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He stopped beside her desk and glanced at the door. “Yeah?”
“You didn’t turn in last night’s homework. Or the day before.”
He shrugged his backpack higher on his shoulder and looked at the door again. “I forgot it. I’ll bring it tomorrow.”
“And I was reviewing the quizzes from the other day.”
That got his attention. “I thought they didn’t count.”
She leaned back in the chair. “They don’t. I was concerned about how you answered the questions.”
Who gave a crap how he answered the questions? “So?”
“Some were right, and some were wrong. I’m having a hard time with the fact that nothing was wrong the same way.”
He could hear his own breathing. “I don’t understand.”
“I think you do.” She paused. “And in class the other day, when I called you to the board, you struggled with the formula.”
“Look, could we get to the point?”
She raised her eyebrows. “My point is that someone with an A average shouldn’t be struggling with anything at this point in the year.”
“Well, if I’ve got an A average, two homeworks shouldn’t matter too much.”
“Maybe not.” She leaned forward and looked up at him. In a creepy way, it reminded him of Taylor, though she was hot, and Ms. Anderson was . . . not. “Do I understand that you have a twin brother?”
God, it was hot in here. “Yeah?”
She gave him a level look. “He’s in AP Calculus, so he’s pre-sumably taken this class before?”
Gabriel stared at her. He sure as hell wasn’t going to volunteer anything now.
“Look,” she said. “I’m not trying to hassle you. But you need a math credit to graduate. And you need to earn it yourself. If you need help, I’ll give it to you. But you can’t expect me to turn a blind eye to blatant cheating. You’ll need to work harder, apply yourself . . .”
He glanced at the door again. Layne was probably on to her next class by now, and he’d missed the first five minutes of lunch.
“. . . the coach will let you back on the team,” Ms. Anderson finished.
Gabriel snapped his head back around. “Wait.” He put a hand on the desk and leaned in. His backpack slid off his shoulder to hit the floor. “What did you just say?”
She didn’t flinch from his tone. “I said you have a week and a half to prove that you’re doing the work yourself. You can’t play sports if you can’t pass your classes. I’ll let you retake the last unit test that Monday, and if you can show that you’re putting the time in, I’ll speak to the basketball coach, and he’ll let you on the team.”
His fists clenched. “But that’s bull ”
The lights flickered, and his breath caught. The sub glanced up.
Gabriel swallowed his words. “Tryouts are tomorrow.” He kept his voice low, even. If he blew the lights again, Michael would flip out.
“And Coach Kanner agreed to hold a spot for you. If you can prove you’re doing the work.”
He wanted to punch something. He’d never wanted to hit a girl, much less a teacher, but right now “You don’t have to get an A,” she said evenly. “You just have to pass.”
He gritted his teeth and fought to keep his hands at his sides.
“You can’t do that.”
“Actually, you’re right. I should follow procedure and report you to the principal. Then you could sit in his office, take an exam in front of him, and see how you do. Want to handle it that way?”
