part 1 ♡ pages 39-47

School had finally ended and Wendy was equally excited and drained that she had completed her first full day as an English teacher. All the students had already left and it was around 5:30 pm when she started to collect her things to leave. She had to stay a while after school, however, because the principal had sent her an email instructing her to type out her lesson plans from the rest of the week and to give them to her so that she could see them? Review them? Wendy didn’t really know why exactly the principal was making her do this but she just assumed she was making sure Wendy was prepared enough to teach.

Wendy didn’t mind having to do the extra work anyway because if doing it left a good impression on her new boss, she would put her blood, sweat, and tears into making it perfect.

It also helped that, in the weirdest way, Wendy thought organizing and planning was kinda fun. It made her feel in control and grounded when she wrote everything out. She got a similar feeling when she’d write down lyrics to songs. Though she wasn’t the best at putting emotions to paper, she still found it relaxing nonetheless.

Now Wendy just had to print out the plans and leave them on the principals desk in her office and then she’d be able to head home for the night. 

Wiping her forehead with the back of her hand, Wendy made sure the papers were as neat and clean as possible and she even patted herself on the back for her hard-work. 

When she walked out into the hallway, making sure to lock the door to her classroom behind her. She started walking towards the principal’s office. In a weird way, it reminded Wendy of the fear you’d get in high school if you ever got called to the principal’s office though thankfully Wendy never had that experience. She was a good kid in school who always did their homework and tended to do well on her tests. She honestly thought studying was fun sometimes.

Looking around the hall, she realized how quiet it was, a huge contrast to the buzz of students chatting at lockers or walking arm and arm down the halls just a few hours ago. When she finally reached her destination, she knocked on the wooden door, softly.

She cleared before speaking. “Principal Lee?” Wendy said and she held her ear to the door, waiting for a response. When no response came, she decided to peer her head into the small window on the door. The principals office was completely dark and there was no one inside. Wendy had to adjust her eyes to get a better look around. She noticed the office was much bigger than Wendy’s class room and it had no windows. 

Without realizing she had her hand on the doorknob, she pushed it open, startled, and practically fell face forward onto the hard tiled floor. 

“Ow ow ow!” Wendy sat up abruptly, rubbing her nose with her hand to attempt to help dull the pain. Thankfully she wasn’t bleeding or anything, but now her nose hurt. 

Snapping out of her self-pity and still sitting on the floor, she looked up and realized she was in the principals office. 

“Woah.” She whispered, feeling like she needed to be quiet all of a sudden and that she was breaking the rules by being in her office after hours. She knew she wasn’t doing anything wrong but it still felt like she was.

She could see the office much better now and she noticed the lack of things inside it. There was a desk, some chairs, and a closet in the back but aside from that, the room was practically empty. There were no little knick-knacks or family photos on her desk, and everything was a solid brown color.  The room kind of gave Wendy the creeps like some serial killer would pop out of the closet any minute. 

Shivering, Wendy stood up from the floor and decided to just place her papers on the desk and get the hell out. Before she could leave and finally go home, she heard a tapping sound coming from the hallway. 

Wendy gasped and held her breathe as the tapping grew closer and closer. 

“Oh my god, oh my god, why am I so scared right now ahahah it’s probably nothing Wendy calm down silly!” She whispered to herself, like a mantra and decided she’d hide in the closet until the noise passed. She was probably being overdramatic and it was just the janitor cleaning the halls, but on the slim chance that it really was a murderer or the principal or something, Wendy found herself in the snug confines of the principal’s closet.

“This is so dumb- ouch.” Wendy whispered and rubbed her nose again when she accidentally hit it against the closet door.

The tapping stopped and she heard a jiggling sound coming from the door to the office now. It sounded like.. keys?

The realization of what was happening struck Wendy like a bus.

“Oh f-“ she said before she burst out of the closet and ran towards the door. She gasped when she realized it was a janitor, who had headphones on and a pissed off look on his face, that was just trying to lock the office door.

“I’m here! Hi! i’m in here, hello!” Wendy waved frantically to get the janitor’s attention, even though he was already looking at her, while she also tried to maintain a stance of professionalism. 

Taking one of the headphones out, the janitor sighed and spoke in a gruff voice, “What are y-“

“Nothing!” Wendy cut him off, her voice sounding higher than usual. “Yep ahahah nothing! No thing! Just a simple misunderstanding is all!” Wendy waved her arms around in the air in an attempt to shoo away the janitor’s skepticism. She knew she sounded crazy right now, but she’d already gone this far so she was sticking to it, “I just have to place these papers here and...uh yep, wow all good, here!” Wendy placed the papers on the desk and patted them down as if that’d secure them some how.

The janitor spoke again, still giving Wendy a look that she could only describe as a glare mixed with uncertainty, “Were you hiding in th-“ 

“Closet! Ahahah no, no of course not! Closet? What closet? I don’t even know what a closet is ahaha! Oh wow is that a closet!” Wendy pointed to the closet that she one hundred percent knew was a closet, and decided she was taking on the role of a person who’d never in their life seen a closet before. She didn’t know why she was panicking so much but why not embrace the chaos at this point. Wendy was panicking and it was too late now to stop.

“Well would you look at that! That’s a closet, huh!” Wendy gawked at the closet as if it was the coolest thing she’d ever experienced.

The janitor glared up at her, still unamused, and he just looked like he wanted to go home. Wendy did too.

Wendy continued to awkwardly laugh and she decided she’d just try to squeeze by him and out the door, where she could act like none of this happened. 

“Ah well would you look at the time!” Wendy gestured to her bare wrist as if there should be a watch there, but wasn’t, “I should probably get going now, haha. You know, traffic and all that am I right!” Wendy was shimmying past him in the doorway now.

“Anyway, it was so great meeting you, sir, um... thank you so much for.. er.. your service!!” Wendy saluted and then instantly cringed at herself. Even she was aware of how dumb she acted when she got nervous.

Before the janitor could make any harsh criticisms about her little “performance” back there, Wendy hurried the down the hallway as if she was actually being chased by that imaginary serial killer, turned janitor, that got her into this whole situation in the first place. Wendy cursed herself and her active imagination.

“Wendy you idiot!” She whispered to herself as her shoes tapped against the tiles in her hurry to escape. Her face was heating up in embarrassment and she just wanted to self-loathe in the comfort of her own home. 

Thankfully, she finally reached the double doors at the front of the school, and took a deep breathe in the fresh, chilly, air. The sun was setting now and Wendy was just praying her bus would be here on time. All she wanted to do now was shower and eat something. Anything. She wasn’t sure when exactly her bus would arrive at, though, so she figured she had enough time to stop by at a convenient store for a drink.