I pledge, on my honor, as a Country Town Prep student, that I have neither given nor received help on this work.
Allie Wyatt
Once I was finished, I made my way to the front of the room to turn it in to Mr. Fallon, who was waiting at his desk, surely predicting an unfortunate grade. I smiled at him as I handed him my paper and then turned to go sit back down. As soon as the bell rang, I grabbed my backpack and walked out of the room, knowing that I had done my very best.
The rest of the day flew by until last period, which was study hall, but I had no homework that night, so I knew I would be bored to tears. Most of us would use the period to pass notes or draw in our binders. As soon as I walked through the door, Griffin trailed in the room and headed to the back of the class to sit down next to me. His friend, Taylor, sat on the other side of him. Griffin leaned over to me.
“How was that Math test? I have to make it up this period because I had a meeting with the soccer coach about scholarships,” he said, looking towards the front of the room, as Mr. Fallon walked in to hand Griffin’s make-up test to our study hall proctor. It was Madame Holly, my French teacher.
“Fine, I actually studied for once, so I think I did okay,” I said, looking back at Griffin, who acknowledged my efforts with a nod.
As the period dragged on, I spent most of the time drawing Marvin the Martian in the back of my binder until, suddenly, something strange occurred to me out of the corner of my eye. Griffin had his head held at an unusual angle for almost the entire period. I looked over, and that’s when I noticed that he was looking at a sheet of paper on the floor and then looking back at the math test on his desk. Occasionally, he would look towards the front of the room at the proctor and then back down at the floor. I watched him, trying to be discreet, so I could get a clear view of what was on the floor. That’s when I realized what it was. Taylor’s math test.
Taylor was in a different math class period than us. He was the best student in the class, and he had already gotten his graded test back. Suddenly, a rage built within me as I realized what Griffin was doing. Griffin was copying it. He was cheating.
Math was my downfall. I had suffered my way through this subject for as long as I could remember, and here was Griffin getting a free A. I watched as Griffin wrote the pledge at the bottom of the test and then signed his name. That sent me over the edge. I sat there, trying to rein in my emotions as I decided what to do about it. I waited until the bell rang, and as soon as he turned his test in to the proctor and everyone left the room, I decided to turn him in for cheating.
“I need to tell you something, Madame Holly,” I said as I approached her desk at the front of the room. I saw something that violates the honor code that I want to report.”
“Of course, Allie, tell me. I appreciate your integrity.”
“Will this be confidential, I hope?”
“Yes, we take these kinds of reports seriously.”
“Okay. I witnessed Griffin cheating on the math test that he just handed in to you. I was sitting in the back of the room next to him, and I watched him looking at Taylor’s test on the floor,” I blurted out.
“You did the right thing. Thank you for letting me know. I’ll take care of it, Allie,” she said with a sincere smile.
As I left the room, I felt a sense of relief that I had gotten it off my chest, even though I was also nervous at the risk that I had just taken. If Griffin found out that it was me who turned him in, I may be subject to major social repercussions, but it was too late now. The damage was done.
That afternoon after school, as I left the locker hall, I saw Griffin outside the building talking to Mr. Fallon. He was having a very stern conversation, and Griffin looked nervous. It was evident that Madame Holly had shared the news of his treachery. Mr. Fallon turned to look at me as I passed by, but I was thankful that he didn’t acknowledge me. He turned back to Griffin and continued their conversation.
I didn’t know what would happen next, but I hoped Griffin would be reprimanded appropriately and that I would be protected by the honor code that the school held in such high regard. I made my way down to the gym, eager to hear what his punishment would be tomorrow.
After practice that night, still fuming from the situation, I decided to write about it in my journal. As I sat on my floor writing, Amy walked by my room and glanced in. She could tell I was angry.
“What’s your problem?” she asked nosily, as she glanced at the journal in my lap.
“Mind your business,” I snapped back. Amy scoffed as she stormed down the hall and slammed her door.
Once she was gone, I let out all of my anger onto the page, which was both therapeutic and made me feel crazy.
Dear Diary,
Griffin is a cheater! It just feels so unfair. I don’t know why I care so much, but it really pisses me off. I struggle with the grades I get, and even though I have a full ride to Wake Forest on my own accomplishments, here’s Griffin, cheating to get ahead, and he shouldn’t get to get away with it, so I turned him in, and I hope he gets in serious trouble. Ugh!
-Allie
I shoved the journal back between the mattress, left the room, and went to take a shower. As I stood under the running water, the heat helped me calm down, and I hoped the next day would bring some clarity to how the school would handle justice.
27
The moment my feet hit the floor, I was ready to arrive at school and hear the news. How did Country Town Prep punish cheaters? I couldn’t stand them in sports, and apparently, I couldn’t stand them in academics, either. Today, I was eager to find out my math test grade and eager to see justice served. In the kitchen, I found Amy sitting at the table with a smirk on her face.
“What?” I snapped. I was so over her weeks of attitude with me.
“Nothing. Absolutely nothing,” she replied coyly. I scoffed and walked out the door, opting to skip the breakfast smoothie that my mom had left on the counter. She had made it earlier in the morning, and a layer of foam had now settled on the top. Hard pass.
