He reached out as her body was flung from the vessel. It capsized, the ocean waves greedily swallowing her in joyous victory.
Chapter Five
Ari
Ari fumbled with her computer bag as she walked toward the doors of her classroom.
“Computer? Check. Pens? Check. Sanity?… Check,” she mumbled to herself before looking around and making sure no one was paying attention. She shouldn’t be so nervous. They were just students, exactly what she’d been a few months ago.
Even now, as she worked toward her doctorate, she was a student, but it felt different somehow. It was a lot of work, which was why she was teaching only one course. Still, these kids didn’t have it out for her — not yet, at least! — so she had nothing to be nervous about.
No matter how much she tried convincing herself of this fact, it didn’t encourage or comfort her in the least. She was still shaking as she moved through the doors. Without thinking about it, she looked around the half-full room, then sighed.
Was she feeling relief or regret that Rafe wasn’t there?
Relief! Of course it was relief. She didn’t want him chasing after her. She had been just fine on her own and didn’t need him in her life, messing everything up again. The first months after she’d walked away had been hell, and it had taken everything inside her to be strong. She was strong now, and she wouldn’t allow him to undermine that strength.
Just as the clock struck the hour, when she faced the class, a giggle sounded. Ari didn’t need to look up to know Rafe had arrived. Only one man she knew could elicit the sigh she heard coming from the front row. Rafe was simply that stunning.
Refusing to cower, she reluctantly lifted her head and locked eyes with Rafe. With an instilled arrogance, he sent her a wink before taking a seat on the aisle halfway into the room. The girls were whispering and making eyes, and a few of the men were grumbling.
It was going to be difficult to keep the classroom’s attention if he was there.
“Everyone in here needs to be registered for class,” she said and pulled out her newest roster. She hoped Rafe’s name wasn’t there so she could boot him from the room.
No such luck. When she saw his name right where it should be, under P, she nearly groaned in frustration. He was smarter than she’d given him credit for. Rafe didn’t take no for an answer, and he was apparently on a mission.
She wondered. If she just bent over her desk and let him take her one more time, would he lose interest? Was this all a game for him? Did he just have to be the last one standing — the one to end their relationship?
Of course, she would never know, because she had enough pride in herself not to strip down and beg him to take her for the rest of the night. Not that it would be a bad night if they did end up on her desk, but that wasn’t the point.
She was confusing herself, and she didn’t like it. All she knew for now was that he had a mission in mind, and he wasn’t leaving until he followed through on it.
She knew she was defeated…for now, so she jumped into her lesson. “I hope you completed Monday’s assignment. There will be a quiz next Monday, so make sure you pay attention today.” With luck, he’d fail and she could tell him to take a hike.
There was some grumbling, and a few more whispers. She was sure they were complaining that she had a test coming so soon. Too bad. This was the real world, and they’d better get used to it.
Halfway through class, she was shocked when Rafe raised his hand and easily answered her questions. He’d actually read the material. Her respect was grudging, but she had to give him his due. He was taking this seriously, or at least putting some effort into her assignments.
Did she even know this new Rafe?
Pulling herself together, Ari focused on her class. “Does anyone know the date the Civil War officially began?” Silence greeted her question. Great, no one had read the material.
“April 12, 1861.” Ari looked up in surprise to see Rafe smiling at her. OK, he’d gotten one more answer correct. He was a smart guy. It didn’t mean that he’d actually done the homework. That was absurd. He wouldn’t have any reason to do homework.
“Very good. Do you know why that’s the beginning of the Civil War?” She looked around the room, hoping anyone other than Rafe would answer. She was out of luck.
“This was the day the Confederate army fired on Fort Sumter, beginning hostilities. It had been occupied by the Union army in South Carolina a few days after the state had declared its secession in 1860. After the fort’s surrender, President Lincoln called on all states to raise troops to retake lost forts. Within two months, four additional pro-slave states joined the Confederacy, making eleven in total.”
She didn’t want to admit to being impressed, but she couldn’t help herself. He’d either done a Google search or he’d actually done his homework. Either way, he wasn’t just sitting in her class; he was participating. She didn’t want to feel any emotions toward Rafe, but she found her heart rate increasing.
“Does anyone know how long the Civil War lasted?”
Ari waited, and finally a girl in the front row quietly said, “Four years.”
“Very good, yes. The war lasted from 1861 until 1865. With every war, we study it and try to uncover ways we could have prevented the bloodshed, but why is there so much more emphasis on this war?”
“Because this was where the United States tried to break apart. Had this occurred, we wouldn’t be who we are today,” a student said.
“Very true, but that’s not all. During this war, though there were threats of foreign intervention, we were on our own. In four years, hundreds of thousands were dead and the South was nearly desolated. The war ended when the Confederacy collapsed, and of course we know that slavery was abolished. But we were left with a people who were told they now needed to put down their guns and all get along. There was a lot of hatred among the soldiers, and many didn’t want just to lay down their weapons. The end of the war didn’t mean it was over for everyone. Too many lives had been lost; too many people had been forever changed.”
“How does a nation pick up the pieces after something like that?”
“Very good question. I guess the best answer would be to focus on what was most important. The South needed to rebuild, and the North needed to step in and help. This was also one of the first industrial wars. During its four-year term, railroads and steamships were used heavily. Communication was carried on through the telegraph, and weapons were mass-produced. And of course, many women stepped up and began working outside of the home since the men were at war. The same thing happened during World War I — those of you who continue in the history sequence will discuss that next semester. The point is that the destruction contained the seeds of the nation’s rebuilding, because instead of brother fighting brother, the country’s people now had to come back together to restore their lives.”