Manson Strikes Back

"You have to go and see her now Paul. She said this minute".
He'd known since last night, well mid-afternoon, that this minute would arrive. It spoiled last night's telly, his later dreams of galaxies far, far away, then eventually breakfast. Now here it was, caught up with him. Judgement day. No more escape routes.

It wasn't even his fault. An argument about the film which he hadn't even started. That Dick insisting he was right when he, having seen the film 18 and a half times, knew he was wrong. He knew every word. He might have missed the end when he got thrown out after hiding in the toilets to see the film for the third time that day, but he knew what Obi-Wan Kenobi's last words were. No one knew they were also his mantra in times like this.

There was no one about on the corridors now the bell had gone, signalling the end of communal and the start of individual playing-up. Not even the usual stragglers hanging about to delay the inevitable with or give him courage. He'd had the cane last week and knew it hurt at the time but couldn't remember it now. Just in case it was a Jedi mind-trick, he'd put three pairs of undies on under his trousers and walked along wondering if you could see the padding.

The door he had to knock on was the only one in the school to have been freshly painted. It stood out in its faded surroundings, like that house at the end of his road where the guy everyone said was a puff lived. The one with the tidy garden and grilles on the windows. He was stood with his knuckles ready to knock really quietly, in the hope no one would hear, when it flew open and someone barked 'Get in'.

He hadn't expected an audience, just the determined to take this school by the scruff of the neck ugly new Headmistress. Maybe the couldn't wait to retire Deputy Head who'd caned him last week as well. But all the chairs in front and behind the imposing desk were taken. Everyone in them looking at him like he was a murderer. The Dick in the furthest seat staring with the one eye that didn't have a bandage over it. He could tell that the other two were his parents. Same unfortunate goofy genes that keep dentists happy. The Dick was quietly moaning above the silence. That fucking actor deserves an Oscar. Paul knew he'd get something else. He must have started to smile when he realised he was now glad of the uncomfortable undies.

"This is no time to be smiling, boy. Someone very nearly lost an eye because of your aggressive behaviour. This is a very serious matter so wipe that grin from your face right now".

You know that rogue giggle that pops out when you really don't want it too? Paul's turned up just then. All he could do was start to cough like a miner, the noise and his hand doing an OK job of hiding it.

"From what we've been told, You attacked and seriously harmed Darren yesterday for no apparent reason, severely damaging his eye".

Forget his eye, what a liar Darren the Dick is. I've no chance of saying I didn't do it, even though I did, but how can he say it was provoked? Him and his sidekicks Gibbo and Spenner spent half an hour winding me up. I admit it, it worked.

"This sort of behaviour is unacceptable at this or any other school. We simply will not tolerate violence of this nature".

Wonder if they said that to precious little Darren when he was taking dinner tickets off the first-years who got free school meals? Probably not, cos he still got made a prefect. In a minute she'll ask me if I have anything to say but I reckon it's not the time to bring it up.

"What do you have to say for yourself"?

Told you. The answers loads. But I won't. I've already been found guilty. Even though him and his mates were pushing me around first. All three of them. Like they do with everyone who isn't in their gang.

"We're waiting to hear from you".

I'm not even gonna mumble an apology. He doesn't deserve one and I refuse to give one. Checkmate. Silent, dragging, pin-drop checkmate.

"Very well, you seem unrepentant as to your abhorrent behaviour. Because of this we have no options left at our disposal but to exclude you from this school until you can offer us a guarantee that this type of incident will not happen again".

I'm thinking I do regret it. Well regret not smacking his mates as well, so don't immediately hear I'm getting suspended. When it sinks in I quickly realise I just have to get to the letter they'll send out tonight and make like I'm going out of the house as usual in the morning to hide this at home. I start to wonder what's on at the cinema.

"You will be excluded from this school for the next two weeks, starting from today. On your return even the slightest hint that you have again been involved in such behaviour will result in your being permanently excluded. Do you understand?"

I do and nod while looking into the distance. The door gets opened and I walk out from the silence still thinking I need to make sure I get that letter and realising I need to go to the toilet even through those numbing extra undies. The doors been shut so they don't see me heading away from the exit.

I start to shit it, in both ways, as soon as the cubicle door's shut and the graffiti closes in. Why am I getting the blame for all this? Holding it together was the only good thing to come out of this. I wished I'd spoken out about what happened. I'm angry now - not about being suspended, that's time away from this dump and the rubbish in it like Darren the Dick and his little crew of bullies - but cos I got all the blame.

Covering my hand with some of that useless shiny toilet paper, I reach down into the toilet and grab what I've just heard drop in there. Opening the lock with the hand that's still dry I carry it, noticing the stink, to the white tiled walls above the urinals. I start to smear it onto the wall. It glides smoothly making letters about a foot tall. Someone walks in, looks at me and my dirty hands and decides to skip using the toilets. It says 'Manson Strikes Back'. I nearly run out for the last two letters and have to take some from the S of strikes. It'll be all round the school by lunch, so time to get going. I wash my hands and walk out thinking, just like Obi-Wan said, 'If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine'.