Principal Howard looked at the report in his hand silently while I sat waiting for his verdict. He set the piece of paper down, shut his eyes firmly and pinched the bridge of his nose.
I guess it was that bad.
He opened his eyes and looked right at me. After being in this office so many times already, I was ready for whatever he was going to say. "Laura, you can't afford any more bad grades."
I shrugged in response. What point did it make after all? I didn't need good grades to get a job after graduation or to get into college. I didn't even need a job with my parent's connections and status. Hell, I probably never had to work a day in my life. School was just a way of fulfilling all righteousness.
Principal Howard sensed my indifference to his warning and picked up the report, shaking it in my face. "Do you even realize what this means for you?" I didn't move.
He sighed and put it down again. "I have to call your parents in this time."
That got my attention. I sat up quickly just as his hand was reaching for the telephone on his desk. There was nothing quite so scary for me as having my father and mother involved in this. "You can't do that!"
He cocked an eyebrow at me. "And why not? I should think it's the proper thing to do because not only do you have terrible grades, you've been sent to detention several times because of your misconduct. You probably have been in this office more than me!"
I couldn't argue with that fact. My mouth opened and closed as I tried to come up with something to salvage the situation. Principal Howard waited for me to speak, but I only sat there with my mouth opening and closing like a fish.
When he saw that I couldn't come up with any of my usual smart comebacks, he picked up the phone and set the receiver against his ear. After a beat, he spoke into the mouthpiece. "Hello? Yes, I would like to speak to Mr. Trident. This is Principal Howard Bright from Portsbridge High School."
There was another pause as he waited for my dad's secretary to patch him through to my father's office. I prayed that the secretary would say something wonderful like "Mr. Trident is very busy now and can't take your call…", but whatever gods were in the sky clearly hated me because Principal Howard said, "Hello, Mr. Trident."
I sank back into the chair, utterly defeated. I zoned out of their conversation, my mind trying to imagine all the different ways my father would discipline me for this singular action. Principal Howard was right though - it wasn't my first time being sent to his office, but never before had word of my behavior in school been breathed to my parents. I had somehow managed to stop the teachers from mentioning my bad habits to them and they both assumed everything was going fine for me academically. That was so far from reality that it was actually ridiculous.
Imagine how they'd feel when they finally hear that not only has their perfect daughter been behaving terribly in school, but she has amazingly bad grades.
I covered my face with my hands and let out a frustrated groan. I snapped out of my thoughts just in time to hear Principal Howard say "Alright then. See you both soon," before setting the receiver down.
Both?! He was inviting both of my parents?! Well, at least I could say that I enjoyed life while it lasted.
"When will they be here?" I asked him in my best impression of a humble voice. It was very out-of-character for me and his jerked up like even he wasn't expecting that. His expression softened a little, which was the exact effect I was going for. I needed to make him feel sorry for me if only a little bit, maybe then he'd forget the whole matter. Principal Howard had always been a softie.
"During second recess."
My eyes travelled to the clock on the wall behind him. Second recess was less than two hours away. I was well and truly screwed.
He stood from the chair and walked around the desk to place a comforting hand on my shoulder. I guess there was no more changing his mind about this. "I really hope you consider everything that's happening and change for the better."
I couldn't stand it anymore. The only thing I hated more than rules was pity. Rising from the plush chair, I adjusted my uniform and stormed out of the office. I was too angry to back to class – and back to Miss Pritchet who ratted out on me – so I went to the one place in this damned school that gave me solace.
The pool was empty, which was expected. All the other students were being good little boys and girls and attending their classes. I stormed into the girls' locker room and tore my uniform from my body in a haste. I had always hated the colors – red and green striped tie that was never knotted quite well on my neck, white button-down blouse and plaid skirt with a disgusting deep green blazer. I happily discarded the entire thing in favor of my turquoise swimsuit. It fitted my body so well and felt as comfortable as a second skin.
I was feeling better already. Done changing, I walked out of the locker room and made my way to the pool. I stood near the deep end and raised my arms above my head as I took a deep breath. In one swift motion, I plunged into the cool water and my arms and legs immediately began to move in powerful strokes.
Swimming was my everything for as long as I could remember. I had won several trophies for my school in different tournaments and championships, but it never felt like a competition for me. I was simply doing what I do best. I was a naturally good swimmer and Coach Nelson once said he had never seen anyone move with as much speed and gracefulness as I had.
Too bad school wasn't just about swimming. I would have excelled at it and never complained once, but there were books to study, texts to read, assignments, presentations and a whole bunch of things that never made sense to me.
I continued to swim my troubles away, willing myself to forget my current dilemma. I wasn't even aware of how much time had gone by, and to be honest, I didn't really care.
I swam from one end of the pool to the other, over and over again. I stopped at last to take a breath and give my muscles a chance to recover. I wiped the water from my face and pushed the wet strands of my long red hair away from my face. I never wore a cap to swim.
Just when I was about to climb out of the water, I noticed a pair of shiny shoes in front of me, tapping impatiently.
Fear crawled into my belly till I felt like I would throw up. I didn't even need to look up to know who those shoes belonged to. My throat suddenly felt dry and I swallowed slowly.
I let my eyes travel upwards till they met the cold, unfeeling eyes of my father, Victor Trident.
I smiled awkwardly. "Hi, daddy."