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ChapterTen
Paislee
The week following my visit to Sebastian’s home has me replaying that night in my head in a loop. I cannot believe that I completely surrendered to Sebastian's charms like that. The more I think about it, the more I realize how completely wrong it was of me to have almost had sex with a student's parent. It was wrong on all counts, and I could face serious consequences if word gets out.
Sometimes, I find myself getting a little worried that Callie will tell the whole class. If she tells her classmates, they’ll tell their parents, and then the news will spread all over the school. I don’t know if Sebastian has spoken to Callie about keeping it under wraps. Thankfully as of now, the news hasn’t got out.
This morning, the kids and I are outdoors practicing leaf art. Even though Mr. Beatles frowns at my method of teaching, he cannot deny that the kids enjoy it. There are grins on their faces as they apply paint on their sage leaves with glee.
I go around to check their work, ensuring that they are applying the right amount of paint. It is an enjoyable class and I am even having fun too. Suddenly a high screech pierces the air. I turn towards the direction of the sound to find Callie with her paint spilled and her paintbrush on the floor. A little girl, Ashley, stands beside Callie and has a smirk on her face.
“Oh, did I spill your stupid little paint?” The girl sneers.
I quickly make my way towards them, but I am not fast enough. Callie lunges at the little girl, both of them falling in a tangle of limbs and screaming. I run over and kneel over them to separate the fight.
“What is going on here?” I question. It's the first time I've witnessed Callie act violently toward a classmate.
“She's a stupid little freak.” Ashley says.
I can see the hurt look cross over Callie's eyes.
“Don't call your classmate a freak. She's not a freak.”
“Everyone in class thinks she is,” Ashley continues to glare at Callie.
“I hate you!” Callie screams and runs away.
I am instantly tempted to run after Callie but instead I take a deep breath and turn to Ashley.
“That was not nice of you, Ashley.” I scold. “You don't get to call people names. Wouldn't you be hurt if the whole class thought you were a freak?”
“I wouldn't act like one, Miss Donovan,” Ashley sasses.
I resist the urge to glare at the girl or allow the whole class to see how deeply affected I am by her verbal insult on poor Callie. I turn towards the rest of the class, who have abandoned their work to take in the drama.
“Continue with your work,” I say as I signal for Ashley to follow me. There is no way I am not going to make her face some sort of punishment for being so cruel to another classmate. Callie does not deserve this hate.
“I want you to head over to Mr. Beatles' office and tell him what you did. I will meet you there in five minutes. And when I get there…” I say, allowing the anger I'd been staving off to seep into my voice, “you'd better be there.”
There is actual fear in Ashley's eyes as I move away, beginning my search for Callie.
After several fruitless stops, I finally find the poor girl in the bathroom, sobbing quietly. Her quiet sniffles are the only thing I can hear. I approach the door and knock tentatively.
“Callie? Callie? Are you there?”
“Go away.” Comes the girl's tearful voice.
“I cannot,” I tell her in a low tone of voice, my heart hurting. Suddenly, it's like I am fifteen again. “I have to make sure you're alright.”
After another pause, where all I can hear is Callie's hiccup, she finally speaks.
“They hate me. They all do.”
“I don't think they hate you,” I try to assure her, but even I doubt my own words. I simply can’t understand how kids this young can begin to dislike another human to such a terrifying degree.
“They do, Miss Donovan.” She sniffs.
“Can you come out so we can talk about it?”
