Free Rock and a Hard Place by Angie Stanton

having him there with her. “Never fear. I’m only a few credits
from graduation anyway.”
    “ Are you a
senior?”
    “ No, I’m a junior, but I
have enough credits to graduate at the end of the
semester.”
    “ How’d you manage that? I
just finished last spring and I swore it would kill me. I hated
homework. It kept me from writing songs.”
    “ I spend a lot of time
studying. I’ve had a lot of time on my hands, so I just loaded up
on extra classes and took summer courses.” Studying had been her
savior and only sanity. Losing herself in books made the rest of
the world go away. You don’t notice kids snubbing you, when you’re
deep into Advanced Biology or Calculus, and you don’t worry about
your missing dad either.
    “ So you’re a
brainiac?”
    “ Maybe,” she replied with a
smile. She carried a 4.0 even through the trauma of losing her
family. She clung to her studies. “Does that bother you?” Some guys
didn’t like smart girls.
    “ Heck no, maybe some of
your smarts will rub off on me.”
    “ So where are you? What are
you doing?”
    “ We’re headed south, Texas,
and I’m sitting in my bunk talking to this really cool girl I
know.”
    Libby hugged herself. “Texas is far. How
long till you get there?”
    “ I think it’s about sixteen
hours to Dallas, so I have a lot of time to talk.”
    “ I can handle that, but
you’re going to have to tell me how to plug in this phone or we’ll
drain the battery on the first time out.”
    She talked to him late into the night about
anything and everything. It felt like they’d known each other
forever. He gave her the basics on how to work her phone, use the
internet, and text. She cut him off three times in the process.
    They talked all evening. Peter’s family
interrupted off and on throughout their marathon conversation.
Somewhere around 2:30 in the morning, their energy began to wane,
so they agreed to hang up and begin again the next day. They would
try texting throughout the day, since she had school.
    Libby fell asleep with the phone snuggled up
against her, a symbol of the soul mate she’d found.
     
    # # #
     
    “ Libby, you’re wanted in
the office.” Ms. Dorsett, her Math Chem teacher, held a pink slip
of paper.
    Libby closed the heavy text book and grabbed
her papers. As she passed Ms. Dorsett, she took the note. She’d
never been called to the office before and couldn’t imagine why it
happened today. As she walked through the vacant halls, her mind
searched for a reason. Then it hit her.
    Dad.
    He said he’d be back for her. Finally she
could escape Rockville. She hurried the remainder of the distance.
Wait until he heard about Peter. Libby burst through the office
doors searching for her father’s loving face. He had been her rock
and strength before the accident broke him.
    The grey-haired secretary glanced up from
her work. “I’ll be right with you, hon.”
    Libby’s heart beat in anticipation. She went
around the corner and peeked into Miss Orman’s office. No Dad
enjoying a nice visit with the counselor while he waited for her.
Miss Orman glanced up from a call, her smile forced.
    Libby returned to the main office,
disappointed.
    “ Principal Harried will see
you now,” the kind secretary said.
    Was her dad in with the principal? Something
didn’t feel right. She moved past the counter and down the short
hall to the open door of the principal’s office. She paused, unsure
if she should knock or walk right in.
    “ Ah, Miss Sawyer, please
come in and take seat. Close the door behind you.”
    As Libby obeyed, dread pressed in. She shut
the heavy door with a solid click and took a seat in a worn chair
facing the principal’s desk, her hands in her lap.
    Principal Harried closed the folder in front
of him and removed his glasses from his pointy nose; his bulging
eyes reminded her of a mouse. The kids called him Rat.
    “ It appears we have a
problem.” He leaned back in his chair and narrowed his eyes,
delaying