"Peter, are those... red tights?"
"Nope."
"Those definitely looked like red tights."
"I... do ballet?"
---
•The sole thing illuminating her path were the wispy rays of moonlight as she tripped over a trashcan and...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
ELOQUIN DIDN'T EXACTLY REMEMBER what Mister Darrel said to her, or rather what he was yelling at her, but she did remember biting her lip so hard it drew blood so that she could keep her tears at bay. She didn't try to explain herself, simply keeping her eyes fixated on her sneakers because being the submissive always worked in the wild, right? As she sat in the principal's office, awaiting what was either a detention or... something worse, she clenched her fists around the hem of her skirt, trying not to cry. Tears are for the weak, she tried telling herself. But wasn't that what she was? Weak?
"Miss Hardy, what have you done now?" She heard the principal say as the tired man sat down in his chair, folding his arms together and giving her a long glare through his glasses. She gave him a puzzled look at the name he used, prompting him to look down at her file and correct himself.
"Oh, sorry. Miss Ernst, what brings you here? Would you like permission to create another committee?" He threw her a curt smile before sipping on the stale coffee that had been sitting there since the beginning of the school term. "Uh, no, actually. I think I'm getting detention."
Mister Harrington sat back, his eyes widening as he gaped at the girl. Tears threatened to spill out of her eyes when she saw him look shocked, so much for not crying.
"Oh dear. I'm sure it must be a mistake. You surely couldn't have done anything wrong, right Miss Watso- Sorry, Ernst?" He said, catching his mistake once again and straightening his tie.
"I-I pulled a prank on one of m-my classmates," Eloquin answered, her voice shaking slightly. Mr Harrington frowned at her through his glasses, rubbing the space between his eyebrows with his thumb before sighing. "Very well, you'll have two after school detentions. I am very disappointed in you, Miss... Uh..."
"—Ernst." Eloquin corrected, clearly making him uncomfortable. She apologised and took the detention slip from his wrinkled fingers and sat up from her chair, making her way to the door before halting. She spun around on her heel, taking a deep breath and clenching her fists in anxiety.
"For all I've done for this school, sir, I'd have expected you to at least remember my name."
---
As it turned out, her snarky comment only got her an extra after school detention, although the feeling of triumph still hung around her like an aura for the rest of the day. She skipped into the fairly empty classroom, sliding into a seat beside Michelle and promptly retrieving her books. "Hi!" She chirped. Michelle snapped her head to turn to her, narrowing her eyes at the cheery girl with suspicion. "Why are you here?" She said, pursing her lips.
"I could ask you the same thing, but I won't."
Michelle shrugged, continuing to sketch portraits of those in detention with a stubby pencil, her fingers stained with granite. Eloquin plugged her earphones in, drowning out the sound of Captain America telling her off for getting in trouble with soft piano. She glanced around the classroom, trying to put names to faces for the few kids sitting listlessly by themselves.
