The Lucky Alarm Clock

"Psstt"

Molly swatted at the buzzing

"Psst Molly:

Molly scrunched her shoulders, realizing who was doing the buzzing.

"Psst, Psst, Molly!"

Molly scrunched her shoulders down lower and curled her arm around her paper even tighter.

"PSSSSTTTT, MOLLLLYYYY!" This time it was followed by what could only be the pointy end of a number 2 pencil making holes in her shoulder. "C'mon!! Remember your promise!!" Veronica hissed at her and not very quietly either. Molly heaved a heavy sigh and moved her arm away from the side that Veronica sat on so she could do what she promised and let Veronica copy from her test paper.

" If only that stupid new alarm clock Veronica had given her had worked this morning." she started thinking until suddenly a yardstick slapped the table with a sharp thwack. "Miss Hawk and Miss Lynn! Put down your pencils, pick up your books and march straight to Dean Warner's office to explain why you are cheating!" Mr. Hassfass had heard the hissing noises and watched while the girls hung themselves. "Come, come now! Be swift about it. Students here actually want to learn something, and you are now in their way. Please leave my class."

Veronica just looked at him with her innocent doe-eyed brown eyes that appeared to be on the verge of spilling over an enormous amount of water, "Yes, sir." Veronica gave her standard response to any teacher request. Veronica leaned over her chair to get her bag from the floor and looked at Molly with murder in her eye while Molly tried to explain. "Mr. Hassfass, it was a mistake."

"I'll say! Get your bag and go. I'm calling ahead right now, so the dean can prepare for any shenanigans."

Molly pushed her lower lip out and sulked for about 10 seconds until she realized that Mr. Hassfass' hand was on the receiver, "Yes, Dean Warner, I am sending two of my students down."

She did not wait for the rest, just grabbed her pack and headed out the classroom door, following the long-gone footsteps of her long-time roommate, science partner, and someone Molly had called a friend until this mornings' fight on the front lawn of their place.

"MOOLLLYYYYYY…" Veronica screeched as she slammed onto the sidewalk after being run over by Molly, running out of the house. "What the hell are you doing? You just made me ruin my brand-new jeans! Now they are ripped in the knee!"

"I…am…sorry…my…alarm."

"I don't care what your excuse is! My daddy paid good money for these! How are you going to fix this, Miss Molly??"

"I'll I don't know. I could save up the money and buy you a new pair, I guess." Molly gulped, knowing what Veronica was going to say to that.

"That will take too long since you don't even have a job." Veronica huffed. "Any other brilliant ideas?"

"I'll… I'll let you copy my test in science today." Molly gulped, hoping Veronica would say no.

"Yes," Veronica thought for a minute. "Yes, that will do nicely as long as you make sure not to let us get caught, or it will all be on your head!" Veronica then turned and strolled down the sidewalk to the red convertible waiting for her with the new football player that did not yet know the craziness that was Veronica Lynn.

Molly blinked, realizing she was in front of Dean Warner's office door. It was closed. "This is a bad sign," she thought as she caught sight of Veronica's midnight blue bag next to the closed door. "Veronica's telling a whopper this time, I am sure!"

Dean Warner sat in utter amazement at the outright lie that Veronica was trying to get away with this time. There was no possible way that a student of Molly's standing (Dean's list three years in a row) was trying to cheat. Let alone from a student that barely scraped by.

"Okay, Miss Lynn. I think I have heard enough from your side. Let us see," Dean Warner opened her office door to find Molly reaching for the knob, "Here she is. Miss Hawk, I have heard what Miss Lynn has said and now would like to hear your side of things. Please wait outside, Miss Lynn." Both Molly and Ms. Warner watched as Veronica strolled out of the room, thinking she had won this time.

"All right, Miss Hawk. Let me hear what happened. From the beginning, if you please."

"Well, first, my alarm clock didn't go off as it should have, so I was running late," Molly told her tale.

"And here we are, Dean Warner," Molly said with her eyes cast toward the hardwood floor, shuffling her feet in nervousness.

As the dean listened to Molly, she remembered a young lady who had made some mistakes in the past; where she was now, after someone had given her a break, she needed to change her ways.

"And what do you think should happen, Miss Hawk," Dean Warner asked softly."

"We should both flunk the test for trying to cheat." Molly's voice was stern.

"Anything else, Miss Hawk?" The dean's eyes looked hard at Molly's drawn face.

"Saturday school?" Molly was confused; what else could there be?

"No. We don't need to go that far. At least, you will not have to. Please open the door and let Miss Lynn back in here." Molly slid out of the chair and shuffled to the office door. Molly yanked it open, and Veronica almost fell over from trying to listen too hard from the other side.

"Thank you for rejoining us, Miss Lynn. Now," Ms. Warner smoothed an unseen wrinkle from her collar, "As you both know, cheating is not allowed here at Filcher's Academy for Fine Ladies, and punishment is most severe. After hearing both of your stories, I have to conclude because you are roommates and lab partners; you were studying for the test together the night before, yes?"

Both girls nodded their heads.

"Were there disagreements as to what you should or should not be studying? Or were there any, shall we say, lively discussions about parts of the book?"

"Yes, Molly thought."

"Veronica was thinking."

Dean Warner put her hands up in defense from the upcoming barrage.

"That's all right, that's all right. We don't need to go over the details again. It sounds, to me, like you were having some lively discussions about parts of the test, and it carried over into this morning when you were getting ready for classes. As you were coming into science class today, the discussion continued, albeit somewhat quietly, so as not to bother the other students, and that is what Mr. Hassfass overheard as you were both starting the test. Is this about right?"

Molly looked stunned but nodded.

Veronica looked upset but nodded as well. She shouldn't get expelled this time.

"Good. Since we got that straight, here is what will happen over it. Since it was the start of the test and there is to be no talking during the testing process, you are both going to receive failing grades for that test." Molly sighed, and Veronica smiled. "Miss Lynn, since you instigated the …ah…conversation, you will be spending next Saturday in class with Mr. Hassfass to help him clean the science department that day. Miss Hawk, you will be spending next Saturday in a class with me."

Molly couldn't believe her luck. Just a simple failing grade and the opportunity to spend a whole day with the school's dean, her mentor, advisor, and sometimes friend. All because that stupid new alarm clock that Veronica had given her last Christmas had decided not to work this morning of all days. What a lucky day this turned out to be for sure.