Where We Began

chapter twelve

Kurt came into the office his usual laid back yet authoritative self until he seen me. When he met my cold stare his dad mode kicked in.

"What happened," he asked everyone but as he caught sight of the drug test cup that was sitting on the counter he shifted his attention to me, "Brooklyn Mae Grayson!"

"I swear it's not what it looks like," I grimaced at the use of my full name getting ready to explain everything again to the closest thing I had to a father figure at the moment.

"Let's all go into the conference room," Ms. Watts suggested ushering all of us out of the view of the students as the bell rang dismissing everyone for lunch.

I grabbed the hot test off the counter so Officer Brown couldn't get her hands on it and make it disappear. She had tried to make my life hell for the last time. I could take the annoying drug test every week and the obsessive curfew. Even the restriction on leaving the state without notice was tolerable. What I wouldn't tolerate was her jeopardizing my future because of personal reasons. If she wanted to air my families dirty laundry I didn't care as long as she left me out of it. It wasn't my fault she had fallen in love with my father- rest his soul- and he chose to admit his wrongs to my mom and the preacher and turn away from her. She shouldn't have tried to start something with a married man in the first place but she did and now I'm the target of her rage.

"Okay Brooke explain that," Kurt said, pointing at the cup, as we all sat down around the table.

"Sat- Officer Brown called me into the office for yet another drug test. She gave me an open cup from an unsealed container and I didn't feel comfortable using it. Upon deciding I was ready to actually pee in a cup I asked Nurse Bee for a sealed one in which I took the test following the proper instructions. Curiosity led me to fill this cup," I paused my explanation to pick up the hot cup in front of me,"up with nothing but plain tap water. It immediately popped hot. When Nurse Bee and I returned to the front office Ms. Brown was coming back in and she accused me of failing my test, denied tampering with it and then tried to arrest me and take me to jail."

"So let me get this straight," Kurt said sitting his pen down on the paper I hadn't noticed he had started to fill out, "Officer Brown gave you a drug test cup that was opened and not sealed in it original packaging and told you to use it. You instead filled it with water but took your drug test in a fresh cup. The cup in question, with nothing but water that Nurse Bee watched you put in it, immediately popped hot for marijuana. Upon Officer Browns return she said you popped hot and we're going to jail."

"That's exactly what happened," Nurse Bee said as I nodded in agreement.

"Okay well I will be calling down to the jail and talking to the chief. I'm sure he will want to know about this and take actions immediately-" Kurt was cut short by the door flying open and the she devil herself coming in in a fit or rage.

"You stupid little whore!," she shrieked, pointing at me as I stood up, "you think your substitute daddy can save you since your real one got so tired of your family he had to up and die just to get away from it!"

It took every fiber in my body not to punch her in that moment. She can call me a whore all she wants but she needed to watch what she said about my family. Jealousy was not a good look for her.

"You parade around here like the world owes you something but the only thing it owes you is a slap in the face!" She yelled as she slapped me across my face.

That was my last straw. All I seen was red as I swung at her connecting my fist to her nose and hearing a satisfying pop as she flailed backward into the door she had come barreling through moments prior. I couldn't get another swing in as I felt Kurt's hands grab my shoulders as he stepped between us with a half proud smile hiding under his concerned face. Nurse Bee rushed over to check on Ms. Brown who was slumped in a heap against the wall. I hoped she wasn't dead but I also hoped she wouldn't stand back up so soon either.

"Are you okay?" Kurt asked me but he sounded like he was in a tunnel.

I nodded at him as tears stung my eyes. I could feel the welp starting to burn on the side of my face where she had slapped me. I reached up to touch it and found blood on my fingertips. Great she had busted my face open under my eye and my lip from her back handed slap. The crunch her nose made when I punched her gave me a hint of satisfaction after all the stunts she had pulled today. I looked out the window and seen the local ambulance pull up accompanied by two cops cars. The whole town would know about this soon enough. I could already seen the Facebook post 'local probation officer snaps on teen and is sent to the hospital with a broken nose and concussion'.

"I should probably call my mom," I said to Kurt who was still standing between me and the door where Ms. Brown was still slumped in the floor.

"It was self defense," Kurt said following my stare, "she came at and hit you first."

"I know. I just don't want to be in trouble," I sighed.

"It's going to be okay Brooke." Kurt spoke softly in his parent tone, "you should go clean your face up and we can get you lunch in here."

"Can't I just go be with my friends please?" I all but begged. I needed to get out of here. Too many people had appeared to help or just to stare and try to make sense of what had happened.

"Okay but you have to promise after lunch you come straight back here." He said using his cop tone.

"I will," I smiled. All I wanted to do was bury my face in Cole's chest and breathe in his calming scent. I grabbed my bag and pushed my way through the crowd of people. They had loaded Ms. Brown onto the stretcher and put her in the back of the ambulance as I turned the corner to head into the bathroom and ran into Cole.