𝐉𝐎𝐈𝐄 𝐃𝐄 𝐕𝐈𝐕𝐑𝐄, c.d.

𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞

CHAPTER THREE | COMMIT A FELONY
All the students at Welton rushed to their first class of the day, crowding up the staircase as they pushed each other to move faster. Cove stood in the middle of it all, getting pushed around by younger prepubescent boys as she tried to make her way to Latin.

"You little shits. Stop pushing each other. Hey, you keep your hands to yourself, kid. Didn't your mother teach you manners?"

"Excuse me. Pardon me. Excuse me, sorry." The small boys quickly began to move to the side as Charlie, Pitts, and Meeks pushed them out of Cove's way, making her smile.

"Move it, kid. Let's go! Make way!"

"Move it or lose it, boys! Pretty lady coming through. Have some manners! Show some class." Charlie slipped his hand into Cove's making her grin as she made her way down the stairs with no more problems.

"Oh, my heroes." Cove and the three boys walked through the hallways, towards Mr. McAllister's Latin class, which Meeks seemed to excel in. The girl was glad she had Meeks in her class, because if she didn't, she'd probably fail. Cove took her seat next to Charlie as Pitts and Meeks took their seats behind them, Meeks behind her so he would be able to pass work answers. Unfortunately for Charlie, the seats were separated so he wouldn't be able to hold her hand, or throw his arm over the back of her chair, which he hated.

"Good morning, gentlemen, Ms. Overstreet. Welcome to Latin two." Cove sighed in annoyance, knowing this would be her most difficult class.

"I hate Latin."

..........

Dr. Hager walked up the classroom aisles with his arms behind his back as he explained his expectations for his students. Cove and Charlie sat together with Knox and Meeks behind them. They had a shared desk so Charlie was able to hold the girls hand under the table, which they were both quite glad about.

"Your study of trigonometry requires absolute precision. Anyone failing to turn in any homework assignment will be penalized one point off their final grade. Let me urge you now not to test me on this point." Charlie looked at Cove, his eyes widening as she smiled, chuckling at the boy.

"I'll give you the homework. Don't worry, Char."

"You're a life saver. What would I do without you?" Cove shrugged her shoulders, a grin on both of their faces.

"Probably commit a felony."

..........

The six boys and Cove walked into their English class, which they were glad to have because they all had it together. Pitts and Charlie walked in holding some of Coves books, saying a lady should never have to hold her own stuff. The brunette Dalton boy sat behind Knox while Cove sat next to him, behind Pitts who sat behind Neil. Meeks and Todd were closer to the front, away from everyone to focus on their work.

"Hey Spaz." Cove watched her seven minute older brother crumble up a ball of paper. "Spaz!" The boy with glasses turned around at the sound of his name, only to get hit in the head, making the people that saw laugh.

"Knox, lay off the kid, will you?" Knox turned to his younger sister, a smile on his face as their teacher suddenly walked out of his office, whistling. He walked up the aisles of the desks and out the door without a word. The students looked around at one another, uncertain of what to do as their teacher poked his head back in the doorway.

"Well, come on." He gestured to them to follow before leaving the room again. Cove didn't hesitate to get up out of her seat with her books in hand, nodding towards the door.

"You heard him. Come on." The boys, after some hesitation, quickly grabbed their books and followed the brunette Overstreet girl out into the main entranceway. Their teacher stood in front of the school's trophy cabinets and waited until all the boys arrived, standing before them with a grin on his face.

"Oh Captain, My Captain", who knows where that comes from?" Cove and Charlie stand next to each other in the back while their friends stood closer to the front. No one raised their hands to answer the question but Cove knew the answer, so she placed her books down next to her and raised her hand.

"Ah, yes, Ms. Overstreet, is it? When I was here, we didn't have girls attending." Cove gave him a soft grin as she answered.

"It's a poem by Walt Whitman about Abe Lincoln. And, I'm the only girl here, sir. Made an exception for me." The man nodded his head with a smile on his face.

"Very good, Ms. Overstreet. Now in this class you can call me Mr. Keating. Or, if you're slightly more daring, Oh Captain, My Captain." The students all laughed slightly as the man continued. "Now let me dispel a few rumors so they don't fester into facts. Yes, I too attended Hell-ton and survived. And no, at that time I was not the mental giant you see before you. I was the intellectual equivalent of a ninety-eight pound weakling. I would go to the beach and people would kick copies of Byron in my face." The boys and Cove laughed once again, while Cameron, obviously trying to write all of the information down, looked around confusedly as Mr. Keating looked down at papers in his hand. "Now, Mr... Pitts. That's a rather unfortunate name. Mr. Pitts, where are you?" Cove watched as Pitts raised his hand high in the air while everyone around him snickered, making the boy nervous. Cove slapped Charlie's chest with her hand, telling him to stop laughing.

"Leave him alone, Char."

"Oh, anything for you."