Who Says I'm a Bad Girl?

Chapter 14

I'm really happy to finally get a new chapter posted :) Really sorry about the wait but I managed to catch a really bad cold and I couldn't shift it!!!

Anyway hope you like the chapter xx

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2012

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Lying across three chairs, I amused myself by blowing and popping the piece of blue bubble gum in my mouth. The only other sounds in the office was my boots tapping together, Jake sighing at my behaviour and the annoying tick of the silver clock that rested above the empty desk.

Since Mrs Long’s departure from the room, the phone had rung many times with the answering machine promising them that their call would be returned. After the sixth phone call and the machine repeating the same message, I decided to relieve myself of the irritating noise by plugging the machine out.

Now it was quiet and after sitting here for 30 minutes I knew Mrs Long wouldn’t be back any time soon. Shame, she seemed like a lovely woman.

The door to the Principles off finally opened and truth be told I had been expecting some old guy with a bad taste in suits and cologne, but there stood a tall and I will admit a beautiful woman.

“Gosh Jake. I’am so sorry for keeping you waiting so long”.  I threw my bubble gum in the bin and watched Jakes face brighten.

Jake smiled and my eyebrows rose when he embraced the principal in a warm and over friendly hug. “First name bases and hugs, wow I think I’m going to like this school” the sarcasm was evident in my voice but it still caused them both to pull away and blush like a baboons butt.

“Sorry how un-professional of me”. The principal’s voice was polite and proper but had an underlying niceness to it. Her humour and kindness socked through how she spoke, the way she smiled and I could see it even as I looked into her warm brown eyes.

“Sorry I’m Principal Neil and you must be the famous and beautiful Erika Harley” she spoke while outstretching her hand. I took it and returned her with a smile “who else could pull an outfit like this odd?”

She laughed and dropped my hand “true because seriously I love your top. Is it from Terra Nova?”

I nodded eagerly “yeah and I got it on sale”.

She looked shocked “really but this is from the new range”.

I smiled “true but I have my ways”. That is all that I was going to tell her because I don’t think she or Jake would like it if they knew I had acquired this from a friend who works at the shop… that’s all I’m saying.

“Keeping your cards close to your chest. Well I can respect that…”

“Julie don’t you think we should be discussing my daughters future here?”

That snapped us both out of our little bubble, and it was a shame too because I was starting to like her. “Of course, sorry” she gestured to the room she had stepped out of “come into my office”.

After Jake and I placed ourselves onto the two modern black plastic chairs, we waited for Principal Neil to finish looking through a rather thick file.  Her sleek glass desk rested in front of us with a blue Dell laptop and neat piles of paperwork sitting on the top.

Her office was quite large but it hardly contained anything, with only two sets of filing cabinets, a door to a cupboard and a table containing a coffee machine on top. The walls had been painted white and instead of her achievements, Principal Neil had placed pictures of her and her family… wait a minute isn’t that Sophie.

 A loud thud pulled me from the smiling picture of Sophie and I looked at the Principal to see her smiling at me. “Do you know what I’m smiling about?”

I shrugged “Jakes bad shirt?”

 “Hey, this is a nice shirt”. We both ignored my dad and my eyes flicked to Principal Neil lightly tapping the file with a red pen.

That file looks very familiar….

“I’m smiling at your file because I must say it is quite impressive”.

It’s my file; I knew I had seen it before “well what can I say I’m a busy girl”.

She laughed and the sound wasn’t mean or mocking… just genuine amusement and humorous “so three schools?”

I nodded “three schools”.

Principal Neil nodded and then began to speak professionally “Erika from what I have read of your reports, you are a very bright girl but just lack focus and motivation. Nearly all of your previous teachers said that they never had a problem with the standard of your work, just that you hardly handed any in.”

I shrugged “I had better things to do”.

Jake sighed heavily and rested his arms on his knees “Erika if you want a future you will have to put more effort into school.”

I groaned “I don’t need school for what I want to do”.

“Which is what Erika? Fighting, because I’m sure that will get you killed rather than give you a future”.

My mood darkened and the anger flooded my body, but before I could take everything out on Jake Principal Neil spoke up “Jake please leave the room while I speak to your daughter”.

I grasped the arm rest of my chair, as I could feel the heat and anger pour through every inch of my body. For most of my life I wanted to go traveling and teach self-defence to those who needed it, learning how to fight had saved my life in so many ways and no one could understand that.

Jake looked between us both, unsure if he should leave but the decision was soon made with a quick push from the Principal.

The door slammed shut and as she sat down in Jake’s old seat, I forced my anger down, feeling the heat slowly leave my body. I took slow and deep breaths and imagined a box inside of me where inside every dad feeling and thought was locked up inside. The bad things couldn’t hurt me. I needed to remember that.

A warm soft hand encased mine and I looked up into the Principals eyes, she smiled warmly back at me “Erika I’am not going to judge your dreams but you need to remember that the things you do now will reflect your future. Go to school, learn, make friends and then when your older do the things that being here will make sure you can do.”

I felt her warmth and kindness seep through my skin and holding her hand and having her comfort made me think of my mum. I really missed her and was going to count down the days until I could see her again.

“I don’t need to learn algebra to travel the world”.

She nodded “I’ve never seen the point of algebra myself but I’m pretty sure you’re going to need maths for around the world.”

I rolled my eyes but laughed “I hate school”.

She gripped my hand tighter “well look at it like this then. Prove everyone wrong that Erika Harley won’t spend her life school hopping or having a bad job at some fast food place”.

I was going to tell her a big fat no but unfortunately she said the words I never turn my back on…

“I dare you”.