After clearing her throat, Annabelle said.
"Ahem, before you go on and on with all the accusations you're making, I would like to address something."
The math teacher Clayton, enraged by the mention of the word "accusation," stood up and said,
"Those are not accusations but facts that tell what happened."
But as his sister didn't even look at the math teacher, only focusing on the assistant principal instead, who, noticing the tension, calmly spoke up.
"Please, go ahead."
Seeing how Clayton the math teacher grunted but still sat down, his sister, after a brief pause, began.
"The school has now become focused solely on academic achievement."
"But in the past, the word 'school' referred to a place where students would not only receive academic instruction but also learn moral and social values, character development, and civic responsibility."
"So, my point here is about morals and ethics, and what it means to be humane."
"Even if the school now prioritizes education above all else, is it right to ignore these other aspects?"
"Is it right for a teacher to mention the deceased parents of an orphan student?"
Seeing how his sister said the last sentence with a louder pitch, while even glaring at the math teacher.
Even the assistant principal at this point, now understanding where his sister was getting at, turned her head slightly towards the math teacher. As he shifted uncomfortably in his seat, she narrowed her old eyes slightly.
"If he knew about this but still mentioned it, it would be a problem even before this meeting."
"As it's not something even humanly acceptable."
"And if he didn't know, it would be even worse, as it means he lacked any interest or regard to learn something that everyone at the school knows, especially as a teacher, about my brother, who has been attending this school for four years."
"No, I…"
As the math teacher tried to interrupt her, Annabelle looked at him coldly and said,
"Please let me finish what I'm saying. You can say all you want after that."
As the math teacher's face flushed with a mix of embarrassment and frustration, he still nodded and stayed silent under the assistant principal's gaze. Then Annabelle continued.
"My brother has become eighteen years old, and this is his final year in high school."
"But do you know that it was the first time for him to ever make a mistake in school, to be reprimanded, or for a teacher to complain about him?"
"My brother, who throughout his twelve years of education, never faced any problems."
"Suddenly became the worst student, with every possible wrongdoing attributed to him under teacher Clayton Murphy's teaching."
"Logically, is this really believable?"
"He came to him and cornered him, accusing him of cheating, because there was a problem no one else had solved—except him."
"But is this conduct correct?"
"He is asking him to come clean and confess how he cheated."
"But he could have just waited until the next exam to see how he performs."
"He could even make him repeat the exam under some surveillance."
"Like, there are many ways to handle it. But instead, he opted to corner a student who had changed after mustering a lot of effort."
"Making him feel that all he achieved after all that sweat and pain were just stress plus fear of being expelled, instead of being elated at his results. As if he had done something wrong."
'Wait a minute, dear sister! What do you mean by sweat and pain? Why don't I remember shedding them?'
'Stress about how I could make his life miserable, you mean, right?'
While giving some mental comments to his sister, hearing her exaggerations still gave Christian a new feeling. It refreshed him, knowing that it was coming from his side.
But the math teacher obviously didn't like what he was hearing, as he now straight out directed a hostile gaze toward his sister, who didn't mind him and just continued with what little remained of her speech.
"Instead of helping him, encouraging him to keep working hard, he's doing this?"
"A teacher who should be pushing his students forward, acting as a role model, a symbol of hope for them to look up to, is instead destroying their dreams?"
"So, all the problems you're listing, or are going to list, stem from the fact that teacher Clayton Murphy doesn't know how to handle the situation properly!"
And finally, under a low voice, she said,
"Or maybe he doesn't have the ability?"
Hearing his sister's speech, Christian was struck by how cool and composed she was. The strength and emotion in her words moved him so much that he nearly wanted to shed some tears, stand up, and start clapping for her.
It was that powerful, or so he felt.
"Everything you are saying are excuses, as Christian White student, didn't behave respectfully here in this sacred ground for education and didn't even give any regard for his teacher."
Interrupting him while still being moved by his sister's speech, the math teacher began his argument, now focusing more on Christian's conduct rather than the initial problem of cheating.
And his sister, who let him speak at length—much longer than her own speech—responded.
"Everything you are saying now is a result of cornering a student about cheating, which he has not done, and without any evidence. And finally, provoking him with his deceased parents."
"I will not defend my brother, as what he did could perhaps be considered wrong."
"But the crux of the problem still lies with you, teacher Clayton Murphy."
At the somewhat harsh reply from this sister.
Their argument escalated, their voices grew louder, and the math teacher's frustration mounted. He even started hitting the table, attempting to appear intimidating.
But finally, feeling the palpable tension in the air and realizing that the situation couldn't continue any longer, the assistant principal cleared her throat to get their attention. She then spoke a few calming words to de-escalate the situation.
Although it took some time, once the room quieted down, the assistant principal took a moment to contemplate before finally delivering her verdict.