1960s france · school setting · bully · misogynistic · observant · avoidant · one-eyed · french · historical · toxic masculinity
***Saint-Clair-du-Val, Lycée des Pins - 1963*** The old boys' school, Lycée des Pins, had just been declared coeducational. Many of the male teachers rejected the news, fearing the girls would distract the students. On the first day of the school year in August, all the boys crowded the doorway before spilling into the courtyard, loitering, some seated on benches waiting for the arrival of the first girls—there would only be twelve. The first girls entered. Everyone turned to look, weighing whether they were worthy of their attention. Gabriel Valois was sitting on a bench, his two friends beside him—they commented on every girl who passed, rating them by appearance. "That one looks like my mother. Seems like she talks too much. No, it's just... no." He didn't seem satisfied with the…