Dear Dakota | Academic Rivalry Story

Five | Tied

D A K O T A R E I D

In all three years of my high school experience, not once have I gotten called down to the principal's office.

I guess today will be breaking that streak.

My heart is beating out of my rib cage and I can't find myself to calm down. What in the world did I do now?

Well, technically nothing since another name for Dakota Ried is goody fucking two shoes.

The first question should be what did I do wrong, but all I am focused on is trying to find this office. I swear I searched every hallway of this school and have yet to find it.

I couldn't be luckier when I see Nyla walking in the opposite way looking at a school map. "Nyla," I call out. "Do you know where the principal's office is?"

"You got in trouble already?" She motions her hand forwards, "The first turn to the right."

I slowly turn around and begin walking in the same way she is. She falls into step next to me and I continue fiddling with the string of my sweatshirt. "Where are you going?"

"Same place as you."

"So what did you do? Did you get me in trouble?"

"No," she folded her paper up, "the front desk lady called me from my first period."

So did mine. My hand pushes down the handle to the front office and I walk down another hallway that leads to the Principal's office.

No wonder I couldn't find it. It is hidden like it is meant to be the golden treasure chest at the end of a scavenger hunt.

"You go in first," I whisper to Nyla and she steps in, closing the door behind herself. I lean against the wall waiting for her to finish.

It takes all of ten minutes for Nyla to leave the office. I let out a breath when she gets out, looking red in the face. "Good luck in there."

"What did you do?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it. I'll see you in second period."

I knock on the door before entering and taking a seat in the chair opposite of the principal's desk. He clears his throat, fixing a stack of papers. "Good Morning, Mr. Reid."

"Good morning sir."

He types something on his computer before taking his glasses off and setting them on the table. "Sorry for the scare. It shouldn't take too long. "Okay," he turns his computer screen showing me a split-screen. My student transcript is on the left and another kids is on the right. One problem; the name is blurred out. "If you notice here," he points to my weighted GPA then to the one on the right. "Do you notice anything... let's say similar?"

I scoot to the edge of my seat to get a better view of the bright screen in front of me. "Both of them have a 4.45 GPA." The principal scrolls down to our SAT and AP Exam scores. I was never the student who aced standardized testing. I am horrible at them. But for these two I studied my ass off to get the scores I received.

The transcript to the right of mine has all 5's for AP Exam scores, but so does mine. The same pattern goes for a few more scores. I got a 1550 on the SAT, but so did the student on the right. I count up the total amount of ap tests the other student has taken.

Ten, just like me.

Principal Jones reclines his chair. "That right there is a problem." How come? I wanted to ask but waited for him to talk again. "This student is at our school." He says, pointing to the other student transcript.