Growing up McGarrett

The Office

                 

I opened the door while trying my hardest not to puke. I wish I could say this was my first time in the office. It's a big room with a high ceiling and loads of natural light from the big windows. Straight no ahead is a comfy sitting area with a couch, arm chairs and a coffee table. That is for nice bconversatio,ns, I don't think I was going there.

Inside the door on the same side is where Mr. Thompson sits, his desk facing the other side of the room and a bank of shelves covered in books. I closed the door and walked around to stand in front of the desk and face him. There are two chairs in front of his desk but you don't sit unless invited to. Mr. Thompson was busily writing and hadn't really looked up. I stood looking at my feet and trying not to bgo as shake visibly. ,

"Now" he said as he sort of pushed himself back in his chair and looked up like he was just realising I was there. "Hello
Ms. McGarrett, to what do I owe this pleasure?" Pleasure? Really? Did pupils usually go into him in the middle of a class nperiod to shoot the breeze?! "Eeemmm weeellll" I stammered still not looking up and wondering how on earth I was going to say this, "Ms. Higgins sent me" I mumbled to my shoes. There was a pause for what felt like an hour so I peeked up and found his steely blue eyes boring into my soul. Ok slightly dramatic there but it was intense. I quickly looked back at my feet. "Sam stand up straight and speak properly to me please" he said, firmly but not crossly.

I lifted my head up, looked at him and opened my mouth but nothing came out. Yep that's right miss I can take on the world and tell a teacher where to go had taken a hike and in her place was miss doesn't know how to talk! I returned my gaze to the floor and started fidgeting with my hands. "Samantha!" he said more firmly. I snapped my head up to look at him. "What is going on?" he asked his voice returning to firm but friendly. "I, I, I said something I shouldn't have to Ms. Higgins and she kicked me out of her class" I blurted. Finally I had said it, well sort of. "What did you say to her?" he asked. I couldn't answer him. In that moment I could see his face mixed with my father's, mixed with Uncle Danny's and every other adult I know, they all looked shocked, angry and above all that, disappointed. I realised that in this moment I was ashamed of what I had done. I had been brought up to respect my teachers. I had let myself and my Dad down. I hung my head again and despite my best efforts tears started to snake down my face and drop off the end of my nose.

Mr. Thompson got up and walked around the desk to where I was standing, picking up a box of tissues on his way. He gently placed a hand on my shoulder while offering me the tissues and told me to sit down. I sat and loudly blew my nose. "Right" he said as he sat back down in his seat, "how about we start at the beginning". God why was he being so nice? Well he wouldn't be in a minute when I told him the full story. Then the yelling would start. So I took a deep breath, picked a place on the desk to look at and started to talk. "I got to English just as the bell had finished ringing, when I got into the room Ms. Higgins started giving out to me about being late. I told her that three people had come in after me and she was only giving out to me." At this point I looked at Mr. Thompson and he was looking at me with a raised eyebrow, the butterflies or elephants in my tummy went berserk. Crap, he thinks that's bad. "Go on" he said, sounding a little less friendly. "She told me I had got myself a detention and lines to write, and.." here goes, bless me Father for I'm about to be dead, "and I got angry and told her to fuck off". The end of the sentence was said more to myself than to him but I was pretty sure he heard it. "Excuse me I didn't quite hear the end of your sentence" he said, "what did you say to her?". "I told her to fuck off" I repeated it slightly louder.

Everything stopped. I'd swear the world actually stopped turning in that moment. All I could hear was my heart beating like a wild thing in my chest. I was sure that was all he could hear too. I quickly glanced at him and this time the eyes were burning my soul, all friendliness was gone and instead there was a cold air of rapidly approaching thunder. "YOU SAID WHAT?!" he shouted. BOOM there it was, the first thunder clap. I didn't respond. I knew he had heard and I didn't think he really wanted me to repeat it. Instead I dropped my gaze to my hands that were on my lap. "How DARE you speak to ANYONE, let alone a TEACHER, like that?!". "We do not condone the use of that kind of language in this school and as for speaking to a member of MY staff like that, that most certainly will NOT be tolerated". The thunder was rolling in now, crashing like the waves over my head. I got the feeling I was meant to say something so I mumbled "sorry". "What was that?" he spat, "if you are going to speak then speak up and you will address me properly". "Sorry Sir" I said, emphasising the sir maybe a little too much, see I told you I'm stupid. "Are you taking an attitude with me young lady?" he asked angrily. "No sir" I said quickly backing down, sensible brain taking over for a moment. "You had better not be, you are in enough trouble already without adding that to your list" he lectured.

After what seemed like another century long pause he sat back in his chair, folded his arms over his chest and seemed to let out an inaudible sigh. The thunder had cleared. Either the storm was over or we were in the eye of it, at that moment I couldn't tell. "What on earth were you thinking Sam?" he asked. Sam, he had called me Sam, Mr. Thompson the friend was back. I shrugged my shoulders, stupid, rookie mistake. I should know from my experience with Dad how much that pisses them off.

"DO NOT shrug your shoulders at me young lady, LOOK at me when I am speaking to you and USE YOUR WORDS". BOOM the thunder was back. I shot up in my seat and looked straight at him. "I'm sorry sir, I don't know why I said it, other than I got angry at her" I blurted it out with a modicum of shame in my voice. Start grovelling Sam, this is the point where you can live or go down fighting. "We've never really got on well sir" I continued, "for some reason she has had it in for me from day one". Drat bad move Sam, laying the blame on her, although it was true. "You think that gives you the right to mouth off at her and use obscene language?!" he growled. "No sir, I guess not" I replied. "You GUESS not" he shouted. Shit wrong choice of words there. "You GUESS not", he repeated, "well I can assure you it most certainly does NOT give you the right to speak to anyone in that way" he continued, the lecture was in full flow now, back into the full force of the storm. "Is that how you would deal with someone you disagreed with elsewhere in life? No I don't think so. If you have a problem you talk about it, with the teacher, with your Year Head, with me or with your father. You do NOT verbally abuse the person". "I am shocked at your behaviour Samantha, shocked and disappointed, I know that you were raised better than that". "How do you think your father is going to react when I tell him?" And there it was, the lightning bolt, it hit me straight in the stomach so much so that I actually wrapped my arms around myself and bent forward with a whispered groan. I didn't want to think about how he would react. I knew it was not going to be pretty.