âFeel free to bring my parents here. But | think you should let his parents come here as well,â Matthew said indifferently, glaring at Jonas.
Since Mr. Frye was there, Jonas became bolder as someone was backing him up. âYouâll be expelled!â He said, raising his chin to Matthew.
Matthew sneered and dialed Wayneâs number. After explaining what was happening to him, he urged Wayne to hurry and added, âDonât forget to bring Tammyâs clothes.â
âGot it,â Wayne said, and he sounded even more enraged than Matthew. As he hung up the phone, Matthew couldnât help but laugh.
âAre you all savages? Take a look at the bruising on my sonâs face!â Jonasâ mother shouted.
It had been an hour and a half since the end of the school day. Jonasâ mother, a middle-aged woman in heavy makeup, slapped the desk inside Mr. Fryeâs office. As she spoke, her mouth opened wide, and her shrill voice echoed throughout the room.
Standing beside her, Jonas lowered his head and acted as if he were the victim.
After hearing this, Matthew couldnât help but look him over. Because Matthew hadnât hit Jonas hard enough earlier, he only had a few bruises on his face. Matthew would have kicked Jonas a few more times if he had known what would happen later.
After realizing Matthew had a dismissive attitude, Jonasâ mom roared 466 Offending the Wrong Person more angrily, âYouâre going to be kicked out! Youâve ruined the reputation of the school!â
âJonas started it!â Tammy said. She had come to her senses by then. A puddle of water was forming at her feet, and her hair was dripping wet. She looked a mess, but she stood firm in defense of her brother.
Jonasâ mom didnât take Tammy seriously. She raised her head with contempt and crossed her arms over her chest slowly. She asked, âYou must be Tammy, right? Now, almost everyone in town is blaming you and your shameless mother. Iâm surprised that you still have the nerve to come to school!â
Tammy took a step back before the woman could say anything more venomous. Her hands clenched into fists, and her entire body trembled. She couldnât take any more of the scathing remarks.
Seeing that, Matthew approached Tammy and hugged her tightly to comfort her. The woman smiled triumphantly at the sight of her pitiful appearance. She was about to say something else when she heard a loud bang at the door.
Someone slammed the office door open. Immediately after that, a dozen men in suits and ties entered the office, the man in the front, carrying a bucket of water. He poured water on Jonas before anyone could react.
Seconds later, the womanâs high heels were also soaked in the water. Her eyes widened in surprise as she asked, âWho the hell are you?! What do you want?â
The crowd spread out on either side, leaving a path in the middle. Wayne strolled from the back of the crowd, and he looked condescending âYou were looking for me?â Wayne ignored the screaming woman and approached Mr. Frye, who was sitting at his desk drinking tea 466 Offending the Wrong Person Mr. Fryeâs eyes widened in surprise, and he spat back into his teacup the mouthful of tea he had just taken. He was taken aback by the scene and needed a few moments to recover his composure. âAre you Tammyâs father?â He asked, setting his teacup down and wiping his mouth with his cuff.
âYes, Iâm her father. Whatâs wrong?â Wayne answered indifferently.
Mr. Frye wiped the sweat from his brow and explained, âTammyâs brother punched a student, and he refused to apologize to him.
Itâs a very serious matter, so | thought I should let you know about it.â
Wayne nodded. He handed Tammy the clothes he had just bought at the mall and sat on the couch. âI want to hear what you think about this incident,â He said sternly after Tammy left the office.
Mr. Frye pushed the frame of his glasses and said as calmly as he could, âTammy and Jonas got into an argument today at the end of school. To be honest, Jonas had a slight advantage. Then Tammyâs brother came over and beat up Jonas for no apparent reason. See, Jonasâs still got visible bruises on him.â
Wayne glanced at Jonas, who couldnât raise his head after being doused with another bucket of water. âWhat do you think we should do about this?â Wayne asked, nodding.
Mr. Frye pushed his glasses frames once more. Realizing that Wayne seemed kind, Mr. Frye straightened up a little more than before and said, âTammyâs brother should apologize to Jonas and bring him to the hospital for a check-up. Nobody will ever bring it up again in the future in this, way.â
Wayne nodded once more. Mr. Frye then instantly smiled. But Wayne followed up with, âAnd what if | donât agree to your request?â
âIâm sorry, but Tammy will have to leave the school. As you are aware, 466 Offending the Wrong Person itâs the best high school in the entire city. Iâm afraid that no school would accept Tammy if she is expelled from here.â
Hearing that, Wayne stood up, straightened his shirt, and said, âOkay. Tammy will go to a different school.â
Mr. Frye looked at him blankly because he didnât understand what he was saying.
âBy the way, youâre Jonasâ uncle, right?â Wayne asked as he came toa halt in the doorway.
âWhat do you mean?â Mr. Frye asked warily.
âNothing, Iâm just curious. | just wanted to remind you that you will be fired from school for malpractice.â He then pointed to Jonas and said, âAnd you! If my daughter wants to go to school, | can even build one for her. Iâm Wayne Wright, and everyone in town knows my name. Iâm confident that no school here will dare to admit you from now on.â
Mr. Frye was taken aback and muttered, âWayne Wright?â
âYes, thatâs the man youâre thinking of,â Matthew said as he walked away.
âDonât leave! Letâs talk about it, shall we? We had absolutely no idea Tammy was Mr. Wrightâs daughter. Iâm sorry, | can apologize to you.â To prevent Matthew from leaving, Jonasâ mother grabbed his arm.
Matthew paused for a moment before responding, âIâll have to check with Tammy to see if sheâll agree. Sheâs the most precious person in my family, you know.â
Mr. Frye collapsed to the ground in shock after realizing he had offended the wrong person.
Tammy had just stepped through the school gates the next day when 466 Offending the Wrong Person she noticed a crowd gathered in the square. She fought her way through the crowd, surprised to see Jonas in the middle.
âTammy, Iâm sorry!â Jonas exclaimed as he stood beneath the flagpole. He appeared hesitant and was obviously forced to say so. The more people who were watching him, the redder his face became.
Ignoring him, Tammy went straight to the classroom because she was bummed. She had just sat down in class when Ruby approached her and said, âJonas has admitted defeat completely. And | heard that he is going to another class. He refused to go downstairs this morning, but his mother force him to do so. | heard that he is about to read his apology letter to you in public at the morning meeting next Monday.â
âHow do you know?â Tammy asked, surprised.
âThe principal and the headteacher both told us about it this morning. Mr. Frye yelled at Jonas and made him cry. Jonas was scared about leaving our class, but he had no choice.â
Ruby was thrilled about the whole thing. She was worried when she got home yesterday and assumed Tammy would be expelled. She hadnât expected to see the principal come in with Mr. Frye and Jonasâs mother this morning Hearing Rubyâs words, Tammy suddenly thought of something. Last night, she still slept in Matthewâs room. When she awoke in the middle of the night, she noticed that Matthewâs laptop screen was lit up. And she told him she needed a break from school at that point.
âYou can take a break from school, but you canât do it simply because you want to avoid someone. You canât just think about avoiding it after you meet a problem,â Matthew said calmly as he closed his laptop.
Tammy was silent. After a long time, Matthew asked softly, âDo you remember when we were in kindergarten, some kids bullied me because | 466 Offending the Wrong Person couldnât speak? At that time, you protected me. | grew up hoping that one day |
would be able to protect you.â