Evacuee (Phan Fiction)

Tears

I wait beside Miss Vickers' desk until she eventually rises. She stands above me. "Put your hands out." She orders and I place my hands in front of me, palm up. She pulls out a wooden ruler and my eyes widen. I heard about stuff like this but we never had it at my old school. "So, Daniel, are you aware that you did not complete the task set?" She asks.

"Yes, miss." I say.

"Are you also aware that you then proceeded to do ten minutes worth of work in the space of two hours?"

"Yes, miss."

"And are you aware that in the four hours you have been here, you have done enough things wrong to get you expelled?"

"Yes, miss."

"Then I'm sure you understand the consequence of these actions." She says and I nod. She then pulls the ruler back and whips it down across my palms fast. I flinch and whimper but I try to stay still and silent. She does it again. In total, she does it five times before telling me I can go. And when I do, I do something that I probably shouldn't have. I run home. When I reach the house, Phil is in the garden, tending to a bed of roses. I ran up to him and fall into my knees next to where he is kneeling.

He looks up at me with a confused look before his face softens. "Hey, hey, what's with all these tears?" He asks, pulling me into his arms. I feel my face and sure enough, I'm crying. I hold my red and raw hands out to him and he gasps lightly. He holds my hands carefully. "Oh, Dan, what did you do?" He asks.

"I-I wasn't working f-fast enough. I couldn't keep up." I sobbed as he looked at my hands.

"Oh, sweetie, I'm so sorry." He coos.

"I don't want to go back there, Phil, please don't make me go back." I whimper.

"That's not my choice, I'm afraid." He says apologetically.

I sob a little louder. "I just want to go home. I don't care if it's dangerous! I'd be better off-"

"Better off what?" Phil interrupts me.

I look up into his beautiful, deep blue eyes and I feel like I'm drowning. I just font know what I'm drowning in. "I'd be better off dead and we all know it."

I do not expect what happens next. I never expected it. He slaps me. Right across the cheek. "Don't you dare say that." He growls, looking into my eyes with a blazing fire in his one calm ones. "Go to your room now. And stay there until I say otherwise." He demands.

I get up and walk clumsily to my bedroom, tears streaming down my face the whole way there. When I get to my room, I collapse on my bed, crying loudly into my pillow. "I hate this!" I yell, thumping my fists against my pillow. "I hate this war! I hate the school! I hate my dad! And most of all I HATE YOU, MR LESTER!" I yell like my life depends on it before I black out.

I wake up on my bed with an ice pack on my head and Phil sitting beside me. I groan. "Feeling any better?" Phil asks and his voice sounds scratchy.

"No, sir." I say.

"I told you not to call me sir." Phil says.

"Out of respect, I am to call all my elders sir other than close friends." I say, my voice blank and emotionless.

"So we're not friends?" He asks but does not wIt for an answer. "Oh yes, I remember, you hate me."

So he heard me then. I guess the who,e village probably heard me. "You slapped me." I state.

"You were talking nonsense." He tries to argue.

"You slapped me." I repeat. "Either do it again or leave me alone, sir."

"I'm not leaving." He says determinedly. "And I'm not going to slap you. That was just a mistake. I was angry and I'm sorry."

I sigh.

"Would you like to go for a walk?" He asks.

"Not particularly, sir." I say.

"You can sit on my lap and we can just go around the forest. Nobody goes around there." He tempts.

"Okay, sir." I say and sit up.

"Please stop calling me sir." Phil pleads.

"If it's what you want." I say and I get up, following him gloomily out of my bedroom.

I just feel numb. There are no other words. I am so numb that I hardly feel the tears cascading down my cheeks and dribbling lazily from my chin.