Matt Shaw - The 8th

“It looks good, doesn’t it?” I asked. “I made it myself.”

“Please, I’m not hungry.”

“Of course you are. Look at it! How can that not make you hungry?”

The cake did look good. Chocolate sponge covered in chocolate icing. I would have eaten it myself. Had I not put in the little extra ingredient. Chloe moved the cake closer to her mouth. Slowly her mouth opened. It must be watering in there. How could it not? The cake looks amazing. I should set up a little shop. Start selling them. I could make a fortune.

I was sitting with David, in the cinema, waiting for the film to start. He paid; some chick flick he had wanted to see. I should have known when he invited me to a film that it wouldn’t have been a typical horror for boys to enjoy. Ah well, I couldn’t grumble; it was still better than being in class, I suppose. Just.

“So how would you teach them a lesson?” I asked him.

“Not really thought about it.”

“Really?”

“Okay, I’d make them kiss each other,” he said, a split second later.

“What?”

“Piers and his friends… In front of the whole class… I’d make them kiss each other. That way they couldn’t call me gay anymore.”

“They couldn’t?”

“Of course not…” The lights dimmed and the screen flickered into life. David whispered to me, “If everyone has seen them kiss… They’d hardly be in a position to carry on calling me gay!” I didn’t answer him. I suppose, all being said and done, he had a point.

“How’d you make them kiss?” I asked.

He shrugged, “I don’t know… Wave a gun in their face?”

I laughed, “You have thought about this, haven’t you?”

“Lots,” he answered immediately. “Want some of my popcorn?” He tipped his large tub of popcorn towards me.

I shook my head, “No thanks. Hate popcorn. It tastes like shit.”

A smile spread across my face as fresh dog shit dribbled down Chloe’s chin. I guess the little stint in the oven made it runny? Should have expected that, not that it’s a problem. It was probably worse for her, to have it trickle down her face. She’ll be tasting that for days. As soon as she realised what it was, she gagged and spat the cake onto the floor.

“No!” I shouted. “You must eat it all!” I grabbed the cake and shoved it into her mouth. My hand clamped across her face to stop her from spitting it out once more. She struggled, in my grasp, but I didn’t release her until I felt her swallow some of it. “That’s it… Good girl…” I couldn’t help but think of Rebecca swallowing my own poison too. A smile spread across my face. As soon as I let go of Chloe, she threw up on the floor. It’s starting to smell in here… What with the blood, puke, shit and stench of fear. Thank God the lesson is nearly over. It’ll be nice to get some fresh air. “You can sit down now,” I whispered to Chloe when she finished sicking up, what she had eaten, onto the floor. She stood up and made her way back to her seat, spitting as she went.

“You’re going to burn in Hell for this,” said Mrs Price. “You know that, don’t you?” She didn’t look scared of me anymore. She looked angry. A familiar expression we, as a class, were used to. Maybe she knew I wasn’t going to actually shoot anyone? “Your mum and dad will be known around the world for what you have done. You’ll be rotting in prison, and then Hell, and they’ll be having to live with the consequences of your actions.”

“Then I guess, with all of us residing there, Hell will be full.”

“Just let us go before you do something you’ll regret.”

“I’ll regret nothing of today.”

“You say that now but in years to come… You’ll realise… This wasn’t the way…”

I turned to David, behind me. The look on his face… The look of sorrow. Lindsey’s face… Having just seen her tormentor eat dog shit… I won’t regret anything about today.

“When you’re quite finished,” I said, “there’s still much to do.”

“You’re a psycho,” she continued.

“No, I’m not. I’m a product of my surroundings. You… All of you sitting here… You all made me.”

“That’s rubbish,” said Mrs Price. I knew I could count on her to ruin my buzz. “People are bullied every day. You don’t see them holding their class to ransom.”

“I’m not holding anyone to ransom! As soon as the bell goes, you’re all free to leave.”

“Let us go now!”

“Now you know you’re not allowed to wander the corridors during lesson time. You can get sent to the Head’s office. You can go as soon as the bell goes. Those aren’t my rules. They’re the schools…”

“They’d allow an exception…”

I glared at her, “Did you want to come to the front of the class again? Have you not learned your lesson?” She didn’t say anything. “That’s what I thought.”

I turned back to the seven behind me. Lindsey seems satisfied how I dealt with Chloe. David seems to be quieter than usual. Funny, really, considering this was his plan initially. Five more students who need someone to fight their battles for them; Elizabeth, Marcus, Samantha, Kate, Helen. I’m not entirely sure I’ll be able to help them all. Not entirely sure there is time enough to deal with each of their complaints. Never enough time.

“Where have you been?” asked mum as soon as I stepped into the family home. I didn’t answer her straight away. I wasn’t expecting to be bombarded with her questions as soon as I walked in. Couldn’t exactly tell her I had been at the cinema with David. She’d be mad that I hadn’t gone to school. She might even be mad enough, after the video incident, to report it to dad too — when he comes home from work… If he comes home from work. “I asked you a question — where have you been? Dinner is ruined.” Dinner wouldn’t have been ruined, I doubt she would have even cooked it yet.

“I was in the library with David,” I lied. Stupid, really, as she knew it would be a lie. I can’t remember the last time I went to a library.

“The school phoned.”

“What?”

“They phoned. Apparently you didn’t show up for registration after lunch. They wanted to know if everything was okay.”

“They actually called?”

“Yes…”

“They do that?”

“So where were you?” Mum’s face reddened. I knew she was mad. One of the signs she was angry was when her face went a bright shade of red; similar to if she were embarrassed. The thing with mum, though, is that she’d only be angry because she wouldn’t have known where I was… Because she would have been worried… Not because I didn’t go to class. “Well?”

“I was at the cinema…”

“With David?”

“Yes, with David. We had some problems at lunchtime and couldn’t face going back for the afternoon. We didn’t think it would be a problem…”

“More like you didn’t think the school would have called?”

“And that…”

“Look, mum, I don’t like it there. The name-calling… The bullying…”

“They’ll settle down, it’s just because you’re new.”

“What? No. No it’s not. It’s because I am friends with a homosexual and I dared stick up for him. You saw what happened with the video. You saw that. The trouble I got into… It’s going to carry on. God only knows what they’ll do next. I don’t want to go back…”

“You have to go back! I’m sure they’ll soon get bored and move onto someone else.”

“It’s different to the way it was when you were at school, mum… You know, when the world was in black and white and you didn’t lock your front door at night…”

“Well you’re going back tomorrow. If you want I can go in with you.”