“He shoved you?” I asked, my voice tight.

“Yeah. Tried to knock me into one of the columns in the cafeteria.”

Blood roared in my ears. “He shouldn’t have done that. But you’re right, that doesn’t mean you should’ve punched him.” There was a grunt behind me, and I wasn’t sure if Griffin was siding with me or with Will. I turned to the principal. “What are we looking at here?”

Mr. Henry gave Will and me a gentle smile. “It’s an extreme situation. But we have a zero-tolerance policy for violence.” My stomach dropped. “Will is suspended for one week.”

I let out the breath I’d been holding. That wasn’t so bad. “What about Drew?”

Mr. Henry’s jaw hardened. “We also have a zero-tolerance policy for bullying. Drew is also suspended for one week, and he’ll have mandatory sessions with the school counselor for the remainder of the year. Possibly to be continued when we return in the fall.”

“Was anyone else involved?” Griffin asked, but it wasn’t directed towards Mr. Henry; he was looking at Will.

Will shrugged. “No one else said anything, really. Just laughed.”

A muscle along Griffin’s jaw ticked. “You did the right thing, Will.”

“Griffin,” I hissed. “He should not be punching people to solve his problems.”

“Sometimes, there’s no other choice. They would’ve given him hell for the rest of the year if he hadn’t stood up for himself, defended himself. Now, they’ll all know to keep their mouths shut and their hands to themselves.” Griffin turned to Will. “But if you’re man enough to stand up for yourself, you’re man enough to deal with the consequences. The ones from school and whatever your sister decides for at home.”

Will nodded solemnly. “I’ll do what I have to.”

My head ping-ponged back and forth, looking from Griffin to Will. When had this happened? And as irritated as I was at Griffin for telling Will that punching some kid was the right move, especially in front of the principal, I couldn’t argue with his reasoning.

I sighed and looked at Mr. Henry. “Sorry about…” I wasn’t even sure how to finish that sentence.

Mr. Henry’s lips pressed into a firm line as if he were trying not to laugh. “Don’t be. You’re raising a good young man there. We all have our moments where we have to take a stand.”

“Thank you. We’ll be back next week.” I pushed to my feet, heading out of the office. “Come on. Will, you’re going to have to ride home with Griffin. I have to go back to work. If I haven’t been fired for bailing on them so much this month, that is.”

Griffin grinned, shaking his head. “You’re not going to be fired. You’re too good at what you do.”