Jamie sat at her desk in English class listening to her teacher drone on and on about Shakespeare, and that fact that he might not be real, even though they had all learned about Shakespeare two years ago in their sophomore year.
Jamie was a senior this year, going to prom with the guy she loved in a week, and graduating in two. She was sky high.
Jamie didn’t understand why her teacher was even talking about Shakespeare in the first place. They had two weeks of school left. Shouldn’t they be reviewing for the final?
Then she heard it. Well, actually the first thing she heard was the screams, and then she heard the gun. She figured it was maybe 5 shots before it stopped for a few minutes. Everyone looked at the door then at each other before they looked at their teacher for directions. Jamie knew everyone wanted to get up and run. To get out of the school, but they were all to frightened.
“Everyone, please just try to stay calm and quiet, let me phone the office to see what to do. Please stay quiet.” Mr. Taylor said looking as scared as everyone else.
Jamie looked to the person sitting next to her.
“Everything is going to be ok.” Thomas said.
“How do you know that?” Jamie asked.
“It’s just this feeling I have in my gut.” Thomas said moving his desk closer to Jamie.
Jamie took his hand and waited for Mr. Taylor to tell them what to do.
“Ok, they say for everyone to move as far away from the door as possible and to sit on the floor.” Mr. Taylor said. “Yes Mr. Lewis?”
“Why?” Shawn Lewis, a student in the class asked.
“I don’t know, but let’s just do what they say and stay quiet.”
Everyone in the class stood from their seat and walked to the back of the classroom, most sitting against the wall the door was on. Jamie and Thomas sat leaning against the far wall in the corner holding hands trying to stay as calm as they could under the circumstances.
“How many is that?” Jamie whispered to Thomas after everyone else in the class started talking quietly.
“How many is what?” Thomas whispered back.
“How many gun shots is that?” She asked leaning into Thomas a little more. She felt safer in his arms.
“I don’t know, why?” Thomas replied wrapping his arms tightly around her pulling her closer.
“Than we can know how many he’s shot, we can know how many might be dead or dying.”
“I don’t know maybe 8 or 9.” Thomas whispered.
“If the person comes in here and points the gun at you, are you going to beg for your life?” Jamie wondered aloud.
“I never really thought about it, will you?”
“It depends.”
“It depends on what?”
“On how long the person as planned this, if I was one of the first people they decided to shoot.”
“If it had been awhile and you were one of them would you beg for your life?” Thomas asked.
“No.”
“I don’t think I would either.”
Jamie closed her eyes and tried to imagine herself back at home hanging out with her friends laughing and having fun. It didn’t work.
“Let’s talk about something.”
“What do you want to talk about?”
“Anything, I just want to get this off of my mind.”
“Ok, what…” Thomas was cut short by the gun shots coming from, what sounded like, the classroom next door.
Jamie flinched from the sound and clung to Thomas’ shirt even tighter than before. Thomas pulled Jamie as close to him as he could. Both of them wanting to be somewhere else but still wanting to be near each other and keep each other safe.
The door to the classroom burst open. Everyone crowded closer to each other trying to hide behind the person sitting in front of them.
Adam walked into the classroom and looked to the back finding everyone sitting there.
“Well, hello there.” Adam said staring right at Jamie. “Not going to say hello back?” Adam paused, “Fine, get up. Get up!” Adam yelled.
Jamie pried herself out of Thomas’ arms and stood up.
“Come here.” Jamie stood where she was not moving. “Come here.” Adam repeated himself. “Come here, now!” Adam yelled pointing the gun at her.
Jamie walked towards Adam and stopped right in front of him. Adam stared at Jamie for a few minutes before he hit her and she fell to the ground on her knees.
“Beg for your life; beg for me to spare you; beg to live.” Adam said.
Jamie’s world was crumbling down around her. She looked straight at Adam, who stood staring her in the face.
“You’re not going to beg for your life? You’re just going to sit there and let everything happen?” Adam asked.
“How long have you been planning this?” She asked; she needed to know before she could answer the question.
“You didn’t answer me.”
“I need to know before I can, how long?” She asked again.
“Months, since you rejected me, you said I would find someone else! I didn’t!” He yelled waving the gun around.
“So, I was one of the people from the start that you chose?”
“Yeah, I guess you were.”
“Then no, I’m not going to beg for my life.”
“Why the hell not?” Adam yelled.
“You’ve already made up your mind, you’re not going to change it, so what is begging for my life going to do for me?”
“You’re right it won’t do anything for you, it won’t make me change my mind, but it will do me a lot, to see you beg instead of me. So beg, beg for your life; beg for me to spare you the pain you couldn’t spare for me.”
“It won’t be the same pain.” She responded looking up at Adam’s face, “I won’t feel the pain you felt.”
“Are you sure about that?” Adam moved his arm towards Thomas. “What if I killed him first? Then do you think you would feel the pain? Will you beg for his life?”
She looked over at Thomas, she saw him stiffen when Adam started to talk to her; she saw the fear in his eyes. She was sure it was reflected in her own eyes.
“Don’t, it’s not worth it.” Thomas said looking Jamie in the eyes.
“Of course I would feel the pain you felt if you shot him.” Jamie said ignoring Thomas.
“Would you beg for his life?” Adam asked again. Jamie looked at Thomas’ face with sorrow in her eyes. “Would you?” Adam yelled.
Thomas shook his head. “Don’t.”
“God dame it, answer me, or I swear I will shoot you both in a heart beat!” Adam yelled again waving the gun around.
“No.” Jamie said staring at Thomas.
“You wouldn’t beg for the life of the man you love? You would just let him die?” Adam asked shocked.
“No.”
“Do you truly love him?”
“More than anything.”
“Than why aren’t you going to beg for his life?”
“For the same reason I won’t beg for my life.”
Than it happened. Jamie heard the shots. One right after the other. Two of them. She looked to Thomas and saw his face go pale and his eyes shift to my chest. She looked down and moved her hand and saw all the blood seeping into her shirt and her hand covered in blood. This is it, she thought, my life is over. Jamie looked back up and then fell to the ground seeing black.
Jamie was a senior this year, going to prom with the guy she loved in a week, and graduating in two. She was sky high.
Jamie didn’t understand why her teacher was even talking about Shakespeare in the first place. They had two weeks of school left. Shouldn’t they be reviewing for the final?
Then she heard it. Well, actually the first thing she heard was the screams, and then she heard the gun. She figured it was maybe 5 shots before it stopped for a few minutes. Everyone looked at the door then at each other before they looked at their teacher for directions. Jamie knew everyone wanted to get up and run. To get out of the school, but they were all to frightened.
“Everyone, please just try to stay calm and quiet, let me phone the office to see what to do. Please stay quiet.” Mr. Taylor said looking as scared as everyone else.
Jamie looked to the person sitting next to her.
“Everything is going to be ok.” Thomas said.
“How do you know that?” Jamie asked.
“It’s just this feeling I have in my gut.” Thomas said moving his desk closer to Jamie.
Jamie took his hand and waited for Mr. Taylor to tell them what to do.
“Ok, they say for everyone to move as far away from the door as possible and to sit on the floor.” Mr. Taylor said. “Yes Mr. Lewis?”
“Why?” Shawn Lewis, a student in the class asked.
“I don’t know, but let’s just do what they say and stay quiet.”
Everyone in the class stood from their seat and walked to the back of the classroom, most sitting against the wall the door was on. Jamie and Thomas sat leaning against the far wall in the corner holding hands trying to stay as calm as they could under the circumstances.
“How many is that?” Jamie whispered to Thomas after everyone else in the class started talking quietly.
“How many is what?” Thomas whispered back.
“How many gun shots is that?” She asked leaning into Thomas a little more. She felt safer in his arms.
“I don’t know, why?” Thomas replied wrapping his arms tightly around her pulling her closer.
“Than we can know how many he’s shot, we can know how many might be dead or dying.”
“I don’t know maybe 8 or 9.” Thomas whispered.
“If the person comes in here and points the gun at you, are you going to beg for your life?” Jamie wondered aloud.
“I never really thought about it, will you?”
“It depends.”
“It depends on what?”
“On how long the person as planned this, if I was one of the first people they decided to shoot.”
“If it had been awhile and you were one of them would you beg for your life?” Thomas asked.
“No.”
“I don’t think I would either.”
Jamie closed her eyes and tried to imagine herself back at home hanging out with her friends laughing and having fun. It didn’t work.
“Let’s talk about something.”
“What do you want to talk about?”
“Anything, I just want to get this off of my mind.”
“Ok, what…” Thomas was cut short by the gun shots coming from, what sounded like, the classroom next door.
Jamie flinched from the sound and clung to Thomas’ shirt even tighter than before. Thomas pulled Jamie as close to him as he could. Both of them wanting to be somewhere else but still wanting to be near each other and keep each other safe.
The door to the classroom burst open. Everyone crowded closer to each other trying to hide behind the person sitting in front of them.
Adam walked into the classroom and looked to the back finding everyone sitting there.
“Well, hello there.” Adam said staring right at Jamie. “Not going to say hello back?” Adam paused, “Fine, get up. Get up!” Adam yelled.
Jamie pried herself out of Thomas’ arms and stood up.
“Come here.” Jamie stood where she was not moving. “Come here.” Adam repeated himself. “Come here, now!” Adam yelled pointing the gun at her.
Jamie walked towards Adam and stopped right in front of him. Adam stared at Jamie for a few minutes before he hit her and she fell to the ground on her knees.
“Beg for your life; beg for me to spare you; beg to live.” Adam said.
Jamie’s world was crumbling down around her. She looked straight at Adam, who stood staring her in the face.
“You’re not going to beg for your life? You’re just going to sit there and let everything happen?” Adam asked.
“How long have you been planning this?” She asked; she needed to know before she could answer the question.
“You didn’t answer me.”
“I need to know before I can, how long?” She asked again.
“Months, since you rejected me, you said I would find someone else! I didn’t!” He yelled waving the gun around.
“So, I was one of the people from the start that you chose?”
“Yeah, I guess you were.”
“Then no, I’m not going to beg for my life.”
“Why the hell not?” Adam yelled.
“You’ve already made up your mind, you’re not going to change it, so what is begging for my life going to do for me?”
“You’re right it won’t do anything for you, it won’t make me change my mind, but it will do me a lot, to see you beg instead of me. So beg, beg for your life; beg for me to spare you the pain you couldn’t spare for me.”
“It won’t be the same pain.” She responded looking up at Adam’s face, “I won’t feel the pain you felt.”
“Are you sure about that?” Adam moved his arm towards Thomas. “What if I killed him first? Then do you think you would feel the pain? Will you beg for his life?”
She looked over at Thomas, she saw him stiffen when Adam started to talk to her; she saw the fear in his eyes. She was sure it was reflected in her own eyes.
“Don’t, it’s not worth it.” Thomas said looking Jamie in the eyes.
“Of course I would feel the pain you felt if you shot him.” Jamie said ignoring Thomas.
“Would you beg for his life?” Adam asked again. Jamie looked at Thomas’ face with sorrow in her eyes. “Would you?” Adam yelled.
Thomas shook his head. “Don’t.”
“God dame it, answer me, or I swear I will shoot you both in a heart beat!” Adam yelled again waving the gun around.
“No.” Jamie said staring at Thomas.
“You wouldn’t beg for the life of the man you love? You would just let him die?” Adam asked shocked.
“No.”
“Do you truly love him?”
“More than anything.”
“Than why aren’t you going to beg for his life?”
“For the same reason I won’t beg for my life.”
Than it happened. Jamie heard the shots. One right after the other. Two of them. She looked to Thomas and saw his face go pale and his eyes shift to my chest. She looked down and moved her hand and saw all the blood seeping into her shirt and her hand covered in blood. This is it, she thought, my life is over. Jamie looked back up and then fell to the ground seeing black.