Detention

"You've got to be kidding me…" Sam muttered, surveying the dreary detention room. The harshly lit room was empty except for uncomfortable desks, a single cracked clock, and a teacher's desk that had seen better days. Well, those items and the she-devil Paulina and her shadow Star.

"Is there really not anyone else today?! No punks, no ditchers, no pot heads, nothing?!" Sam swiveled around to face a bored looking Mr. Lancer, who was currently blocking her only escape.

"No." He replied. "Not even Mr. Fenton today, it's truly amazing isn't it?" Sam couldn't decide if he was being patronizing or if he was genuinely impressed.

Paulina's eyes snapped up from the nails that she had been filing and met Sam's in an equal show of resentment.

"How do you think I feel?" She whined. "I can't even pretend to ignore you with only three of us here." She paused, a thoughtful look settling on her features. "And there's no boys here to give me compliments." She added mournfully.

Sam rolled her eyes and instead focused on Star, who despite her usually chatty self, seemed oddly quiet and dare she say…forlorn.

"Well you ladies settle in and try not to kill each other. I have mountains of copies to make for tomorrow, so I'll be a few rooms down the hall." He gave them all a stern glare before continuing. "This means that I will hear any and all misconduct. They say this room has the thinnest walls in the whole school, you know." He added with a smile.

"Really? I've heard the walls here are cement under the wallpaper." Sam said under her breath. Lancer ignored her, putting his hand out. Sam sighed and dropped her phone into his open palm, and he nodded before walking off, the door swinging shut behind him.

Sam stood in place for a few more seconds, before awkwardly plopping down into a desk as far as possible from the other girls. She winced when her chair let out an awful squeak, echoing loudly in the silent room. Well…the almost silent room.

"Will you cut that out?" She demanded. Paulina's noisy nail filing halted, as she shot Sam a look filled with so much venom that even she was impressed.

"I have to keep my nails at an even and healthy length or they'll break. We don't all have freakishly strong talons like you." She snapped. Sam glanced at her own nails which she kept rather short, due to the constant ghost fighting.

"If you're going to insult me, at least make it accurate." She fired back. Paulina scoffed in return, but she put her file down, satisfied with her work.

"Whatever, freak."

It was so quiet that Sam barely caught it at all.
"Excuse me?" She replied carefully.

"You heard what I said." She said haughtily. "I bet you're in here for setting something on fire. Or doing some weird satanic-ritual in class."

"I'm Jewish, you little witch." Sam shot back.

She took some satisfaction in seeing Paulina looked genuinely surprised by that tidbit of information. Paulina, taken aback, was still thinking of another comeback when Star- who Sam had forgotten about- suddenly broke her silence.

"For heaven's sake, would the two of you shut up!" She yelled.

"She started it!" Sam said, feeling a bit childish even as she said it.

"I don't care!" Star moaned. "All you two ever do is fight and scream at each other. Doesn't it get exhausting? It's exhausting to listen to! Just cut it out so I don't have to listen to it for all of detention." Her head dropped into her arms, and her voice broke into a sob. "I'm not even supposed to be here." She said softly. Her head lifted and she sat up again, her shoulders shaking. "I don't ever get in trouble, and now I'm stuck listening to the two of you and I don't know what's worse!"

Sam and Paulina both were stunned silent by the outburst. Sam, feeling a bit awkward and immature, mumbled an apology. Paulina shot her another dirty look before walking to Star's desk and rubbing circles on her back.

"I'm sorry, sweetie. I know you don't deserve to be here, neither of us do."
Sam raised an eyebrow at that, doubtful. Now that she thought about it, Star was a very well-behaved student. Paulina on the other hand…

"Um…" she began hesitantly. "Why are you guys here?"
Paulina ignored her, but Star looked up at her curiously.

"We got detention for breaking the dress code." She answered. "I got pulled from class because Mr. Falluca said I was 'sending the wrong message' for showing my shoulders." She bit out angrily. "I just thought I looked cute when I put this shirt on. I wasn't trying to send any message."

"Especially to a gross middle-aged man." Paulina added. She decided to acknowledge Sam again. "I'm in for my skirt." She explained. "My algebra teacher said it was 'distracting to the boys'". She huffed. "As if they were paying attention to algebra in the first place." Sam gave the two of them an odd look, observing Paulina as she continued to silently comfort Star.

"Huh…interesting." she said. "I got pulled from class for wearing a crop top. Apparently my stomach is single-handedly preventing the male population of Casper High from receiving their education."
Star sniffled and sat up.

"Yeah, and apparently their education is more important than ours. Science is like, the one subject I actually like, and they pulled me out of class! Now I gotta get the notes from someone."

"Right." Paulina agreed. "And I know I've seen boys at this school wear shorts shorter than my skirt. The only difference is that they have dicks and I'm cuter. But who gets dress-coded? Not them!"

Sam nodded her head. "Yeah it's honestly such bullshit. The dress code specifically targets girls and shames us by sexualizing our bodies despite most of us being minors!" She walked over to the desk next to Star's and sat down. "And you're totally right, why is it that teachers complain that we're disrupting education while also pulling us out of class and disrupting our education?"

"Oh you know why." Paulina said. "It's because our school values the education and comfort of boys over girls." Sam blinked, impressed by the poignancy of that statement.

"Right." She said. "You're totally right." She turned to face Star, who was looking much more passionate now than sad. "You know Star, your shirt is very cute! I don't think any of us should be punished for dressing in a way that makes us feel comfortable and confident."

"Thanks!" Star beamed at her. "And your stomach is crazy toned, do you work out?"

Sam laughed, thinking of the daily ghost hunting hijinks she took part in.
"You could say that."

Paulina coughed, catching both Star and Sam's attention.
"Um, you two are going to compliment each other but leave me out of it?"
Star giggled, and reached for Paulina's hand and squeezed it.

"You look beautiful today, Paulina."
Both girls looked at Sam expectantly, and she shrugged.

"Well your outfit is a bit pink for my tastes, but I think you pull it off." She admitted.
Paulina beamed at her.

"Thank you." She said, only a bit smugly. Sam and her both grew quiet suddenly, realizing that they had just said nice things to each other. The awkward silence stretched out a bit longer, until Star broke it- again.

"Oh my gosh, grow up you two! You see how you can be civil around each other?!"

Sam sighed, perhaps more theatrical than necessary. "Well, I guess we have some things in common. I'm sorry for calling you a witch."

"I'm sorry for implying you were one." Paulina said. Star nudged her gently. "And for calling you a freak." She added.

"Good." Star said cheerfully. "Because we still have detention for the rest of the week, and I don't want to hear yelling every day."

"Maybe…maybe we don't have to have detention again." Sam said hesitantly.
"Why not?" Paulina asked.

"Well, I think that after that little show of solidarity, we could be convincing enough to get other girls to join us in protesting the dress code. Maybe some boys too." Star and Paulina looked skeptical, but Sam continued. "Think about it- I know how to organize this kind of stuff. But you guys have more influence than me. And both of you had very valid points. We can work together and at least get the faculty to consider the harms of the dress code." Sam realized that she sounded maybe a bit too eager, so she quickly added, "and we wouldn't have to be stuck together in detention again." Star and Paulina mulled it over for a second and nodded to each other.

"I'm in." Star said, a determined look on her face.

"I'm not going to take fashion advice from anymore forty-year-old men." Paulina said.
Sam grinned, crossing her arms and leaning back into her chair.

"Alright, ladies. Let's begin."


When Lancer stumbled back into the detention room with his arms full of paper, he nearly tripped and dropped everything in his shock. There in the center of the room were the three young ladies, huddled together and writing a list titled 'Grievances Against the School Dress Code Policy'. He watched in stunned silence as the girls spoke amicably to one another, each giving suggestions and revising their list in a civil manner.

"Little Women!" He exclaimed. The three girls jumped, startled by his appearance, quickly attempting to hide their work.
He shook his head, and carefully made his way to the old desk. "No, no, please continue. It's honestly therapeutic to see the three of you getting along." He slammed his papers onto his desk and looked up at their similarly shocked faces. "And I for one agree that the dress code policy is disruptive to learning." He added with a smile. "But if anyone asks, I didn't see this happening." The three girls smiled, and he sat in his desk, feeling more satisfied than he ever had before when on detention duty.