Chapter 2 - Hand Out
The slap of wood against skin echoed through the empty classroom.
Ethan jerked his hand back and clutched it to his chest.
Mrs. Vale stared at him as if he had insulted her instead of cried out.
“Stop being dramatic.”
“It hurts.”
“It was one tap.”
Ethan looked at the red line forming across his palm.
One tap.
That was what adults called things when they wanted a child to doubt what had just happened.
Mrs. Vale pointed the ruler toward his desk. “Sit down and write an apology to Logan.”
“For what?”
“For disrespecting him.”
“He cheated.”
Her jaw tightened again.
Ethan swallowed. He thought about his father’s rule: tell the truth, especially when the truth makes someone angry.
“My dad says cheating is lying with your hands.”
“Well, your father isn’t in this classroom.”
The words landed harder than the ruler.
Mrs. Vale shoved a sheet of notebook paper in front of him. “Write.”
Ethan stared at the blank page.
I’m sorry I didn’t let you copy my test.
That was what she wanted.
If he wrote it, Logan could show everyone. The teacher could say Ethan had admitted he caused the problem. Maybe she could even make it look like Logan had done nothing wrong.
Ethan pushed the paper away.
“No.”
Mrs. Vale’s eyes narrowed. “What did you say?”
“I’m not apologizing for not cheating.”
For a second, neither of them moved.
Then Mrs. Vale reached for his shoulder.
Ethan flinched so hard his chair tipped sideways and crashed to the floor.
“Look what you did!” she snapped.
“You scared me!”
“I scared you?” She laughed once, sharp and humorless. “You are going to learn that actions have consequences.”
She walked to the classroom door and turned the lock.
The click was tiny.
To Ethan, it sounded enormous.
He looked at the dead camera. He looked at the locked door. He looked at the ruler still in her hand.
Then, without knowing why, he glanced toward the dark plastic dome mounted near the ceiling.
May you like
The little red light was still off.
But behind the black glass, the lens had begun moving again.
