Teachers Pet

73: Maple Creek

        "You've got to be joking." Cassie let her bag slide off her shoulder and fall to the ground. She shook her head in disbelief as she took in our surroundings. I was doing the same, unsure of what to think. We were parked in front of a big wooden sign that read Maple Creek. Below the name was the address. I had no idea where we were, only that we were outside of city and town limits. It was rural and far from just about everything. Our phones even started losing service the second we turned onto the long gravel road that led us here.

       The more I looked around, the less I saw. All around us was fenced-off land. There were no other signs, no street lights, no buildings... absolutely nothing. We could go past the sign and see what was further down the gravel road, but it looked like it went nowhere. Maybe this was some kind of joke.

       I sighed, my breath clouding in front of me. Part of me wanted to get back in the car and make Tanya drive us home. When I'd asked her to give us a ride, she hadn't exactly been thrilled about it. It wasn't because I needed the ride, but because I asked her if we could pick up Cassie. Even though Cassie testified in court against Nolan, Tanya still wasn't fond of her. Not when she started a fight with me. When I tried to take the blame, Tanya just scoffed.

       At least Jill has warmed up a little to Cassie. She wasn't exactly thrilled with Cassie, but Jill definitely tolerated her. More so than Tanya did. Cassie will sit with us at lunch and occasionally walk with us in the halls, but I notice when she keeps her head down. I can tell she doesn't want the attention, but she gets it anyway.

       Cassie testified and in doing so she lost the respect of her friends and others. She'd told me how one of her favorite teachers shook his head at her when they heard she was testifying. They were disappointed in her. I wish Tanya could understand that Cassie gave up her social standing for me. She could have said no to testifying and nothing would have changed for her. I had to find some way to repay her.

       "Are you sure this is it?" I asked over my shoulder. As I looked around I could hear Tanya's boots crunching in the snow. She came to stand beside me, showing me her phone. She had her map pulled up with the address. We were at the right place. Cassie sighed, turning to face us.

       "Maybe our punishment is being sent to the middle of nowhere." I smiled at that. David would probably give Cassie the wrong address out of spite, but I couldn't imagine him doing that to me. Or maybe he would. When I almost got myself expelled, David said that Cassie and I deserved to be punished longer. That three times a week for a month sounded fair. I remembered the sting I felt from his words. Him saying that I deserved to be punished at all though...

       I wondered if I should bring it up to him and tell him that it bothered me. I couldn't really bring it up casually. The last time we spoke was the night he came over for dinner, the day of my trial. I never tried to call him again after Jill and I spoke in her sunroom. He never reached out or called and I never expected him to. Or maybe I did... I just thought he would at least check on me. I mean it's been... three weeks? Has it really been three weeks?

       So much has been going on that I haven't even realized how much time has passed. The day after my trial, two things occurred. The first to happen was the newspaper headline reading, Pierce Sentenced To Only A Year. I couldn't help but sigh with relief. Relief because of the use of the word only. It meant I wasn't alone in my frustration towards Nolans' sentencing. It wasn't just Jill or David who felt that way too.

       The second thing to happen was the phone call we received that same morning. It was the realtor who was helping us sell the house. She informed us of an offer made by someone who wished to remain anonymous. At first, we thought it was a joke because the offer was much more than what the house was listed for. So she declined it. She said that it was probably some stupid joke that someone was making because they were bitter about Nolans' loss.