One Hour

English teacher Jessica Harmon and one of her students, seventeen-year-old Riley Jenkins, hide in a classroom closet while a gunman rampages through their high school. They're the only people in the room because it was Jessica's planning period, and Riley stopped by with concerns about a debate assignment. When the gunman finds them in the closet, they figure they're as good as dead. Except Jessica and Riley survive, without injury, their harrowing, surreal conversation with the gunman. Their shared trauma and their guilt from failing to stop the gunman haunt Jessica and Riley and bring them close. They're not the same people they were before the shootings, and Jessica, who never had given as much as a second glance to a student, finds herself drawn to Riley. "One Hour" is the story of how Jessica and Riley help each other through their unique situation. Do they ultimately find happiness and a future with each other? *** This novella of about 24,500 words was first published as part of the collection "The Green Pill, One Hour and Other Lesbian Stories."