Devil on the Rooftop [Book 1]

Chapter 78 - Loyal -

Ms. Findlay, the school receptionist wasn't happy to see me. If it were up to her, I would have been banned from entering the administration office. I didn't blame her for disliking me. I had a lot on her, and she knew if she upset me in any way, all her dirty laundry would be exposed.

It was my job to know which teachers and employees at Jackheights I could trust and which ones needed a little nudge in the right direction. Mr. Hermans and Mr. McCarthy were probably the only two people I respected. They openly admitted that they didn't like how much money my father donated to the school, and tried to be unbiased when it came to disciplining students from esteemed families.

I sat on the uncomfortable wooden chair and faced the man who held my future in his hands. As soon as I got to school that morning, I was asked to book an urgent meeting with him. I knew what it was about, so I put my best foot forward and complied with the request. 

"Thank you for agreeing to see me on such short notice," the dean said. "Do you know why you are here?"

"You should just tell me sir," I replied, diplomatically.

Mr. McCarthy rested his hands on the table. "Well, I received an interesting email in my spam folder last night. It was a letter, addressed to you, from a very prestigious school."

"Brown University," I offered.

The dean nodded. "I didn't take it to be anything serious at first, considering the sender's personal handle and subject line."

I assumed it was something along the lines of: FukYouLoyal.

"So, I called a friend who works at the Brown  administration office this morning, and asked him to look into the legitimacy of the letter," the disciplinarian proceeded.

I suppressed my urge to curse.

"And I'm sure you already know what I discovered," he sighed. "What I want to know is why a smart kid like you would choose to stay in high school when you could be succeeding in University?"

I smiled. "The real question is whether or not you're going to tell my parents."

"I'm trying to wrap my head around why you haven't told them yourself," the dean replied. "I'm willing to lend you an ear, but I hope you know that as a minor, you aren't legally allowed to make such important decisions on your own."

I crossed my arms. "Yes, our system is a little lacking in that regard. I'll be sixteen soon and I'm not allowed to choose between university and high school. Don't you think that's a little unfair? Making these kinds of important decisions is supposed to be a personal journey."

"So, you're telling me you have no interest in attending University?"  the dean asked.

"Not until everybody else my age does," I answered. "I might even take a year off, I mean I'm allowed to do that aren't I? Unless, you don't think kids with potential should be allowed to take a break? If I may speak candidly, sir, I haven't really decided what I want to do after high school. I mean, I applied to a bunch of different programs to see if I could get into them, but I haven't landed on one that makes me happy. My parents want me to take over the family business but that I'd rather drop out than do that."

Mr. McCarthy sat up straight in his chair. "I can see you're determined to have a normal high school experience. We are halfway through the term, so you may continue to attend Jackheights as you have been, but when the new term starts it will be more difficult to keep this under wraps. I will be obligated to report your acceptance letter, which will be used by the board to decide whether or not you're a good fit for Jackheights."

"Fine," I conceded, not seeing a point in arguing. "But please keep in mind that Brown accepted me based on my current GPA at Jackheights. On paper, my sister's number is higher, so is the school board going to decide she's not a good fit either?"

The man's eyes widened. "She's not the one who has been accepted to a prestigious school."

I shrugged. "I'm just saying, she could if she wanted to."

He stared at me solemnly.

"Do you intend to tell my parents about it?"

"I will trust you to do that on your own," the dean said. "Although, I advise you to speak up before the beginning of term three."

I blinked, trying to think of a contingency plan. Even if I found a way to delete the letter from Mr. McCarthy's inbox, his connection with the administrator at Brown would be able to confirm my acceptance. I saved enough money to get emancipated and rent a place, but my current funds wouldn't last me more than a couple of years. I had to buy myself some more time.

"I guess that's that," I said getting up. "I'll trust that you will stay true to your word and not get my parents involved until third term."

"Is that really how long you intend to wait before saying anything?" the dean asked.

"If it were up to me, sir, my parents would never find out."