Chapter 6 - Justice is Best Served on Tape

Two weeks flew by after the fights. Lucas and I were called back into Mr. Seabourge's office. As Lucas and I walked together, I noticed him fidgeting with his hands, wringing them over and over again. "Lucas, are you okay?" I looked at my best friend with concern and sadness. It's just like when we were there last time, he's nervous again.

"I'm fine, it's just that," he stopped walking and I turned back to look at him. He was still fidgeting with his hands as he continued, "You know that if my parents ever find out that I was involved in a fight at school, they'll pull me out and transfer me to another school." He then stopped playing with his hands and looked at me with sad eyes. "I don't want to be moved away from you or Chase, Adelina." I walked over to him and pulled him into a hug. Chase and I both know he's scared of the principal. I'm thinking Lucas is scared that Mr. Seabourge won't believe us and punish us instead of Ginger and the Three Stooges she has as lackeys. 'What can I do to make him feel better?' I began to think in my head. 'Can you even make him feel better? I mean isn't this his biggest fear? Being taken away from everything he knows and you?' The voice asked me. 'It is, but Mr. Seabourge has to believe us. There are security cameras in the school, so hopefully one of them caught at least one of those fights on tape.' I replied back, however the voice just had to go and make me second guess everything. 'What if there's nothing but Ginger's acting and the three idiots' many many wounds?~' I ignored the voice and tightened my grip on my best friend. 'How do I cheer him up in this exact moment...? OH! I got an idea!'

I separate myself from Lucas and look him in the eye as he looks down at me with a half sad, half curious look. "Hey, I've been thinking," I began, Lucas tilted his head at me, waiting for me to continue. 'Please let this work,' I prayed. "About what?" Lucas asked me. There was a glint of light in his eyes. 'That's better,' I smiled to myself. Just like that his eyes went from being sad and dark to showing light and curiosity.

"You know how you keep pestering me about joining the swim team?" He nods his head and a smile begins to form on his lips. "I don't remember "pestering" you about it, but go on." He air-quoted at me, to which I slightly laughed and rolled my eyes. "Yeah well whatever. Anyways! I was thinking about going to tryouts for the team, what do you think?" And with that, Lucas' whole face light up like the sunrise. I could see his dimples as he smiled like an idiot. Mission accomplished. 'How cute,' I thought as I saw his dimples. 'Wait- what?' The voice basically screeched in my head. I realized what I had thought, 'Forget I said anything!' The voice replied by just laughing at me. His smile was so bright and infectious I couldn't help but smile back at him. "YES! FINALLY! You're gonna do the switch!" He yelled excitedly. I can't correct him, he looks so happy. There's no way I'm killing his mood by correcting him now.

He hooked my arm with his and began to walk us towards the principal's office, going on and on about how we're going to be an "awesome team" and an "undefeatable pair." I told him that he would have to teach me everything about competitive swimming since I understand only a little of it. I've gone to his swim meets before, but I never really understood the different strokes, the distances and the heats, and how they score points for their teams. I was totally a noob when it came to swimming.

He said that he'll teach me everything, and I felt at ease. At least Lucas isn't scared anymore. We walked into Mr. Seabourge's office and saw a very unpleasant sight: the "Queen" and her lackeys sitting in front of the principal's desk with mischievous looking smiles on their faces. 'How punchable,' the voice said. Ginger glared at me harder, so I just gave her the best death stare I could make. "Mr. Hunter and Ms. Jacobs," Mr. Seabourge began. Lucas and I both stiffened up and turned to face him as he rose from his chair and looked at us with cold eyes. 'Oh crap..' I thought. 'You're in for it now, Mutt~' Wait, Ginger? But, it was in my head. Did no one else hear her just now?

I began to play with the hem of my shirt, my nerves were on edge all of a sudden. Lucas must have seen me fidgeting or something because he moved closer to me. "I have looked into the fights that have occurred two weeks ago, prior to today. From what I've gathered, you two are the one's that provoked both fights." Mr. Seabourge stated. Our jaws dropped as Ginger and her nimrods smirked at us. 'I can't believe this.' My nervousness was only getting worse. "My source, as you can see -" the principal got cut off.

"Is us, Mutt." Ginger smirked at us. She just cut off the principal and called me by that stupid nickname she "cleverly" made up for me. However, Mr. Seabourge doesn't seem mad at Ginger. He still has that cold, steely look in his eyes. 'I feel like I'm going to faint.' I think to myself. Please don't let Ginger be able to hear this thought. I heard Lucas take a deep breath in besides me. "Sir, they lied to you. They're the real problem here. They're the one's who started both fights. Her royal highness over there slapped Adelina across her face, which in turn caused Adelina to act in self-defense. Meanwhile Heuy, Dewy, and Louie here were the one's who threw me to the ground." Lucas has just astonished everyone and made all of us gape at him. Mr. Seabourge got himself back together and continued.

"Mr. Hunter, that was your side of the story." I was shaking and trembling all over. "So, you be-believe their s-s-side of the story, Mr. S-seabourge?" God can I stutter anymore? I closed my eyes tightly and waited for our principal to say something. Lucas took my hand in his and gave it a light squeeze. I squeezed his hand back and opened my eyes. 'I can't believe he doesn't believe us..' I thought to myself sadly.

"Actually, Ms. Jacobs, I believe in your side of the story." Everyone turned their heads towards the principal. 'Wait, but-' My train of though was cut off by Ginger. "But sir, they left us with scars, broken bones, and black eyes! While their injuries are gone, we are still healing from the ones they inflicted onto us!" God, she's annoying. "Obviously-" She didn't even get to finish her complaining. "Ms. Aguior, you and these three boys have said that Mr. Hunter and Ms. Jacobs here are the ones who started these fights." He then dug through his desk drawers and pulled out two cassette tapes. 'Oh my God.' I couldn't believe what he was holding.

"You see, when I became principal here at Lion Hills High, I made sure to install security cameras for emergencies, such as school shootings, finding suspicious activity, for example: a hooded figure, drug dealings, test swapping. But they were also installed for catching the liars." Ginger and her lackeys were speechless and pale. I pulled on Lucas' arm and made him come down to my level so I could whisper in his ear. "Did he really catch both fights on tape?" Lucas' reply was: "Well, he has two tapes." He straightened back up and I continued to hold onto his arm, hoping it would calm my nerves down some more. "Let's just see what the cameras caught, shall we? Mr. Hunter, if you would." Mr. Seabourge gestured at the light switch behind us. Lucas turned out the lights as Mr. Seabourge popped in the tapes. He then turned on the small TV in his office.

The screen was just fuzzy black and white static at first. Then some color flashed in here and there, before finally focusing and slowly showing the fight between me and Ginger. It was clear that Ginger came up to me first and that I tried to walk away. Everyone in the principal's office saw her slap me, then the fight progressed from there. However, I saw Lucas trying to get through the crowd of students at the top of the screen. I turned and looked up at him, to which he simply smiled down to me. 'He's always gonna have my back,' I reassured myself, 'Is he now?~' The damn voice asked, but I knew Lucas and I knew what I felt so I know the voice is wrong. As I turn back towards the screen, I see it's all black and Mr. Seabourge puts in the other tape. I sneak a glance at Ginger and the meat heads, sure enough, they look petrified.

It had the fuzzy screen again before it showed us the football players throwing Lucas to the ground. We watched the fight until the tape popped out of the player. Mr. Seabourge stared coldly at the Ginger and the Three Stooges. "People lie, Ms. Aguior, but recordings don't." He tricked all of us. Ginger was about to speak before our principal cut her off. "The four of you provoked two fights in one day with the same two students, lost both of those fights, and broke 3 school rules. As such, the guilty party must pay the price. You four are suspended from school for a period of 15 days, and I'll have a little talk with the football coach about benching you three for the remainder of the season. Case closed, you're all dismissed. You four will leave the school at once and come back when your period has ended." Mr. Seabourge effortlessly sat down in his chair and folded his hands on his desk. Ginger, the Three Stooges, Lucas, and I were absolutely stunned. 'We won.' This thought kept playing on repeat in my mind, but I still couldn't understand it. Ginger and her nimrod clan began to protest, but he just waved them off. As the four of them walked by us and out the door, I locked eyes with Ginger. I could hear her thoughts, literally: 'This isn't over, Mutt!' She broke our eye contact and walked out with the football players into the hallway. I couldn't hear her voice anymore, thank God.

"Now as for you two," Lucas and I slowly turned to look at our principal once more. "If you two can manage to keep this little meeting a secret, then you're both off the hook. However, if you do tell someone, you still won't be punished." Mr. Seabourge began to write on papers casually, probably on some principal stuff. "Why aren't we punished, sir?" Lucas asked. 'Is he seriously asking to be punched right now?!' I angrily said in my mind. "I punish the guilty, not the innocent, Mr. Hunter. So that is why neither of you are being punished. Now, go and enjoy your lunch period." Mr. Seabourge dismissed us. I grabbed Lucas by the arm and dragged him into the hallway after muttering a quick "Thank You" to Mr. Seabourge. I looked around and saw no one in the hallway with us.

"Hey, Adelina, you okay?" Lucas sounded worried. Well he shouldn't be. I was so happy, I can't even think straight or contain my happiness. My body began to act on its own accord. I whipped around, grabbed Lucas by the collar of his shirt, pulled him down to my level, stood on my toes, and crashed our lips together. Surprisingly, he didn't pull away. Instead he reacted almost immediately and began kissing back. Our lips moved together, like they were made for each other. 'This feels right.' I thought happily to myself. 'Finally, you two got together and about damn time too!' the voice chirped sarcastically in my head. But, I ignored it and deepened our kiss. Soon, even our tongues were getting tied together.

Lucas and I won, Ginger was suspended, and now I'm making out with my best friend who makes my heart soar. How did this happen again?