The Punk Rocker

The Fist Fight

Evie sat beside Michael in the study section of the school's library during period two on Friday. It was extremely quiet, the supervising teacher happened to be Ms Spears, who was every student's least favourite teacher. Spears believed strongly in bringing back the cane and handed out detentions for breathing too loudly, so nobody was about to break the silence of that little room. The only noise was the scratch of pen on paper or the clack of the keyboard as someone typed on their laptop, and every now and then some kid up the back would daringly tap his pencil across the surface of the desk a few times, earning a sour look from the hunched over old crone in the padded armchair up the front of the room. Evie was trying to figure out how to put what she was thinking onto the page. She was practising an essay for their next topic in english. Michael passed her a note;
Eves, ask your dad if you can sleep over tonight...

She skimmed his sentence and looked up at him, confusion written all over her face. She dipped her pen towards the paper and scrawled
What? You saw what happened when you knocked on the door. What do you think he'll do if I want to go for a sleepover at your place??

She glanced up at Ms Spears. She was surveying the room grouchily, searching for a student participating in wrong doing. Just at the right moment, that kid up the back rapped his pencil repeatedly on the desk again.

"Boswell!" The teacher crowed. Evie slipped the note to Michael, who scribbled something back quickly and passed it back to her. He bent closer to his work.
Tell him you're over at Bree's. I'll just come in the car and pick you up to take you to my place.

Spears was scanning the room again now, and the kid who had been tapping his pencil coughed a couple of times.

"Detention, Boswell." Came the cracked old lady voice,

"What?!!" The boy exclaimed, "why?"

"For being- disruptive." The teacher pursed her lips and wrinkled her hooked nose.

"Aww c'mon! I coughed!"

"You were tapping the desk, Boswell. I expect to see you at lunch time, in here." She sounded like she was getting angrier.

"Ms Spears!" He protested,

"You be quiet now, you little brat, and you come back here at lunch, you hear me?" She demanded,

"Don't get your fuckin' hopes up." The kid muttered, but she heard,

"Why you- I am disgusted. I ought to wash your mouth out with soap- this is just what I've been saying. We need to bring the cane back, you'd not have such a potty mouth if it were beaten out of you!" The crone rambled, and lastly she added, "you are on detention for a week." Boswell, as she had called him, was wisely silent all of a sudden.

"Excuse me Ms Spears?" One of the girls in the row behind them stuck her hand in the air.

"Yes, darling?" The old woman's smile was oversweet and she cooed in a voice most people reserved for puppies and babies.

"Those two were just passing notes." She told her,

"Truly?" The woman turned her devil gaze upon Michael and Evie. "Then you two can join Boswell for a week of detention." She said cheerily. Michael and Evie glanced at each other, horrified.

"On what misbehaviour?" Stammered Michael.

"Cheating." She smiled down at him.

"What will we be doing?" Evie called out,

"That is for me to know and you to find out, Miss Starr. I suggest you get on with your work, before I add another week." She smiled. Evie did as was 'suggested' and put her head down.