Chapter 23: Anti-Bullying Talk
(Friday, April 20th 2012 – 13:25pm; Chamberlain, Maine)
Okay, everyone…I intend for this to be a fairly short chapter, and it will mainly deal with the students of Ewen High School attending the first of the anti-bully sessions scheduled to take place following Carrie's disappearance. The next chapter after this will take us back to the Island of Sodor to continue with the adventures Carrie is having there.
Within Ewen High School in the heart of Chamberlain, lots of different sounds were starting to fill up the school's main auditorium as all the students, and many of the staff and teachers, made their way inside the large space and over to the many seats that filled the large room. One by one, everyone took a seat and sat down to wait for what was to come, or they just chatted with their friends who were either sitting beside them, in front, or behind them.
Among those who were sitting themselves down and waiting for what was to begin was Sue Snell and her boyfriend Tommy Ross, who sat together in one of the middle rows with a few of the other girls that Sue was friends with, and waited for the event that all students were gathering in the auditorium for. It was the first session of the mandatory anti-bullying campaign that Principal Morton had decided to bring to Ewen High School, based on the extensive information that Carrie had left behind before she disappeared. There was going to be about three sessions in total, each of which was going to be one hour long, and the second such session had been scheduled for the same time for next week, and the third for the very same time on the following week.
Sue had absolutely no idea of what to expect in this first session, but she was somewhat nervous of what was going to happen within the next hour. Even though she did vow never to bully anyone again, this anti-bullying campaign was mandatory for all students in the school, so as to show them all just how damaging bullying could be on people and what it could have on the lives of young teens and adults.
Among those who was in attendance was none other than Chris Hargensen, Carrie's main tormentor and Ewen High's notorious queen bee, and she wasn't too pleased to be attending an anti-bullying talk, especially when she, in her view, saw that she had never done anything wrong to begin with. Ever since she had returned from her week-long suspension, she had served the week of detention she had been forced to serve, and she had turned in the essay on why bullying was wrong. However, her desire for revenge on Carrie White, if she was found, was still very high, and she was determined to do whatever it took to get back at Carrie for ratting her out.
All the girls in the group that was known to everyone in the school as the Mortimer Snerds were there too, and some of them, including Chris Hargensen, weren't too pleased to be attending an anti-bullying talk, all of them wishing to be somewhere else instead, especially on a nice day like it was outside today.
In the meantime, the search for Carrie White was still underway, with the Chamberlain Police Department still investigating a number of leads from a few nearby states as well as within Maine. However, none of them had turned up trumps as of yet, but the officers and officials involved in the case were confident that some of the leads, either those being investigated now or in the future, would eventually turn up something that would lead to Carrie White being found alive and well.
Carrie's old home of 47 Carlin Street, which she had shared with her abusive and mentally unstable mother, had now been completely emptied of everything that had been in it, including all the furniture, pictures that had been mounted on the walls, and everything else with its walls. Everything that had been taken out from the house had then been put into long-term and safe storage, pending a decision on what could be done with it all after Carrie was found. With everything now emptied from the old house, and the building now no longer of immediate interest to the investigation, the entire building was sealed up and then securely locked by the police department, and it looked like it would remain so for the foreseeable future.
At the very same time, another source of information about Carrie's life under Margaret's abusive rule had come in from a rather unexpected source. It came from a young woman called Estelle Horan, and she had actually once lived in Chamberlain more than a decade before, and she had also attended Ewen High School as one of its students while she lived in Chamberlain with her mother. However, not too long after she had graduated from her Senior Year in Ewen High School, Estelle and her mother had packed up and moved away from Chamberlain over to the West Coast of the United States, and were living within San Diego, in Southern California. Now, Estelle was working for a major bank branch in San Diego, as was her husband. She was a mother herself now, as she had two young kids to look after.
Estelle, who was always known to her friends as and always liked to be called "Stella," and her mother had actually lived next door to the White Residence as neighbours of Carrie and Margaret along Carlin Street for all the time that they had been living in Chamberlain. When she heard about Carrie's disappearance in the news, as well as the circumstances behind it, Estelle got in touch with the authorities who were investigating the case, and gave to them any information that she had regarding any incidents she could remember of Carrie being abused by Margaret while she lived next door to the Whites. She was able to give the investigators information about a quite few incidents she could remember, or that she and her mother had witnessed or suspected.
When she finished giving the investigators everything she knew about Carrie's relationship with her mother and any incidents that she could recall, she did give her own hopes that Carrie would be found safely, and hoped she was safe wherever she was.
(Back to the Present)
It wasn't too long before all the students in the school were inside the auditorium, and it wasn't too long before the anti-bullying talk could begin in earnest. As silence descended within the auditorium and everyone looked towards the stage as Principal Morton stepped onto the stage, with a clipboard in his left hand. He stepped behind the lectern, upon which waited the microphone.
"Okay, everyone…" Morton said, as he spoke into the microphone and getting the attention of all before him, "…we're all ready to begin now." Turning to his right, he nodded to someone waiting off to the side of the stage; a moment later, a red-haired woman wearing a blue dress stepped out from the stage side and up to the lectern as Principal Morton stepped away and sat down on a chair nearby.
"Good afternoon, everyone…my name is Laura Smith, and I'm here to give to you my own experience of bullying, both to me and to some of my friends from school, back when I was in high school…" said Laura, after she took a moment to clear her throat. And for the next twenty minutes or so, Laura spoke about how she had been bullied by other students in the high school she had attended, and various incidents of bullying she had witnessed the bullies doing to her own friends, whether they had happened either in school or out of it.
She also spoke of how much the bullying had damaged her into her adult years, and how two friends she had known since kindergarten had committed suicide in the early-twenties due to the bad bullying that they had gone through in school. When that information was revealed, almost every student sitting before her was in silent shock, all horrified as to how people so young could end their own lives.
It caused many to think about what they had done to Carrie, either directly or indirectly, by their own acts and, even those who had bullied Carrie for years for no good reason, ever since many of them had been in kindergarten with her all those years before. They had seen her as a religious loving and quiet sort of type, but that hadn't been for fault, due to the fact that she had been under the control of such an abusive, mentally unstable, and domineering type of woman for a parent.
Almost all of the students, and many of the teachers, all hoped that Carrie was still alive, so that they could all apologise to her in person for their actions.
Once Laura had finished speaking and telling them all her story, she received a standing ovation from everyone sitting in the auditorium before her, which went on for about two minutes. After taking a sip of water from a glass sitting on the lectern, Laura simply smiled at everyone, taking a half-bow before she walked off the stage from the way she had come a short while before.
Then, Principal Morton stood up and went back over to the lectern.
"Okay, everyone…as you've probably just heard Laura say…bullying can be quite a damaging thing for anyone to go through in their lives, as well as the effects that it can have on young people." Morton said, as he addressed everyone before him. Everyone was quiet, but Sue Snell and Tommy Ross in particular were silent, shocked by what Laura had gone through.
"Now…for the next part of the talk this afternoon, we're going to be addressed by a man some of us may call a doctor, but he's actually a man who can actually give you all some tips of how to deal with bullying and how you can protect yourself from bullies. So, please give a warm welcome to Dr Bill Connors, from the local Chamberlain hospital." Principal Morton announced, and everyone gave the Doctor an applause as he came on stage, and then stood behind the lectern, and faced everyone.
For the rest of the scheduled hour, the Doctor spoke with them all about how they could protect themselves against bullying and its effects, who to report it to – whether it was in a work place, or if it was in or out of school – and how they could fight back against it. He also advised everyone on how they could deal with the effects of bullying, as well as ways they could reduce its effects on the different steps they could take in their own lives if they realised that they were bullying somebody, whether intentionally or inadvertently.
(Later on, after the end of the talk)
As all the students and teachers made their way out from the auditorium through the main entrance doors, many of them were quietly talking with each other about how the talk had gone and what they intended to do to make themselves better people so as not to be bullies to others they went to school with.
Sue and Tommy stepped out amongst their teachers and fellow students, and both were somewhat taken aback by what they had just gone through. They were also in thought over their futures about what they could do to prevent other people being bullied and to make the school a safer place for everyone.
"Well…what did you think of that, Sue?" Tommy asked. Sue was quiet for a long moment before she looked at Tommy and spoke.
"I'll be honest, Tommy…I'm somewhat taken aback by what Laura said to us all when she was on stage, and how two friends of her committed suicide due to the bullying they went through. I'm still in shock by that." Sue said.
"Yeah, so am I. But at least we can start taking the next steps of what's needed in order to ensure that bullying like that doesn't happen in this school again." Tommy said.
"I guess you're right, Tommy. But there's still two more sessions to go over the next two weeks. And I'm somewhat concerned about what we'll see in them." Sue said.
"Don't worry, Sue. I'm sure everything will be fine." Tommy said, as he put his arm round Sue's shoulders and pulled her a little closer to him.
"Yeah, I do hope so." Sue said.
Just then, they heard a rather frustrated sound; they both turned their heads round to see what it was, and a moment later, Chris Hargensen along with Tina Blake and Donna Kellogg stepping out from the auditorium doors behind them, along with a few other girls in the Mortimer Snerds.
"…as far as I'm concerned, that was just a complete and unnecessary waste of time!" Chris said in utter frustration, glad that this round of talks was over.
"Yeah, I'd agree. And to think that…FREAK…had the cheek to rat us all out like that...and for no good reason!" Tina said, in complete agreement with her friend.
"I'm gonna get back at her for that…if she's ever found that is. One way or another…I'm gonna get back at her for that!" Chris said, as she looked around angrily.
A few of the others who were standing nearby looked towards Chris with some concern, and a few of them took a couple of steps back, just in case Chris did something.
"Me as well! I wanna get back at her for what she did to us!" Donna said, in agreement.
"Hey, what's up you three?" Tommy said, with some caution on seeing how cross they were.
"What's up…what's UP you ask, lover boy?! I'll tell you what's up! It's the fact that we're doing something as unnecessary as attending an anti-bullying talk when we never did anything wrong at all to start with!" Chris said, in an utterly infuriated tone.
On hearing this, Sue sighed heavily and shook her head in an exasperated way, while holding her head in one of her hands. She was quite used to Chris being the person she was, especially with the often horrible way she treated the other social outcasts in Ewen High, and not just Carrie. But now her personality seemed to be getting even more sadistic, infuriated, self-righteous, sanctimonious, and ruthless than she had been before Carrie had suddenly disappeared, especially after she was punished for what she did to Carrie in the leadup to Carrie disappearing from Chamberlain. A few of the other students who were standing nearby, and even a few of the other girls in the Mortimer Snerds all looked at each other anxiously, or even winced a bit when they heard Chris say that.
"Oh, for goodness sake, just let it go, Chris. Just give it a rest for once. I think your personality and what we all did to Carrie is what caused her to disappear before last Thanksgiving." said one of the other girls who was standing close by and overheard her. Chris turned and looked towards the girl with an intense, almost murderous look on her face. The girl, and a few others around her, took a long step back, each fearful of what Chris might do.
"So, you too are suddenly on the side of that…that FREAK?! You know what?! Be on her side for all that I care!" Chris said, as she suddenly stormed off down the corridor, along with Tina and Donna in tow, along with a few of the other girls in the Mortimer Snerds who were still on her side. From where she stood with Tommy, Sue just watched, in a stunned, appalled silence, as Chris and some of the others disappear down the corridor. She just knew that, because she wasn't thinking clearly, Chris would end up doing something really stupid. Sue also feared what Chris might do to Carrie in revenge for ratting her out, if Carrie was ever found.
"You know, she'll end up getting herself into serious trouble of some form or another with that kind of personality. And she could easily hurt someone else in the process." Tommy said, quietly.
"Yeah, I think you're right, Tommy. I only hope that if Carrie is found, she'll get some form of protection from Chris' inevitable wrath. I dread to think what Chris may do to her." Sue said, with some concern for what might happen, should it come to pass. Secretly, deep down, a small part of Sue hoped that Carrie would never be found, so that she wouldn't be at the mercy of Chris Hargensen and what she might do to her.
"I know what you mean, Sue. Come on, we'll talk about this later. Let's get to our next class." Tommy said, as he put his arm round Sue's shoulders again, and they headed off down the corridor together.
Sue didn't know it at that moment, but the gym teacher, Rita Desjardin, had both heard and seen everything that had taken place in the last few minutes. She also had some concerns of what Chris might attempt to do in the future, and decided to keep a sharper eye on Chris Hargensen and some of her friends, just to be on the safe side. Making a mental note to speak with Sue later on when the chance came up, she turned and headed back down the corridor towards the gym, as she another class to do.
(Later that day, end of school; 3:00pm)
As soon as the bell rang, it meant the last class for the day had finally come to an end at last, and it was time for everyone to go on home. All the class rooms in Ewen High emptied out, and the students dropped off all the things their didn't need at their lockers, as well as picking up anything that they did need, closed their locker doors and headed out from school. In minutes, the area and stretch of road that ran in front of Ewen High School was abuzz with young students as they left and headed on home after another week of education. A few weren't heading off home at once, as they'd promised to meet up with their friends and socialise for a few hours before they went off home.
Tommy and Sue were among those who were gonna be out socialising with each other and their friends for a few hours before they went on home; having already sorted themselves out at their lockers, they met up and headed out through the front entrance doors. They had only just stepped out the doors and were heading down towards the sidewalk that ran along the main road, when they suddenly heard a very familiar voice coming from somewhere close to them.
"Hey, wait a moment there before you go home, you two!" And, on hearing that voice, both Tommy and Sue quickly turned round, and saw Rita Desjardin standing close to them. She stepped over to them; her arms were crossed, and she had a rather stern look on her face.
"Ms Desjardin…?" Sue said, somewhat anxiously.
"Is anything the matter?" Tommy asked, also feeling somewhat nervous.
"I think I should let you two know that I saw what happened outside the auditorium after the talk earlier on today, and Chris Hargensen's outburst." she said, as she stopped and glared from Sue and then to Tommy.
"Look Ms D…we're glad that we were able to attend the talk earlier today…and I've vowed never to bully anyone again…especially after reading the notebook Carrie left behind. It's just that Chris thinks that Carrie ratted her out for the things that were done to her so as to get back at her." Sue said, somewhat nervously, as Rita glared a hard glare at her.
"Maybe so, Sue…but at the same time, it worries me somewhat is that you're still friends with someone with such a vile personality like Chris. And, yes, I have been keeping a keen eye on her just as much as you and the others have been." Rita said, as she glared at Sue for a moment and then looked at Tommy.
"Look, Ms D…we're both shocked as you were on Chris' comments from earlier, and we're sure that everything that she's been saying in the last few days about Carrie being dead are wrong, even though she won't listen to reason from any sensible person." Tommy said.
"Well…just like you two, I'm convinced that Carrie is still alive too, and somewhere out there. I don't believe a word anyone says about her being dead, and I certainly take each news report about the latest in the case with a grain or two of salt. After all…you can't believe everything you hear in the news." Rita said.
"Yes, Ms D." Sue said, rather nervously.
They were all quiet for a few seconds, as Tommy and Sue looked towards their gym teacher, before Rita then spoke to them again.
"All right, you two…I'll see you both on Monday. Have a good weekend. And please tell me at once if Chris says anything about what she might do to Carrie or if she tries anything." And then without another word, Rita went past them and back into the school, leaving Tommy and Sue standing where they were.
"Yes, Ms D." Sue said, as Rita Desjardin turned the corner and disappeared from their view. The young couple were quiet for a few long moments, as Rita's words sank into their heads. Then Tommy, taking in a really deep breath, broke the silence between them.
"What do you think about what she said, Sue?" Tommy asked.
"Well…the one impression from all that I got is I maybe need to find some new friends, and to stay away far away from Chris." Sue said.
"Yes, I think that might be a good idea, but at the same time I think it might be wise to keep a closer eye on Chris and what she might try." said Tommy.
"I agree; after all, I do fear about all the horrible kinds of things that Chris might do to Carrie. So, on the one hand, one part of me does want Carrie to be found alive and well, and brought back home again…but on the other hand, I hope she isn't found, for her own safety" Sue said, with some genuine concern in her voice. The thoughts of what Chris might do to Carrie really disturbed her to no end.
"Yeah…me too. Come on, let's get out of here." Tommy said, and they set off on their way again to Tommy's car, which he had parked in the parking lot by the school.
(Meanwhile, on the Island of Sodor; local time 8:00pm)
After a long day of hard work on the railway, and then spending many of the time afterwards socialising with her friends at one of the restaurants in Knapford where they had gotten a really good dinner to celebrate a job well done, Carrie and her friends were making their way back along the streets and heading home after their day of hard work on the railway. Carrie was feeling very tired after such a long day and was looking forward to a good night's sleep that night.
For much of the day, ever since she had started work that morning, she had been working hard on the footplate of S.R. Schools Class 4-4-0 No.927 Clifton taking a passenger train from Knapford to Vicarstown first thing that morning, and then taking a special mystery rail-tour from Vicarstown in the afternoon, where they had gone along the Southern Main Line as far as the major rail junction located at Kildane. Once they arrived there, they were sent onto the main line that ran north through the centre of the Island of Sodor. It was the first time that Carrie had gone along the line since she arrived on the island, and she was amazed by the scenery she saw as they went along that double-tracked line. Many of the hills on both sides of the line, which reminded so many people of Wales, Northern England, or even parts of Scotland, were quite high with rugged and rocky formations to be seen on them in places. At times, Carrie saw the ruins of old buildings that sat on the lower slopes of some of the hills, as well as herds of goats and sheep as well on farmland along the way.
Passing by a number of stations along the way, including Abbey, Kirk Machan South, Kirk Machan, and Peel Godred, the rail tour, which was full of railway enthusiasts, made good time along the route, which often climbed gradients as steep as 1 in 75. Yet despite the difficulties of the terrain, which did slow them down a bit at times, they were able to get the train along the route and soon, after turning to the north-west at Peel Godred, they descended the more gentle gradients that led towards the Sodor Hospital and the busy junction at Heathfield. During the run along the Central Main Line, Carrie took turns stoking the boiler with the coal shovel, and she was able to do quite a good job of keeping the steam pressure up in the boiler, as well as spreading out the coal evenly in the firebox so that it would burn efficiently.
After passing by the station that served the Sodor Hospital, and passing the line that branched off to the Sodor Congress Centre, they soon reached Heathfield Junction, where they were forced to wait for their turn to go out while a number of other trains went on by them. Among the engines Carrie saw going by along some of the lines were No.4933 Himely Hall, who was heading north with a heavy fitted freight train made up of a variety of different box vans, as well as L.N.E.R. V2 2-6-2 No.60977 heading on southwards with a long train of coaches filled with passengers. Soon, with the points set and the signal showing the way ahead to be clear, the driver of Clifton blew the whistle and then opened the regulator, allowing them to be off on their way again.
It wasn't too long before they finally arrived safely at Knapford Station, where they came to a gentle stop at Platform 1. The doors of all the coaches were opened, and all the passengers, who were very pleased to have enjoyed such a pleasant trip on this train, disembarked from train. By this time, the clock over the platform showed the time as 4:45pm, and they had arrived right on time. By this time, Carrie as well as the driver and fireman were feeling very tired after their day of work, and were very eager to get back to the sheds to clock out for the day. Not long after they were uncoupled from the coaches, they made their way back to Tidmouth Sheds.
After having a hot shower, changing into clean clothes and clocking out for the day, Carrie made her way out and met up with her friends, as they had all agreed to head out to dinner that evening and socialise with each other after their long day of work.
Now though, with the evening drawing on and with them having finished dinner a while ago, the six friends were on their way back home again.
"That was a good dinner...I hope we can go back to that restaurant sometime in the future." Sophie said, as they walked along the pathway. She had been working on the Little Western line on the footplate of County of Devon for the whole day, where she had helped with stoking the boiler and keeping things in order as they were taking passengers and freight along the line for much of the day.
"I know...and maybe sometime we will. I really enjoyed that place too." Simon said. He was feeling tired as well, as he had been working on the footplate of Gordon for much of the day when the big blue engine had been taking one of the fast passenger expresses around the Island of Sodor.
"Yeah, me too. I think that was the best burger I've ever had." Saoirse said, as she yawned while covering her mouth. She had been working on the Little Western as well for the whole day, and with G.W.R. 72XX 2-8-2T No.7205, where she had helped in moving long lines of heavily laden trucks along the route for much of the day. So, by this time of the day, she was feeling very tired as much as her friends were.
One by one as they walked along, they all dropped out as they went by their respective homes, with each of them wishing each other a "Goodnight" and a "See you in the morning" before the rest of the group went on their way. Soon, only Carrie and Simon were left and they soon were walking up the front drive of the house Ralph White lived at. Ralph was inside the house with Simon's parents, with the three of them having had dinner there earlier on in the evening after they had gotten off work. Now the three of them were chatting together in the living room with the T.V. on and showing the news on one of the local news stations.
"Hello!" Simon called, as he and Carrie entered through the front door and stepped into the hallway, closing the door behind them.
"Hey there, you two!" the three adults called from the living room, as Simon and Carrie stepped inside.
"Did everything go okay at dinner with the others?" Ralph asked, as he looked towards the two teens.
"Yeah, it did. And we had a very good dinner too." Simon said, as he and Carrie came into the living room and sat down on the couch, pleased to rest their tired feet.
"I bet you two will sleep well this evening." Simon's father said, as he took a sip of his tea.
"Yeah, I guess we both will. And I'm really looking forward to relaxing for the weekend and recharging my batteries, before going back to work on Monday morning." Simon said.
"Me too. After the work I've done today...I'm just knackered." Carrie said.
"Well...get yourselves well rested for the weekend. It looks like you've both it." Simon's mother said.
"Yes, mother." Simon said.
"Anyway, there's tea and cake in the kitchen if you want something." Ralph said, as he indicated towards the kitchen. Turning to look at each other, Simon and Carrie nodded before they stood up and went into the kitchen.
(Later that evening, 11:25pm)
Having changed out of her clothes and into her comfortable pyjamas, Carrie was getting ready to turn in for the night. After such a long day of work, she was really eager to getting a really good night of sleep before meeting up with her friends the next day. By now, night had fallen and it was fully dark outside, with street lights doing their job of lighting up the streets and scenes outside. A few other lights from the different houses could also be seen, though the lights were being turned off one at a time as the occupants turned in for the night.
Stepping out from the bathroom, turning the light off behind her, Carrie heard sounds coming from outside. So, she went over to the window and pulled the curtains aside to have a look out. At the twin railway lines on the other side of the fence at the bottom of the garden, she could see a train passing by outside on its way northwards from Knapford. It appeared to be made up of a variety of different wagons formed into a mixed freight train that went steadily along the line. At this point, the engine hauling the train had already passed by, but Carrie could clearly hear it chuffing away and occasionally sounding its whistle as it went along.
Soon, the end of the train, with the brake van at the back, went on by, and soon things all over this part of the neighbourhood had quietened down again. Her curiosity now satisfied as to what the sounds were and stepping away from the window, Carrie closed the curtains and went over to her bed. Pulling the duvet aside, she slipped under it and rested her head on one of the pillows. After switching off the bedside light and pulling the duvet over herself, Carrie closed her eyes and fell into a deep and comfortable sleep at once.
(Meanwhile, back in Chamberlain, local time 6:30pm)
After Tommy and Sue had left their bags back at their respective homes and had changed out of their clothes and into something more comfortable, they both met up again and made their way together in Tommy's car down to the popular social places in the centre of Chamberlain, where they could get their dinner and socialise with their friends for the evening before they had to head off home later on.
Making their way down to one of the parking lots very near to the town centre, Tommy and Sue stepped out from his car and, after Tommy made sure his car was locked up, they made their way towards the restaurant where they would be meeting up for dinner with Freddy Holt and Norma Watson, Heather Shyres, and her boyfriend Brian Maxwell, as well as Tommy's two good friends George Dawson and his girlfriend Erika Gogan. The restaurant was a popular one with many of the teenagers in Chamberlain, particularly with the quality of the food it served there. Because of that, both Sue and Tommy went there to eat, either with their friends or each other on a regular basis, as did many of the other teenagers they went to Ewen High with.
"Good grief…I think I need a good dinner after the long school day that we've had." Sue said, as she and Tommy linked arms and walked towards the restaurant entrance, which was less than a hundred yards away from where they had parked.
"Me too…I think a really good dinner will be the best thing for us all right now." Tommy said, in agreement.
Making their way inside the entranceway, they saw their friends sitting around and waiting for them outside the entrance to the main part of the restaurant. There was some Western style country music being played from some small speakers that mounted upon the wall, and it helped to create a pleasant atmosphere for those who were coming in to eat this evening. There was also some cowboy and Texas memorabilia mounted upon the walls, as well as a map of the United States.
"Hey, Tommy, Sue, welcome there, you two!" George Dawson said, as he stood up from the chair he had been sitting on and fist-bumped Tommy as he and Sue came up.
"Hi there, George, Erika." Tommy said, as he fistbumped George.
"So,...are you both ready to unwind after today?" Erika said, as she gave Sue a quick hug.
"Yeah, I'm more than ready to unwind, Erika." Sue said, as she sighed heavily.
"Is what Chris said earlier on still on your mind?" Norma asked, as she and Freddy both stood up from the couch.
"Yeah, it is. Something tells me she's gonna end of doing something really stupid sometime in the future…though I don't know what it is." Sue said.
"Well…let's just let all of us keep a sharp eye out for her, and hope that she DOESN'T do anything that may get her either hurt or into some kind of serious trouble." said Brian Maxwell, Heather's boyfriend.
"Yeah, I think we should do that. Though I'm sure that it really wouldn't surprise us all that much if she were to do anything like that." Freddy said, and they all murmured in agreement with that statement.
"Considering what Chris has said about what she might do to Carrie if she's ever found and brought back to Chamberlain, I have my hopes that Carrie will be found, but that Chris will forget about what she'll do to her. At least those are my hopes." Sue said.
"I think we know what you mean by that, Sue. But I'm actually hoping that Carrie's never found before the graduation ceremony takes place in 2013...for her own safety, and the thought of what might Chris might do to her if she gets her." Norma said.
"Yeah, I think I understand what you mean by that, Norma." Sue said.
"Hey, come on, guys. Let's get inside, get a table, and get some dinner. Preferably before it gets too busy in there." said Heather, as she glanced into the restaurant, where only a few tables were occupied by other diners at this time. She was eager to get inside there and to one of the many vacant tables before it got too crowded.
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea to me. Let's get in there and get seated." Tommy said, and they turned round and walked into the restaurant. After the long day in school that they had all had, as well as the anti-bullying talk still fresh in their minds, they were all looking forward to sitting down and enjoying a good dinner together.
And there we are, everyone...the end of another chapter. This will be the only chapter I'll put up titled "Anti-Bullying "Talk", as I feel it'll be just repetitive to write more with that title. Also, as we've seen above with the way Chris acted after that first talk, well...it's quite obvious I think that she and those still loyal to her will never find any sort of redemption for what they did to Carrie.
