Mr. Dormer was the spitting image of Matthew. If only Matthew had a few more grey hairs and wrinkles, as well as quite the sizable beer belly. Mrs. Dormer, on the other hand, shared almost no similarities. Instead of the hulking frame carried by Matthew and his father, she seemed to barely be five feet tall, was as skinny as a pole and possessed a pair of beady little eyes caked in make-up. Which, when paired with her buck-like teeth, made her seem rat-like in appearance. Yet my attention on them was short-lived as I instead looked to the figure that stood behind them and which walked with at a more sedative pace. A figure I instantly recognised as my dad, dressed in a pair of oil-covered overalls and dirt-covered boots and who was looking around the office in an apprehensive manner.
"Is this the boy who maimed my son!" Mrs. Dormer shrieked, immediately pulling my focus back to her just as she flung a skeletal finger directly in my face, her brightly painted red nail so long it almost poked me in the eye.
"Now, Mrs. Dormer, please calm down. As I'm sure you're all aware, I've called you down so we can discuss the fight that took place between Matthew and Adam here and what the repercussions will be for both parties." Miss Hilton calmly stated. Unfortunately, it appeared such a comment had only the opposite effect.
"You want to punish my son! You must be fucking joking! If anyone should be punished, it should be that delinquent over there!" Mr. Dormer raged, sharing the same intensity and incessantly loud volume as his wife. "He's a violent lunatic, always has been. Even as a child he would attack our son!"
Quickly, he turned around to face my father to continue his tirade. "What are you going to do about this! Our precious son is going to need to go to the hospital because of your feral vermin." I silently scoffed at how he conveniently forgot how his son had done the same exact thing to me only a couple of days prior.
"Mr. and Mrs. Dormer, I am truly sorry for what happened to your son. Both my son and I offer our sincerest apologies, and I promise you my son will be punished heavily for his actions." Said my father in an almost subservient tone that left me shocked beyond words. An apology that was promptly ignored by Mrs. Dormer.
"What use are your damn apologies!" She screamed, turning back towards Miss Hilton, whose face had remained stoic throughout the entire ordeal. "I demand that this boy be expelled! He's a menace and a danger to not only our son but to everyone in this school!"
Hearing such an unfounded accusation, I found myself once again becoming overcome with anger, questioning who she thought she was to demand I got expelled. After all, I was under no illusion that if Matthew and my position had been switched no one would have given even half as big a shit in that scenario as they did now. Something that had been very much possible.
It seemed my father also thought it was extreme, with him jumping back into the conversation. "Hold on there. I understand your anger at what happened to your son, but don't you think that expelling him is a little too harsh? I mean, at the end of the day, they both agreed to the fight. And besides a broken nose and some bruising there appears to be no serious damage dealt."
"Because your boy probably forced him into it! Our son is a good child. Captain of the rugby team, well liked, and a hard worker. The complete opposite of yours," Mrs Dormer spat with a sneer as she looked in disgust at my father and what he was wearing. "Although seeing who his father is, it's no real surprise how he turned out now is it?"
"What the fuck did you say you lousy bint!" I shouted as I stood to attention, unable to control my rage any longer.
"Hmm, you are just proving my point. So quick to violence. This is why people like you shouldn't be at this school. You will only tarnish its reputation." A condescending look was plastered on her face as she stared at me with her chin raised high to the sky, not a hint of fear in her eyes.
My face felt flush with anger as I looked at her smug expression and realised where Matthew got his horrendous personality. Before I was able to do anything, however, a loud bang resounded throughout the room. All eyes immediately flew to Miss Hilton, who now stood over her desk with her hands flat against it, giving everyone an unimpressed stare.
"If all of you are finally done acting like children, I would like to get to discussing punishments sometime in the next year." she drawled sarcastically, silencing everyone in the room.
"Now, in regard to your son Mr. and Mrs. Dormer." She continued, giving them each a hard stare and freezing them in place. "Even though he was the one most injured in the fight, it doesn't take away from the fact that this is his second fight in only a few days. Which makes me question if he is as innocent as you believe. Because of that, he will be suspended for the next two weeks and will be removed from his position on the rugby team until further notice."
The moment both parents processed what had been said, the office was filled with a cacophony of indignant squawks and shrieks of outrage. A cruel smile made its way onto my face as I watched both of Matthew's parents protest in a vain attempt for a lighter punishment and having no success.
"Enough! My decision will not be changed, especially not with your incessant screaming." And with that, she turned her head towards both myself and my dad, ignoring the gawking looks given by Matthew's parents at her dismissive attitude.
Abruptly, my smile disappeared at the cold, hard look Miss Hilton gave us. A sense of sudden uneasiness and worry started to grow inside of me. "Now, in regard to your son Mr. Collins, while I would usually be inclined to dole out the same punishment as given to Matthew, we must take into account the damage and violence conducted by your son." She said in disgust, looking towards my hands once again, which were still covered with copious amounts of dry blood.
"From the first hand account given by Mr. Lycee as well as the nurse who is treating Mathew, it is clear that your son went overboard today. So much so that he is lucky the police have not been called. Something you can thank on Mathew somehow sustaining such minor injuries. Yet even still, when taking into account the safety of the students, I am afraid I have no choice but to consider expulsion."
In the following silence, a pin drop could have been heard. At least until my father processed what was said. "Please, you have to rethink this! This is his future you're talking about. Please!" he implored instantly, desperation evident as he all but begged Miss Hilton. Yet in response she simply stood there, showing almost no change in expression as my father continued his plea.
When it came to myself, I simply stood there in a daze. Even though I knew it was an option, it was never one I truly believed would come to fruition. It was only when I heard a quiet snort from my side that I was broken out of my thoughts. A snort that as I looked to my left I saw originated from Mr. and Mrs. Dormer, both of whom were no longer red in the face in outrage. Instead, they wore the most arrogant smirks I had ever seen as they watched my dad all but beg Miss. Hilton to rethink her decision.
"Now, now, Mr. Collins, the decision has already been made. I think it might be best for you to leave and take some time to come to terms with the current situation." Mr Lycee said condescendingly, staring at me throughout. Not even attempting to hide the twisted enjoyment he was no doubt feeling.
It was at that moment, for the second time that day, that I felt something inside me snap. Quickly, I felt anger begin to build within me as I saw the look of contempt and arrogance directed our way, at the fact they labelled me a delinquent due to my actions despite not knowing the truth of the situation or how Matthew was just as guilty as me. Anger I was desperate to release with my fingers clenched so tightly into fists that my nails all but punctured the skin of my hands.
It was then, just as I felt I was going to burst, that I heard Mr. Dormer let out a small sneer while looking at my father. That was the final straw. Without any prior warning and to everyone else's surprise, my father's pleading and Miss Hilton's firm rejections immediately coming to a stop, I lunged forward, covering the small ground between Matthew's father and myself in an instant. Before he was even able to react and just, I aimed my body low and collided with his shins, causing him to collapse like a tree that had just been cut. A pained grunt escaped his lips as his head impacted heavily against the wooden floor, sending him into a daze.
Seeing that he was unresponsive, I swiftly straddled his chest, doing my best to pin his arms to the floor, a sense of deja vu hitting me as I remembered doing the exact same thing less than two hours prior. Immediately, I started to pull my fist back as far as I could, uncaring about the consequences of what I was about to do. In the face of the onset rush of screaming and shouting by the other adults in the room, I sent my fist flying forward. Unfortunately, it was then, just as my fist was about to connect, an arm as thick as a log wrapped itself around my throat and swifty hauled me off Matthew's father in one fluid motion.
"What in the hell do you think you're doing!" the enraged voice of my father shouted from behind, almost bursting my eardrums with the power he projected in his shout.
"Dear!" I watched as Mrs. Dormer rushed forward, bending down to get closer to her husband who was clearly still in a daze as he slowly began to sit up.
"I knew that boy was a delinquent the moment I saw him." Muttered Mr. Lycee to no one in particular, his face a ghostly white as he tried to make as much distance as he could in the cramped office as he looked on in shock.
"I think it would be for the best if you and your son left immediately, Mr. Collins." Miss Hilton eventually said, looking warily towards me as I thrashed against my father's grip, choking myself in the process.
"I understand." He replied with a weary and defeated sigh. Dragging me out of the office with supreme ease while offering constant apologies as he did so.