Salma jumped up and shot out of the room, bawling like a toddler that had just been spanked.
The principal turned his attention back to Jenna. “And you, Miss Hamilton, I understand that you’re upset over the way that Ashley was treated, but you were the only one who resorted to violence—”
“If it wasn’t for Marko, Joel would’ve smacked her too, Ant just wasn’t quick enough to grab me.”
The principal’s expression darkened. “I don’t find this funny.”
“I don’t either; if I did I’d be laughing.”
“Stop answering back!”
“I wasn’t, I was just telling it straight. Sheesh, so much for honesty.”
“You’re disrespectful, rude, violent, and have no regard for other people’s feelings—”
“Yes, I do, I cared enough to smack Miss Lap Dance for upsetting Ash.”
He looked flabbergasted. “Miss what?”
She grimaced, realising her slip. “Your niece was grinding herself on Joel’s lap. Joel said he’d told her to stop, but she didn’t care and kept kissing him in front of everyone, acting like a ho—”
“Jenna! Stop now—”
“But—”
He slammed a hand on his desk, making his coffee slosh over the side of the cup. “Listen. I’ve had enough of this—”
Oh shit! She was going down. “No,” she interrupted him, pointing at the door. “This wasn’t my fault, Ash was shattered; she shattered him. I only gave her what she deserved. And you can’t get mad at me just cos she’s related to you; that’s unfair.”
“If you don’t stop talking now, you won’t be suspended, you’ll be expelled.”
Jenna went still, her eyes bugging out. She wanted to plead her case, ached to get another word in, but the principal looked dead serious and she liked Wera … well, to the point that she didn’t want to go to Claydon High, Wera being the lesser of two evils, plus all her friends were here.
“Finally,” the principal exhaled. “I get a word in edgewise. Now, Jenna, this has got nothing to do with Salma being my niece. Believe you me, she will definitely be discovering the consequences of her actions and will be aptly punished. But you, you are a totally different matter. Pushing aside your disrespectful manner, what concerns me the most is how you use violence to resolve arguments. You should know it’s wrong; even more so after your friend and his mother were so viciously attacked. And it’s not just about today either. I don’t understand why you’re like this. I have seen some rough girls in my career, but there is always something in their background that gives me a clue as to why they’ve turned out violent. But you… your parents are lovely. Why, Jenna, why are you like this? Has someone done something to you, harmed you in any way that makes you lash out in this manner?”
More than annoyed, Jenna sat up straight. “No one has hurt me, I wouldn’t let them.” Well, to a point, but the principal didn’t need to know about how she fought with her brothers, because the prude would get the wrong idea. Plus, her brothers didn’t treat her any different from each other, she was just one of the guys to them. Jenna glared at the principal. “And you’re only picking on me cos I’m a girl.”
“Boys are naturally aggressive and more likely to fight, whereas—”
“See! I told ja it was cos I’m a girl. You’re bein’ sexist.”
The principal spluttered. “Jenna, watch who you’re speaking to.”
“But you are,” she mumbled, now worried she’d overstepped the mark. “And you can’t expel me for saying that, cos you’re the one who asked the question.”
“I’m not expelling you, and I do understand why you think there are two different sets of rules for girls and boys. But, I remember handing out the same punishment to one of your brothers when he came in here for fighting last year, although Victor was nowhere near as much trouble as you are.”
“That’s cos you have a fuddy-duddy view on how girls should act.”
“I certainly do not, you’re unnaturally violent and I want to know why.”
“I don’t think I’m violent, I’m just acting like my brothers do.”
“So, you aspire to be like your brothers?”
“No, they’re idiots.”
“But you’re still emulating them by fighting, and in doing so, you’ve just called yourself an idiot.”
“Am not!”
The principal sighed. “Then stop hitting people.”
“I don’t hit people for no reason.”
“You don’t need to use force. Talking is a better way to resolve issues.”
“They listen more when I hit.”
“So do the police. Eventually someone will lay assault charges against you if you keep using violence as a means to make people listen.”
“Man… This is a total overreaction. I didn’t assault your niece, it was just one measly punch, and I’ve been punched a helluva lot worse by Fafafini Helu and I didn’t go blubbering to you.” Jenna grimaced, realising she’d used her nickname for Falala. She was really tripping over her mouth today, but the guy was twisting things, making her out to be the bad guy, and she wasn’t, she was standing up for Ash.
The principal’s face dropped. “Fafafini is not Miss Helu’s first name, it’s Falala, and I don’t appreciate you using that word to describe her. It’s very disrespectful and culturally insensitive. And if Miss Helu assaulted you, you should’ve come to me.”
“It doesn’t matter, he’s gone now, and it’s not my fault Fa was born a guy,” she said, trying to feign ignorance.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Falala is not a male, was never a male, and she isn’t even Samoan, so you can’t use that word for her. And a punch is an attack, and if you don’t learn that fast you will be facing far worse authorities than myself.” He dropped his hand. “I will be talking to your mother shortly and will be advising her to send you to a behavioural counsellor. And when you come back to school, if you so much as lay a finger on any student you will be instantly expelled. Now, go collect your bag and wait outside for your mother.”
There was no way was she seeing a quack, because there was nothing wrong with her. Jenna went to open her mouth, but closed it as the principal stood.
He indicated at the door. “Hurry up; I’ve got things to do.”
Jenna got up and shuffled out, not being subtle with closing his door, the raised voice coming from his office telling her off again. Stuff him and stuff waiting for her mother; she didn’t care about the suspension… Okay, she did, but she could turn this around, yeah, three days off school wasn’t bad and her parents would get over it. Her brothers had all gotten suspended before, so no biggie. She’d just get a yelling, then the silent treatment for a few days. Yeah, she could handle that, a bloody holiday from both school and her parents.
She grabbed her bag from the cubbyhole by his door and walked through the reception, heading for the exit. Luckily the office lady wasn’t at the desk, because she really didn’t want to deal with anymore uptight adults. She exited the office and strode across the car park, hoping that Ash had gone to Hunter’s place. She could catch a bus and go see if he was alright, then spend a few hours with him while Hunter was at work.
***
Jenna kicked a stone as she rounded the corner. “Bloody bus driver,” she mumbled, pissed off that he wouldn’t let her on because she was ten cents short. It had taken an extra twenty minutes to get to Hunter’s road because of the sod. She kicked the stone again, then looked up at the sky as drops of rain splashed onto her face. Overcast with big grey clouds, the shitty weather summing up her mood.
Today had definitely gone to crappers. Her friends were avoiding her, Tiana was still being uptight, and now the principal was on her case, and as soon as she got home she knew she was in for it with her parents. She kicked the stone again, frustrated with everything. She was only defending Ash, doing what was right, yet she was the one getting punished. It wasn’t fair, because no matter what she did she always got in troub
le.
She let out a grunt, then took one last kick at the stone as she neared Hunter’s place. She pushed open the gate and walked up the path, then stopped as she noticed movement through the lounge windows. Because of the netting she couldn’t see much, but it definitely looked like there were two people inside, and since Hunter’s car was nowhere in sight, it couldn’t be him.
She ducked and ran around the house, sidling up to the back wall. The roof overhang at least stopped her from getting wet as the rain picked up. She angled her head and peered through the glass sliding door. She could see the small dining-room table, passage doorway and front entrance, but not much else. She quickly ran to the opposite wall and pressed her shoulder against it, getting more of a view of the lounge. The telly was on and talking was coming from around the corner. She could just make out Ash’s voice along with a female’s. Wondering whether it was Tiana, she gave the sliding door a slight push. It came ajar, making it easier to hear, but she still couldn’t make out who it was. Nah, it couldn’t be Tiana, because the girl had been in class just before Jenna had been ordered to the principal’s office.
She bounced on her feet, willing herself not to barge in. She was sick of appearing desperate and putting on a brave face every time Ash chased her out, and there was no way she was getting shamed in front of a competitor. Calming herself down, she pulled off her backpack, dumped it on the ground and slid down the wall to sit on it. She watched as the rain started to bucket down, wondering if she should just leave, regardless of getting soaked. Nope, she’d wait it out, then hopefully the female would eventually bugger off and she could knock on the door. She wiped some mud off her leg, wondering whether the female inside was the reason why Ash had broken up with Tiana—he’d found someone new. The thought made her angry. She’d pushed Tiana around, thinking that the girl was the only person standing between her and Ash, but if he was in there with someone else then Tiana had nothing to do with things—he just didn’t want Jenna.
She closed her eyes and leaned her head against the wall. Why didn’t he understand how much she cared about him, how much she wanted to be there for him? She even cared about his family too. She had wanted to go to his mother’s funeral, but no one would tell her where it was. Jenna wiped her cheeks, unable to stop from crying. She missed what she had with Ash, missed cracking stupid jokes with his mother and playing with the twins, as well as lapping up Dante’s infatuation over her. And that was all gone now. Anger welled up as she kicked out, hating Chaz, hating the female inside and even hating herself for not being able to get Ash back.
The sound of movement caught her attention. She opened her eyes and peeked through the door as Ash rounded the corner and entered the kitchen. “Coke or 7Up?” he called out.
“7Up,” came the reply.
Ash pulled out two soft-drinks from the fridge, placed them on the breakfast bar, then grabbed a packet of chips from a cupboard. After emptying them into a bowl, he carried everything back into the lounge. More talking followed, then the female said, “Stop the movie, I needa use the Ladies.”
Jenna’s eyes widened as Kelley O’Brian shot past, disappearing into the passage. She continued to stare at the empty space where Kelley had been, like the girl had been an apparition. The toilet flushed, then a minute later Kelley walked back into the lounge.
Jenna’s fists clenched, rage replacing shock. Ash had dumped Tiana for that ho! She could understand Ash ignoring her for Tiana, the girl stunning, but Kelley? That slut didn’t deserve him. Kelley wasn’t good-looking enough, and God, she’d even been with Ant… Yuck! How could Ash go with someone so repulsive?
Sex. Jenna’s face darkened. Yeah, he probably was after easy sex … but then again, Ash wasn’t like Ant, he wouldn’t just go with a girl for that reason. Well, she didn’t think he would … would he? Stuff it; his reasons didn’t matter anyway, because there was no way she was going to allow Kelley to keep on seeing him.
Jenna stood, pulled on her bag then shot past the sliding door. Without looking back, she sprinted down the driveway and up the road, too angry to care that she was getting soaked. And she didn’t care about the suspension either, because tomorrow she was going to school regardless—to sort Kelley out once and for all.
39
Levi
Laughing, Levi gave Brett the finger then headed home. Today had turned out really good. His mother had spoken to his principal, and had worked out a deal where he didn’t have to repeat the year. He was just lucky that Year 12 wasn’t as important as the surroundings ones, because he didn’t think he could stomach being put in a class with kids who knew he was older. He would’ve left school if they’d made him do that. But now he didn’t have to and instead he’d get cruisy new subjects for his senior year, ones that he was good at, like Automotive Technology. Cars, yeah, he could fix them in his sleep.
The smile left his face as his house came into view. Levi stopped, surprised at who was sitting on his front door step. Isaia was staring across at him, his large shoulders hunched over. Was Isaia here for him or Tiana? The second thought made him sick.
“What the fuck are you doin’ ‘ere?” Levi hollered as he stormed onto his property.
Isaia remained seated. “I needa speak to you.”
Levi threw his bag at Isaia, who batted it away. “I don’t even wanna see you! Fuck off!” He put a hand to his head, his ear still sensitive after the operation.
Isaia stood up. “I’m sorry, I didn’t meana hurt you so bad.”
Levi felt his face heat, not in shame but rage. He didn’t give a damn that Isaia had damaged his ear, the doctor unable to completely repair it to full hearing, but he cared about what Isaia had done to Tiana. “This is not about me, it’s about Tiana.”
“It’s about both of you.” Isaia looked down, leaving himself vulnerable for getting hit. “I wanna apologise for what I did. I never meant to hurt you or Tiana. I know I have anger issues, and I’m gettin’ help now. My dad’s taking me to see a counsellor.”
“What do I care?” Levi snapped, although he did. They’d been friends for too long for him not to. “You can’t just come back and think I’d accept anything you say.”
Isaia brought a shaky hand to his forehead. “I know. I wish I could change things between us. I miss our friendship, but I realise I’ve ruined that. I just had to come and apologise, and… I wanted to warn you ‘bout what my dad’s done. Cos I got expelled from Claydon he’s enrolled me in Wera High.”
Levi’s mouth went dry.
Isaia continued, “I told him that Tiana went there, but he said Wera was the only school close enough that would accept me. I wanted to get a job instead, but he said the only way I could make things up to him was to finish school.” His expression pulled tight. “I don’t have a choice, he’s all I’ve got left. I’m sorry if that’s gonna make you and Tiana uncomfortable, but it’s happening. I owe my dad.”
Levi’s hands clenched into fists. There was no way he wanted Isaia in the same school as Tiana, and even worse, he wouldn’t be there to protect her, and would constantly stress about Isaia going after her again.
“You owe me too,” Levi gritted out. “You owe Tiana.”
“I owe my dad more.”
“How do ya think Tiana’s gonna react?”
“I’ll avoid her, and we’ll be in different years.”
“You’ll still run into her.”
“I can’t do anything ‘bout that.”
“Yes, you can, go to Tangaroa College instead.”
“I suggested that, but my dad said no, that Tangaroa’s not close enough.”
“Bullshit! It’s a fifteen minute drive at the most.”
“I can’t change things now, I’m already enrolled. I’ll be starting Wera after the school break.”
Levi shoved Isaia. “You change it or I’ll fuckin’ kill you.”
Isaia righted himself, then took a step forward. “You wouldn’t have this problem if you’d had bullets in that bloody gun of you
rs!” he shouted in Levi’s face.
Levi jerked back. “What?”
“Why didn’t you have bullets in your gun?”
“You stole my gun?” Levi hadn’t seen it for a while, but then again, he hadn’t looked for it either.
“Yes, so answer me.”
Levi felt déjà vu as he repeated the words he’d told Ash, “It’s only for show.”
Isaia’s brow pulled together. “Show?”
“I’d never shoot anyone, I use it like an ATM card for free drugs and to scare any bastard that annoys me. And why the hell didja take it for? No, don’t answer that.” I already know.
Isaia ran a hand over his head, his hair shorter now, almost a buzz cut. “Did my dad tell ya what I tried to do?”
“No, it’s obvious.” Levi’s hands unclenched. “Why would ja try to shoot yourself?”
Isaia dropped his gaze. “I ruined our friendship, lost any chance with Tiana, upset my dad, and I was terrified of the police. I thought they’d put me in jail, so I went to Tiana’s boyfriend’s house, intent on killing him.”
“You did what?” Levi said shocked. “Why?
“I blamed him for taking Tiana away from me, though fuck knows why cos I never had her in the first place. I was gonna shoot him, but instead turned the gun on myself. I pulled the trigger, but nuthin’ happened. I was in shock, then the guy’s stepfather took it offa me and phoned my dad. He talked me down, and even calmed down my dad when he came to pick me up. Then a few days later I heard ‘bout what happened to the Wera guy’s mother, that it was the stepfather who’d stabbed her.” Isaia shook his head. “If a bloke that nice can snap like that, then I thought that maybe a bad person like me could become good. I know I’m not making much sense, but pulling that trigger changed me, made me different. I’ve gone back to church, and started taking religion seriously. I wanna see if I can be good in exchange for the Wera kid’s stepfather becoming bad.”
“Ash’s stepfather was never good,” Levi said, taken aback by Isaia’s words.
“He must’ve had some good in him to do what he did for me.”
Graffiti Heaven Page 24
