Jan. Week 3: Monday--Leah doesn't accept Mr. Howard's summons...(Tenure: -20, Luck: +10)

Leah stared at her phone, the text from Mr. Howard gleaming with authority and the not-so-subtle hint of threat beneath the surface. He wanted to see her—again, as always, at his convenience, like she was just another disposable toy for his amusement. She tensed her jaw, feeling her teeth grind, her cheeks burning as she remembered the humiliations of last week. The disgusting things he’d made her do, the things she’d let happen, all because she couldn’t bear the idea of Jonathan ever finding out about her past. Mr. Howard had her by the throat and he knew it, and every time he could make her know—he damn well tried.

But today, she was determined to say no—even if only with a coward’s lie. She stared at the screen for several seconds, her mind racing with possible excuses. "I have a meeting with the district coordinator." "I’m covering a class for Mrs. Clemens." "I have to finish grading essays for the state history competition." All of them felt paper-thin, but she picked the most plausible one and, with a surge of defiance, thumbed out the excuse:

"Hi Mr. Howard, I’ll try to stop by but I have a meeting with a parent today during my planning. If it runs short, I might be able to make it."

She hit send before she could second-guess herself, then immediately felt a cold rush of anxiety.

“I see.” Was his only response.

Her hands trembled; she could feel her pulse in her fingertips. Leah looked at herself in the dark reflection of her computer monitor, trying to see the brave, self-assured teacher her students thought she was, but all she saw was a nervous girl in a tight skirt and blouse, wriggling in her chair because she felt like a boil about to burst.

Her planning period finally came and she **** herself to breathe and turned her attention to the stack of ungraded quizzes on her desk, but couldn’t focus. About 15 minutes into her planning her phone buzzed. Leah saw Mr. Howard’s name and message preview pop up on her phone’s screen.

"Leah, I expected to see you in my office during your planning period. I asked Amber, you didn't have any parent visitors check in."

She didn't open the message.