Previously Untitled
Title: Outgrowing Innocence 2/?
Author: MollySheldon
Raiting: G
Summary of sorts: Some find out very early in life that the world can be a scary place.
I don't own anything except the few characters I made up.
~~~
"Okay kids, we're all going to meet in my room right now," Mrs. Davis told the group standing in the hallway.
"Where's Mrs. Sherwood?" a voice in the back asked after peering into their empty classroom.
"Mrs. Sherwood had some extra work to do," Mrs. Davis lied and hoped it sounded good. These kids were smarter than people took them for.
"Ryan, after lunch does your class do silent reading?" Mrs. Davis asked.
"Yes, ma'am," he answered.
"Okay then. Class, why don't you all group off into twos or threes and read together quietly. There's plenty of space around the room." Mrs. Davis helped them sort themselves out and get settled. The room was quite crowded with both classes together, but it would have to work.
Colin, Ryan, and Drew found a spot in the corner and opened Colin's book.
"What is really going on?" Colin asked, pretending to read from the page.
"Greg and I saw police cars out front on the way in from lunch," Ryan told them.
"I saw Mrs. Sherwood," Drew said quietly. Greg and Chip heard him and scooted over to their circle.
"And.." Greg coaxed him.
"She looked like she'd been crying," Drew whispered. "And she was talking to a cop!"
The boys gasped at this news.
"Do you think the cops are taking her away because of what Bradley did?" Chip asked, his normal smile gone from his small face.
"I fought too.. What if they're looking for me next?" Ryan said worriedly.
Colin put a hand on his friend's arm. "The police are not coming for you, Ry," he told him. "But we have to find out what is going on...
"Greg, all the teachers trust you," Colin turned to him. "Go ask to go to the restroom, see if you can overhear anything."
Greg looked unsure, but nodded and got to his feet.
~~~
Greg tried to walk calmly down the hallway. There was no one around that he could see. He rounded a corner. Still no one. But wait, voices. Greg's stomach knotted. He crept closer to the door where the voices could be heard.
"You were the last one to see him!" a woman's voice cried out.
"I took him to the principal's office," a man's voice this time.
Greg wished he could see who the people were. The woman sounded very upset, like she was crying. Mrs. Sherwood? Like Drew had seen?
The voices kept talking. There was another man's voice asking questions. The cops! Greg heard footsteps and saw the door handle move. He backed around the corner and walked quickly back to class. He wished he had more to tell the others. Maybe this would help in some way.
Greg didn't get a chance to tell what he had heard right away. The class had to move on to other lessons. Mrs. Davis did her best to teach both of the classes and keep everyone under control.
~~~
"Is it safe to send them out to recess?" Mrs. Davis was frazzled. Forty kids in one room for two hours was quite enough.
"We've got search dogs out in the field behind the grounds. If you take them out to the front playground that should be fine," Assistant Principal Greenwood told her, along with the other teachers present.
"I assume none of the kids are really aware of what is going on?" she continued.
The teachers murmured amongst themselves. Were they?
Bradley's teacher spoke up, "I hated lying to my class, but I couldn't tell them the truth. I told them he went home sick."
Mrs. Greenwood nodded. "Good enough," she said. Inside she hoped it really was.
~~~
"Out you go! Run, play!" Mrs. Davis forced some cheeriness for her class. In reality, she was a bit stressed out, but happy to sit outside and get a bit of time to relax.
"Gregory! Tell us! Tells us what you saw!" Chip jittered excitedly as everyone crowded around Greg.
Greg told them of the upset voices and the possible policemen talking to Mrs. Sherwood.
Colin stopped listening. He looked past his group of friends and to the field behind the school. There were people and dogs going into the wooded area. Surely... no. Bradley was back there? Colin didn't understand.
Without much more information to go on, the friends decided to do something else for a while. Ryan walked over to the sports area and grabbed a ball from the rack.
"Team Captain!" he shouted, holding the ball above his head.
Chip ran over to him, making himself the other team's captain.
"Colin," Ryan chose.
"Gregory," Chip said.
More kids came over to join the game and the boys kept choosing players.
"Drew," Ryan said, surprising him completely.
"You.. you want me to play?" Drew asked, unsure.
"Yeah" Ryan told him with a confident smile. "You're on my team."
Drew beamed with pride. At his other school he had always been chosen last, or not at all. He would make sure Ryan didn't regret choosing him. He would show everyone how good he could play.
The children played kickball for the remainder of their recess. It took their minds off of the day's excitement. But they had not forgotten their excitement over Colin's birthday party being held that night.
~~~
"Car riders line up!" Mrs. Davis' day was almost over. She herded the kids down the hall and out the back of the school. One line for pick ups, one line for bus riders.
"My mom's picking us up," Colin reminded Ryan. Ryan nodded. They waited with the other children as the line of cars made its way around.
"Col! I just remembered, I forgot my jacket inside. Mrs. Davis! Can I run back in real quick?" he asked the frazzled teacher.
She nodded and sent him on his way. Colin stood off to the side to wait. His back was to the school's brick wall, next to the exit of the gymnasium.
Colin thought about how much fun tonight was going to be. Several of his friends were spending the night at his house. They would have cake and ice cream, and his dad was grilling hot dogs. Then they would play video games and watch movies and stay up as late as they... Wait. What was that? A sound interrupted Colin's thoughts. He turned his head to hear it better. It sounded like someone coughing. Colin peeked through the window of the gym's doors. He only saw the empty gym. Then he heard the coughing again. Colin looked around to see if anyone watch watching. Then he slipped inside the gym. He followed the sound to a closet next to the doors, beside the locker rooms.
"He... hello?" he said quietly.
The coughing stopped for a second. Then Colin heard wheezing.
Without thinking further, Colin opened the closet door. It was dark, but the bleak sunshine from the gym's windows shone in a bit.
Colin gasped.
"A lot of people are looking for you."
~~~
Author: MollySheldon
Raiting: G
Summary of sorts: Some find out very early in life that the world can be a scary place.
I don't own anything except the few characters I made up.
~~~
"Okay kids, we're all going to meet in my room right now," Mrs. Davis told the group standing in the hallway.
"Where's Mrs. Sherwood?" a voice in the back asked after peering into their empty classroom.
"Mrs. Sherwood had some extra work to do," Mrs. Davis lied and hoped it sounded good. These kids were smarter than people took them for.
"Ryan, after lunch does your class do silent reading?" Mrs. Davis asked.
"Yes, ma'am," he answered.
"Okay then. Class, why don't you all group off into twos or threes and read together quietly. There's plenty of space around the room." Mrs. Davis helped them sort themselves out and get settled. The room was quite crowded with both classes together, but it would have to work.
Colin, Ryan, and Drew found a spot in the corner and opened Colin's book.
"What is really going on?" Colin asked, pretending to read from the page.
"Greg and I saw police cars out front on the way in from lunch," Ryan told them.
"I saw Mrs. Sherwood," Drew said quietly. Greg and Chip heard him and scooted over to their circle.
"And.." Greg coaxed him.
"She looked like she'd been crying," Drew whispered. "And she was talking to a cop!"
The boys gasped at this news.
"Do you think the cops are taking her away because of what Bradley did?" Chip asked, his normal smile gone from his small face.
"I fought too.. What if they're looking for me next?" Ryan said worriedly.
Colin put a hand on his friend's arm. "The police are not coming for you, Ry," he told him. "But we have to find out what is going on...
"Greg, all the teachers trust you," Colin turned to him. "Go ask to go to the restroom, see if you can overhear anything."
Greg looked unsure, but nodded and got to his feet.
~~~
Greg tried to walk calmly down the hallway. There was no one around that he could see. He rounded a corner. Still no one. But wait, voices. Greg's stomach knotted. He crept closer to the door where the voices could be heard.
"You were the last one to see him!" a woman's voice cried out.
"I took him to the principal's office," a man's voice this time.
Greg wished he could see who the people were. The woman sounded very upset, like she was crying. Mrs. Sherwood? Like Drew had seen?
The voices kept talking. There was another man's voice asking questions. The cops! Greg heard footsteps and saw the door handle move. He backed around the corner and walked quickly back to class. He wished he had more to tell the others. Maybe this would help in some way.
Greg didn't get a chance to tell what he had heard right away. The class had to move on to other lessons. Mrs. Davis did her best to teach both of the classes and keep everyone under control.
~~~
"Is it safe to send them out to recess?" Mrs. Davis was frazzled. Forty kids in one room for two hours was quite enough.
"We've got search dogs out in the field behind the grounds. If you take them out to the front playground that should be fine," Assistant Principal Greenwood told her, along with the other teachers present.
"I assume none of the kids are really aware of what is going on?" she continued.
The teachers murmured amongst themselves. Were they?
Bradley's teacher spoke up, "I hated lying to my class, but I couldn't tell them the truth. I told them he went home sick."
Mrs. Greenwood nodded. "Good enough," she said. Inside she hoped it really was.
~~~
"Out you go! Run, play!" Mrs. Davis forced some cheeriness for her class. In reality, she was a bit stressed out, but happy to sit outside and get a bit of time to relax.
"Gregory! Tell us! Tells us what you saw!" Chip jittered excitedly as everyone crowded around Greg.
Greg told them of the upset voices and the possible policemen talking to Mrs. Sherwood.
Colin stopped listening. He looked past his group of friends and to the field behind the school. There were people and dogs going into the wooded area. Surely... no. Bradley was back there? Colin didn't understand.
Without much more information to go on, the friends decided to do something else for a while. Ryan walked over to the sports area and grabbed a ball from the rack.
"Team Captain!" he shouted, holding the ball above his head.
Chip ran over to him, making himself the other team's captain.
"Colin," Ryan chose.
"Gregory," Chip said.
More kids came over to join the game and the boys kept choosing players.
"Drew," Ryan said, surprising him completely.
"You.. you want me to play?" Drew asked, unsure.
"Yeah" Ryan told him with a confident smile. "You're on my team."
Drew beamed with pride. At his other school he had always been chosen last, or not at all. He would make sure Ryan didn't regret choosing him. He would show everyone how good he could play.
The children played kickball for the remainder of their recess. It took their minds off of the day's excitement. But they had not forgotten their excitement over Colin's birthday party being held that night.
~~~
"Car riders line up!" Mrs. Davis' day was almost over. She herded the kids down the hall and out the back of the school. One line for pick ups, one line for bus riders.
"My mom's picking us up," Colin reminded Ryan. Ryan nodded. They waited with the other children as the line of cars made its way around.
"Col! I just remembered, I forgot my jacket inside. Mrs. Davis! Can I run back in real quick?" he asked the frazzled teacher.
She nodded and sent him on his way. Colin stood off to the side to wait. His back was to the school's brick wall, next to the exit of the gymnasium.
Colin thought about how much fun tonight was going to be. Several of his friends were spending the night at his house. They would have cake and ice cream, and his dad was grilling hot dogs. Then they would play video games and watch movies and stay up as late as they... Wait. What was that? A sound interrupted Colin's thoughts. He turned his head to hear it better. It sounded like someone coughing. Colin peeked through the window of the gym's doors. He only saw the empty gym. Then he heard the coughing again. Colin looked around to see if anyone watch watching. Then he slipped inside the gym. He followed the sound to a closet next to the doors, beside the locker rooms.
"He... hello?" he said quietly.
The coughing stopped for a second. Then Colin heard wheezing.
Without thinking further, Colin opened the closet door. It was dark, but the bleak sunshine from the gym's windows shone in a bit.
Colin gasped.
"A lot of people are looking for you."
~~~