8:15

The words escape his mouth to an audience of shocked silence.
They are so threatening, so demanding, so invasive.
Their hearts beat and their breath grows stale within their quivering lips.
He stands at the front, a weapon in hand, demanding through silence.
Eyes look down.
They refuse to speak, to breathe, to blink, for fear of drawing attention to themselves.
The wall-clock ticks naively, unaware of the pregnant silence around it.
No, no, no they scream inside.
A cough from the corner.
The man submits to their refusals and looks to the heavens for relief.
“Lord, thank you for letting us be here at school today…”