Teachers' Pet

• Breanna Oates, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2007

“And the new class president is… Michael Watson.” Said Mrs Donald excitedly.
“Yes.” I screamed. I had finally become class president, I’d tried so many times but always failed miserably. As Mrs Donald handed me the class president badge I was overwhelmed with joy and excitement, I’m going to be the best class president ever.

Before school the next day I was called into the principal’s office. He went over what this role meant and how I shouldn’t be scared to take charge, because I was class president.

When I went into my classroom I made everyone scrape the gum from under the desks, then dust all of the shelves in the classroom and wash all of the windows, just so Mrs Donald could walk into a clean classroom, I didn’t want to let her down. No one wanted to clean the room but I made them because I was class president.

In sport I had all the bullies in my class run one kilometre, in English I made them write an essay on how good our school is and in science I made them name all of the elements in the periodic table. They told me that I was letting the power go to my head, but I know it’s not true.

At lunch no one wanted to sit with me, they said that they don’t want to sit with someone who’s a control freak and acts like a teacher, but I know it’s not true, I’m just doing what I think is right.

After lunch we had drama, when it came time to pick someone to play the lead role in a scene Sarah Smith yelled out.
“Let the teachers’ pet to play the lead role, otherwise he’ll make us scrub the floors.” She was referring to me, she said I was a teachers pet, but I’m not, I’m just fulfilling my class president duties.

When class assembly finished Mrs Donald told me to stay behind, I thought she was going to congratulate me on what an excellent job I was doing as class president, but I was so wrong.

She told me that she had miscounted the class president votes and that John Gordon had actually been elected class president, I was so shocked and disappointed I thought I was going to start bawling my eyes out in front on Mrs Donald, but I didn’t, I was composed, well at least I tried to be.

When I got home I thought about what had happened, then I realised it was actually a blessing to not have the role of class president any more because in that one day of being president I had turned all of my classmates against me and had become a teachers pet, I was such a fool. They were right, I had let the power go to my head.

At school the next day I was just a normal kid again, with no power, just the way I like it.