Seeing Anthony lingering at his desk, his eyes scanning the quiz while the two fingers holding the pencil were white knuckled drew and kept my shocked attention.
I started to open my mouth to tell him in no uncertain terms he didn’t get an extension on the time limit when a little bird in theback of my head stopped me. Maybe I needed to remind myself why I’d chosen the profession. To help shape children’s minds, but more than that, to give them a reason to strive for more than what they had in their lives.
The children within this school lived in poverty. They didn’t start the year off with new clothes and a brand-new iPhone. Unless the items were stolen. Many fell into a life of crime just to make ends meet for their families.
Others did so to be cool and feel accepted.
My instinct had told me Anthony was highly intelligent and just required to hide his interest in school with the Street Bloods. Maybe we’d had vicious gangs where I’d grown up, but I’d certainly been protected from them.
Instead of uttering a word, I sat quietly, moving to another school project I could complete on the laptop. Even though the same clock ticked away, the sound no longer bothered me. Yet while the minutes passed, I both questioned and answered my mental inquiries as to why he hadn’t worked on the test during the allotted time.
Easy answer.
Because his buds in the gang would have been notified.
Less than ten minutes later, he jerked up from his seat. I could feel the angry heat resonating off his body as he approached. If I’d taken the bait and looked into his eyes, I’d see the dare in them. Instead, I acted as if he wasn’t even in the room.
I held my breath, certain he’d change his mind and rip the test to shreds. He stood in front of my desk long enough I waslightheaded, finally placing the piece of paper just off to the side. With an abrupt turn, he sauntered toward the door.
When he stopped and retraced his steps, I fought the urge to turn my head toward him with everything I had. Very few things in this life could shock me any longer. I was simply immune to surprises.
Or maybe the life had been sucked out of me.
Yet when he placed an apple on the desk, the tiny sound slipping past my lips was impossible to hold back. If he noticed, he didn’t show it, concentrating on what he thought was his cooler than shit gait as he headed to the exit, walking out and slamming the door behind him.
Only then did I let off a heavy breath.
Eagerness replaced everything else and I decided to grade the paper. After scanning the answers, a tiny bit of excitement tickled my senses. Unless I was losing my mind, he’d gotten every answer right. Just as I finished with the last few questions, a light knock was followed by the door being pitched open.
Tawny Shephard was not only my best friend, she was also the only reason I’d yet to pull my hair out. After taking the job on what my parents had called a childish whim, she’d taken pity on me, helping me find a quaint albeit tiny rental house I could call my own.
At least for the time being.
She was also the only person I spent any time with outside of school, the woman as crazy on the inside as I was. Only she had no qualms in showing off her bitchy-witchy side, as she liked to call her larger-than-life personality.
While I taught English and literature, she was a math whiz, tackling the world of statistics and advanced geometry like a rock star. Her selected field of study certainly didn’t match her wild appearance.
“Thank God the day is over with,” she tossed out as she sashayed in my direction. “Drinks on me tonight.”
I was still reeling over the answers. Yes, the quiz had been based on multiple choice, so theoretically, Anthony could have taken lucky guesses. Except for the last question, the question worthy of at least a paragraph.
Which he’d understood, although instead of a couple of sentences thrown together, which was what I expected to find with everyone else’s paper, he’d written three eloquent paragraphs about his greatest loss.
His father.
No wonder he hadn’t wanted to risk anyone seeing the words of admiration and respect appearing on the sheet.
“What are you looking at and who brought the teacher an apple? I didn’t know some student was sweet on you.”
“Very funny. My worst student surprised me.”
“Does that mean you’re taking out a restraining order?”
Chuckling, I shut down the computer and grabbed my things. “I thought about it last week at least twice. Maybe three times.”
“You’ll learn to keep mace in your purse.”
“I already have it.”
