“She would really prefer to remain anonymous,” Ms. Gallagher says.
“Her name is right here on the test.” Nik holds it up, folding the sticky note up, so we can all see “Aisling Mahoney” scribbled onto the top.
Ms. Gallagher heaves a sigh. “Is this really necessary, Nikhita? I understand that Ishita is your sister—”
“Ms. Gallagher.” Nik’s smile is forced, like it’s really paining her. “I’m just trying to save you time here. Please.”
Ms. Gallagher presses the intercom on her desk. “Can Aisling Mahoney please come to the principal’s office? Can Aisling Mahony please come to the principal’s office?” The announcement echoes for a moment before Principal Gallagher turns back to Nik.
“You know, Aisling really is a fantastic student. Liked by all her peers and her teachers. I can’t see a single reason why she would cheat on her test. Nor why she would accuse Ishita of cheating if she hadn’t. Really, she sounded quite distressed when she came to me about the situation. Said Ishita was a friend, and she really didn’t want to make things difficult.”
Nik gives Ms. Gallagher a tight smile. “I guess we’ll see.”
There’s a knock on the door, and then it swings open. Aisling steps in gingerly, looking from me, to Nik, to Ms. Gallagher. Her eyes are wide with concern.
“Um, you asked for me, Principal Gallagher?”
“Please, take a seat.” Ms. Gallagher offers her a genuinely kind smile.
Aisling sits down right beside me and shoots me a curious glance. “Hey, Ishita. I thought you weren’t in school today?”
I look away, up at my sister, and purse my lips.
“Aisling … can you tell me what a scramble competition is?” Nik asks.
My heart thumps. I remember that question from the test. Aisling glances at Ms. Gallagher, instead of Nik.
“Principal Gallagher, what is this?” she asks.
Principal Gallagher, for once, doesn’t help her out much. She shakes her head and says, “Aisling, please answer the question.”
Aisling glances at me now, like she thinks I’m about to give her the answer. Finally, she holds Nik’s gaze and parts her lips.
“Umm… . scramble competition. When people scramble and compete with each other?”
Nik’s lips twitch and I can tell she’s trying to hold in a triumphant smile. She swiftly turns to me with a raised eyebrow. “Scramble competition?”
“Scramble competition is when organisms are all struggling for a scarce resource.”
“And what’s a saprophyte?” Nik jumps to the next question, her gaze on Aisling once more.
Aisling doesn’t even try this time. She stares down at the carpeted office floor and shakes her head. “I don’t know.”
“A saprophyte is an organism that feeds on dead matter,” I offer.
Nik looks back at Principal Gallagher. “They both answered these questions correctly,” she says. “But Aisling doesn’t seem to know any of the answers.” Handing the test papers back to Ms. Gallagher, she says, “I rest my case.”
Shaking her head, Ms. Gallagher mumbles, “I’m very disappointed.” Though she doesn’t look particularly disappointed as she sighs and shuffles to the other side of the table.
Beside me, Aisling is blinking back tears, though she doesn’t struggle for long before her loud sniffles fill up the room. She wipes at her tears, bending down like she’s trying to hide the very obvious fact that she’s crying.
“I’m s-s-sorry.”
Ms. Gallagher leans forward, passing Aisling the box of tissues on her desk. She even gives her a pat on her hand, like Aisling is a misbehaving pet and not a manipulative bitch.
“Aisling, I think you can go,” she says.
Aisling looks up at Ms. Gallagher with wide eyes, wiping away more tears with the back of her hand. She doesn’t waste any time. Mumbling a soft, “T-thank you,” she darts out the door.
