NEON

22. Jackass Teacher

I don't usually put songs up here but I listened to These Four Walls by Little Mix and it goes so well with this chapter, soooo if you read and listen to music, that is the song I highly recommend.

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Kaplan.

"Hey!" Macy greeted me once I stepped into the office. "What are you doing here? Did you pull another prank?" she tried to look stern but failed when a giant smile found it's way on her face.

I held up the referral that my jackass teacher gave me. She nodded and walked with me to Darcy's office.

"Oh Kaplan," he stood up and stepped in front of me. "I heard about your mom." Oh shit . . . "I'm really sorry for your-" I interrupted him.

"You called me out of class for this bullshit? I haven't been to any of my classes in a while Darcy. Can I leave so I can get this education you feel so strongly about?" stupid touchy teacher giving me a hard time about my pranks and how it is messing up students' lives.

He is messing up my education by pulling me out of class. My dad is gonna get my report card and see my grades drop and wonder why. Then when I try to explain to him that Darcy kept pulling me out of class, my father will call bullshit. I would probably say something like 'I was called to take of your daughter' just to make him feel guilty.

God I'm a bitch.

"Actually no. Spring break is next week so I am giving you the rest of this week off." he is just doing this cause he feels sorry for me.

"Quit it."

"Quit what?" he is so clueless.

"Quit feeling sorry for me. Why do you think I need time-" he cut me off.

"You aren't getting along with your father, your sister is hurting herself, your father isn't paying attention, your mother just died Kaplan. Take some time to breathe." I felt my throat tighten when he talked about my mother. "I'm not telling you to sit around and mope, cause you obviously aren't like that. But I am telling you to feel," he turned around to grab something off of his desk, "even though you don't like doing that." he smiles and hands me a small red box.

"What is this?" I attempted to open the box but Darcy smacked the lid closed. "Dude." he chuckled and walked around his desk to sit in his chair.

"It was from your mom, you can't open it until Cyrus is around," great, another present for Cyrus.

"How do you know Cyrus is hurting herself?" I asked him, staring at the box.

"Emily," my eyebrows raise. "She took Cyrus swimming one day, saw her stomach, and called the school." I shake my head at my fathers girlfriend and walk out of his office after a vague goodbye.

I can't help but feel distraught over the loss of my mother. I am more angry than I am sad. She left us, ignored us, and now she calls and promises me a visit but ends up dying.

I hate love.

Any type of love. I hate it all.

I shut the ignition off and get out of my car. I wipe away the tears I didn't know would come out. I stepped out of the car and my phone immediately went off.

"Hello?" I asked the unknown number.

"Kaplan." Cyrus cried.

"I'm on my way." I hung up and got back in the car. I sped to her school and locked the doors when I parked.

I avoided the front office and walked through the side gate. I started walking - running - to Cyrus' classroom.

At the opposite end of the hall, Cyrus was standing there, staring back at me. I walked to her slowly. Her face contorted into a painful smile. She sobbed and gasped for air, I ran to her and held her tighter than I have ever held anyone.

She sobbed harder and tried to breathe. My eyes began tearing up just to hear how much pain she was in.

I moved to her side and quickly walked to my car, still holding on to her. I helped her get inside and got inside myself, starting the car up and driving away.

I got home fast, I couldn't take Cyrus' blubbering. I wanted to pull over and just hold her but I wanted to go home and cry with her.

That's not something you do, parked in a McDonald's parking lot.

She was trying to hold it in. I could tell. She was quietly sobbing and her breathing was extremely uneven. She opened the door and before I could shut it, she attacked me in a hug.

Her tiny arms wrapped around my waist, her face was resting on my chest. I pulled her with me upstairs, to my room.

She has never been in my room before. I had made it very clear when I was fifteen and she was nine, I reminded her constantly that nobody was allowed in my room without permission.

I pulled the covers back and she slid in, scooting to the middle. I sat next to her, letting her adjust before I laid down.

She pulled me down and wrapped her arms around my waist, crying on my stomach. I laid one arm on her back, the other stroking her brown hair.

I feel terrible for Cyrus. She didn't really know mom, she came to us only a few years before mom left.

I wonder if Askins has-

The door downstairs opened and closed. My dad's voice lingered, but I'm guessing he is on the phone.

My guess was right on when he walked upstairs and into my room. He looked at me and then at Cyrus. He hung up the phone and I scooted over so he could come inside my bed.

Cyrus fell asleep some time ago, so she was easy to move. My dad was hugging me more than Cyrus, it hurt for us cause we actually knew her.

I'm sure this is killing my dad.

_____

I'm sure it's not great, but I have better ideas and I'm actually working on making a trailer but my program won't cooperate.