Believe Me, I'm Lying

:Believe Me, I'm Lying: 9

"Good morning, Harley!"

I looked over my shoulder to see a woman with short brown hair smiling at me. What was her name again? Jenna? Jenny? Emily? Oh! "Good morning, Emma."

"I heard about your first day," she told me, pity in her voice. "It must be tough to have a class full of senior boys when you're so young."

I grinned at her. "Actually, I think it'll be okay from here on out."

"Really?"

"I think I've gained their respect. They've behaved well for the past few days."

"That's good," Emma responded, smiling brightly. "I was afraid you wouldn't be able to take it and quit. I'm glad to see you made it through the first week."

"I need this job, so I would never quit," I told her with a small laugh. "I've been through a lot, I think I can handle a few boys."

"I certainly hope so."

"Well, I'm going heading right here," I said, pointing down the empty hallway. "Talk to you soon?"

"I'm in the English hallway if you ever want to stop by," she responded, nodding in the direction of said hallway.

"Sounds good."

"Have a good day!"

"Same to you!"

Emma started walking in the other direction, and I quickly started down the hallway to my classroom. A yawn escaped my lips, and I rubbed my eyes wearily. The best thing about being home-schooled was the fact I didn't have to wake up early every day. Now I had to, and it sucked.

The good thing was, that after my little deal with the seniors the other day, I hadn't had a major problem with them for the rest of the week. However, there were still plenty of verbal fights between the two "gangs". And Oliver hadn't shown up for class again. He even stopped showing up sixth period when he was supposed to help prep. The thought brought a scowl to my face.

I looked up just in time to see my classroom door opening. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion and I stopped, watching from a good distance. Seconds later, Tucker appeared, rushing out of the room. He turned and stared directly at me, a scowl instantly on his face. Cocking my head, I looked at him questioningly.

"What were you doing in-"

"None of your business!" he snapped, turning his back on me and storming down the hallway in the opposite direction.

Irritation etched my face as I watched him walk away. What was his problem? This was the fourth day in a row I caught him leaving my classroom before I was even in it! Every time he'd leave before I could actually see what he was doing. He had no right to have that attitude with me! I walked down the rest of the hallway and peered my head into my classroom cautiously.

On Tuesday he had made the floor wet, and yesterday one of the cabinet doors in the supply room was open, and I had banged my head on it. Was he pulling pranks on me or something? I looked above the door to make sure there was no bucket before opening it fully. With caution, I walked across the classroom, feeling for any slippery areas. None showed up. I checked to see if there was glue on my chair. Nope.

I frowned slightly, but shrugged it off. I would just have to catch Tucker in action to figure out what he was doing in my room so early every day. Sitting at my desk, I pulled out the old teacher's planner book and opened it, going over today's schedule. Another desert was on the menu for today.

"I can't say if I like casual Friday or not..."

I looked up from my desk to see Arden walking into the room, his face pulled into an unsure expression. I glanced at the clock to realize homeroom had already ended. Arden was still staring at me when I returned my attention to him. For a minute I was confused... until I realized that he was checking me out. While doing my best not to blush, I gave him the harshest glare I could summon.