𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒃𝒐𝒓𝒐 𝑵𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔

Chapter Seven | Find Your Voice |

"A man is not 'very tired', he is 'exhausted'." Explained Mr. Keating, as he paced around the classroom.

"Also, don't use 'very sad' use-" he pauses pointing towards Knox. "Come on Mr. Overstreet, you twerp." He taunted him, earning a few chuckles from the class, and an obnoxious 'HA!' from Elle.

"Morose?" Knox trailed off, unsure of the answer he gave.

"Exactly! Morose!" Mr. Keating sang, once again pointing at him, before ending his pacing in front of the class.

"Language was developed for one endeavor, and that is?- Mr. Anderson!" He calls on Todd, who shrinks back once he hears his name.

"Come on, are you a man or an amoeba?" He taunts Todd when he doesn't answer. Elle frowns not enjoying the teasing that was being directed at the timid boy.

After realizing Todd couldn't bring himself to answer, Mr. Keating gives him a small smile, before moving on to the next person. "Mr. Perry?"

Todd looks down at his desk in shame. Noticing this, Elle is quick to give his shoulder a poke to get his attention. Looking over at her he sees her bright grin.

"No worries Todd, I wouldn't be able to answer either, not good with fancy words and whatnot." Todd gives her a halfhearted smile in return.

Trying to get him to laugh, she adds, "at least you're not purposely wrong just to be obnoxious like Charlie." At a decently loud volume for all of the class to hear.

Her row of seats chuckle, including Todd when he hears a small protest of 'hey!' from Charlie all the way in the back.

Pretending to not hear Elles comment, Mr. Keating gestures for Neil to answer his question.

"Uh, to communicate." He answers after a small pause of hesitation.

No! To woo women." He stares pointedly at everyone in the class, Elle scrunches her nose.

"Oh thy lady, it would please me so if your greatness would pick me over these dratted men, for I am a much better choice." Elle mimicked a victorian era speech horrendously gaining the whole classes and Mr. Keatings laughter.

"Precisely how it's done, Miss. Avara!" Mr. Keating jokes, giving her a mocking round of applause.

"Today we're gonna be talking about William Shakespere." Mr. Keating continues on, earning groans from most of the class.

Elle didn't hate Shakespeare. Yet she did despise one of his works, Romeo and Juliet. It wasn't necessarily the play itself, more of how her mother had tried to use the play to show her how wonderful marriage is, and why she should be excited to become a housewife. She didn't think her mother got the memo that they both died in the end.

That's why her parents enrolled her into Welton, it had the best and richest young men attending with excellent family connections. They are hoping to find a male student here to marry her off to. She was not happy in the least.

"I know, a lot of you look forward to this about as much as you look forward to root canal work." Mr. Keating noted, facing everyone.

"We're gonna talk about Shakespere as someone who writes something very interesting." He drawled out, once again walking around the classroom.

"Now, many of you have seen Shakespere done very much like this," he clears his throat, turning to the side, posing.

"O Titus, bring your friend hither." He acted out the line in a silly voice, eliciting laughs from the teens.

"But if any of you have seen Mr. Malon Brando, you know that Shakespere can be different, 'Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears'." He continued, ending off with an impersonation.

He proceeded to quote a bunch of different Shakespere lines in different voices and characters, much to the student's amusement.  After performing a few scenes, he goes to his desk, climbing on top of it.

"Why do I stand up here? Anybody?" Mr. Keating inquired, raising both of his arms, gesturing to the space around him.

"To feel taller," Charlie sarcastically answered, smirking to himself leaning back on his chair.

"Literally just proved my earlier point," Elle snorted, muttering to Todd, he let out a quiet snicker.

Mr. Keating rings the bell on his desk with his foot, "no! Thank you for playing Mr. Dalton."

"Ha! He got a bell just for your dumb answers!" Elle pointed at Charlie wheezing. Charlie playfully sent her a glare, while the whole class laughed at them.

Charlie had to admit, he adored her laughing even if it was at his own expense. Not that he'd admit it to anyone, though he didn't have to. His soft look to her was all Neil needed to see that Charlie obviously still liked Elle.

It was quite ironic that Neil and Elle could see each other's potential relationships, but not their own. They were both stupidly oblivious, perhaps that's what made them such great friends.

"I stand on my desk to remind myself that we must constantly look at things in a different way," He tells the class, still standing on top of his desk.

He starts turning around, viewing everything in his sight, "see the world looks very different from up here, you don't believe me? Come see for yourselves." He invited them over to his desk.

Neil and Charlie were the first to climb on the desk, Charlie helping to pull Elle up, not releasing her hand afterwards resulting in a small flick from her.

"Just when you think you know something you have to look at it in another way, even though it may seem silly, or wrong, you must try!" Mr. Keating boomed, jumping off his desk to give his students more room on it."

"Now, when you read, don't just consider what the author thinks, consider what you think," he tells them all, emphasizing the 'you'.

Neil jumps down from the desk, Charlie joining him. He helps Elle down with Kara trying to help her cover her skirt so no one could peek.

Another thing she despised about Welton, the female students could only wear skirts all year round, tights not permitted only stockings. It was a pain in the ass to freeze all winter long.

She thanked Kara, the two exchanging smiles. Elle was beyond thankful for her. Kara was extremely wise and caring which Elle adored about her, she always looked forward to their hangouts at the dorm, just the two of them. She especially loved teasing her about Pitts, and watching two of her friends falling for each other.

"Class, you must strive to find your own voice, because the longer you wait to begin the less likely you are to find it at all." He advised them all, as they took turns on looking at everything on top of his desk.

"Thoreau said, 'Most men lead lives of quiet desperation.' don't be resigned to that, break out." He begins.

"Don't just walk off the edge like lemmings, look around you," He announces, just in time as the class' ending bell rings.

"Dare to strike out and find new ground, now in addition to your essays I would like you to compose a poem of your own.  An original work." He informs them all, while they groan he flickers the lights on and off.

"You have to deliver it aloud in front of the class on Monday, Bon chance everybody." He says at last before exiting the classroom.

Just as he leaves, Todd is the last to climb onto the desk. Just as he prepares to jump off, Mr. Keating reappears calling for him.

"Mr.  Anderson, don't think I don't know this assignment scares the hell out of you, you mole." With that he flicks off the lights leaving the classroom in the dark, and Elle slightly concerned for Todd.

✯

Sorry for the shorter chapter, I'd love to read your comments about your thoughts  :)