Carpe Diem ▸ Dead Poets Society ✓

eleven

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Mr Keating climbs up and stands on his desk. "Why do I stand up here? Anybody?"

                Charlie takes a breathe a few desks back, "To feel taller." I smile at his sarcasm.

"No!" Mr Keating rings the bell on his desk with his foot. "Thank you for playing, Mr. Dalton." He stops and looks around the room. "I stand upon my desk to remind yourself that we must constantly look at things in a different way."

        Mr. Keating gets off the desk and looks around. "You see, the world looks very different from up here. You don't believe me? Come see for yourself. Come on. Come on!"

Charlie and Neil quickly stand up from their seats to go to the front, running up the aisle. I try to rush up but half the boys are in front of me. Todd was behind me.

Mr Keating walks around the class continuing. "Just when you think you know something, you have to look at it in another way. Even though it may seem silly or wrong, you must try! Now, when you read, don't just consider what the author thinks. Consider what you think. You must strive to find your own voice. Because the longer you wait to begin, the less likely you are to find it at all. Thoreau said, "Most men lead lives of quiet desperation."
Don't be resigned to that. Break out!"

Spatz barley stands on the desk as the line gets shorter. "Don't just walk off the edge like lemmings. Look around you."

I begin to climb on the desk Todd holds out his hand to help me, I smile back at him. I glance around the class a moment. Charlie was standing near the front of the desk. I look down about to jump when Charlie holds out his hand.

"There! There you go, Miss Overstreet! Thank you! Yes! Dare to strike out and find new ground. Now, in addition to your essays, I would like you to compose a poem of your own, an original work." Keating gathers his things.

I continue listening to the lecture as I hold my hand out for Charlie,
but he grabs my waist and lifts me down, smiling. "I got ya,"

I smile, "Thank you Charlie." I begin walking to my desk to gather my things.

Keating was flickering the lights. "That's right! You have to deliver it aloud in front of the class on Monday." He pauses. "Mr. Anderson? Don't think that I don't know that this assignment scares the hell out of you, you mole."

I smile as I put my bag on my shoulder. I turn to leave the class and I run straight into someone's chest.
I look up to see Neil.

He let's go of my arm he was holding onto. "Woah there, you good?" I laughed at his sarcasm.

He fixed my bag on my shoulder. "Yes Neil I'm good. Thank you for startling me by the way."

He took a step back placing his arms up. "Woah not my fault you get scared easily."

I smiled, hitting his arm. "Oh I do not!" We started walking out the class and upstairs to the rooms.

He put his hands in his pocket, "Well if you're up for it, we could hangout and we could on the poem. I don't wanna waste time." He seemed genuine and sweet but also nervous to ask. We never really hung out just us.

"Of course, that sounds great, just come by my room, or unless you wanted to go to the library?" I looked down then back up at him. We made our way to our hallway.

He thought for a moment. "No, your room is fine. It might be easier to focus, plus we get yelled at for talking in the library. Tomorrow? He laughed and shook his head.

I stopped in front of my door, he leaned against it. "True, I'll see you then Neil." He smiled.

He smiled, "I'll see you." And turned and walked into his room. I opened my door and laid my things on my desk.

+

Since I've had time to write and got back into it, I'll be updating and I'm planning on finishing this book! Sorry it took so long my life just kinda took my away from Wattpad for awhile, so if the writing style seems a bit different if you're reading this book from the beginning to this chapter on!