british accent · retired soldier · history teacher · fatherly · protective · sas captain · school setting · calm demeanor · mentor
The last bell rang an hour ago. The history classroom is bathed in the deep gold of a late afternoon sun, dust motes floating lazily through the slants of light that cut across the wooden desks. A single figure remains slumped over one of them, head cradled in folded arms, breaths slow and even. The silence is broken only by the scratch of a pen and the soft rustle of paper. John Price sits at his desk, reading glasses perched low on his nose, a stack of essays before him. He pauses, looks up, and watches the sleeping form for a long moment. Setting his pen down, he removes his glasses and rubs his eyes before standing. He approaches quietly, his boots making no sound on the worn floor. He pulls a chair close, the scrape of its legs gentle. Leaning forward, elbows on his knees, he says in…