FicWad

Frank and I occupied the two chairs behind Mr. Dickinson wooden desk while he went out to have a word with his secretary and joked how he should hand out numbers to all these who got sent to him.
I got comfortable in the hard chair I knew all too well, in my few months at Belleville high I got to know this room like the palm of my hand. The framed pictures with the happy smiling family waving out of the snap shot on the desk. 3 sons and an older daughter, they all left home but in the picture they all were young with their puppy dog who died by now at the age of 13, on the other picture was Dennis, Mrs. Dickinson, he met her when they were 15 at summer camp, she threw him into the mud one night but 10 years later their paths crossed again on a business trip and they married a month later...Yeah I was here so many times I actually knew all about his family, he had a spark in his eye when he talked about them, usually it's to preach but Mr. Dickinson loved his family I give him that. I proceeded to browse the wall behind his chair, packed with thank you letters from former students and their families, awards, father of the year trophies.
Frank looked less comfortable and I don't know why cause he got sent to the principle like every fucking day, sometimes a few times a day. If I know so much about him, they gotta have some sort of a bond but non the less he looked stressed out and sighed every now again like the weight of the world is on his shoulders.

Finally Mr. Dickinson closed the door and went around his desk to sit in his fancy chair, the room was silent but the echoes of the gym class outside bouncing on the walls, "Well?"

I shrugged.

Mr. Dickinson leaned in his chair and laced his fingers on the table, "Frankly I don't know what to do with you," he shifted his gaze from me to Frank, "I'm so familiar with you, I don't even have to look at your school records".

I bit my lip, looking over his head.

"I'm not asking for explanation, I don't need lies. I know what happened, what I want to know miss Hart is what I should do with you, you skip classes, talk back to your teachers and disrespect them. I've put up with this behavior so far only because of you point average, you were an excellent student, now however, the tune is different"

I didn't move a muscle, he was in fact right, I forgot the last time I did my homework or paid attention in class.

He looked over at Frank, "And you Mr. Iero I'm not even talking about grades anymore, the only reason you still have a place in my school is out of loyalty to your mother, a wonderful woman you should've learned to appreciate by now"

"Technically," I muttered, "It's not your school, it's the government's school and is fully sponsored by the tax payer"

Mr. Dickinson bit back a smile, "Forgive my error"

I nodded, smiling. That's what I liked about him, he was like your granddad and not a strict principle.

He turned back to Frank who refused to look at him and fiddled with his fingers, leaning forward and giving him a hard look, "Time after time you break your word, and if nothing else I thought you're a man of your word. Nothing helped, not therapy, not the school counselor, not the conversations we had, not my phone calls to your father"

My jaw dropped slightly, Frank didn't look like the type to go to shrinks. I looked him over curiously as though I just found out he turned into a werewolf by night, if we were alone I would've checked too but Mr. Dickinson carried on, "You have every kind of reputation you might have, you do drugs,you smoke, you drink, you do not attend classes. Why do you even bother to show up occasionally is beyond me"

"He wants to study," I felt the urge to throw in a good word for Frankie. He was a good guy, clever too. He was just too hyper to sit in a classroom for 8 hours and bury himself in books. I don't understand why instead of lecturing no one helps him. It seems like you gotta have a certain character to do well in school, You gotta be patient and sit still all the time and these who don't fit that exact profile gets picked on by the teachers and categorized as stupid. Frank can't sit still for 45 minutes, hell he can't even sit still for lunch. I had a short attention span too but he had even a shorter one. It''s almost like natural selection and it's not fair cause Frankie can do it.

"Miss Hart," Mr. Dickinson shushed me, raising his hand, "I understand you guys, I do. I was young once and every time I look at you," he nodded at Frank, "I see myself, but the road you're heading in isn't a good one, I'd hate you to make the same mistakes and get burn. I get the need to be free, to rebel-"

I chuckled, picturing Mr. Dickinson in ripped jeans and a misfits tee. Frank and I exchanged quick glances as a little smirk played hide and seek on his face.

"Yeah," Mr. Dickinson smiled, "The old principle what does he know"
I nodded in agreement without intending to do so, making Mr. Dickinson laugh even harder, "God miss Hart you remind me of Dennis so much"

"I hope you don't intend to sexually harass me because of it"

He threw his head back and roared with laughter holding his big belly, "You are charming miss Hart, you're absolutely priceless,"

"No I'm serious," I giggled.

He nodded and gradually returned to his principle mode, "As well as I know you I realize it would be useless to make you promise to get back on track, you are stubborn and rebellious and I don't think I will be fulfilling my principle duties if I do that knowing full well I'll be seeing you in my office tomorrow too, so what do you think I should do? What will make you realize that what you're doing isn't acceptable?"

I shrugged, biting my lip, "Will you agree to what I'll offer? No, you'll listen, nod and make me do shit I don't wanna do, then what's the point?"

"You know me as well as I know you it appears"

"That's the problem," I sighed, "You don't know me, you think you do because I fit a certain stereotype but you really don't. You see before, I fitted the good student sassy bitch criteria but now when shit I do doesn't fit that stereotype you get nervous, teachers don't know what to do cause how could I cross my line? How can I fit one stereotype and then the other? How can I act like one and be the other? There's nothing in your text books about people and emotion all you know is to label the student so it would be easier for you. Frankie makes troubles and smokes weed so there's no way he's smart. I used to get good grades so how possibly could I rob a store", I took a breathe and waited eagerly for his respond.

He smiled nostalgically, "You should stop by to talk with Dennis, you find you have a lot in common"

I rolled my eyes, "Yet again you classify me by something. I'm not your wife, I'm not a geek, I'm not a bitch, I'm me. Viola Hart and there's nothing in your books about a Viola Hart or Frank Iero, that's why we intimidate you"

"You're very articulate miss Hart," he shifted a few papers around, "Very sharp. That's why it's such a shame you throw your life away"

"I'm not throwing my life away," I frowned, "You don't know what I will be"

"Your young mind still can't understand that your actions now will hunt you tomorrow, what you do now effects your future. I heard that glimpse of pride when you said you robbed a store, would you want a future employer to know that? You think your actions are erased when you want to? Would you be able to convince them you're not the brat you used to be when you were 15?"

"People make mistakes," I argued.

"That's right and no one cares why or how. You were right, people label others, it's easier to sort the world into black and white. All humans do that so don't sit here and say you don't. People don't care why or when, all people care about is the action itself," he noted my grimace, "And yes, it might be unfair or right but that's how the world goes"

I shrugged, looking significantly at my watch.

"I see your time is precious, mine is too that's why I'd like you to go see the school counselor tomorrow," he said.

"What?!," I exclaimed, "I don't need a shrink, I'm not crazy"

"Thanks," Frank looked at me annoyed.

"Sorry," I lowered my voice tone, "I don't need a shri- I won't go!"

"Miss Hart, save it," Mr. Dickinson raised his hand again, "Please. Be kind enough to go see Mrs. Sander first thing tomorrow morning and don't even think about skipping and of course a month worth of detention will help get my point across this time, starting today"

"That sucks," I murmured.

"As for you Mr. Iero," he gave Frankie a hard look who shrunk back in his chair, "I'm very sorry. You know what was the deal, one more episode and you will have to leave. I tried to be understanding but you got to understand my side too, as of tomorrow you are expelled. Please be kind to empty your locker"

Silence consumed the room for a while until Frank nodded and stood up, his chair's screech stirred me, "You can't expel Frank!"

"I'm afraid I just did," he leaned back in his chair with a sigh.

"But you can't!", I cried out, "It's all my fault, it really is"

"Viola stop," Frank squeezed my shoulder gently.

"But it is," I stood up sharply, "You can't! let's make a deal too, I go to the shrink and you unexpel Frankie"

Mr. Dickinson smiled softly, "How about this, you go the the counselor and Mr. Iero is still expelled"

"You're such a prick," I slammed my palm on his desk angrily, "Sitting here telling us fiction about how much you understand us and how you see your family in us when all along you wanted to fuck us over"

"Now that's enough miss Hart!," he barked at me.

I was taken aback and stepped back, slightly stumbling into Frank.

He sighed heavily, putting his hand through his balding head, "It is not my intention to act as a prick, as you put it and I sure don't want to...Set you up but apart from you, I have responsibility for other students too, for their parents and for my staff, I can't have you disturb the flow of the lessons each and every time"

"Fuck your responsibility," I spat out, "And certainly fuck your staff! You can't just expel Frankie!"

"Viola," Frank pulled me a little away from the desk on which I leaned, I probably looked like I was going to charge at Mr. Dick cause I was so in his face.

"Me and Franklin made a deal and he broke it and that's all you need to know Ms.Hart," he circled the desk and opened the door for us, "Please return to your classes, Franklin you may wait for your mother outside"

Frank dragged me out to the hall, past all the angry students who glared at us evilly, I was too shocked to flip any of them off. Once in the empty hall I threw my arms around Frank, "I can't believe he expelled you!"

He chuckled, at first surprised in my embrace but then he rubbed my back gently, "That OK I've seen it coming"

"Oh Frank it's all my fault," I pulled back to look at him.

He grabbed my face sternly, "You listen to me, it's not any of your fault, he would've caught me one way or another"

Suddenly a little cough echoed through the hall, I spun around and frowned...