If I Fell

8 | B is for Baddie, V is for Virgin

❂ CHAPTER EIGHT ❂

Academically, I had strengths and weaknesses. My strengths were math and science, while my weakness was any liberal arts. My AP English Literature class, in particular, was kicking my ass.

Rhetorical analyzing just wasn't my forte. I wasn't terrible at it, but I certainly wasn't great. Flowery descriptions and symbolism might be nice for some, but for me, it was complicated and unappealing. An author's abuse of purple prose and metaphors just confused me. I always had a hard time getting the 'deeper' meaning... If there ever was one.

If a character wore red, I wouldn't think much of it. Maybe they just liked the color... But, maybe, just maybe it could be alluding to their menstrual cycle, which could be symbolizing womanhood and sexual development or some obscure bullshit like that. Some people could put significance into the littlest things to add meaning.

Granted, literature was meant to be open to interpretation and subjective, which was why I preferred mathematics. In math, there was always a right answer, not an answer that was more right or more appealing than the other. It was based on indisputable logic and fact. The Pythagorean theorem was solid, unlike anything with literature and writing.

Although I lacked the writing prowess in Mr. Muller's rhetorical analysis essays, I did decent in argumentative essays since I was better at arguing a point than analyzing the intention. So imagine my surprise when I saw, on the margin of my Frankenstein essay, a B minus.

Since preschool, I had never received a grade lower than an A. I was in shock.

"Tomorrow we're going to start reading Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness," Mr. Muller announced as he finished passing back all his students' essays. "It's gonna be lit...erature."

Some kids groaned while others gave him pity-laughs. Mr. Muller was one of those teachers that tried too hard to be relatable and cool, but it was so obvious that it made his students cringe. He used words like 'on fleek' and 'turnt' regularly.

"You can go ahead, Scarlett. I need to talk to Mr. Muller about my grade," I told her as we walked to the door.

"What did you get?"

"B minus," I said sullenly. "You?"

"A." She shrugged like it was nothing. I could feel the familiar feeling of hot envy but I pushed it down. I wasn't surprised. She had always been gifted in English.

"Congrats," I told her with a tight-lipped smile. "I'll see you later."

"Thanks. See you later."

I turned to see Mr. Muller typing on his computer with one hand. The other was in his dark hair. After taking a deep breath, I approached his desk with my best smile. "Mr. Muller, can I talk to you for a second?"

"Yes?" He looked up at me expectedly. His protruding lips were spread in a friendly-enough smile. He had pallid skin, an aquiline nose, and dark eyes that gave him a creepy villain vibe.

"If you have the time, I wanted to know why I got a B minus." A deep crease formed in between his eyebrows as he thought about it.

"Well, your essay felt too objective and flat. This wasn't some research paper. Add some passion to your work, Miss Fakhri," he said. "You wrote about why the characters believed the Monster was evil. I wanted to read your thoughts. Why did you think the Monster was evil?"