Page 76 of Breaking Rules
He leaned his elbows on his desk. “Are you sure? Because graffiti can warrant legal action.”
Mom whipped her head my way. “Tell him the truth.”
I wasn’t too surprised that my mom didn’t believe me, given my past history with graffiti and considering my signature was plastered on the wall. So I had to find a way to prove I wasn’t the guilty one.
I ground my teeth. “I didn’t tag the school. I—”
“Then how do you explain this?” Principal Flynn opened a desk drawer and produced a green paint can.
Well, there was the green paint can I’d lost, or more like left on the floor outside the boys’ locker room, although he couldn’t prove the can was mine.
“Is that yours?” Mom asked, her foot jerking faster than before.
The air conditioner was blowing from a vent overhead. Yet the cool air did nothing to dry the sweat beading up on my forehead.
Principal Flynn handed the paint can to my mom. “According to the name on the can, I would say it is Montana’s.”
Holy shit.I never put my name on my art supplies.
“Montana,” Mom said. “Start talking.”
Principal Flynn sat back in his chair, interlacing his fingers and resting them on his belly. “Let’s start with the locker room door.”
I cleared the lump in my throat. “Fine.” I had to at least tell the truth to try to clear my name, even if the truth did make me appear culpable. My mom had once dated a lawyer who threw the word culpable around in conversations he’d had with my mom. “The night of the first football game of the season, I wanted to tag the locker room door. I had my paint cans ready, but then I backed out. Mainly because of you, Mom. I promised you. And my reasons to tag weren’t worth me getting into trouble. I also heard something in the hall that night, and I got spooked and ran. I left that paint can, or at least my paint can, on the floor. But I promise, I didn’t do it. As far as the wall, that wasn’t me. Whoever did the recent drawing was sloppy.” I’d never seen the picture on the door. “I’m not sloppy. Besides, I was with Train all weekend.”
“Mr. Flynn,” Mom said. “Are the school doors open on the weekend?”
“They usually aren’t, but the cafeteria staff was scheduled to come in yesterday to stock supplies. Aside from that, the janitor unlocks the doors at six in the morning on school days.”
“I was with Train all day yesterday and in bed at six this morning,” I said. “Someone is setting me up.”
“Who?” Principal Flynn asked.
“I don’t know. Nina Morris, maybe.” I didn’t add Ferris’s name. I wasn’t sure if he would have been so catty as to ruin his valedictorian status because I didn’t want him as my tutor anymore. But I made a mental note to talk to him, especially considering Nina had been chummy with him.
Principal Flynn wrote her name down. “Why do you think Nina did this?”
“Because she’s threatened me. She’s Train’s ex-girlfriend, and she doesn’t like that I’m dating Train.”
“Should I be worried about this Nina girl?” Mom asked Principal Flynn.
He steepled his fingers. “Nina has always been an exemplary student with a clean record.” He picked up his desk phone. “Ms. Jones, please find Nina Morris and have her report to my office.” He clicked off. “I will get to the bottom of this. I hope, Montana, you’re telling the truth.”
“Mr. Flynn, Montana has an alibi for the entire weekend. When she wasn’t home, she was either working or with her friends.”
“You believe me?” I asked Mom.
“We’ll talk later.” She didn’t give me a warm and fuzzy.
“Can I go back to class?”
Principal Flynn nodded. “We’ll talk soon.”
Yippee.I was hanging by a thread from getting expelled. I swore I would find out who was setting me up and clear my name.
My mom rose. “Montana, walk me to my car.”
“Sir,” I said. “How did you get the paint can?”
