“Have a nice day at school today, Nathan,” my mom said just before I left for school that morning. I hopped onto the school bus that waited for me at the end of the driveway, and I sat down in the back of the bus. I had my last test of the year today: a vocabulary test in Biology. As I ran my fingers through my brown hair, I remembered what the headmaster had announced in assembly earlier that week. He said that the valedictorian of the eleventh grade class would be recognized at the Final Awards Assembly two days from today. Other than me, the only other student with all A’s was Steven Walker, a short, studious kid who participated in almost every extracurricular activity available to him. The valedictorian would be either Steven or me, and I knew that the biology test would determine which of us would receive the accolade at the Final Awards Assembly. However, I hadn’t studied for this test. I had gotten home at 9:30 the previous night from a track meet, and by the time I had finished my homework for all of the other classes the clock had struck midnight. Although Steven had recently been struggling in Biology, today the likelihood of me performing better than him on the test was not very high. I knew that I had to do better than Steven at any cost.

The bus came to a screeching halt and I got off. As I entered through the school’s tall double doors, I stopped and looked to my left. There on the wall was a long marble plaque bearing the names of all of Jefferson High School’s eleventh grade valedictorians since the year 1971. I ran my thumb over all of the engraved names until my thumb finally reached a smooth spot next to the year 2015, a blank spot that would be filled either by the name Steven Walker or Nathan Snyder. I would do anything to have my name engraved on the blank spot.

At 2:00 pm the bell rang, signaling the beginning of the biology test. I walked into the spacious biology classroom with a pencil, an eraser, and no knowledge of the vocabulary that would be on the test. Dr. Kevin, my biology teacher, was a tall and skinny old man who had been teaching science classes at Jefferson High School for nearly three decades. He handed me the test and wished me good luck. I quickly wrote down my name and the date, and began the test. I had no clue about any of the first ten questions. I tapped my fingers on the table and scratched my head, trying to jog my memory so that I could at least answer a few of the first questions, but nothing came to my mind. I glanced at Steven, and I saw him flying through his test. He was already on the second-to-last page and I hadn’t even answered a single question. I squeezed my pencil as hard as I could, but I couldn’t think properly. Time was ticking away. I had to do something about this. I couldn’t just sit idly in my chair for the entire forty-five minute period. I needed a break. I asked Dr. Kevin for permission to get a drink, and I left the room.

I walked down the narrow hallway with doors leading to other science classrooms on both sides. When I reached the water fountain at the end of the hallway, I bent down and let the cold water flow down my parched throat for ten whole seconds. I stood up, and I felt like I could think clearly again. I wiped my mouth with my sleeve and closed my eyes. What could I do? How could I get out of this mess? How can I do better than Steven on this test? Then the idea suddenly hit me. I could sneak downstairs, look at my biology notes in my locker, and then come back to the test equipped with enough knowledge to score at least a 90%. I turned around and headed downstairs. I inspected the Lower Commons to see if there was a teacher wandering around. After seeing only a few students busy on their computers, I quietly tiptoed to my locker.

I reached out to unlock my locker, but something held my arm back. Wait. Was this the right choice? What if someone catches me? What if my plan ends up doing more harm than good? I stepped back and looked straight ahead at the school’s entrance. Above the tall double doors was the school’s motto. A wide, wooden board read, “Respect. Responsibility. Honesty.” The last of the three words echoed in my head. I had asked Dr. Kevin for permission to go and get a drink, not to come down to my locker. He must be wondering why I was taking so long to return to the classroom. I almost turned to run straight back to the classroom, but then I shifted my glance to the right, and I saw the marble plaque with all of Jefferson High School’s eleventh grade valedictorians. Then I remembered my goal. I couldn’t let Steven take the blank spot underneath last year’s valedictorian. That blank spot had to bear my name, Nathan Snyder.

I clutched the handle of my locker with my sweaty fingers. I slowly opened the locker and searched for my biology notebook. I pulled out my dark green biology notebook from the bottom of a tall stack of other textbooks, binders, and notebooks. I hesitated one last time. “Wait,” a voice said inside me. “You can still turn around and go back to the test. It’s not too late.” “No,” another voice said inside me. “Just open the notebook and your name will be engraved at the entrance of the school forever.” I looked up at the large clock near the Lower Commons, and I saw that I had already spent five whole minutes thinking about whether I should or should not cheat. I quietly opened the notebook to the last page, where I had defined all of the vocabulary terms. I quickly scanned all of the words, closed the notebook, and shoved it under all of my other books.
I sprinted upstairs to the biology classroom as fast as I could, and I entered the room panting. I expected Dr. Kevin to ask me what took me so long, but thankfully he did not notice me coming in because he was busy answering another student’s question. I sat down, took hold of my wooden pencil, and scribbled in the answers for all of the questions on the test. I sat back in my chair, satisfied with the results that I was going to get. But then I sat up and noticed that there was a last page. With two minutes left until the bell would ring, I flipped the page, expecting another question. But instead, I found something completely different. The bold, italicized letters read, “I have not cheated in any way or form on this test.” Below these words was a line where I was supposed to sign my name. I began sweating again. My fingers trembled. If I signed my name, I would be lying. If I didn’t sign my name, I would be accused of cheating. I was trapped. There was no way out. I grasped my pencil, and dug the tip of my pencil into the paper as I reluctantly signed my initials. Without even looking over my test, I handed it to Dr. Kevin and left.

I exited the school doors, entered the school bus, and slept throughout the journey home. When I woke up, I could see my brick house from the window and the bus was stopped. I sluggishly picked up my backpack and sauntered down the driveway to the front door. My mom asked me how the biology test went. I responded, “It was fine.” I completed the rest of my homework and went to sleep early that evening.

The next day I got my test back. Biology class was just before lunch, and Dr. Kevin entered the classroom with the stack of graded tests in his hands. I was the last one to get my test back. When I was handed the test, I closed my eyes and flipped directly to the back page, where Dr. Kevin always wrote the test grade. I opened my eyelids and saw “A+” circled in green pen. I was so relieved. I smiled and I could feel my blood flowing through my body again. I gave a sigh of relief before glancing at Steven. His head was in his hands and his face was red. He appeared to be crying. I walked past him and I caught the grade on the back page of his test out of the corner of my eye. The letter “C” was circled, and below the grade Dr. Kevin had written, “See me after class.”
I held back my emotions until I exited the classroom. I jumped in joy and elation. This was exactly what I wanted. I knew that my choice to look at my biology notes during the test was the right decision. As I walked by the marble plaque at the entrance of the school, I ran my thumb along the empty space next to 2014, and I could almost feel the texture of my name. Nathan Snyder would be engraved on this plaque. Not Steven Walker.

The next day we were solving equations in math class when my math teacher Mr. Champ came up to me and informed me that the headmaster wanted to see me in his office immediately. As I exited the math classroom and walked down the hallway that led to the headmaster’s office, I straightened my tie and my collar. I made sure that my shirt was tucked in and I tied my shoelaces. The headmaster was probably going to personally congratulate me on my academic success. I was sure that he was going to let me know that I was going to be the valedictorian of the eleventh grade class.
I knocked on the wooden door, and I heard the headmaster say, “Come in.” I entered his large office and sat down in a wide leather armchair. Behind the headmaster’s desk was a long table that was entirely covered by stacks of paper. The freshly painted walls had framed pictures of the headmaster’s family, and the large windows allowed copious amounts of natural light to penetrate into the office. I looked at the metal nameplate on his desk, which read, “Mr. Johnson. Headmaster of Jefferson High School.” “How are you doing?” Mr. Johnson asked.

“I’m doing well,” I responded.

“Good. How was your biology test yesterday?”

“It went very well, and I got a very high grade on the test.”

“Did you study quite a bit for the test?”

I thought about the question for a second. “Well, I didn’t really study very much for this test.” Now I knew I was trapped. I had to come up with some excuse. “I had a pretty good understanding of the material, though.”

“Really? Is that why you needed to come downstairs during the test?” The headmaster responded.

My knees began to tremble. The conversation was not going how I had anticipated. How did he find out about what I had done?

My breathing quickened. “Oh, I just wanted to get a drink of water.”

Mr. Johnson said in a serious tone, “Well, let me stop beating around the bush. A student saw you reading through biology notes from your locker around 2:15 yesterday, which was right in the middle of your biology test. Can you please explain this?”

Beads of sweat began to form on my forehead. I could feel my face turning red. “No, no. That is not true, Mr. Johnson.”

“Nathan, you know that any form of dishonesty is strictly prohibited at this school, right?”

“Yes sir,” I answered nervously.

“There is a limit to how dishonest one can be. First, you went downstairs to look at your notes when you asked Dr. Kevin for permission to get a drink. Next, you signed the back of your test, saying that you did not cheat on the test even though you did cheat. Now, you’re lying to my face in my office.”

I could almost feel tears bursting out of my eyelids, but I held them back. I muttered, “I’m so sorry, Mr. Johnson.”

“Well I’m really sorry as well because the administration and I have met and made a decision about your punishment.”

My stomach tightened. I held my breath. I thought about the valedictorian award slipping away from me like sand through my fingers. What was he going to say next?

“I am deeply sorry to tell you this Nathan, but the administration has decided to expel you.”

My eyes remained glued on Mr. Johnson’s face, and every muscle of my body was taut. I was shocked. This couldn’t be true. This just could not be true. How could merely looking at my biology notes dismiss me from the school? I cleared my throat before responding, “No, no. Please reconsider your decision. You can’t do this to me. I was desperate to win the valedictorian award, and my blind ambition led me to cheat on the test. I will never cheat again. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry-”

“Nathan,” the headmaster interrupted. “We have made our decision, and our decision is final. I feel more sorry for you because you were an excellent student, but your greed led you to sacrifice your integrity for just a few extra points on a biology test. After the Final Awards Assembly later this afternoon, remember to collect all of your belongings before you walk out of the school for the last time. You are dismissed from my office.”

I attended the Final Awards Assembly that afternoon as expected, but something was different. Up until then, I had imagined Mr. Johnson announcing my name as the valedictorian of the eleventh grade class. I had imagined myself already preparing to stand up before the name of the valedictorian was announced, and then walking across the stage with a smile to collect my award. However, when the time came to announce the name of the valedictorian, I closed my eyes and cupped my hands over my ears. I knew that there was not even a chance that my name would be announced after what I had done. Even after pressing my fingers as hard as I could over my ears, I could still hear “Steven Walker” echoing throughout the auditorium.

Just prior to walking out of Jefferson High School for the last time in my life, I paused and walked over to the marble plaque. I looked at the space that would have been filled by my name, and I found someone else’s name. Steven Walker’s name had been freshly engraved on the marble plaque. As I ran my sweaty fingers over Steven’s name on the cold marble plaque, I could feel tears welling up in my eyes, but this time I did not try and hold them back. I let the tears of regret roll down my cheek as I sat on a bench just outside of the school’s entrance.

If only I could undo what had happened. Why did I choose to cheat? Were those few biology points really worth that much? No. I knew that my honesty and integrity were worth far more. I wanted another chance, a chance to restart high school with a clean slate, but I had learnt my lesson. I would not cheat again. I realized that if I wanted to achieve something in life I would have to be able to overcome all hurdles without taking shortcuts or cutting corners.