Becoming Better

Chapter 8 - Always Check the Stalls

Summer was over, and the first day of Senior year arrived. Charlie wasn't ready for it. She walked through the front doors of Saint Peters High School, flashing back in her mind to her first day there two years ago. She had come a long way since then. At least, on the popularity front. 

Charlie's grades had slipped considerably last year. She had no longer seen the need to strive for A's since she decided she was going to Community College. She had been kicked out of her honors classes for failing to meet the grade threshold. She hadn't even tried out for any teams. Her whole life had been Cassius. She felt regret creeping into her chest. She had probably ruined her chances of getting into college.

Her first two classes came and went without incident. She had Marine Biology and Spanish. However, her third period History teacher, Ms. Anderson, was an absolute nightmare. The second Charlie walked into class, before the woman even knew her name, she singled her out for having her shirt untucked. One of the rules for Saint Peters' school uniforms was you had to have your shirt tucked in at all times. It looked dorky as hell, and she hated it, but it was a rule. The teacher gave her detention on the spot. She was probably trying to make an example out of Charlie.

After third period Charlie met up with her friend Rachel, whom she hadn't seen all summer. They hugged and chatted about their vacations. Rachel had gone out of town to stay with her dad for three months. Her parents were divorced, so it was part of their custody agreement. Charlie told her about Cassius, and Rachel was shocked. Charlie hadn't given much away about the breakup on her social media. She figured people talked enough as it was.

Charlie fixed her uniform in the West Wing girl's bathroom mirror while Rachel washed her hands.

"Are you fully tucking the shirt in?" Rachel raised her eyebrows at her. Usually all the girls bloused their shirts so they were slightly looser.

"Yeah, can't risk another detention. I already got one from Ms. Anderson today," Charlie explained.

"On the first day of school?!?" Rachel was shocked.

"I know, what an absolute bitch, right? How miserable do you have to be to give out detention on the first day," Charlie said.

One of the bathroom doors opened after Charlie finished talking. Charlie's heart nearly stopped when Ms. Anderson exited the stall.

"Miss Jackson, this is not a promising way to start the year," Ms. Anderson frowned at her.

"I, uh," Charlie struggled to speak.

"Come with me," her teacher said.

Rachel gave her a wide-eyed look as she exited the bathroom. Charlie was screwed. She followed Ms. Anderson to the Dean's office, freaking out internally.

"I'm so sorry, I don't know why I said that. It was so rude, and not appropriate," Charlie tried to apologize to her.

Ms. Anderson held her hand up so Charlie would stop talking. "This is the Dean's problem now."

She walked into the Dean's office and left Charlie standing outside. What kind of trouble was she going to get into? She had never heard of anyone getting caught for talking trash about a teacher before. Ms. Anderson opened the door and motioned for Charlie to come inside.

Charlie walked in. Her hands were shaking. Dean McDonald was sitting at his desk frowning. After he yelled at her for what felt like 10 minutes about respect and the Saint Peters code of conduct, he informed her that they were going to give her another detention, as well as put a mark on her transcript. She didn't even know what that meant, but any way she looked at it, the year wasn't off to a good start.