 arrived. This was the day Jorden and Jim Stone would be announcing the winners of the stock market contest. Nora and Cheryl had been keeping tabs throughout day on who had received awards. Three had already been presented. The grand award still hadn’t been declared.

“Do you think we have a chance?” Cheryl asked Nora as they entered Miss Marshall’s classroom.

“How can we miss? All of our stocks made a profit. If we had put real money into them, we’d be rich!”

Jorden’s eighth graders crowded into her classroom. She couldn’t help but hear Nora go on about being rich.