Burnouts 2: Without Butterflies

Wrong Enough to Feel Right

Scene 1: Addington High

Heather Blakely

My father sighed and checked his watch. "I had to push back two meetings for this."

"This is about our daughter, William."

"And I am sure she has done nothing wrong."

"Well, be here to tell them that."

"Am I not here?"

"Oh, your eager presence is greatly appreciated," she glared.

"Thank you for waiting," the receptionist interrupted. "The headmistress will see you now."

Oh, no...here we go.

My parents walked ahead of me into the office, growing more agitated at the sight of a police chief in the corner. Headmistress Sanderson smiled from her desk, and they took a seat on their respective sides leaving the chair in the middle empty for me.

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Blakely. It is lovely to see you again despite such unsavory circumstances."

"Yes, I find accusatory statements made against my daughter to be unsavory as well," my mother answered.

"We at Addington do not mean to accuse Heather of anything but rather get to the bottom of a situation that has been plaguing many students and their families over the past few months."

"Then, let's not waste time with niceties."

"Good morning, Heather."

"Good morning, headmistress Sanderson," I said with my head low.

"Are you aware of the slanderous imagery that spread through our school the morning of October 2nd?"

"Yes."

"Can you explain your tardiness to your second-period class?"

"Excuse me, what is the relevance?" My mother clasped her hands.

"We were able to narrow down the time of opportunity and it was somewhere between the duration of 10-11:15 when everyone should have been in their second blocks."

"Where were you, darling?"

"I wasn't in school...I had left to meet a friend."

"Who?"

"Leo..."

"Leonardo Rylin?" The headmistress questioned as she wrote his name down.

"Yes."

"What do you mean you left?" My father scowled.

"We were outside...in a van...talking."

"You do know it is an offense to leave school without permission?" Headmistress Sanderson asked.

"Yes, I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

"What were you doing in a van? Whose van?" He continued.

"Leo's friend has a van."

Headmistress Sanderson cleared her throat."25 minutes late because of a...conversation, Miss Blakely?

"A little more than a conversation..."

"Dear God." My mother's hand fell dramatically to her forehead.

"What exactly were you doing in that van, Heather?" My father pressed.

"We were...he...was....teaching me how to drive."

"If you want to learn, I will hire someone to teach you. No more skipping class and certainly not with that boy."