Slammed

Lake prepares for her date. Her mother reminds her not to eat garlic or onion and to use protection. In a serious tone, she shares three questions for considering a relationship: “Does he treat you with respect at all times?”; “If he is the exact same person twenty years from now that he is today, would you still want to marry him?”; and “Does he inspire you to want to be a better person?” (37).

Lake goes outside and insists that Will pick her up; laughing, he reverses from his driveway into hers. Will tells Lake that they don’t have time to eat out, instead presenting her with a grilled cheese sandwich and soda. Will dislikes small talk, so they eat and play “would you rather.” Lake is pleasantly surprised by the unexpected nature of the date and is happy when they hold hands. They arrive at Club N9NE, and Will explains that the club is holding a slam poetry competition. Lake is impressed by the emotive, eclectic performances. She begs Will to perform, and he recites a piece about the death of his parents. Lake is saddened to learn that his parents were killed in a car accident and that he is Caulder’s sole guardian. The pair hold hands when Will returns to the booth, kiss, and then leave. They hold each other outside of Will’s car before they drive home. Later, Lake and Will kiss and say they will miss each other the three days that Will is away. Lake tells her mother that she loves Michigan.

Lake wakes up on Monday morning, nervous for her first day at her new school. She drops Kel off at his elementary school and arrives at her own school. She is excited to see Will that night, and her math and history classes go smoothly. Lake makes a new friend, Eddie, in history class. Eddie urges Lake to change her schedule from B lunch to A lunch; Lake does so and proceeds to her English elective. She is shocked to run into Will in the hallway. Will is equally shocked and asks, “You’re still in high school?” (65).

Will says he and Lake need to talk later. They go into the classroom, where the other students call Will “Mr. Cooper”—as he is a student teacher. After class, Lake goes to the bathroom, locks herself in a stall for the duration of lunch and her final class, and then drives home.

In her driveway, Lake remains in her car and cries. Will arrives and gets into the passenger seat. Will chastises himself, as he assumed Lake was in college. He explains that he doubled up on classes to graduate early when his parents died. He is a student teacher for the next three months and will eventually become an official teacher at the school. Will asks Lake if she can change classes. Lake storms inside her house and cries herself to sleep. She wakes up at midnight and retrieves the purple hair clip that reminds her of her father, but it doesn’t make her feel better. She throws it aside.

Lake gets up, exhausted. At school, she tries to change her poetry elective with Will (Mr. Cooper) and is given a form for Will to sign. In his classroom, Will says it is unfair of him to make her switch classes and that perhaps her remaining in the class will allow them to redefine their relationship.

Later, Lake meets Eddie’s boyfriend, Gavin. In poetry class, Will agrees to recite a poem if the class agrees to perform at least one slam at Club N9NE. He doesn’t look at Lake throughout the class. At lunch, Lake meets another of Eddie and Gavin’s friends, Nick. Eddie and Gavin discuss who they should set Lake up with.

At the end of the week, Lake reflects on Will avoiding her the whole time. When she gets home, her mother is angry, having found out that Will is her teacher. Julia marches across the road when she sees Will pull in and confronts him. Will and Lake explain that they didn’t realize the situation until they ran into each other in Will’s class. Julia comes up with a plan for driving Kel and Caulder to school and back, which will minimize Lake and Will’s contact. Still, she agrees not to say anything to the school.

The next morning, Kel drags Lake out of the house to see a snowman he and Caulder made. The snowman died a dramatic death, as depicted by the two boys’ use of red Kool-Aid. Will has also been dragged out by Caulder. When Kel and Caulder run off, Lake apologizes on behalf of her angry mother. Will reassures her, but the air is awkward. Later, Lake heats up food for her mother and makes tea. She apologizes for not telling her about Will sooner. Julia is not angry but warns against foolish behavior.

Lake feels lonely and spends time sleeping when she is not at school. Eddie tries to set her up with Nick, but Lake isn’t interested, although she sometimes flirts with Nick when Will enters the classroom, hoping to make him jealous. Will tells the class about an assignment: They will write short poems for recitation the next day. Lake is staring at her blank paper when she looks up and meets Will’s eye; they stare at each other. She feels herself blush and knows she will think about the interaction for the rest of the day.

Lake’s car won’t start after school. She pops the hood and smacks the battery in frustration. Will arrives, warning her that what she’s doing isn’t helpful; he believes there is an issue with the alternator. Nick arrives, and Will agrees that he should give Lake a ride home. Nick stops at the elementary school to pick up Kel and Caulder; when he drops Lake off, he asks if she wants to go out with him, Eddie, and Gavin. Lake is evasive, saying she needs to ask her mother.

In the house, Kel and Caulder mischievously ask if Nick is going to be Lake’s boyfriend. Kel then says he saw Lake and Will kissing. Angry, Lake says he can never repeat this, and the boys are cowed. Later, Will arrives to pick up Caulder for bath time. Lake and Will go from room to room, growing increasingly worried, until they finally find the boys asleep in Will’s car. Will returns Lake’s keys and explains that he had someone fix her car’s alternator. She touches his neck to wipe off shaving cream and then leaves her hand on his chest. They look at each other. Lake suggests she could take the GED (General Education Development) test instead of graduating high school, but Will dismisses this. She says she will wait for him until she graduates. They kiss, and Lake pulls Will’s shirt off, feeling his stomach and chest. Will pulls her closer but then stands up, saying they can’t continue. He explains she can’t wait for him; he is raising a child and has too many responsibilities to prioritize her. Lake admits that she is falling in love with him. Will reiterates that she cannot. Lake, embarrassed and upset, leaves.

Lake remembers being told of her father’s death: She was taken out of a psychology class by her principal and saw her mother, crying. In the present, Gavin nervously presents a poem to the class about his love for Eddie. Lake feels angry that Will is attentively focused on everyone but her. For her presentation, she angrily yells synonyms for the word “mean.”

Eddie asks if Lake asked her mother about dating Nick; meeting Will’s eye, Lake tells Eddie to tell Nick that she would love to go on a date. Lake is the last to leave the classroom. Will tells Lake that she can send Kel across the road to his house for her date, emphasizing the word “date” angrily. Lake leaves. Later, Will finds Lake at lunch and asks to see her in his classroom. He apologizes for the way he spoke to her, and Lake feels confused. Eddie enters the room to return Lake’s backpack; she looks between a crying Lake and an angry Will with suspicion.

Lake and Eddie skip their next class. Eddie tells Lake that what she saw in the classroom didn’t look like a disciplinary talk; she assures Lake that she can talk to her about anything and tells Lake about her life between foster families. Lake confides in Eddie that she thinks her mother is in a new relationship.