Chapter 53

"Think of fake friends like your shadow; they are with you on the brightest of days, yet vanish completely when the darkness creeps in. Think of real friends like the stars; present during the day, yet their light is more overwhelming at night, shining in the most dimmest of skies.

In that case, who would you chose?

The shadow, or the star?"

Anonymous.

Tears stream down her face as a crimson-red blush emerges. Serenity's hazel-eyes appear fragile, her petite frame, which was seemingly tense, slumps down in what I can only define as relief. Platinum- blonde hair matted to her forehead and shirt in hand, Serenity uses the latter to cover her chest, whilst bowing her head with a flustered expression. Biting her lip to prevent it from trembling, she gradually manages to dress herself.

At the same time, Coach Sanders hastily takes note of the gravity of the predicament he's found in, and rapidly detaches himself from my friend. His royal-blue shirt clings to him, and his sand-blonde hair falls around his face in a heedless manner. Sanders blue eyes dart from the Headmistress' face to mine, and again he comes to the conclusion that what he had been doing, would cost him a lot. Frantically, the P.E. teacher begins to adjust himself, an almost inaudible curse word uttered at random intervals.

Beside me, Miss Havisham's body stiffens and she takes the time to gulp back what I assume, is bile rising at the back of her throat. Staring straight ahead, her eyes fixate on the Coach, an expression of discontent and nausea dominating every facial feature.

"I....I...."

Taking a deep breath, Miss Havisham somehow manages to clear her head. Although one may presume that an ordinary human being were to either shout in anger or remain in a state of shock due to surprise, the Headmistress abruptly shakes her head, and meets the Coach's eyes with a firm and meaningful look of her own.

"I need you to accompany me, Mr Sanders," she retorts. "I need you to do that and you will do that now."

Dazed, the P.E. teacher stares at her puzzled. Fear creeping in and an immense devastation most likely weighing down on him, he is complied to acknowledge failure and punishment as part of the foreseeable future.

Yet, what occurs next is the exact opposite reaction of someone found in his position .

Coach Sanders let's out a low but loud chuckle that arises within him and manages to accommodate the entire room. Slapping his knees and wiping a tear away, he proceeds to howl his lungs out as if his amusement were a subtle remark, stating that he didn't care.

That this was all a joke.

Yanking Serenity to my side, I wrap my arms around her and permit the warmth of my embrace to console her. Her shaking hands finally come to a halt, and a quiet 'thank you' is heard after an immense amount of 'he finally got caught.'

Pulling away from her, I take a moment to ask her a question.

"Are you okay?" I quiz. "Did I arrive too late?"

"No," she replies, sniffing. "You arrived just on time; the exact moment he had taken off my shirt."

"I'm sorry I put you through that," I whisper.

Shaking her head, Serenity smiles weakly.

"I don't partake in anything I don't agree with," she says. "Besides, the son of a b!tch just got caught. Let's see what Miss Havisham does."

On my left, the Headmistress frowns, her eyebrows furrowed and a deep exhale escaping her lips. Sanders on the other hand, remains ignorant, still managing to find entertainment in the matter.

"You," he giggles pointing at Miss, "are not the boss of me."

"Mr Sanders, if this behaviour persists I have no choice but to..."

"But to what?!" He shouts, his voice cracking as he snaps his fingers. "But to what, Havisham?! You can't do anything! You're useless, an absolute nobody whose only purpose is getting involved in other people's business!"

"Mr Sanders, you are crossing the line," the Headmistress warns with a growl.

"Oh, just f*ck off already!" He screams. "You can't prove anything. You can't prove that I'm the one who started it, can you? For all you know, she could've been the one who came onto me. I mean, come on, have you seen the way she's dress?-"

"Sanders!" Havisham shrieks. "Firstly, I have no right to judge a person by what they wear; that is completely idiotic. Secondly, I will believe what I heard and saw, which is Serenity calling out for help and you found on top of her."

"But..." he begins.

"Let me finish," Miss interrupts, hands raised in front of her.

The P.E Coach kisses his teeth, frustrated over the fact that he is now complied to hear the next words.

"Thirdly," Havisham concludes, "we have recently found sixteen books with the names of girls- one of them being Serenity."

"Yeah, so?" Sanders shrugs in oblivion.

"And in each one of the books we found, there were...very disturbing and inappropriate things, which I regret seeing, but have opened my eyes in regard to you," She snarls.

"Inappropriate things? You don't mean..."

"The books you thought you had successfully distributed to sixteen girls," I interject. "Each one containing illustrations, photographs and even... intimate pictures of yourself."

Puzzled, Coach Sanders staggers backwards, a look of disbelief becoming prominent. Having to place his hands onto the wall to prevent him from falling, he begins to break out in sweat. Hyperventilating, he runs his right hand through his hair.

"This can't be," he murmurs at first. "This can't be!" He repeats.

"Mr Tony Sanders," Miss Havisham says, "I believe that your reaction confirms what Valentina has just said, along with the fact that you have an involvement with the fifteen other girls?"

"This can't be," Sanders breathes heavily. "This. Can't. Be....THIS CANT BE TRUE! I'VE BEEN SET UP!"

Typing away at her phone, Serenity lifts her head up and gives me a quick nod. This gesture signifies that the third part of the plan has been initiated.

At lunch, after collecting the rest of the books, Serenity and I agreed with the others that they would join book club for the afternoon. If the plan was successful, Serenity would send them a text, informing them that they should make their way to the principal's office.

"Sanders," Miss retorts, "you've been caught red-handed. Now, will you be kind enough to accompany me to my office?"

Tilting his head and plastering a manic smile across his face, the P.E. Coach answers:

"Yes, Miss Havisham. It will be my...pleasure to walk with you to your office."

Sighing (possibly out of relief), Havisham then nods.

"Excellent. Shall we go?"