After School Detention

Danny stared at the clock, nervously drumming his pencil on the desk, waiting for the bell to ring. He dreaded missing baseball practice.

Being the star pitcher and not showing up for practice would anger his dad more than not graduating with his peers.

The principal assigned custodial work for missing five history classes believing Danny wouldn't remain after school for detention hall.

The bell rang and he heard his buddies yell. Some slapped him on the back and ran out the front door while he jammed his books into the locker.

Grudgingly, he shuffled to the tool-cluttered, dust riddled janitorial room to gather trash barrels reeking of molding food waste from the cafeteria. He gagged, lifting them onto a cart. Pushing them to hall "B", he spotted his history class.

While rummaging through garbage, he opened crinkled papers students tossed into the trash. Danny chuckled at failing grades on his friends' discarded homework.

The last group of papers were clean and straight. He found test questions and answers in his teacher's handwriting for tomorrow's history mid-term exam.