Class 10B hadnt had a permanent English teacher for ages. One went on maternity leave, another quit after just a month. When Miss Emily Hartyoung, composed, neatly dressedwalked in, the students exchanged glances. “Another one She wont last long.”
The first lesson was a test from the start.
“Right, open your exercise books,” she began.
“We didnt bring them!” someone shouted from the back. Laughter.
“Maybe introduce yourself before you start teaching?” another sneered.
“Very well. Miss Hart,” she said calmly. “And I”
“Miss Heart-attack!” a girl interrupted.
“Smells like your nans perfume, and those glasses look straight out of the 80s!” The laughter grew louder.
Someone played a donkeys bray on their phone. The class erupted. As she wrote on the board, a paper airplane hit her squarely in the back.
She turned around.
“Gonna cry and run off like the last one?” a boy whispered, just loud enough for her to hear.
Someone yawned dramatically and dropped a textbook. Others joined inbooks thudded, chairs scraped, and a tablet flickered with TikTok videos.
Then Miss Hart did something unexpected. She perched on the edge of the desk and spoke quietly, almost matter-of-factly. The room fell silent.
“I wasnt always a teacher. A year ago, I worked in a cancer ward for teenagers. Kids your age. Some just hoped to live long enough for prom. Books, poetry, even a conversationit all mattered to them.”
“A boy, 17. Osteosarcoma. We read *Pride and Prejudice* together because hed lost his voice.”
The class quietened.
“He held the book even when his hands wouldnt obey. He told me, I wish Id loved reading sooner. Now Id give anything just to sit in a normal lesson. No IV drips.”
The air grew heavier.
“A girl in the next bed dreamed of going to school. Just to sit in a real classroom. You lot Youre living their dream, acting like the world owes you.”
“I wont beg or scold. I know what this is worth. If you want to learn that tookeep going.”
She stood, straightened the pile of books, adjusted her glasses, and opened the register. Not another word was spoken for the rest of the lesson.
After that day, no one mocked her again.
