rockin' chair. (john bender).

Chapter One: Detention Day, The Arrival

Beth awoke to her alarm clock screeching into her ears, causing her to groan loudly at the sound. The numbers on the digital clock read 06:30, which was extremely unusual for Beth since she had never woken up at such an ungodly hour. Even more so that it was a Saturday—who the hell woke up at six-thirty in the morning on a Saturday? Well, just this once, Beth did. She had landed herself a Saturday detention. She had had many before, but she was actually attending this one; the reason why was unbeknownst to her.

Beth lifted her hand up to slam it down hard on the clock, wanting to quieten it as soon as possible, and then took her sweet time getting out of bed. The sunlight shone through the window, lying on her cream-carpeted floor like sweet honey.

The girl slowly made her way to the bathroom she shared with her mother and brother, locking the door behind her and turning the shower on. She undressed, leaving her clothes in a messy pile on the floor, then got in the shower and began to wash herself. After rinsing the shampoo out of her hair and the body wash off, she hopped out of the tub and wrapped a delicate white towel around her torso. She then brushed her teeth and made her way back into her bedroom.

Sitting on the chair in front of her white vanity, Beth started drying her hair with a hairdryer. She then brushed her hair and went over to her drawers to pull out some underwear and put on the matching set. Sighing to herself, she moved over to her closet and changed into a navy blue sweater, a faded denim skirt, which she tucked her sweater into, and then matched it with a black belt. Then grabbing a pair of white ankle socks and some white Converse, she slipped them on slowly. Beth moved back over to her vanity to put on a light layer of mascara, leaving it at that since she felt there was no one to impress in detention. She sprayed some perfume on herself and slipped a few rings on her fingers, then smoothed down her sweater and got ready to leave her bedroom.

Before she left, she grabbed her black mini backpack, which contained her lighter, a packet of cigarettes, her Walkman, and a silver flask filled with whiskey. God knows I'll need it, the blonde thought to herself, rolling her eyes slightly.

Slinging the bag over her left shoulder, she closed her bedroom door and made her way downstairs and into the kitchen, where her mother was seated at the table.

"Morning, love," her mother said softly while stirring her coffee.

"Morning," Beth replied, grabbing a piece of toast that was sitting on a plate on the counter. Her mother wasn't that upset about Beth getting another detention because she knew how it was; she was exactly like her daughter back in her school years.

"We should probably start heading off if you want to at least try to make it there on time. Your lunch is in the fridge, by the way," her mother mentioned as she took the last sip of her coffee and placed the cup in the sink.

"Okay, thanks," Beth replied quietly. She walked over to the fridge and took out the brown paper bag that contained her lunch. She quickly realized the bag wouldn't fit into her backpack, so she decided to just carry it. She then followed her mother outside and into the car, the ride not taking long as their house was only ten minutes away from the hellhole named Shermer High School.

As the car came to a halt outside the school, her mother gently placed a hand on Beth's arm before she could leave.

"Honey, please try and make this your last detention. I know it's hard, but please just try," she said softly in a loving voice.

"Sure, Mom." Beth gave her a small smile and a quick kiss on the cheek before exiting the vehicle.

Beth made her way up the steps slowly and opened the door. She already knew she was late, so she felt no reason to hurry. She walked at the same slow pace all the way to the library where the detention was held. Beth walked in and saw Mr. Vernon standing in front of the unfortunate kids who had to be there along with her. She walked nonchalantly with every pair of eyes on her as she took a seat at the unoccupied table next to the two most popular people in the room: Claire and Andrew.