MY COCKY BASKETBALL PLAYER

Chapter 18

Monday morning.

I walked into school and felt it immediately. The whispers were different. People weren't just laughing. They were pointing at their phones. Showing each other. Passing them around like contraband.

I kept my head down. I walked to my locker.

That's when I saw them.

Tyler and his parents. Walking down the hallway toward the principal's office. His mother was in a suit. His father was on the phone. Tyler walked between them, hands in his pockets. He didn't look worried.

I watched them disappear through the office doors.

Gemma found me at my locker.

"Did you see that?"

"Yeah."

"His parents are here. Both of them."

"I saw."

She was quiet for a moment. Then she said, "What about you? Did they call your mom?"

I hadn't thought about that.

"I don't know."

***

Second period.

The intercom crackled.

"Ms. Nora Vance, please report to the principal's office."

The whole class looked at me. I stood up. I walked out.

The hallway was empty. Quiet. My footsteps echoed.

I stopped outside the office. I could hear voices inside. Tyler's father. Loud. Confident.

I opened the door.

***

My mother was already there.

She was sitting in one of the chairs across from Principal Hayes. Still in her scrubs. She must have come straight from work. She looked at me when I walked in. Her face was tight. She didn't say anything.

Tyler was there too. Sitting with his parents on the other side of the room. His mother had her hand on his shoulder. His father was leaning back, arms crossed.

Principal Hayes gestured to the empty chair next to my mother.

I sat down.

***

"Thank you for coming," Principal Hayes said. "Both families."

My mother didn't respond.

Principal Hayes turned to me. "Nora, I'm sure you know why you're here."

I didn't answer.

She pulled up something on her computer. Turned the screen toward us.

The video.

I watched myself drink. I watched myself fall. I watched Gemma drag me out.

My mother watched. She didn't move. She didn't blink.

Principal Hayes turned the screen back.

"Underage drinking is a violation of school policy."

"It wasn't a school event," I said.

"The students involved are all Northwood students. That makes it our concern."

I didn't answer.

***

Tyler's father spoke.

"Principal Hayes, I think we can all agree that this was a party. Kids being kids. My son hosted it, yes. But he didn't force anyone to drink."

"He provided the alcohol," Principal Hayes said.

"He provided a venue. The alcohol was brought by others."

My mother spoke for the first time.

"She's seventeen."

Tyler's father looked at her. "I understand. But my son didn't pour the drink down her throat."

My mother didn't respond.

***

Principal Hayes folded her hands.

"Given the circumstances, I've decided on the following. Tyler will receive a warning. His parents have assured me this won't happen again."

Tyler's father nodded.

"Maya will also receive a warning. Her parents have been contacted."

"What about my daughter?" my mother asked.

Principal Hayes looked at me. Then at my mother.

"Nora will be suspended. Three days."

The room went quiet.

My mother stared at Principal Hayes.

"Why?"

"Because she's the one on the video. She's the one drinking. She's the one who was filmed."

"So she's being punished for being filmed?"

"She's being punished for violating school policy."

"And they're not?"

"Tyler didn't drink. He hosted. Maya filmed. Neither of them violated policy in the same way."

My mother's hands were shaking.

"That's not justice. That's convenience."

Principal Hayes didn't respond.

Tyler's father stood up. "I think we're done here."

He looked at me. For the first time. His eyes moved across my face. Then he looked away. Like I wasn't worth a second glance.

He walked out. His wife followed. Tyler followed.

Tyler didn't look at me either.

***

My mother and I sat there.

Principal Hayes said something about paperwork. About the suspension starting tomorrow. About assignments being sent home.

My mother didn't respond.

She stood up. She walked out.

I followed her.

***

The car ride home was silent.

My mother didn't speak. She didn't look at me. She just drove.

I stared out the window. The streets passed by. I didn't see any of them.

When we got home, she parked in the driveway. She turned off the engine. She didn't get out.

Neither did I.

We sat there. The silence was heavy.

"I work double shifts," she said finally. "Every day. For you."

I didn't answer.

"I come home exhausted. I barely see you. I barely know you anymore."

I still didn't answer.

"And this is what you do. You go to parties. You drink. You get filmed."

"I didn't want to go."

"Then why did you?"

I didn't have an answer.

She got out of the car. She walked inside. She didn't look back.

I stayed in the car for a long time.

***

The house was quiet.

My mother went to her room. She closed the door.

I stood in the kitchen. Alone.

I looked around. The dirty dishes in the sink. The unpaid bills on the counter. The photo on the fridge. Me. When I was ten. Smiling.

I went to my room. I closed the door.

I sat on my bed.

I didn't cry.

***

The first day of suspension.

I woke up late. My mother was already gone. She didn't leave a note.

I stayed in bed. I stared at the ceiling.

I thought about the meeting. Tyler's father. His smug face. The way he said his son didn't do anything wrong.

I thought about Principal Hayes. The way she said "Nora will be suspended" like it was nothing. Like I was nothing.

I thought about my mother. The way she looked at me in the car. Like she didn't know who I was anymore.

I didn't check my phone.

I didn't want to.

***

The second day.

I got up. I ate something. I sat on the couch. I stared at the TV. I didn't turn it on.

I thought about school. About everyone laughing. About the video. About the suspension.

I thought about Derek.

Standing in the background. Watching. Not moving. Not saying anything.

He didn't get suspended. He didn't get a warning. He didn't get anything.

Because he didn't do anything.

He just watched.

And that was enough.

***

The third day.

I woke up early. I didn't know why.

I sat on my bed. I looked at the jar on my dresser. Still there. Still half full.

I thought about tutoring. Saturday. I'd have to go back. I'd have to sit across from him. I'd have to pretend nothing happened.

But I didn't know if I could.

I lay back down.

I stared at the ceiling.

I didn't think about him.

I didn't.