“No, Mike!” they heard a girl scream outside of Mrs Hendricks’s class.

Nondumiso stood up from where she’d hunkered down to help Bridget pick up her stationery from the floor. Everyone else had left the classroom. “Something’s happening outside. It’s Mike.”

Bridget nodded. “I also heard it.”

They both ran outside.

Learners from the neighbouring classes were also streaming out. The volume of noise rose: a blend of screams and laughter. They’d all gathered outside the class.

Nondumiso tried to look through the wall of bodies to see what they’d gathered around. Mike. She couldn’t see him. Why would he be here? she wondered. His next class was on the other side of the school.

She pushed through them until she was at the front. She found Mike; in mid fight with Selby. The Facebook post! Had he seen it? Surely.

She stood motionless for a moment, unsure whether to jump forward and pull Mike away. Bridget also pushed her way through the crowd. Before Nondumiso could move towards the fighting boys, Bridget grabbed her arm, and when she looked back, Bridget was shaking her head. Nondumiso knew what this meant. Let the fight continue. Don’t try to stop it. Let him beat Selby up.

Mike held Selby’s neck in a firm grip under his armpit and kept punching his head and face. Selby’s nose was bloody, and Mike wasn’t stopping. But, finally, Selby wriggled free of Mike’s grip and stumbled backward. His back was to the wall.

Mike charged forward and pushed him against it, grabbing him by the throat. “You think you’re clever nhe!? I tell you stop posting and you don’t listen.”

Cries of “Peters!” rang out. Nondumiso tried to look through the crowd once again. And she saw them. Mrs Hendricks, Mr Peters and Lappies. They were marching towards the crowd. Mr Peters’ rimless spectacles couldn’t hide the anger in his eyes, and his deep frown.

“Mike!” she screamed in a panic, “Peters is coming!” But the noise drowned out her voice.

As Mr Peters and Mrs Hendricks finally got to them, the crowd separated.

“What’s happening here?” demanded Mr Peters, walking up to Mike and Selby. “You’re coming with me right now!” He grabbed them by the backs of their necks and pushed them in the direction of his office.

Mrs Hendrick’s eyes searched the crowd until they met Nondumiso and Bridget. She gestured for them to follow her. Sazi was also trailing her.

When they got to his office, Mr Peters stood in the doorway, glaring at the five of them. They’d been lined up by Mrs Hendricks at the other end of the room. She stood against his desk. As he walked in, Ms Adonis, the school secretary, followed.

“Should I print suspension letters, Mr Peters?” she asked.

Mr Peters nodded. “I want to see their parents on Monday. And if they don’t come …” He paused and turned to look at Nondumiso and the other four as he said this. “I’ll suspend them.”

* * * * *

It felt like it had been a long time since Mr Peters had welcomed everyone into the staffroom. But the clock on the wall said only about 30 minutes had passed. Bridget, Mike, and Selby had their mothers with them. Nondumiso too. Sazi had his sister. Selby’s mother seemed like she’d come prepared for a fight. The scowl she walked in with made her small face dark and scary. Nondumiso didn’t want to look at her for too long.

The staffroom was sparsely furnished. Three tables stood side by side in the centre of the room, with two chairs on one side, and 10 on the other. Mr Peters and Mrs Hendricks sat on the one side, while everyone else sat on the other.

“I think it’s important to say this again,” said Mr Peters. “There are two big problems we have here. Learners said things we don’t allow. And then there was the fight.”

Nondumiso listened in frustration as Mr Peters had to repeat himself when the noise at the table drowned out his voice. Selby’s mother had been too busy going back and forth with Mike’s mother, instead of listening to Mr Peters.

“My son was joking!” started Selby’s mother again, in a heavy Xhosa accent. She was more forceful this time. “He’s not a criminal!”

“I’m not saying he is, Mrs Sikundla. But he did break the rules.”

“He’s not the only one!” retorted Selby’s mother.

“I know,” nodded Mr Peters, looking irritated.

Sazi’s sister also nodded. She’d been nodding every time someone said Sazi was also wrong. She was clearly not here to defend Sazi. Nondumiso was sure of that. A part of her was glad that Sazi’s sister was this upset. Sazi had it coming. Nondumiso wished Selby’s mother was just as determined to punish Selby.

The meeting continued, with Mr Peters insisting on doing most of the talking now. “I think we need to hear what these three have to say for themselves,” he said, pointing to Sazi, Selby and Mike.

Sazi’s sister was the first to react, nudging Sazi to stand up. Sazi was apologetic. Mike too. Selby stood firm, insisting that he’d only been joking.

Nondumiso’s anger rose to boiling point.

“That’s nonsense!” exploded Nondumiso’s mother before Nondumiso could say anything. “This boy must apologise!”

Mr Peters agreed. “Nondumiso’s mother is right, Selby. Apologise now. Or risk being expelled.”

Selby looked at his mother first, then down at his feet. His mother just looked at him. Nondumiso could sense the hesitation in him. His defiance was cracking, she thought. After a moment of silence, he relented and stood up. “I’m sorry, Mr Peters,” he murmured, reluctantly.

He doesn’t mean it, Nondumiso wanted to shout. He should be apologising to me! But she didn’t, the words getting stuck in her throat.

The rest of the meeting was a blur. Nondumiso’s thoughts were somewhere else. Somewhere better. She exhaled when the meeting ended. Tension escaped her body.

When it was all over Bridget and Nondumiso looked at each other, unsure where to go and sit. Bridget pointed to the stoep in front of a nearby classroom. Mike, Sazi and Selby had to stay behind, being lectured by Mr Peters.

A part of Nondumiso wanted to protest that, but she was tired. She’d been strong, never crying in front of anyone, but now she felt worn.

Bridget and Nondumiso sat beside each other.

“Peters promised all sorts of things in there,” observed Bridget.

“Let’s just hope this school has no more toxic Facebook groups.”

“If Peters thinks he deserves an award for taking that group down, he’s crazy. He should’ve done it a long time ago.”

After some silence, Bridget and Nondumiso turned to face each other, smiling and both leaning in for a hug. Nondumiso held on tightly. This felt good.

“Selby’s really lucky,” continued Bridget.

“True. I can’t believe he only got a suspension.”

“They’d kick him out at other schools. But at Woodlands they just suspend him for two weeks.” Bridget became increasingly animated as she spoke. “This isn’t even his first time doing this! They should’ve expelled him!”

Nondumiso thought about Sazi. About Mike. No, don’t talk about Sazi, countered another thought. “I just want this to be over. I’ve only been here for two weeks and all this nonsense has already happened.”

“True, my friend,” said Bridget, sympathetically. “Now Mike is also suspended. Sazi too. It’s just like Peters to punish the wrong person.”

Nondumiso shook her head with disappointment.

“You haven’t mentioned Sazi,” continued Bridget, giving Nondumiso an inquisitive look.

Nondumiso didn’t answer, thinking, ‘I don’t want to talk about Sazi.’

“Sazi’s not that bad,” continued Bridget again. “What he did was stupid. Wrong. But he’s not like the others; not really that type of guy. And he likes you.”

Nondumiso grew irritated. “Why are you defending him?”

“I’m not defending him. You saw how he was in there, crying, apologising. He’s learned his lesson.”

“If he’s such a good guy, then why lie? Why say … or imply … stuff that makes me look stupid on Facebook? Maybe the whole school thinks I’m a slut now.”

Before Bridget could answer, they saw Sazi approaching.

Bridget leaned over and whispered, “I thought he’d gone home.”

“Me too.”

“Can I talk to you?” he said timidly, when he came to a stop in front of them. He could barely make eye contact with Nondumiso.

Bridget stood up. “Let me go. See you tomorrow.”

Nondumiso also stood up and they hugged. She sat back down.

He said down next to her. “I’m sorry, Nondumiso.”

“What must I do about that?” she snapped at him.

“Don’t be angry. Please. What I did was shit. I’m sorry.”

She didn’t answer.

He reached out and gently placed his hand on top of hers. “I still like you. I won’t give up.”

“Why did you say what you said?”

He hesitated. “I … I wanted to stop being a joke. I didn’t think I could make you mine. I let Denver and Selby get to me.”

His voice, she thought. It’s shaky. Forgive him.

As if he could read her mind, he shifted closer until he was brushing up against her. She didn’t stop him. He took her hand between his two hands. She didn’t stop him.

His touch was gentle and warm.

They sat in silence, words a thing they had no use for.

*****

Tell us: This relationship has had a shaky start. Will the events make it stronger, do you think? Is it difficult, as a guy, to resist the pressures Sazi faced from Selby and Denver?