I Hate Staying After Class

Vacantly, I stared at the clock, counting down the seconds until class was over. Like slow boiling water, the classroom began to grow restless from the students yearning for freedom. There were still three minutes left in class, but that posed no issue to the antsy high-schoolers eager to be released.

“Settle down everyone, there’s still a few more minutes before the bell.”

Mr. Evans’s vain attempt to regain command over the rowdy students fell on deaf ears. Even he knew it was pointless. It was more of a formality than anything. Hey, at least he can say he tried.

While everyone was packing up their supplies, I scooped up the borrowed textbook and made my way across the classroom. Silently, while Todd was preoccupied talking to some classmates nearby, I deposited the book on his desk.

“Oh- thanks, Heather”

Without a word, I turned around and went back to my desk. Sitting back down, I saw Todd staring at me out of the corner of my eye. I can only imagine what sort of vile slander he was concocting in his head. Probably something along the lines of:

What a bitch. I lent her my book and she won’t even thank me for it? Whatever, she’s an uggo anyways.

He could at least get my name right before talking shit about me.

As usual, I tuned out the world around me in favor of the digital one in the palm of my hand. Before doing some Gacha dailies, I quickly checked Twitter to see if I had gained any followers from last night’s stream. Blankly, I stared at the number which remained completely unchanged. Right as the self-deprecating thoughts began surging in, my concentration was broken.

RINGGGGG

Pulled back into reality, I looked up to see almost the entire class heading out the door. As the plethora of students freely departed for their next classes, I knew that I would not be offered the same freedom.

Preparing myself, I took a deep breath before I got up and once again made my way across the classroom, passing Mr. Evans’ desk.

“Hayley, could I see you real quick?”

Yep, there it was.

“Yes Mr. Evans, what is it?”

“Hayley, this is the 5th time you’ve been tardy this month, and it’s only the 18th of September. School has only just started.” Mr. Evans sighed, “Look, I’m not upset at all either. I’m sure you have your reasons, but if you just told me I could make accommodations.”

“No, I- I just keep staying up too late playing video games. That’s all.”

I deflected by giving a half-baked answer. It wasn’t a lie, but it also wasn’t the full truth. I wish I could tell him, but I doubt adults would even understand what VTubing is. Even if they did, that’s like saying “Hey Mr. Evans! I’m actually dropping out of school to win the lottery!” No shot that he would be okay with that excuse.

Once again, Mr. Evans let out an exasperated sigh, this one exponentially louder than the last.

“You know you’re already on probation Hayley. Ever since last year, the administration has had their eyes on you. The purpose of forcing you to do summer school was to fix these bad habits. If you keep this up, you’re looking at expulsion.”

Ouch. I knew this was a very real possibility, but having it thrown in my face carved a deep wound. High school obviously wasn’t my biggest priority, but still, not graduating is a huge problem. Above all, if I got expelled from school my parents would put me through absolute hell. Without question my VTubing career would be snuffed out on the spot. Alright, now a fire was lit under my ass.

“Okay, so… what do I need to do to get back on track?”

“First of all, no more tardies. Got it?”

“Yes sir…” I mumbled

“Next, you need to bring your grades up okay? And not just for my class. For all of them. You’re going to need to get tutoring, but it’s going to be hard to get one for every single subject. Do you have any friends that can help you with some of your classes?”

Ouch. A second full frontal attack.

“No…”

The atmosphere turned awkward really quick as Mr. Evans struggled to find an appropriate response.

“W- well, I’ll see if I can help you find a tutor. Just start going to after-school tutoring for now.”

There was a brief pause

“I know every teacher says this, but I really do see so much potential in you Hayley. You showed much talent the first year I had you. It’s the reason why I was comfortable testifying for your admittance to the Arts program. But now… I’m not so sure.”

If there was anything deeper than the Mariana Trench, it might be comparable to how deep my heart sunk in my chest. Long story short, Newpark High has a special program for artistically talented students, allowing them to bypass certain graduation requirements. The idea is that instead of taking classes, they can use that time to work on their artistic pursuits.

Mr. Evans is a huge reason why I was able to begin streaming as a VTuber and I was letting him down. I hated disappointing others more than anything. It’s one of the many reasons why I try to keep to myself. Less people to disappoint.

“I-I promise I’ll start trying more. I don’t want to be expelled either… I’ll be better.” I choked the words out. I felt like crying.

Mr. Evans turned his face directly at me, and our eyes met. His face grew soft and the corners of his mouth turned up into a genuine smile.

“I believe you. I really do,” he continued, “Make sure you go to after school tutoring for now. If I can find you an appropriate tutor then I’ll have them get a hold of you.”

I nodded in acknowledgement.

“Alright, well you better head off to your next class before you rack up even more tardies.”

And so, ended the first period of a long, long day.