"Please, Mr. Bingo, for the love of God!" I beg. "I'll do anything to pass your class!"
"Yeah, me too!" my classmate, Ariana, pleads. She's about my age, eighteen or so. She's black and a little heavy set. A beanie cap is sitting on her head.
Our professor, Mr. Bingo, is sitting in front of us with his feet on his desk. He's a wiry, balding man with liver spots on his head. Nobody's in the classroom but the three of us. Mr. Bingo takes off his glasses and gives us a wary look.
"If you're implying you'll sleep with me for a better grade, Ms. Dante, you'd better ask someone else," Mr. Bingo says to me. He puts his glasses back on. "I'm married."
"No! For the love of God, Mr. Bingo!" I say, exasperated. "That's not what I meant at all." Why does everyone think I'm willing to sleep with them? I never wear anything hotter than jeans and a t-shirt. Just because I'm curvy doesn't mean I'm easy.
Behind me, Ariana sighs loudly.
Mr. Bingo gets up from his desk and smiles at us. "Lucky for you two girls, there IS something you can do to improve your grades. A little 'extra credit assignment,' if you will. That is, if you're willing to do it."
"Oh, anything, Mr. Bingo," I say, relieved. "What is it?" Behind me, Ariana perks up.
Mr. Bingo's smile widens. He pulls a knife out of his jeans and tosses it on the ground between me and Ariana. Ariana and I look at it and recoil. We both turn to him and raise our eyebrows questioningly.
Mr. Bingo clears his throat. "The two of you fight. Whoever wins gets to pass."
Is this a sick joke? Does this guy honestly think we're going to fight each other to the death over our English grades? But the longer I look at Mr. Bingo, the more I realize he's serious. He smiles at us so wide, it cuts into his cheeks. He has the strangest look in his eyes.
I do need this class to get my diploma. I turn to Ariana. Ariana looks back at me.
And she dives for the knife.
I kick her onto her back, then jump on top of her. She yells and grabs me by the neck. I break free and punch her in the face. She bites me on the hand. I scream in pain. Ariana grabs me by the neck and throws me off her.
She gets up and runs for the knife. I get up and tackle her from behind. She tries to regain her feet, but I wrap my arm around her throat. Mr. Bingo watches us from his desk with sadistic glee in his eyes. I wonder if he's done this before.
Ariana breaks free for the briefest moment and bites me on the arm. I shriek and let go of her. She turns around and swings her elbow at my nose, breaking it. I fly backwards and collide with a desk. Me and the desk crash to the ground.
Ariana grabs the knife and charges at me, howling like a madwoman. I get up just in time and grab her by the arm. She tries to stab me, but I hold her back.
I try to force her to stab herself in the neck, but I only manage to get her shoulder. She yanks the knife out and swings it at my throat. I dodge backwards at the last second, and she only breaks the skin on my neck instead of shearing open the blood vessels inside.
Ariana tries to stab me again. I steal the knife and stab her in the arm, then punch her in the face. I rip the knife out of her arm and ram it into her chest. She makes a sound like a dying animal. I grab her arm and break it in one fluid move. With a gargled cry, Ariana pulls the knife out of her chest and tries to stab me again.
I get a hold of the knife and stab her in the stomach. She doubles over. I grab her and kick the knife, burying it in her stomach even deeper. Blood spews out of her mouth. I kick the knife again. This time, it goes clean through her back.
Ariana stiffens completely and collapses to the ground, dead on the spot. Blood pools on the classroom floor all around her.
I'm doubled over with my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. My wounds are all bleeding. I look at Ariana's corpse again. She's dead and it's my fault, just because I wanted to pass Mr. Bingo's impossible English class. What was I thinking?
Ignoring the blood, I sit down and bury my head in my hands. I'm so overwhelmed by what's just happened, I barely hear Mr. Bingo speaking at the front of the room.
"That's her, officer," Mr. Bingo says, pointing at me and the corpse. "I was just sitting here minding my own business, and those two up and started fighting each other. They're crazy!"
I look up. Mr. Bingo is standing at the front of the room, talking to a couple of police officers. When did the police get here? Did he call them himself? How many times has he done this before?
The cops march towards me and wrench me to my feet, holding me tightly by either arm. I stare at Mr. Bingo, incredulous. Mr. Bingo smiles back at me. I realize just how cold and calculating he really is.
But now, it's too late. The cops drag me out of Mr. Bingo's room and into the hallway, leaving Ariana's corpse and the bloodied knife behind. I'm going to jail (and probably hell, someday.) Mr. Bingo pokes his head out of the classroom and waves at us.
"So long, Ms. Dante!" Mr. Bingo says cheerfully. "Guess I won't be seeing you next week, eh?" He laughs.
Oh yeah. I hate him.