MINA [#Wattys2014]

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Mina didn't know why, but somehow she made it through the weekend without losing her mind to the worry and for that she was grateful. When she arrived home that Friday night, it had crossed her mind numerous times that maybe she had gone too far, maybe just maybe she had over-reacted, even just a little. She hadn't planned to grade the papers until the next day anyway, and this was her job she was putting on the line. Maybe in the heat of the moment she'd allowed her pride to be involved in just a little too much of the decision making, and she maybe just maybe should have taken a little more time to think about the situation before making all the rash decisions to act the way the way she did...and said all the things she never truly intended to say to anyone alive....

Well over the weekend she'd had plenty of time to think. And boy did everything look like shit in retrospect. And with all that time in between grading and afterwards, her imagination ran wild dreaming up multilayered schemes of just how she would lose her job, the only paying job she'd ever had. It had even occurred to her that when, not if; because after the way she had acted it was now more than a possibility that she was going to lose her job. She'd just have to wait till she saw her boss face to face before he dismissed her, then she could compare notes and see just how far off her creative thinking was. When he did, she'd see clearly the pleasure he'd get out of it, and the anticipation of her getting down on her knees to beg in order to keep her job. And when she thought about the hell she was going to pay, and the endless days and weeks, let's not think about months, she'd spend trying to find another job to no avail, she just might do it. She cringed at the thought.

Imagine her surprise however when she stepped through the school gates that Monday morning, without even a hassle from school guard. Her morning had been as uneventful as her Friday hadn't .

She'd even managed to get there early enough that she could sit and catch up on her Spanish before the students started filing in. Even when she ran into the Principal all he did was nod. The day could not possibly get any better than this.....or maybe some time during the night her mind had succumbed to the anxiety and finally caved....so right now she could still be lying in her bed dead to the world. She pinched herself...and it hurt, real bad so there was no way this was a dream. She didn't have much more time to continue on this particular train of musings as everyone finally got settled.

"Good morning class, I graded your assignments over the weekend and I am happy to announce that all of you, no my mistake, every single one of you except one, passed your assignment." loud cheers rang out but Mina did not have to look up to know that one person was anything but happy. She should have probably been satisfied with simply waving her white banner of surrender in the air and not continue to push people's buttons, but she hadn't been able to help herself with that one. Still dangerously testing the waters....but satisfied somewhat that her world hadn't imploded she began distributing the assignments before returning to her seat. She pulled out her teacher's notes and briefly reviewed her plans for the class, while everyone had a moment to review their papers.

"Ok!" She clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. "So who can analyze the poem, 'Once upon a time' that I told you to revise over the weekend? Even though I said it wasn't graded, all you had to do was read a couple pages and give me your thoughts about it, while referring to some literary schemes and devices." she looked around at her students to see who would volunteer themselves. "Seriously people? No one did it?"

The person she least expected to, raised his hand.

"Yes...Tank..." she had to catch herself before the fact that she paused became too obvious to explain.

He cleared his throat, but she noticed that he hadn't volunteered to stand, not that it really mattered since she was too shocked to insist that he do so anyway.