CHAPTER TWO
817 Words
CHAPTER TWO
“Stop!” Miss Blaire called, her voice amazingly strong for a small woman. When the boys slid to a halt but didn’t turn to face her, she added, “Get back here, this instant! I want to talk to you.” The way she snapped out each word left no doubt they’d better do what she said, and they obeyed without further hesitation. Gabe stood still, head ducked, ashamed of the way he looked with his bruises and cuts and how he’d let the boys trick him. To add to his troubles, a teacher now saw him in this pitiful condition. Can the day get any worse? he wondered.
Miss Blaire glanced from Gabe to Mick to Bud and back to Gabe, her arms crossed over her chest. She did not comment on his injuries but simply said, “What happened here?”
He sighed. Great! What do I do, now? Tell the truth? Lie? Either way, I’m in trouble.
When he offered no explanation, she turned her attention to Bud. “Do you have anything to say?”
He shook his head. “No, ma’am.”
Her forehead wrinkled, she focused on Mick. “How about you?”
“Yes, ma’am, I think Gabe had an accident,” he said, a hint of worry in his voice. “We didn’t see what happened, but he may need help.”
Whoa! What an actor, Gabe thought. He said every word with a straight face. I should have smacked him one and suffered the consequences. Think, brain, think how to explain.
“Um, you see, Miss Blaire.” He chewed on his thumbnail. “I’m clumsy sometimes. I don’t know how I did it, but I tripped over my own feet.” He touched his nose. “A bloody nose is no big deal. I’ve had lots of those.” He swiped at his face with his shirttail. “Anybody have a tissue?” he said, trying to sound funny.
No one laughed.
In fact, Miss Blaire frowned, clearly not amused. “You need to go to the nurse’s office and let her tend to your injuries.”
And have to explain to her how I really got them. No way. He shook his head. “No, no, thanks. I’ll take care of them at home.”
She frowned. “You’re sure?”
He nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
She scanned his other scratches. “Well, your injuries don’t appear to be too serious. All right, you may go. Be sure to show your parents what happened and put medicine on them. We don’t want an infection to set in.”
He shook his head. “No, ma’am, we sure don’t.'”
A frown still on her face, as if debating whether she’d done the right thing or not, she turned her attention to the other boys, who stood still, their heads bowed, perfect do-no-wrong students. “Is that what happened?”
“Yes, it is, exactly, exactly,” Mick said, answering her so quickly his words ran together.
“It is, Miss Blaire, what he said.” Bud pointed at Gabe.
Gabe almost snorted but managed to keep his mouth shut. Not so his thoughts, however. Liars, liars. Listen to me. I’m as bad.
She eyed each of them. “All right. You may go, for now. I have to write a report when accidents occur on campus. Ms. Raven, the principal, may contact your parents later for additional information.”
Mick and Bud both mumbled, “Thanks,” and sprinted toward the bicycle rack where they kept their motorcycles. They never looked back.
Gabe limped off as fast as his stinging legs could carry him and didn’t see Lindy until he almost mowed her down. She dodged to the side barely in time to avoid a collision. Her eyes opened wide, and he hollered, “Don’t ask,” as he limped along. His scrapes and bruises must have frightened her, for on the walk home she never said a word. A first, for his little sister. When they stepped up on the front porch of their house, he put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. “I have a favor to ask.”
She nodded. “I know. I won’t mention the…accident at school. Grandpa has enough trouble raising us without worrying about your fights. Our secret, if…”
He squished his eyes closed for a second then opened them. “Hu-oh, I figured there’d be a catch.”
She shook her head. “No catch, just stay away from those guys. I know they’re bugging you. Ignore them. Please.”
He stared past her, unable to look Lindy in the face. She trusts me, he thought. I’ll try. No promises. Avoiding Mick and Bud is next to impossible since we have classes together, but I’ll never tell her. She wouldn’t believe me, anyhow. “I’ll do my best,” he said.
She frowned. “Do I hear a but in there somewhere?”
Dang she’s smart. “Hear whatever you want.” He reached into his pocket for his house key. Empty. He must have lost it when he splattered his body on the school grounds.
Lindy held out her key. “Don’t worry. I’ll get the door. Maybe someone at school will find yours and turn it in to the office.” She ran inside.
“Yeah, maybe,” he said, following her. When pigs fly.
- Writer
