Page 6 of Between Never and Forever
Everyone starts screaming. Connor lets out a high-pitched shriek that sounds like an animal dying, and blood gushes from his nose. The sight of blood makes me want to puke. I wrap my arms around Savannah’s middle and pick her up, swinging her around in an attempt to get her out of there, but a loud whistle blows, and I stop in my tracks when I see the principal flanked by two school resource officers.
Immediately, kids start pointing at me and Savannah. Two teachers rush to Connor, and the principal and one of the officers step up to us.
“Put her down, Mr. Cooper,” the principal says, but I hesitate.
I hold her tighter and flick my eyes toward the door. I wonder if I could make it without getting tazed or tackled.
“Put her down,” he repeats.
When I bring my eyes back to him, he’s staring at me sternly. When I look at the officer, he’s glaring at Sav. I still don’t move to put her down until she grunts and wiggles free, kicking my shin lightly then shooting me a narrowed-eyed glare before squaring up to the officer.
“Come with me, Miss Shaw.”
Savannah tightens her jaw and moves to walk toward him, but I grab her wrist and pull her to a stop.
“It was self-defense,” I say quickly, and the officer raises an eyebrow.
“It was!” I look at Savannah. “Tell them, Savannah.”
She stays quiet, so I turn back to the officer.
“It was self-defense, sir. Connor jumped at her. He was going to hurt her. He looked like he was going to strangle her or something.”
The officer looks at Savannah for confirmation, but she keeps her mouth shut, and my jaw drops.
“Sav, tell him,” I insist, frustrated.
Usually she never shuts up, and she choosesnowto be silent?
“It was self-defense. Connor said ‘you’re dead’ and then tried to attack her. That’s the truth, sir. Ask anyone. Watch the security cameras.”
The officer just sighs and jerks his head in the direction of the office. He turns and Savannah follows, back straight and head held high.
I don’t see her for the rest of the day, but I’m brought into the office and questioned before school lets out. I tell the principal the same thing I told the officer. Savannah acted in self-defense. If she hadn’t swung the math book, Connor definitely would have hurt her.
I don’t tell them that Savannah provoked him into it.
I definitely don’t tell them that I think Savannah might havewantedhim to hurt her.
I try my best not to think about that possibility at all, but it still bothers me the rest of the day. I’d send her a text, but my mother checks my phone. She’ll flip if she sees me messaging Savannah. Sav’s phone is probably off anyway. She has one of those prepaids and gets in trouble when she uses up all her minutes.
The bus ride home is boring, but too short. Walking up the sidewalk to my house feels like a death march.
“Levi,” my mother calls from the kitchen when I step through the door.
Even though I expected it, my shoulders tense. She sounds angry, and I know why. I take off my shoes slowly, then put my backpack on the bench by the door.
“Coming.”
When I step into the kitchen, Mom is already sitting at the table, and she hits me with a cold stare. I stand tall and jut my chin out when I see the thick, leather-bound book next to her.
“I got a call from the principal today.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I told you to stay away from that girl.”
She says the words calmly, but her face is tight. I can already tell she’s going to lose it. My mother is kind of terrifying in that way. The angrier she is, the calmer she acts, until she strikes silently, like a copperhead. She’s just as venomous, too.
