"Want to get beers?" Calvin asked, as they finished shelving the last stack.
Ainsley hesitated.
"We could call it a staff celebration," he added lightly. "One year older, one year wiser."
"One year more exhausted," she smirked. "But okay."
They went to a quiet pub two blocks away - Dempsey's. It was dim, cozy, and familiar. Ainsley ordered a Summer Shandy. Calvin stuck with Bud Light.
For a while, they talked about school, how the fifth-grade religion teacher was definitely going to join a convent, how the copier broke again during state testing, how the cafeteria had finally replaced the weird tater tot hotdish.
Then, as always, their conversation slipped into more personal waters.
"How's Jeremy?" Calvin asked gently.
"Working late," Ainsley replied. "I think he prefers his vehicle to me these days."
Calvin didn't laugh. "I get it."
She met his eyes, her heart stuttering. "And Sadie?"
"Booked a girls' trip to Vegas. Again."
They sat in that silence for a moment. Not uncomfortable. But weighted.
And then Ainsley whispered, "Have we let ourselves get too close?"
Calvin's hand twitched on the table. "Probably."
Neither of them moved.
"I don't want to ruin what we have," she added.
"What do we have, Ainsley?"
She didn't answer. Couldn't.