Margaret Walks Across the High School Stage on a Warm June Morning
“Mrs. Miller, what are you doing here?” Kayla asked, her voice a hushed, urgent whisper. “Vance is watching the security cameras in the main lobby. He told the hall monitors to report if they saw your car.”
“I parked down the street,” I said, holding onto the iron bars. “Vance gave me a trespass letter, Kayla. I cannot come onto the property.”
Kayla gripped the bars from her side, her knuckles turning white. She leaned closer, her eyes flashing with anger behind her frames.
“It is worse than that,” Kayla said. “He called me into his office during first period. He told me that if I mention Olivia’s name during my student address, or if I try to organize any kind of memorial on the floor, he will personally write to the admissions office at Ohio State and revoke my recommendation letters.”
I stared at her, the warmth of the morning suddenly vanishing. “He threatened your scholarship?”
“He said a student speaker who violates administrative guidelines is guilty of insubordination,” Kayla said, her voice shaking slightly. “He said the university has a right to know if a student is a disciplinary risk.”
