“That’s enough,” Gabriel said. “Alex, Eliza, go wait in the hall.”
“If you leave without permission, you’ll both be suspended,” Sanderson told them.
“They have my permission,” Gabriel said, “and if you attempt any sort of discipline, rest assured you’ll be pleading your case to the school board. Go,” he told the kids, and they started to move away together.
Sanderson grabbed Eliza’s arm.
Alex said, “Hey, don’t—” and reached toward the principal.
“Alex, go,” Gabriel said, sharper than he’d intended. He already had hold of Sanderson’s wrist, and he was fighting the urge to break it. For a few seconds, Gabriel wasn’t sure he could resist that urge. “Do not fucking touch them,” he said.
“Come on,” Alex was telling Eliza.
“Mr. S,” she said, and Gabriel could hear the tears in her voice.
Sanderson jerked his wrist from Gabriel’s grip. “You’re going to be out of a job,” he hissed, rubbing at his wrist. “That’s assault.”
Gabriel stepped closer and watched Sanderson’s eyes widen. “I’d be more than happy to demonstrate assault for you,” he said in a low voice. “And if you want my job, bring it on, Doug.” Raising his voice, without looking back, he said, “Everyone go back to class. Now.”
There were murmurs, and the sounds of sneakers on bleachers as the kids started hesitantly climbing down to the floor.
“I don’t know who called the cops, but I’m glad they’re here,” Sanderson said.
Gabriel looked over his shoulder. There was only one cop: Jack, in uniform and on-duty, and Gabriel knew instantly that Alex had texted him for help. Natalie and another teacher were inside the doorway, ushering students out into the hallway, but Alex and Eliza were hanging back, concerned about Gabriel.
He met Jack’s eyes for only a heartbeat before Sanderson drew his attention back. “You think you and these kids are friends? They laugh at you behind your back, just like the rest of us. They have no respect for you or me or any other teacher.”
“You’re not a teacher,” Gabriel told him.
“You’ve thrown your career away for nothing,” Sanderson said.
Gabriel moved closer until they were almost touching, glaring at the other man. “Bring. It. On,” he said quietly.
“For another teenage whore,” Sanderson hissed.
Gabriel knew that Sanderson was intentionally trying to bait him, now. Even recognizing that, he almost hit him. His hand was fisted so tightly that his fingers ached, and if Jack hadn’t appeared beside him, Gabriel wasn’t sure he’d have been able to fight back the urge to bury his knuckles in Sanderson’s face.
“Let’s all take a breath, here,” Jack said calmly. “Remember there are kids watching.”
“I want him arrested,” Sanderson said. “He assaulted me.”
“Oh, he can arrest me if he needs to,” Gabriel said softly, smiling in Sanderson’s face, “but I might as well make it worth it.”
Sanderson blinked at the look on Gabriel’s face and took a step back. “He just threatened me,” he told Jack.
“Let’s not overreact,” Jack answered. His voice was mild. Gabriel didn’t want Jack in the middle of this, not when their relationship could potentially cause problems for him if it looked like he wasn’t acting impartially.
Gabriel drew a deep breath and stepped away from Sanderson, forcing his hands to open. “I’m calling Mike,” he said, referring to Superintendent Rodgers.
“I’ve already called him,” Natalie said, and Gabriel glanced back at her, surprised to find that she wasn’t far behind Jack. In fact, nearly all of the faculty was gathered in the gym, now. “He’s twenty minutes out and on his way.”
“Good,” Sanderson said, adjusting the front of his shirt with angry flicks of his wrists. “He and I can discuss taking charges of insubordination to the board. Are you going to arrest him?” he asked Jack, clearly annoyed that Gabriel hadn’t immediately been handcuffed in a dramatic show.
“Not at this time, sir,” Jack said. “Don’t worry, we’ll get to the bottom of this.”
Gabriel didn’t dare look at him. He turned to Natalie. “Please keep an eye on Eliza,” he said quietly. He glanced over the faces of teachers and realized that Arnie was the only one who didn’t have a current class. Gabriel almost laughed—it seemed that the gym teacher would be taking one more class from him, at least temporarily—except there was nothing funny about this situation.
“Arnie, could you please take over eighth grade English for me? They’re taking a quiz, all you need to do is collect them when they’re finished and leave them on my desk. I’ll be waiting for Rodgers in the office,” he added, for anyone who cared, before striding from the gym. He spotted Alex and Eliza, and they both started toward him. He held up a hand. “It’s okay,” he told them. “Stay with Mrs. Santiago, it’ll be fine, you’re not in any trouble.”
“But what about you?” Eliza asked.
Gabriel managed a smile. “Don’t worry about me,” he told her. “It’s gonna be okay. The superintendent will be here soon and we’ll get this addressed.”
***
“Doug has decided not to press charges.”
“I didn’t hit him,” Gabriel said, struggling to keep his voice level. Rodgers was sitting at Sanderson’s desk, and Gabriel was seated on the other side. Rodgers had spoken to Sanderson separately as, apparently, Sanderson had requested not to be in the same room with Gabriel.
“The cop backs that up.”
Gabriel drew a deep breath and held it, counting to five before releasing it slowly. He rubbed his palms on his thighs, looking at Rodgers. “In the interest of full disclosure…he and I are in a relationship.”
Rodgers blinked twice, but his surprise was quickly hidden. “A…romantic relationship?” he asked.
“Correct.”
“And his son is one of your students?”
“Yes. Alex McGinty. He actually texted his father from the gym because he was worried about Ms. Kaye—Eliza—when Sanderson started his…assembly.”
Rodgers nodded once, tapping a pen on the desk.
“What?” Gabriel asked after a few beats.
“You’ve been accused of having an inappropriate relationship with one of your students.”
Gabriel felt as though he’d been hit in the stomach, and he sat, unmoving, barely breathing, as he tried to govern his reaction. “By who? Sanderson?” he asked through numb lips.
“I’m not at liberty to discuss specifics until there’s been an investigation,” the superintendent answered. “There’ve never been any complaints against you, from students or teachers, but you understand we have to take these allegations seriously. I assume you deny them?”
“Do I deny having an inappropriate—Of course I deny it,” Gabriel said. His pulse was thudding in his temples, and his hands were fisted on his thighs. “Although I can hardly refute something specific without knowing the details of what I’m being accused—An investigation? You’re going to talk to the student—You’re going to ask one of my students—Jesus fucking Christ,” Gabriel said, pushing to his feet. He started pacing behind the chair.
“You’ll be suspended with pay for the time being,” Rodgers said, watching him. “I’m confident we’ll be able to wrap things up in a timely—”
Gabriel turned and put his hands on the back of the chair. “Doug Sanderson put a pregnant seventeen-year-old girl who tried to kill herself in this school two weeks ago in front of all of her peers to pressure her and the other students into revealing who she slept with, what is being done about that? You want to suspend me, suspend me, but I will not sit back while that man is allowed to inflict further psychological damage—”
“Noted, Mr. Santiago.”
Gabriel stopped, staring at him. “Noted?” he repeated, desperately trying to keep his temper in check.
“Your concerns are noted. Doug will be on administrative leave pending the outcome o
f the investigation. I’m not choosing sides, here. And in case you feel the need to remind me that I’ve known you a lot longer than I’ve known him, save it. I’m well aware. I’m not happy about this, Gabriel. But I cannot take these allegations lightly or let my personal opinions color the investigation. I will be staying on as interim principal and promoting one of the teachers, at least temporarily, to the post of vice-principal. Please refrain from any contact with your students until we’ve concluded our interviews.”
This is really happening, Gabriel thought. “I’m going to be sick,” he muttered, barely aware he’d spoken aloud.
“Whether or not you have contact with Alex will be up to his father, I suppose.”
“I need to get out of here,” Gabriel said, turning abruptly toward the door. He wasn’t sure he wasn’t going to be sick; all he knew was that he needed to get out. He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t think, and his stomach was roiling. He opened the door, his gaze skimming over the few students and teachers scattered in the hallway. They were all looking at him.
“We’ll be in touch,” Rodgers said.
Fuck you, Gabriel thought, but he kept the words in his throat. He knew he should go to his classroom and get his things, but he headed for the exit. Outside, there was a small group of students, and they turned toward him.
“You okay, Mr. S?” Becca asked.
“I’m fine,” he answered automatically. Please refrain from any contact with your students, he thought. He could scarcely hear anything over the roar of blood in his ears. He made it to his car and fumbled for a few moments to unlock the door with shaky fingers. Finally, he sank into the driver’s seat and sat there, staring at the steering wheel, trying to get control of his racing heart and shallow breathing and spinning mind.
His phone was vibrating in his pocket, and he fished it out, barely able to focus on the screen. It was Natalie.
He answered the call: “I’m okay but I can’t talk right now,” he said. He hung up and dropped the phone onto the seat. He could scarcely distinguish the rush of guilt from the cyclone of feelings tearing through him. He wondered vaguely if he should drive but he was already starting his car and backing out of his space.
Not my space anymore, is it? he thought.
And then: It’s only temporary. I didn’t do anything wrong. Let them investigate, they won’t find anything. It’ll be over in no time.
“Right. People come back from this kind of allegation all the time,” he said, his voice laced with bitter sarcasm, as he pulled onto the street. He gripped the steering wheel so tightly that his fingers were numb. His phone buzzed on the passenger seat, and he glanced over. This time it was Jack’s face on the screen.
Gabriel turned into the parking lot of his apartment building. Jack’s call had ended unanswered, and Gabriel snatched the phone off the seat, stuffing it into his pocket as he got out of the car. He walked into his building and to his apartment without talking to anyone, and let himself inside. He dropped his keys on the table and immediately started pacing.
His phone had begun to vibrate in his pocket again. He pulled it out, almost dropping it from trembling fingers. It was Jack again. Gabriel hit ignore and then sent a quick text: Can’t talk now
Jack’s response was almost immediate: Let me hear your voice. He knows something’s wrong, Gabriel thought. Word travels fast. He choked back the sound that tried to climb out of his throat.
I can’t talk. I’ll call you later.
Where are you?
Home
Alone?
Need to think. I’m fine. Promise. Gabriel powered his phone off and slid it onto the table. “Fuck,” he breathed. He turned and walked into the bathroom. Bracing his hands on the counter, he looked at himself in the mirror. He needed to calm down and think rationally. This wasn’t the end of the world; he’d done nothing wrong, and the investigation would prove that. He wasn’t worried about that.
But they were going to talk to his students, to their parents, they were going to force his teenage students to say that he’d never done anything inappropriate. The parents would forever have doubts in the backs of their minds. The students would forever remember being asked embarrassing questions about him, their teacher. Nothing would ever be the same, and why? Because Sanderson didn’t like having his authority questioned? Because some vindictive principal decided to make false claims in retaliation for being disrespected?
Gabriel made a strangled sound, some species of anger and frustration and hurt. He could see the stress in his face, the panic in his eyes. He could feel the irregular pounding of his heart, and he knew that he was overreacting—or, at the very least, reacting prematurely.
He turned on the faucet and splashed cold water onto his face, scrubbing it into his skin with his palms. He hooked a finger into his tie to loosen it, but that didn’t make it any easier to draw a normal breath.
“Calm. The fuck. Down,” he told his reflection as water dripped from his beard and mustache.
There was a knock on his door, and he laughed—a humorless sound. He debated ignoring the knock, but he didn’t want them worrying about him. He only wanted to get control of himself. How could he hope to reassure them before he’d calmed himself down?
He walked to the door on stiff legs and pulled it open.
At the sight of Jack, Gabriel almost lost the little bit of control he had. He clenched his jaw and fists.
“You don’t have to talk,” Jack said without preamble. “I know you were suspended. I know you said you’re fine. If you close the door in my face, I’ll leave you alone until you call, but—”
“Word travels fast,” Gabriel said, surprised that his voice sounded almost normal. “But it’s worse than that. Someone made accusations…”
“Accusations about what?” Jack asked.
Gabriel swallowed against the sting of bile in his throat. “Me having an inappropriate relationship with a student,” he said. “I’ve been given no specifics.”
“Someone—you mean Sanderson,” Jack said, and Gabriel could see the anger in his normally-kind blue eyes.
Gabriel shrugged a shoulder.
“They won’t find anything,” Jack said.
Gabriel was touched by the confidence in this proclamation, but he could scarcely process it. “No, I know,” he answered. “But once an accusation like this has been made—”
Jack stepped forward through the doorway and put his hands on Gabriel’s shoulders, looking him in the face. “Bullshit,” he said, startling Gabriel out of his tornado of thoughts and feelings for a moment. “We’ll fight this, we’ll prove that Sanderson is a lying little asshole, and you’ll be back in school in no time.”
Gabriel drew a breath through his nose. “I told Rodgers about you and me. It was before I knew about the allegations, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pull you and Alex into this—”
Jack drew him into a hug, and Gabriel’s arms went around him automatically. After a couple of seconds of hesitation, Gabriel pressed his face into the hollow of Jack’s shoulder, tightening his grip. He felt Jack kiss his head.
And, amazingly, Gabriel could feel himself calming, could feel his heartrate returning to normal. He breathed in; air filled his lungs and Jack’s scent filled his nostrils. He’d thought he needed to be alone to get a grip on himself, but he’d apparently been wrong.
“They’re going to talk to the students and parents—including you and Alex,” Gabriel said. “They’re going to ask my students if I’ve ever done anything…”
“Your students love you, and they trust you,” Jack said.
“But will they still, after these thoughts are put in their heads? And that’s not even the main thing. It’s that they shouldn’t have to be put in this position. Maybe if I call Sanderson before this goes any further, maybe if I apologize, he’ll admit he lied—”
“First of all, that’ll only make it look like you have something to hide, which you don’t,” Jack said. “And second of all, you’ll apolog
ize to that fucker over my dead body.”
Gabriel laughed and pulled back to look at him. “How’d you know I was suspended already?” he asked. He knew that Jack had left the school shortly after Rodgers’s arrival.
Jack reached back and pushed the door closed behind himself. “Natalie called me,” he said.
Gabriel said, “My ex-wife called my boyfriend to check on me?” Then, before he could dwell on the fact that he’d just called Jack his boyfriend, and to his face, he added, “How’d she know so quickly?”
“Alex says everyone knows. He’s still at the school.”
“Oh, God,” Gabriel said, turning away from Jack and heading toward the table to get his phone. He powered it on. “I need to make sure Eliza’s alright, but I’ve been instructed not to have contact with students until after they’ve been questioned. I shouldn’t go to dinner—”
“Fuck that,” Jack interrupted, and Gabriel turned toward him with his phone in his hand. “I trust you.” They had plans for Gabriel to join Jack and Alex for dinner.
Gabriel sent Natalie a text: I’m sorry I hung up on you. I’ll talk to you later. Please make sure Eliza is ok?
Of course, Natalie answered. I’ve heard what’s going on. Rodgers made me temp VP because of seniority but I’m not supposed to discuss the investigation with you. Call me when you can.
I’m glad, the students will be in good hands. Some good news, Gabriel answered, and he meant it. TTYL, he wrote, adding a heart emoji before stuffing his phone into his pocket. He looked at Jack and let out a breath.
“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do,” he admitted. “Are you still working?” he asked, eying Jack’s uniform.
“Technically. For…” Jack glanced at his watch. “Thirty-six more minutes. That’s what the radio is for. And you’re supposed to breathe, and know that we’re all behind you, and we’ll figure this out. Okay?”
Gabriel nodded.
“I really thought you were going to hit him,” Jack said with a sudden smile. “Now, I wish you had. But man, you were right in his face…”
Rising From the Dust Page 30