Chapter Six

Finally, Finals

Finals approach. In the past, this would have sparked marathon sessions of feverish study in Brian, but this year he isn't driven to such excesses. He studies, of course, but not frantically. He manages to swallow his pride and ask Bender for help with his final shop project,: a birdhouse. He's seen the birdhouses his classmates have made and some are veritable palaces, but his own modest model is straight and fastened together properly. He'll get at least a C.

Latin he's going to ace, of course. His other subjects are shaping up well. His physics paper is almost done and the rest of his classes simply involve review. He and Beatrice spend a good deal of time at the public library on Milton.

When finals week begins, Brian does well in English and American history. Tuesday is Latin. Third period, he leans his backpack against the side of his desk, gets out a pencil and waits to be handed a blue book to write his test answers in. The test and answer books are passed out and he begins. He is hard at work when he hears what sounds like a piece of tightly folded paper drop. He doesn't think about it but continues recording his answers. Mr. Tillson prowls the aisles on the look-out for problems or wrong-doing. Stopping by Brian's desk, he bends to pick up something. It is the folded paper he heard. Mr. Tillson unfolds it and reads it as he walks up the aisle.

Brian is surprised when Mr. Tillson calls him into the hallway.

"Johnson, can you explain this being under your desk?" He holds up the paper.

"No, sir. I don't know what that is."

"It's a cheat sheet with the three hardest irregular verbs on it. You don't know anything about this?"

"No."

"I'll let you look at it, see if it refreshes your memory."

Brian sees that yes, it has the three hardest irregular verbs on it, in unfamiliar handwriting. He looks at Mr. Tillson, completely baffled. Then the hard look on the teacher's face makes his brain jump.

"I don't need this, sir, I know these verbs. It's not mine."

Mr. Tillson takes back the sheet and asks, "Please recite these verbs."

Brian does so, flawlessly.

"And you didn't prepare this for another student?"

"It's not my handwriting. I swear I have nothing to do with it." Brian remembers Priscilla. Shit. "There may be an explanation, sir."

He tries to explain Priscilla's grudge.

"This is too much to go into here. You need to go to the principal's office. I'll give you a note to take to Principal Gaffney."

Brian must look horror struck because Mr. Tillson goes on, "I know you Brian. If you say it has nothing to do with you, I believe you. But we need to get to the bottom of this. Someone was cheating."

As he makes his way to the principal's office, his heart, temporarily lifted by Mr. Tillson's confidence, plummets with the idea of confronting Gaffney. He'll never believe any story about Priscilla.

His heart sinks deeper when he sees Andy already sitting on Gaffney's bench.

"Cheat sheet?" Brian asks.

Andy nods. Brian sits heavily. He is sure it is only time until the others show up with the same accusation, and he is right. Claire shows up not ten minutes later, accompanied by another girl, someone Brian doesn't remember having met.

"This is Jennifer." Claire speaks quickly and quietly. "She heard Priscilla making plans and saw Stubby throw a cheat sheet under my desk. You guys had cheat sheets under your desks too?"

They confirm her supposition.

"Listen, Priscilla probably has more cheat sheets and more accomplices. I think we can bust her!" She is wringing her hands.

"Mr. Tillson is behind me," Brian starts, but Gaffney comes out of his office and approaches them. He is holding Mr. Tillson's note.

"Johnson, how did that cheat sheet get under your desk?"

"I don't know, sir. It's not mine." With a bit of wounded pride he says, "Sir, I don't need to cheat. I am the best Latin student you have, aside from Beatrice Snyder."

"And what do you say, Clark? You're not our best history student. How did you end up with a cheat sheet under your chair?"

"I expect someone threw it there for Priscilla Rogers, sir. It's not mine."

"Sir," Claire raises her hand as if she is in class., "Jennifer knows something about this. She saw-"

Bender bursts through the doorway, propelled by Vernon.

"We caught another. This whole group has been cheating wholesale." Vernon looks delighted.

"I told you, I don't care enough to cheat. Take a look at my grades, I don't look like a student who cares, do I?" Bender speaks with a definite lack of interest.

"Sir," Claire tries again., "Jennifer can give you information that will explain everything."

Gaffney is absorbed in Vernon's gloating hatred and does not hear Claire.

"SIR," Andy insists. When he has Gaffney's attention, he continues, "Sir, Claire and Jennifer have information."

Claire, looking nervous, says, "Mr. Gaffney, Jennifer overheard Priscilla Rogers planning to throw cheat sheets under our chairs. Priscilla wants to frame us all, and she has accomplices, including Stubby Boardman. Jennifer saw Stubby throw that cheat sheet under my chair."

"Is this true, Jennifer?" Gaffney looms over Jennifer.

Jennifer seems nervous but resolute.

"Yessir, I saw them do it. And I recognize Priscilla's handwriting. She wrote all those papers," she states "She doesn't like them, the breakfast club. She got Stubby to do the mashed potatoes and the graffiti, to get them in trouble."

"Search Priscilla. She'll have Allison and Beatrice's cheat sheets. They don't have their exams until after lunch." Andy is firm and assertive.

"We can't search a student based on hearsay," Vernon says with contempt.

"You searched all of our lockers just on Priscilla's word," Andy counters.

"Vernon, we need to discuss this. In private." Principal Gaffney opens his inner office door and waits for Vernon to precede him.

Bender, having no compunctions, puts his ear against the door.

"You can't do that, young man," says the secretary. Bender just shushes her.

The group watches Bender's face for a clue. A slow smile starts on his face.

"I love hearing someone else getting reamed," he whispers. "Gaffney's tearing into Vernon."

The doorknob rattles and Bender darts back to his seat with an exaggerated look of innocence, hands folded demurely on his knees.

Vernon bangs out of the principal's inner office and strides out into the hallway. Principal Gaffney emerges more sedately. He takes a long look at the row of students.

"Johnson, you belong to the Latin club?" Brian nods.

"Clark, you won our last match, didn't you?" Andy nods as well.

"Miss Standish, you were on the student council last year?" Claire adds her nod.

He looks at Bender but says nothing. He seems to be thinking.

"Vernon is a good man, but sometimes he blinded by his own peculiarities. You are all good students." His back is to Bender. "We'll get to the bottom of this."

Priscilla angrily sweeps in, followed by Vernon. Her voice is raised. "You can't believe her over me! Look at her boyfriend!" Her beautiful face is contorted into an ugly shape of fury and malice.

"Miss Rogers, empty your bag," Gaffney tells her.

"You can't do this!" she shrieks.

Gaffney calmly says, "I can and I will. Miss Rogers, do as you are told."

Two tightly folded papers emerge from her bag. Gaffney opens each paper, compares them to the other cheat sheets he collected.

He says to Vernon, "Miss Rogers may enter my office."

"No! It's her, she did it! It's her fault! I didn't…" Priscilla's voice is dampened by the door to Gaffney's office shutting.

When Gaffney looks back to the row of students, Jennifer nervously starts, "Mr. Gaffney, Priscilla did it all. The mashed potatoes, the graffiti, the cheat sheets."

"Jennifer Starnes, is that right?" Gaffney inquires. She nods.

"Miss Starnes, why did you not reveal this to the proper authorities at the time?"

"Sir, I was scared. I was scared that no one would believe me and I was scared of what Priscilla would do. But I came today because cheating is so serious. I couldn't let Claire be expelled because Priscilla hates her."

Gaffney looks at each in turn. "We'll discover what really happened here. You are dismissed. Return to your classes."

It's Bender who brings the news.

"I was sneaking a smoke in the parking lot and saw Priscilla," Bender tells them. "Her parents were dragging her to their car and she was screaming. She's been kicked out, and boy is she in deep shit with her parents. Priscilla can yell, but she can't top her mother; I could hear her all the way across the parking lot."

"They came and got Stubby in civics class. He's in trouble too," Andy adds.

The whole group is gathered in the courtyard after school. Beatrice is holding Brian's hand tightly and smiling. Leaning against Andy, Allison looks as happy.

Bender slings his arm around Claire and announces, "This calls for a celebration. Who's getting high?"

"None of us are, John. You aren't either. But we can get some ice cream at Brewer's," is Claire's proposition.

"Hey!" says Andy. "There's Jennifer! She needs to come with us, to help celebrate."

Claire waves her over.

"Come with us to Brewer's, Jennifer. It's thanks to you we got out of that mess," Claire says.

"I'll treat you to the biggest sundae they make," Andy pledges.

Jennifer seems intimidated by the large group of students, but Claire pulls her sleeve and gives her one of those clear, pure Claire smiles. Brian sees that smile and finds it no longer tugs at his heart, although it does make him feel affection, just another kind. Jennifer must be affected by the smile too because she returns it and joins them with more confidence.

Brian and Beatrice fall in with the rest of the group and they walk out together, laughing and talking.

If Brian had felt light after his release from his mother's tyranny, he is now positively floating. He has good friends, he has the incredible Beatrice as his girlfriend and he is free at last. Now, when he looks at himself, he likes what he sees.