spat my cereal back out. What was the sky doing now? I just wanted it to help me! I should never have counted on it. I stood up.
‘I’m going to be late!’
My parents didn’t say anything. They didn’t feel like talking any more. I kissed them the way I had every morning, in my former life. I didn’t want to start thinking that this was the last time I would have both of them there with me. It would only have set me off crying again. I just had time to overhear what my mother said as she was getting ready to leave.
‘Give him time to digest the news . . . He has to find his own way through it.’
I rushed off to school. Well, not too fast, because it was really hard to stay on your feet. Alex was in a cheerful mood. He couldn’t stop running ahead then sliding on the ice.
‘My dad won’t believe this when he wakes up.’
It’s true, it was a strange sight. A fine layer of ice covered the ground. The cars looked like they’d been wrapped in Cellophane, like sweets. An old lady coming out of the retirement home fell over right in front of us. Alex burst out laughing. I didn’t laugh.
‘It’s not funny.’
‘She didn’t have far to fall, she didn’t hurt herself . . . Look, she’s getting back up. Or at least she’s trying.’
‘I should never have done it . . .’
Alex didn’t know what I was talking about.
‘Did you bring your video camera?’
I hesitated to tell him about my parents and the sky.
‘If you didn’t bring your video camera I’ll be angry.’
‘I have it, Alex, don’t worry.’
‘Shit, I can’t wait to see it! It’s going to be awesome!’
Someone who didn’t think it was awesome was the educational director. There were at least ten of us gathered around the video camera. She couldn’t see anything because the screen’s so small, but she could hear all right. You couldn’t help but hear. Everyone was shouting the same thing, and laughing.
‘Show us her boobs!’
‘Show us her boobs!’
‘Show us her boobs!’
Eventually she saw them too. But it didn’t make her laugh.
‘Have you given any thought to this woman’s dignity, while you go around showing her naked to the entire school, and she isn’t even aware of it?’
‘You see lots of them on television, Miss, and besides, she doesn’t know! We just won’t tell her.’
Why make a fuss? The educational director looked up at the ceiling, sighing with exasperation.
‘Only in secondary one and already a misogynist!’
She must have been one of those women who fight for respect and sexual equality for women, so she obviously didn’t like Alex. She thought he’d come to a bad end, she’d already told him as much. She turned to me.
‘But this isn’t like you, not with parents like yours.’
The last thing I wanted was to let down my best friend, and I really didn’t want to talk about my parents.
‘Couldn’t you find anything better to film?’
‘No, Miss.’
‘Why can’t you be like a normal kid and film your friends, your parents, your pet . . . Make up a story . . . Free your creativity so that your inner child can blossom . . . But what you’ve done here is just disgusting! Poor woman . . . To think that even in this day and age we are reduced to this!’
Alex is never smart at times like this. Instead of doing what I did and looking down with a sad expression, to let the storm blow over, he started laughing like a moron.
‘Whose stupid idea was it?’
She was on her feet, leaning against her desk, and she didn’t take her eyes off Alex. I was wondering why she had asked, if she already knew the answer. Alex leaned forward, guilty no matter what.
‘It wasn’t him, Miss!’ I cried.
The educational director was startled, and turned to face me. Alex looked at me too; he didn’t know what was going on. Between us there had been a sort of pact: he may have been the one who dealt most of the blows, but he knew how to take a few as well.
‘Yes, it was my idea, Miss.’
‘Are you afraid of Alex?’
‘No, Miss.’
‘You mustn’t be afraid here; you can speak the truth. If you’ve been a victim of intimidation, you have to tell me.’
‘I’m telling you that it was my idea, Miss. I’m the one who talked him into it.’
Maybe that was going a little too far. Alex burst out laughing. He can never keep it in, especially when it’s important. The educational director looked at us, trying to judge the situation. You could tell, even when he was sitting down, that Alex was a full head taller and at least fifteen kilos heavier than me. It was strange: there were three of us there and we all knew I was lying. She gave me a really nasty look.
‘You want to play this little game with me?’
It wasn’t that I wanted to play. I wanted to feel hurt, and then even more hurt. So that I’d stop feeling the hurt from my parents’ separation. Alex looked at me. His eyes were telling me that he didn’t mind taking the rap. He was used to it. But he didn’t get it. I hadn’t told him anything. The educational director started to walk back to her desk.
‘Since that’s the way it is, I’ll ask your parents to come in. I’m warning you, you’re risking a temporary suspension. Maybe they’ll be able to tell me who this is on the video. In the meantime the camera stays here.’
She sat down at her desk and picked up the phone. She pointed at Alex.
‘What’s your home number?’
‘My dad’s still asleep!’
‘Oh, of course, how could I forget . . .’
She said it in a nasty way. Alex is a pretty tough kid, but you could tell it hurt him. Adults can be really mean when they don’t understand a kid. She turned to me.
‘Your number?’
‘I don’t remember.’
Alex looked at me as if he didn’t recognise me. He’d always been the tough guy. Even I was wondering if I was still the same person. The educational director turned to a big bookshelf behind her.
‘Since you think you’re so smart . . .’
