The Only Faith [boyxboy]

The Only Faith {8}

                Headmaster Constance ran this Academy, and I assumed he already knew the abuse that took place here. Hell, he probably joined in on it. The Blues were the pride of the Academy, while the Maroons were the punching bags.

                Headmaster Constance was probably the worst of the abusers. I didn't know what kind of torture he preferred, but if it made everyone this nervous, it couldn't be good.

                As Mr. Sternberg started going on and on with his lesson, I tried to remember what I knew about Headmaster Constance. It wasn't much, just a few blurbs I'd picked up on when looking into the school. I hadn't exactly had much time to prepare before I got sent here.

                The Academy was passed down through the Constance family after it was established by them. It seemed like the Academy fell into the hands of the oldest heir, but I wasn't sure on that bit.

                George Constance was the current headmaster, I knew that much. I didn't know anything about him, though. Just that he was some middle aged man running an Academy that praised the model students and shamed anyone that did anything unacceptable in their eyes.

                I let my mind wander during our first two classes, wondering what kind of abuse Headmaster Constance turned to. He was the one I was afraid of. If I got sent to him, it would no doubt be game over for me.

                Things stayed quiet during class. Mr. Sternberg's threat seemed to hang heavy over the others, and they didn't bother trying to piss anyone off. But when Mr. Miller's class let out, I felt my heartrate picking up again.

                We entered Mr. Sudlow's class and sat down. I kept my expression bored, determined not to give away a trace of my involvement. The others seemed calm and collected, though Fagan was fidgeting more than usual.

                I eyed them all, trying to pick up their tells. Fagan's was that restless, giddy fidgeting. Beckett's was the intensity of his gaze, the tense set of his body, as though he were already preparing for the blows he'd receive. Tessa's was the way her eyes darted around, as if trying to memorize every detail of the room in case something happened.

                That was good to know. Knowing people's tells was always important. I could even help them cover it up so the teachers didn't catch on.

                Mr. Sudlow came into the room. The four of us watched as he hooked his laptop up the smartboard, not flipping it open yet.

                He moved to the board. "I assigned your homework online for tonight. Make sure you-"

                He snapped up the board cover and froze. His eyes locked onto that picture of Casimir Warrick taped up in the middle and the hatred that erupt there told me Beckett wasn't the only one who had a history with the kid.

                He spun around, eyes locking on Beckett. He tore down the picture of Casimir and held it out so Beckett could see it before he tore it into pieces, tossing them in the garbage.

                "You're trying to make a point, Beckett," Mr. Sudlow hissed, gesturing to the other pictures on the board. "But it's falling flat. Casimir might have a job now, but what do you think will happen when they find out he's robbing them? He'll be arrested yet again, and this time, his age won't protect him."

                "You act like anyone would ever catch him. You sure as hell never knew when he stole from you," Beckett said, every inch of him a challenge.