Fiction

There Are Some Challenges to Stand and Face and Others You Must Escape

A consequence of innocence is the toll of undeserved shame

Walter Rhein
Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs
8 min readSep 20, 2024

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Image by Walter Rhein

Like dogs at the pound, the students erupted at the ringing of the bell. Tails wagging, desks slamming shut, there was an explosion of noise and a blur of motion.

Mrs. Whitewash slouched back into her chair, exhausted. Always on the edge of losing control, she’d made it through another day.

Kip knew better than to go running to the cloakroom. Kids like Eric, Martin, and Dean would be fighting in there. Actually, they didn’t call it fighting. They communicated through beating, biting, and kicking. To them, that was normal behavior.

Everything had to be a race. The bell was a starting gun. They knew Mrs. Whitewash had already given everything she had. The echo of the tiny hammer against the bronze meant they were free. It was a good thing none of them knew how to tell time or they might have anticipated the bell and broken the last thread holding Mrs. Whitewash together.

A moment before entering the cloakroom, one of them would try to push the others into the wall. They were the type of kids that could withstand tremendous impacts.

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Walter Rhein
Bouncin’ and Behavin’ Blogs

Certified English and physics teacher. Editor, journalist, illustrator and novelist. https://walterrhein.substack.com/