Violent Delights | H.S.

02

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"...and yes, I am aware of the positive impact Mrs. Delaney had on this school and that whilst her retirement was expected, replacing her will be impossible. That being said, I will try my best to make sure you get the most out of this class–"

I don't know if Mrs. Delaney's request was to have the hottest teacher on planet earth take her place for theatre class, but either way, I'm not complaining. I always liked her, and it seems I'll like her replacement just fine too. It's the first week back at school and, as usual, it's flown by. Despite having a seven-week summer break, once you're back in these halls, it's like you never left. At least, that's what it feels like to me. However, I welcome this feeling of familiarity; excessive homework and cocky freshman winking at me in the hallway is still way better than a twelve-hour shift at the diner singing countless ABBA hits for the elderly. Anyway, back to theatre class. As I was saying, Mr. Edwards is new and possibly one of the most attractive men I've ever laid eyes on, like, cologne commercial attractive. I can tell I'm not the only person in the room right now with their attention elsewhere. I hope none of this speech he's giving is actually important. Well, I could just ask Maddy for a recap, although it doesn't look promising...she's on her phone.

"Maddy!" I whisper, being as discreet as humanly possible. "One of us has to pay attention. It's gonna be really embarrassing if we fail theatre,"

Maddy is my best friend, and has been since I tutored her in English Lit during sophomore year. On paper, our friendship shouldn't work, but somehow it does. Unlike me, Maddy is a part of the 95 percent of students here at Eastwood Prep whose parents pay for the whopping $24,000 tuition.

"You're so dramatic June, we haven't even done anything yet," Maddy rolls her eyes at me. She's right, obviously, but there isn't a chance that I'm risking this academic scholarship. The scholarship only covers half of my tuition, but my Mom's staff discount and me working all summer makes up for the rest, but only just.

"I know, but–"

"Ladies, I know that I seem to be rambling on a bit, but I'd be grateful if you could grace us all with your attention and save the gossiping for later." Mr. Edwards interrupts, and I mutter an apology whilst attempting to hide my very red cheeks. Wow, great first impression, June. I'm not usually one to get called out in class. Maddy giggles beside me, completely unbothered. Clearly pleased with himself, Mr. Edwards gets back to addressing the class.

"As I was saying, I know that all of you have shared this class together for a while now, but as I am new and don't know any of you, I thought that we could start the semester with an introductory activity. Try not to look too excited. I'd like you all to pair up and spend five minutes or so getting to know each other a bit more. Then, I'd like you to introduce yourselves as the other person in your pair. You can say pretty much whatever you'd like, but please keep it classroom-friendly. Now, feel free to partner up, as this will be the last opportunity that you get to choose who you work with." There's a collective groan across the room in response to the last sentence, as there's nothing quite as awkward as being forced to work on a project with somebody you've never talked to in your life. But whatever, credit is credit. I mean, how bad can it be?

Automatically, Maddy and I pair up. I have no other friends in this class and besides, she's not the worst person to work with. Even if she was, I'm never in the mood to do uncomfortable partner work with a complete stranger, so here we are.

"He is so hot, do you think he's married? I've been trying to look for a wedding ring for like the past ten minutes...not that it matters,"

"Would being a home-wrecker be a plus or negative for you? I can't tell," I probably shouldn't feed into this fantasy; I'm enabling her. "Anyway, should we plan what we're gonna say or...?"