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"I swear I didn't cheat." I told him, I can hear my heartbeat through my ears and that only happens when I'm running but I'm feeling it right now. Cheat. I didn't cheat. "The student who I will not name said that you were glancing around the room and that your eyes have landed several times on their paper. I don't want to punish you, Miss. Skeels but we take plagiarism very seriously and I know you know that." He talks with his hands, "Yes I know that, I know that we take plagiarism very seriously but I didn't cheat." I started to raise my voice the more I felt my stomach turned. Knees weak, arms heavy, thankfully last night's spaghetti wasn't on my sweater already.

"Don't use that tone with me, I understand that you are frustrated but actions have to be taken this is a serious matter, if it was just a regular assignment then the punishment would have been little to none but this is a test assignment, so why shouldn't you be punished and the other student should?" Is he really asking that? "I did not cheat. If I did I would've passed out crying because I got caught I promise you, I didn't, you can ask anyone in the class." I pleaded some more, I can't tell him that I glance around the room when I'm taking tests because I can't concentrate to the full extent, he'll think I do it all the time and that's why I have high scores on them because I 'cheat' he's not going to understand that it's a just a coping mechanism.

"I'm sorry Bailey but I'm going to have to suspend you till this upcoming Monday." He said and I think the last night's spaghetti just might come up, "You can't suspend me, it wasn't me I can just do community service or something, I'll clean your office, I'll clean the whole school please don't suspend me." I need to stop begging, the old man isn't going to change his mind. Well he isn't old he's in his mid-30s which he likes to brag but he's bald. The bald man isn't going to change his mind. "During this suspension, your teachers will send work that you need to complete, you can not enter the school at any time during the suspension and you can not be on school grounds even if it's just in the parking lot, the practice fields. Anything that belongs to the school. If you are found on school property the punishment will only grow. Do I make myself clear?" He explains everything that would be written on this piece of paper he slides over his desk.

"Sign where needed, it will be on your school record." My heart drops even more as he continues to talk, "I'm sorry that it has come to this." He gives me a pen and I sign my name which is quite pretty but I wish was signing anything else but this. "Go on you have the rest of the day today." He takes the paper standing up and I do the same, he opens the door letting me walkout. I feel like shit. I didn't cheat. I know I didn't cheat. I want to know who cheated. "It's the middle of lunch right now Bailey you don't need a pass." Jonah said to me traveling past and I left the office only seeing a few people walk through the common area. "Bitch where have you been I texted you, wait why are you upset? Do you need tissues? I've been bringing extra ever since you cried during our sixth period because you saw Black Widow die." I sit on the opposite side of Carmen who ruffles through her backpack, "No, I don't need tissues but I am upset." I let my forehead hit the cafeteria table, "Why?" Her nails tap the surface, "I'm suspended." I look back up.

"Come again." She reaches over, taking my hands in hers, "I'm suspended Carmen, someone in my class said that I cheated on their test and I don't know who it is but I got the blame and because 'This school takes plagiarism very seriously.' I can't come back till this Monday." I tried to copy our principal's voice, "God better fix this cause Lord knows that if I do someone is going to die, who's in your class? Names, I want names Bailey, names, ain't no one going to mess with you and your grades." I feel her let go and I watch her grab her phone which I immediately take away. "Bitch give me my phone back." She puts her palm out, "No, we're not going to do anything to anyone. I couldn't even suspect anyone okay." As much as I wanted to find out who it was I didn't have the energy to.

"That's fine by me until I have names but to get you out of that mood we're going shopping after school okay at the big mall so better tell your mommy and daddy that you'll be home late." She always said 'mommy' and 'daddy' when referring to my parents as an insult because they treat me like a child. I slummed my way through the rest of the day, I just hope that no one finds out me cheating, even though I didn't. I don't need anything else to go wrong. I ended up following Carmen through the mall getting dragged into every store she set her eyes on, I think she came out with more bags than me I only had two though but then we went to Walmart and that's when my hands were filled with plastic bags with stuff for baking.

Stress baking. My best friend and enemy mainly because I improve my skill but then I eat it all, the majority of it anyway. "BAILEY ELLE SKEELS!" And there's the beautiful yelling voice of my mom, I just opened the front door. I walked towards the kitchen seeing both my mom's and dad's faces wrinkle in anger, "I'm home." I said blatantly dropping my groceries on the empty table, no dinner that's a shocker. "Where were you, Bailey?" My dad sighs, "No I don't care where she was, why did we get a call about our daughter being suspended for copying another student's test." Mom nags on, I think I remember that I didn't want anything else bad to happen.

"I didn't cheat off another student mom. I promise I didn't." I stood still in my spot trying my best not to move a muscle, it wasn't often that I got in trouble but it wasn't often either that I would get recognized for my achievements, mistakes always seemed to overweigh everything that was good. "Are you sure? Because the school, your principal think otherwise. You're a smart girl why would you need to cheat?" Why does everyone keep saying that? If they know I'm smart then why am I getting blamed. "Did you cheat Bailey?" My dad asked and I shook my head he looked back at mom who very much still had those anger wrinkles. "I don't think she cheated, there probably was a misunderstanding." He tries to reason, "I don't think the principal would have a misunderstanding, he's the principal for goodness sake. Bailey, you are grounded till you go back to school, no hanging out with Carmen, for all I know, she could've been the one who did this to you." Who does she think she's talking about?

"Carmen wouldn't do this, she's my best friend, why would you blame her?" I speak up, "DON'T talk back to me." She points her finger at me, "I'm not talking back I'm defending my best friend becau-" "I said don't talk back to me now." Her fist slams the countertop making everything on the top rattle. "I'm not a little kid anymore." I mumble, "What was that Bailey?" Her voice became low and quiet like mine. "Nothing." I spoke a little louder, "Apparently you are still a child, I didn't raise my daughter to be a cheater in school." I looked up furrowing my eyebrows, I'm not a kid. "You're grounded till your suspension is over, I don't want to hear anything else from you. Do you understand?" She took her blonde hair out of the bun that it was in and I nodded, her heels hit the floor with a force as she got closer to me.

"I said do you understand?" She spat between her teeth pinching my chin forcing me to look at her, "Yes." I managed to say then she let go of me dragging her nails against my skin. "I WILL NOT HAVE CHEATERS IN MY HOUSE!" She yells walking up the staircase belonging to the fairly large 2 story house that only keeps 3 people safe. My dad soon followed the woman leaving me alone downstairs.