Call Me Mr. Cumberbatch

No More

"I assure you, Mrs. Hernandez, your son will pass my class with just a little bit of a push," Mr. Cumberbatch told the parent from his conference during lunch. He was really trying to end it early because he was starving. 

She shook his hand and said, "Thank you, Mr. Cumberbatch. I know he enjoys your class, he just has a bit of trouble concentrating." He smiled warmly at her and said, "I understand. I'll keep an eye out for him." 

She shook his hand once more, then finally left. When he shut the door, he leaned back against it and sighed. "Jesus, I thought she'd never leave," he muttered to himself. Suddenly, someone was frantically knocking on the door. 

He let out a heavy sigh and opened it, expecting Mrs. Hernandez...but got Cassie in tears. "C-Cass?" He stuttered. "Oh my God, get in here." He looked around the hall for any wandering eyes before shutting the door and locking it. 

He immediately turned to Cassie and knelt down in front of her. "Cassie, what's wrong?" He quickly asked. She just shook her head and started to cry harder. He pulled her in for a hug and lovingly shushed her as he smoothed down her hair. 

"You're alright," he said in her ear. "What did Agnus do? Was it the other prick this time? Someone else?" She shook her head and cried, "Agnus!" He shushed her again when she started sobbing. "What did she do, love?" 

She gripped on tightly to his shirt, then pulled back from him. "Agnus knows," she cried. "She knows about us and she's threatening to tell someone so you can be thrown in jail!" 

He looked like he had just been hit by the worst news of his life.  

Caught? Already? How? When? He knew this day was going to come, but never thought it would be so soon!

He fell back on to the floor and dug his hands into his hair. "Fuck," he breathed. "Shit. Oh, shit." Cassie got down next to him in tears and said, "If you want to end this, I'll understand. Your job is way more important and with my NYU scholarship--."

Ben looked at her like she was crazy and interrupted, "Hey, hey, stop!" She looked at him with wide eyes. He took her face in one of his hands and asked, "What have I been saying to you? I will never leave you. I love you. If Agnus knows, then...then...then, I don't know. I don't know. I never planned it to get to this point."

He sat there for a moment in deep thought. "Does she have any proof?" He asked. "Did she show you any pictures or something like that?" She shook her head and sniffled. He nodded and said, "Okay, that's good. That probably means she doesn't have any. If she doesn't, then we should be fine. I don't even want to think about what will happen if she does."

Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door. They both sprang up from the floor. "Sit in one of the desks," he quickly whispered. Cassie quickly found hers in the front and sat there, not knowing what to do exactly, but watching as Ben went up to the door and opened it. 

"Agnus," he answered in a flat tone. Agnus smiled up at him and said, "Hello, Mr. C.! Oh, I see Cassie is here already! Good, we can get started." She pushed past him and stood in the middle of the room. Ben shut the door. He looked mad, mean...determined. 

"I'm sure your girlfriend already informed you of what I know," she said to him. He nodded and said, "Ms. Hansen has informed me of what you think you know, yes. As a matter of fact, she came to me in tears because the accusations were astounding." 

Cassie quickly caught on to what he was trying to pull. "What I think?" Agnus asked. "I saw you two sucking each other's faces off. I saw you at ice skating together, and now that I'm thinking about it...you were both at the movies together near the beginning of the year." 

Ben furrowed his eyebrows. "Really now?" He asked. "And might you have any proof of these so-called encounters that Ms. Hansen and I are being accused of?" That did it. She looked like a deer caught in headlights.  

He started slowly walking up to her as he lowly said, "I would be careful here, Agnus. Don't be the girl that cries wolf. The bully of the school's friends are expelled, so she accuses the girl who got them expelled of sleeping with her English teacher? Yes, they are so going to believe you and not the teacher or the poor girl you've been bullying your whole life." 

Cassie was watching in amazement because Agnus was speechless! He started circling her like a shark, until he stopped in front of her, then leaned down to her height. "Don't play with fire," he told her. "You'll only get burned." 

She looked almost appalled. She thought she had this all planned out, but it's firing right back at her. "I will get proof," she told him. "I swear to you, I will get proof and the only time you'll see each other is through a glass during visiting hours in prison!" 

Ben clenched his jaw. "I suggest you leave now," he told her. "The bell is about to ring and you don't need to be late for class." Just then, the bell rang. They continued staring at each other for a few moments, then she shoved past him and stormed out of the classroom. 

Cassie stood up from her desk and stood next to it. Ben looked at her from where he was standing, not going anywhere near her. His entire demeanor changed from confident to 'holy shit, that just happened'. 

"We have to keep completely under the radar," he told her. "We cannot show any signs that we're together. Understand? No more dates in public, no more meeting at the corner. We can't have lunch in here, you can't stay after class. After school might be alright, but not for a little while. Okay?"

As she was wiping some strand tears, she said, "Okay. I'll...I'll see you at sixth period then...Mr. Cumberbatch." He nodded and said, "I'll see you there, Ms. Hansen."