Save Me

Assigned

"Miss Thomas...? Miss Thomas!"
"Y-yes sir!" I blurted out at the teacher calling my name.
"You're not paying attention are you?"
"Yes sir I am..."
"Tell me what the last paragraph was about."
"Uh...um...it was about..." I tried stalling for time as my eyes scanned the page.
"We're on page 72. " he frowned. "Pay more attention when I'm talking. There will be a quiz next Wednesday. I need to see you immediately following class."
"Okay..."

I sighed while my classmates snickered around me. I'm seventeen years old and still I shut down like a child when someone corrects or reprimands me. After the bell rang I sat silently in my seat with my head down. Mr. Serggero approached me and sat on the edge of the desk in front of me.

"Miss Thomas, you've been zoning out in my class for the last week or so. Is there a problem you're having that you'd like to discuss?"
"No sir. No problem." I muttered.
"So you're just generally ignoring my teaching because you feel like it?"
"No, wait—"
"Listen; either stop daydreaming in my class or you'll start getting detention for it. And three detentions equate to a suspension."
"But Mr. Sergg—"
"I don't wanna hear the whining. Also, as a punishment for the frequent zoning out, I'm going to have you take all of Christopher Brown's work to him."
"Who is Christopher Brown?"
"A student who's been suspended since the first day...his address seems to be near your house so you'll be carrying his homework to him daily. Or, well his suspension has been lifted since the second week...he just seems to be showing no intention of returning. If he keeps this up he could be arrested for truancy. If you can convince him to come back, I'll forget any disciplinary actions that may need to be taken against you."
"But sir, I've never seen this kid in my life. How can I just show up to his home?"
"You'll have to figure it out. But as soon as the last bell rings," he began as he jotted down something on his notepad. "You report to the main office and turn in this note."
"Yes sir..." I frowned.

He tore off the sheet and handed it to me before releasing me with a late pass and I was sent off to attend my last class of the day. At 2:15 the last bell for the day sounded. I gathered my things and walked unenthusiastically to the main office. The student at the main desk looked up at me from the computer she was on.

"May I help you?" She asked politely, adjusting her glasses.
"Yes, I was given this note and told to bring it here..."

I handed her the paper that Mr. Serggero had given me earlier.

"Oh, okay so you're Christopher's new delivery person?"
"Uh..."
"Mr. Serggero has been trying to get Christopher back in school but he refuses to see him anymore. He's been looking for a stand-in."
"Oh..."
"Anyway, here's his work package. The address is written on the envelope. Um, good luck trying to bring him back, okay?"
"Thank you...I guess..."

I started my walk home with my headphones in but as I got closer to my neighborhood, my nerves began to fray. I stood on the sidewalk in front of the house at the address on the yellow envelope. After taking a deep breath I yanked my headphones out and started to walk up the driveway. I knocked and waited for an answer. I stood for a minute before knocking again. This happened a few more times until the door finally opened to a man who looked like he was just waking up. He wore only black sweat pants and a grey T-shirt. He had full sleeve tattoos that wrapped his brown skin nicely, and tattoos on his neck as well. He actually looked a little too old for high school. I'm assuming he's a senior like me. His face twisted into a deep frown as his eyes roamed my body. I tugged on the long sleeves of my black crop top self-consciously. I was wearing overalls today, but since I left campus I removed my straps and let the top half fold over itself while the straps hung freely by my sides. He licked his lips before speaking.

"Fuck is you?"
"Um, sorry to b-bother you. A-Are you Christopher Brown?"
"Who wants to know?"
"I'm a student at Westshore..."
"Westshore...what does Westshore want from me now?"
"I was sent to drop off your homework packet for this week..."
"Oh," a smirk found itself playing on his lips. "So you're the new carrier pigeon. Look, shorty...tell Serggero I said he can forget it. Stop sending people to my house cause I ain't got no intention of comin back."
"B-But...Mr. Serggero said that if you don't start coming to school soon...you'll be arrested."
"So? Why do you care? And so what if I do a little time. School ain't shit but jail anyway. Classrooms ain't nothin but a cell with a warden who talks about boring shit for an hour and a half."
"That's only if you think of it that way..."

He cocked his eyebrow at me, eyeing me up and down once again before stepping out of his doorway and quickly closing the space between us. I could feel myself shrinking at the sudden close proximity. He reeked of marijuana, and oddly enough, Some form of chocolate.

"Then tell me, how should I think of it?"
"U-uh...I..." I stumbled over my words. He was much too close for comfort.
"You gon tell me I should be lookin at school in a positive way? If that's the bullshit you came to feed me you can just keep fuckin movin." He growled.

He glared down at me as he stepped away. I could feel my heart pounding he entire time I watched him walk back into his house.

"W-Wait!" I called out to him just before he closed the door.
"What?" He snapped.
"Y-Your homework..."

I forced the thick yellow envelope into his hands and ran off toward my house. Once I was home I ran straight to my bedroom to calm my nerves from what had just happened.