On the Bare Read Online Free Page B

a little. ‘I’m sorry, sir,’ she mumbled. ‘It – erm, just slipped out. I’ll be more careful, sir.’
    ‘Yes, indeed, Rutherford. You certainly
will
be more careful. You will need to be. And to drive the point home, I think you would benefit from some corner-time to think about it. In the corner, hands on your head, nose against the wall.’
    Her eyes bulged, but she made no move to obey.
    ‘You heard me, Rutherford. In. The. Corner!’ He pointed to the vacant corner to the left of the blackboard and Amelia had a sudden image of herself standing there in disgrace, all her 1950s classmates sniggering behind their hands at her. And that wasn’t all. The cameramen at the back of the room, the ones who had all but blended into the walls, would be capturing it all on film for everyone – her friends, her boyfriend, her
real
teachers and classmates – to see. And laugh at.
    No way.
    ‘No fucking way,’ she said with calculated defiance.
    Mr Jones looked as scandalised as a genuine 1950s teacher would have been. Clearly he hadn’t been expecting that. ‘I beg your pardon!’
    She made herself smile, the glacial smile of a Hollywood femme fatale. ‘Oh, you don’t have to beg, sir. Just ask nicely.’
    The stunned silence that fell over the classroom was a satisfaction beyond anything Amelia had ever known. For that moment she was queen of the world. Unfortunately, a moment was precisely how long it lasted.
    ‘This is disgraceful, Rutherford. Quite unprecedented behaviour. But if you won’t take your punishment from me you can take it from the headmaster. I’m sure you know what that means.’
    She did. The realisation hit her like an ice bath, but she swallowed her panic and looked at her fingernails as though unfazed. There was nothing for it now but to play to the crowd. ‘Whatever,’ she sighed.
    Mr Jones strode to his desk and took out a sheet of paper. He calmly wrote out a note and folded it. Several pupils shifted uneasily in their seats. Amelia saw Hedy trying to catch her eye, but she didn’t dare look. If she faced anyone they would see her coolness for what it was: false bravado. The only way she could save herself now was to maintain her dignity and go to her fate with aplomb. Or at least the illusion thereof.
    For a moment she wished Edward would leap to his feet like Tom Sawyer and gallantly offer to take her place. Then she pushed the cowardly thought away and slid carefully out of her desk, smoothing her skirt down with forced nonchalance as she stood up. A fever-hot blush rose in her cheeks but she maintained her haughty demeanour as she snatched the note from Mr Jones and flounced out into the corridor.
    As soon as she was away from the others she sagged against the wall and released a long shuddering breath. She was shaking all over, her heart pounding as she took in what had just happened, what she’d just done.
    Stiff upper lip
, she told herself, painfully aware of the cameras she wasn’t meant to notice.
    She wasn’t afraid of the cane. Not really. Yes, she’d heard stories about it, but it couldn’t possibly be as bad as all that when all the old comic strips and cartoons made such fun of it. Besides, the hideous skirt would offer plenty of protection. The knickers would have provided even more padding, but honestly – how bad could it be? She was far more concerned about the humiliation of everyone knowing what was going to happen. Every single person in Queen Mary’s College and every viewer out there in the real world.
    As she made her way to Mr Chandos’s study she did her best to ignore the cameraman pacing her and trying to get close-ups of her face. She tried to imagine what the viewers would be seeing. The voyeuristic public would want to see her nervous, worried, fretting. Biting her nails and then pleading with the headmaster to let her off. Regretting her actions. Well, she wasn’t going to give them that satisfaction.
    Her stomach fluttered with dread, but she