Summer School

Chapter One

Failed Grades

“Now, class. I know you all love them, so, Pop Quiz!” The teacher, Mrs Harris, said, ready for the disappointment from the class. As she thought, it came. Groans upon groans, murmurs of detestation and repugnance littered around the classroom. Some students shouted lame excuses at their teacher, until she raised a pale, and wrinkled, white hand to silence the class. Everyone knew what this meant, so they clamped their mouths shut. She walked around the rows of desks and handed out thick sheets of test-papers to each student, face down so they couldn’t see the questions. “Now, my paycheck relies on your results, so, be smart, kids!” She said, looking at each child and smiling, until she reached the last three. Laurie, Caelen and their ringleader, Regan. “Class, turn over your papers…Now.” Everyone flipped over their papers and scribbled as many answers that they could. Except Regan. She waited until the last minute, and leaned over to copy off of Corben James. The nerd who sat in front of her had finished his quiz, and was waiting for the teacher to grade his test. He turned around to see her and his hand shot so fast into the air it was a blur, he called “Mrs Harris! Regan was copying off-” His speech was traded for a shriek as Regan punched him square under the chin. Blood dribbled from his jaw and Regan shook her hand in a weak attempt to cleanse it of blood. Her stainless steel skull ring was soaked in the clumpy blood. Her bracelets were also covered, but she wasn’t going to bother to clean it. His blood dribbled down her arm, drying as wine-red clumps.

Chapter Two

Detention number 2,509..?

“Mizz Rrregan Devito. Do you know why you’rre herre?” Regan rolled her eyes. She did not like Ms Gordon’s Italian accent, she basically just added an extra ‘rrr’ to each word. “Forr a rrrough-housinggg.” Regan mocked. “Mizz Rregan, ‘tis rrude to mock an adult. Now, why would you punch Mrr Corrben Jamess?” Ms Gorden asked, narrowing her chocolate brown eyes to slits. “Um, he was annoying me. Ugh, like, uh, so much! Like, who does that?! If you ask me, he had it coming.” Ms Gorden’s eyes bulged with surprise. “Parrdon? You are in grade ten. You are fifteen years old. You need to control your impulses.” Regan clearly wasn’t listening. “Okay, you know what?” She stopped to rub one of her temples. “You can go on thrrrough to Mrr Wellingston, he’ll put you rrright.” So Ms Gorden ushered Regan into Mr Wellingston’s office, but no principal was to be found. But, in his place was a note:

Dear Ms Gorden, I know that if you’re in here, you have Regan. What has she done this time? Nevermind, I don’t wanna know. I’m in the grade 9 classroom teaching a special class. I’ll be back shortly.

Kind regards,

AW

“Oh. I guess I’m stuck with you. Do you have yourrr worrrkbooks?” she asked Regan. “Ugh, do I have to do everything?” Regan snapped. “Get your worrrkbooks out. Now!” Regan was taken aback by Ms Gorden’s sudden surge of anger, but that didn’t stop her from answering with, “How ‘bout you get out your workbooks?!” Ms Gorden’s chocolate brown skin wrinkled with frustration. “Please, just open yourrr worrrkbooks to a frrresh page and historrry book to page one hundrrred and two, as I believe that was yourrr lesson forrr today.” She wrinkled her eyes shut, as many of the teachers feared Regan, and she was one of that many. “Ugh, fine. Um, hurry up already, you know how much I hate history, like, why live in the past, man? Let’s just, um, get this over with.” Regan announced.

Chapter Three

Wayne Hansen

“Well, class, this is the new student. He came all the way from Kyrnorth Suarre. Please, give him a warm welcome.” A tall boy with silky black hair and frosted tips, the new student, strode into the classroom, head held high. “Class, this is our new pupil. His name is...” The teacher started wearily, as she didn’t know how she managed to forget his name. “The name’s Wayne. Wayne Hansen.” He stuck out a hand for Mrs Harris to shake, a wide grin spread across his face. She tenderly grabbed it with two fingers and shook. None of her students had ever done anything like that before. Except when Regan did it with a handful of wet, chewed gum and smeared it on Mrs Harris’ hand. She shuddered at the memory. “Okay, can you tell us about you and a little about the journey across the oceans, please?” She asked, trying to take her mind off of the disgusting memory. “Sure thing, teach. So, um, I’m from Kyrnorth Suarre, as you all know, courtesy of our lovely teacher,” He gestured toward Mrs Harris, who had turned bright pink. “So, let’s continue, uh, I got kicked out of my old school for, um, setting the library on fire. Apparently, they don’t like that. Hey, I’m not proud of it.” He said sheepishly. Regan let out a whoop. “Bro, this guy! Am I right?! Whoo!” Laurie and Caelen were nodding enthusiastically, but everyone else froze in shock.

“I crossed the eighteen oceans, I swam through the croc infested waters, lightning on my tail. The sea serpents cowered in fear, and fish scattered at the sound of my voice! Sharks swam forward, slashing their fins through the sea, slicing the water.” The whole class gasped. “Okay, great story, Wayne. But we need to get back to our class. Please sit in an empty seat.” Said Mrs Harris, a hint of empathy hidden in there, for the only empty seats were surrounding Regan, Laurie and Caelen.

Chapter Four

Lunch

Everyone was in line for the slop Mr Boniveti served out at lunch and said it was ‘edible’. Today, it looked like someone had grabbed mashed potato, porridge and greenbeans, put them in a blender, threw it in the oven and called it food. No-one could swallow it, but everyone wanted it. He also gave out two over-cooked and two under-cooked chicken nuggets to each student. Any one who could swallow Mr Boniveti’s nuggets, had clearly not been fed for weeks, and these nuggies were their ticket to survival.

Wayne’s phone rang. Caelen and Laurie had been instructed by Regan to go over and to ‘not spy, but casually look at Wayne’s phone for information for the greater good’. The caller ID was The Reaper. Laurie wrinkled her nose and said, “This guy’s getting a call from the Reaper? What did he do?” Caelen smacked her on the head, “No, you idiot! He nicknamed someone the Reaper. Obviously!” Caelen said. “You know I can hear you, right?” Wayne had turned around and had been watching them fight. “Okay, um, we’re gonna, uh…” Caelen started, but he and Laurie were already scuttling backwards. They bumped into multiple people, but as they sat back down, the bell rang.

Chapter Five

Field Trip

“Okay, all eyes up front! Please, Miss Regan, focus, this lesson is important for our field trip. ” Mr Jaminsen gave Regan a cold stare. “Re re rere re rere re.” She mocked. Mr Jaminsen gasped at this sudden insult. Although, it was Regan. He sort of expected something like this. She had once made a gang of motorcyclists cry. She was terrifying. The nerds were sitting with their books open and pencils in hand, unlike the jocks, who were either sitting on their desks or standing on their chairs, paying no attention whatsoever to the class, daring each other to do stupid challenges. The teacher banged his fist on his desk to get the students to look at the front. “Sorry I’m late, teach. The basketball team wanted me to try out, and then the soccer team, and then the cheerleaders, but I just couldn’t say no, and then-” Wayne stopped when the teacher eyeballed him. “I don’t care for excuses. I don’t care how many teams wanted you. I don’t care how you do things in Kyrnorth Suarre. Here, we do not be late for class. Hurry, the bus is waiting.”

The bus ride took two hours and forty-five minutes. The cemetery was boring and dull for many students, but they were instructed to pick one tombstone to research and give a presentation on. So off the students went, wandering through the graveyard, willy-nilly. Regan started scanning tombstones, until one caught her eye.

In memory of Wayne Hansen. 1993-2008

“La-Laurie? Ca-Caelen?! Come here!” She shrieked. They rushed to Regan’s side, wearing an expression that mirrored Regan’s panicked face. “Let’s, um, go find Wayne. Yes, Wayne! He’ll explain it!” Caelen was trying to calm himself as much as Laurie and Regan. The trio scurried off trying to keep as close as possible.

When they finally found Wayne, he was in the middle of a phone conversation, with his back to them. His shoulders went stiff, the person on the other line had obviously been hard on him. “...been in that fake form too long. You will be discovered, and then when that happens, I won’t be there to pick up the pieces.” The voice hissed and Wayne responded with, “Don’t worry, Reaper, I’m fine.” Caelen, Laurie and Regan let out a whimper that made Wayne spin on his heels. His eyes bulged. “Why were you listening to my call?” He asked, wondering what they knew. “W-we know you’re not Wayne. He died years ago! Who are you? What are you doing? Why were you calling the Reaper? Why did you come to our school? Why-” Regan got interrupted in her interrogation by Wayne. “Your questions shall remain un-answered. They are giving me headaches.” He shooed the three away, obviously not caring for them and their questions. “RUN!” Caelen yelled, but Laurie was paralyzed to the spot, and Regan had already left. Wayne’s skin melted off his body, and his organs disintegrated, leaving only a skeleton, but his brain and eyes remained. His eyes dangled from their sockets, bouncing like paddle-balls as he chased them. None of the other twenty-five students nor the two teachers noticed, it was as if the whole scene wasn’t happening. “Come back! Reaper will have my head if I don’t get you and your fresh souls! Wait, do you want to know what happened to that boy, Wayne?” The remaining two, Caelen and Laurie, stopped in their tracks. Regan was nowhere to be seen. “I took him to Reaper. Oh, and, uh, by the way, this whole scene cannot be seen by anyone except us.” The pair were frightened enough, so they kept running, and running, and running until they were safely hidden behind the tomb of Rose Crople, the town founder. Laurie looked back to where they came, no Reaper in sight. She exhaled in relief, but Caelen pointed a shaking finger to behind Laurie’s head. Where the Grim Reaper stood. “Hi.” He said and the two bolted off, and luckily got to the bus, where everyone was already seated. As if nothing had happened, they drove back to the school, without Regan, no one seemed to remember her ever being part of their class. Even though they didn’t know what happened to her, Caelen and Laurie both knew that no-one would ever see Regan again.

The End