The New Kid

Monday morning at the local high school in Plainsville, USA, found the majority of its teachers huddled together in the teacher's lounge. The principal had just informed them about an instance of vandalism on school property over the weekend and they all had thoughts.

“Who would do such a terrible thing?” Norma Mullins, the school's music teacher and choir director, cried in horror.

“Such disrespect. It really is a shame,” remarked Carl Morgan, the economics teacher, as he shook his head solemnly.

Mary Gaunch, known by students and faculty alike as “the Grinch,” joined her fellow teachers in the lounge and headed straight for the coffee machine, silently fuming about the car troubles that had plagued her drive to school this morning. She was oblivious to her colleagues and their conversation, until Crystal Rhodes, the art teacher, nudged Mary to ask, “did you hear about the Pontius statue in the Commons? Someone smashed it to smithereens on Friday evening. Principal Braun stumbled across it when he was locking up after the big football game. He suspects it happened sometime after kickoff.”

Mary gasped, “What?! I can't believe it! That statue represents the founder of this school. What kind of idiot would destroy something so important?” she demanded, anxious to find a target for her anger.

“No one knows, but I'd bet it was the new kid. Have you heard about him?” Crystal started.

Ashley Barker, the psychology teacher, leaned in towards them, “Do you mean Zane Rossdale? He's in one of my classes...I hate to say it but I wouldn't be surprised to find out he was the culprit either.” The topic caught the attention of several other teachers.

“Zane? He's quiet, keeps to himself. He does good work but never participates in class.” George Carlin, the English teacher and head of the drama club, commented.

“He's not in any extracurricular activities,” added the Phys. Ed teacher, Ellen Morrow.

“His family is from California,” Phil Novak, the geography teacher, cut in with an eyebrow raise.

“He wears earrings and dyes his hair,” Ursula Montague, the history teacher, announced dramatically, “and I think he might have had on eyeliner last Tuesday...” Noisy chatter broke out among the group as everyone started talking at once. It seemed everyone had something to say about the new kid.

The only one who didn't chime in was the football coach, Matt Adams. Instead, he sat and listened to the other teachers as he sipped his coffee, nodding in agreement now and then, but otherwise remained quiet.

“What exactly is Principal Braun planning to do about this?” asked Mary, her voice dripping with disdain. Everyone was aware of her long-held belief that the principal was too passive to hold such an important authoritative position. She huffed when she received nothing more than a series of shrugs in reply. “That's it!” Mary declared, raising her voice to be heard above the others. “This kid is out of control. Something's got to change or he's going to infect the others, mark my words!” Red-faced, she stormed out of the lounge and down the hall towards her classroom. As she went, the students parted ways to avoid her, in a way that was very much reminiscent of Moses parting the Red Sea.

“May God have mercy on her students, ” Crystal muttered as the other teachers shared similar sentiments. While each one respected Mary as the teacher with the longest tenure at Fairmont High, they took pride in utilizing different methods.

As the day progressed, Mary's frustration grew until she eventually reached the boiling point when she got into her car after school and saw the new kid walking down the sidewalk. Her quick temper combined with a blinding sense of self-righteousness and she made the hasty decision to take matters into her own hands. She started her car, cursing after it took three tries, and followed Zane with the sole intention of catching him in a criminal act, one she was certain he would commit.

She trailed behind Zane undetected, thanks in part to the fact he was wearing headphones and listening intently to his music. They'd gone a couple of blocks when, to Mary's dismay, a strange smell started to seep through the air conditioning vents in her old Honda sedan. She quickly shut off the A/C and opened the window, coughing and waving her hand through the air. Her face grew warm and a vein in her forehead started to bulge as her anger reached new limits.

“Dammit, Bob!” She screamed, “you miserable drunk!! How about you put down the beer and FIX MY CAR! I've shelled out over a thousand dollars now, and for what?! I tell you if there was any other mechanic in this town I'd jump ship so fast it would make...” she stopped as she saw Zane disappear into the corner gas station. Ah, what are you going to do in there, you little punk? Steal something? Maybe use a fake ID to buy something you shouldn't? She thought as she pulled in to park at one of the gas pumps. She did her best to track Zane's movements through the glass front windows but couldn't see much.

Zane shopped quickly and left the store with a shopping bag in hand. Mary cursed under her breath at the missed opportunity and pulled out to trail him once again. Maybe I should have gone in after him, she thought, he's not in any of my classes, I doubt he even knows who I am. She continued to follow Zane for a couple more blocks before she saw him turn into the parking lot of the convenience store. This time she got out of her car and hurried to catch up with him as he neared the entrance. She was surprised to see that he didn't go in, instead, he stopped in front of Will, a homeless veteran who regularly panhandles on the premises.

Thinking on her feet, Mary grabbed her phone and pretended to make a call as she eyed Zane. Oh no, is he going to do something to that poor man? She couldn't believe her eyes when Zane pulled out a sandwich and a bottle of water from his shopping bag and handed them to Will. Studying their interaction closely, she could tell that this was not the first occurrence. She watched the two chat for a bit and wondered what they were saying before Zane turned and walked away. Will began to unwrap his sandwich with an unmistakable expression of gratitude on his face.

Mary's resolve faltered ever so slightly at the exchange but was not yet willing to abandon her mission. One act of kindness doesn't make up for destroying a beloved statue at our great school, she asserted as she got back into her car.

Mary trailed the boy for another three blocks while concocting various scenarios for the criminal acts he might commit at his next destination. Her heart sank when she saw him turn onto the sidewalk that led to the elementary school. Dear Lord, what is this hooligan going to do there?! Mary quickly scanned the front of the school and the parking lot for a statue or any other structure that Zane could smash, deface, or steal. Both her mind and heartbeat went wild as she noted the plethora of possibilities available to him.

Desperation got the best of her as she sped into the school parking lot and cut off a parent to snag the nearest parking space. Mary rushed from her car to the school, only slowing when she saw a young girl bound towards Zane and throw her arms around him. She narrowed her eyes and walked closer, this time she was going to hear what was said. Stopping directly behind Zane's back, with her cell phone in hand, she pretended to be occupied.

“Zane-y, Zane-y Zane!! I had so much fun at school today!! We got to draw a picture and then I ate lunch with my new best friend, Katie, and then I got a gold star for cleaning up my desk! It was AWESOME!!” The little girl chirped as she bounced around in an excited little dance.

“No way! A new best friend and a gold star?! That sounds like the best day ever! Mom and Dad are going to be so happy!!” Zane cheered, “Guess which snack I brought for you today,” he prompted, holding the shopping bag behind his back so she couldn't peek.

“What is it?” she asked, too excited to play the game.

“You have to guess,” he reminded her with a laugh.

“Umm...is it an apple?” He shook his head.

“Is it a banana?” She tilted her head and looked up at him for his answer.

“Nope, it's an orange!” He said, pulling it out of the bag and presenting it to her.

“Yum! I love oranges the most!” She grabbed the fruit from his hand. “Will you help me pull the skin off?” She requested with puppy dog eyes.

“Sure, I'll get it started and then you try what I showed you last time, okay?” He bent down and fidgeted with the orange. She struggled a bit at first but then was able to pull the skin off in its entirety. She moved to drop it on the ground. “Wait! We don't want to litter, do we?” He took the skin and put it in the now-empty shopping bag. “Let's get moving, we don't want to be late.” The two walked off while Mary jogged back to her car.

It wasn't long before they arrived at the YMCA. Mary watched Zane enter the building with his sister and then come back out by himself. Here we go! He's going to do something now! I can feel it! Just as she was pulling out of the parking lot, her car started to sputter. “No! Don't you dare do this to me!!” She shrieked and pounded her fists on the dash. In response, her car shut off and went silent. “Nooo!!! Not in the middle of the street! Come on!!!” She launched into an embarrassing fit that could only be rivaled by an over-tired toddler.

Zane exited the parking lot after dropping his sister at her gymnastics class and saw an old maroon Honda stalled in the middle of the street. Traffic was already starting to back up. Looking closer, he saw that the driver was a teacher from his school. He reached for her name, was it Mrs. Grunch? No...Mrs. Gaunch? Yeah, that's it. He hurried over to offer her a hand.

“Umm, excuse me? Mrs. Gaunch?” He said.

Mary whipped her head around to see who was addressing her and was shocked to see Zane standing by her car door. Huh? How does he know my name? “Uh...yes? Zane, is it?” He nodded and smiled warmly as she eyed his earrings and his spiky, lime green hair.

“I thought you could use some help. Mind if I look under the hood? I worked weekends at an auto shop back in California.” She stared at him wordlessly for a moment before regaining her composure.

“Why, no I wouldn't mind at all. Thank you, Zane.” She wasn't sure what to make of this sudden turn of events. Zane lifted the hood of her car and went to work while Mary remained behind the wheel, lost in thought. Her phone rang and brought her back to reality; it was Crystal.

“Mary! Hi! How are you?” Crystal chirped, her voice energetic as ever.

Mary let out a dry chuckle, “I've been better, Crystal. What's up?”

“I thought you'd want to know- we found out who destroyed the statue.” Crystal informed her.

“What?! How?! Who was it?” Even after all that had happened, Mary couldn't let go of the idea that Zane was the one who destroyed the statue.

“It was the coach's son, Abram, and his friends. Apparently, Abram and his girlfriend got into a fight, so she came into the office after school and told on him.” Mary felt dizzy as Crystal's words sunk in. The coach's son? Not Zane? But that means...

“Well, I'll be...” As if on cue, Zane slammed the hood of her car shut. Mary ended the call without saying goodbye to Crystal.

“Try it again, Mrs. Gaunch. It should start now.” He directed her. Grease covered his hands and marked up the front of his t-shirt. She did as he instructed and was thrilled when her car started on the first try.

“Oh my! Zane! I think you've fixed it!” Mary cried out, overcome with relief.

“Oh, it was nothing. I'm just happy I could help.” Zane gave her a goofy grin before looking down at his feet. He's bashful at my praise, she noted and was blessed with the realization of her mistake. I couldn't have been more wrong about this boy. She smiled at him.

“Thank you, Zane. You're a good kid. And hey, if you or your family ever needs anything, I'd love to return the favor.” He nodded and they said good-bye. She stared after him as he walked away.

Shaking her head, Mary put her car in gear and drove home, where the first thing she did was call Crystal back. “Sorry about that Crystal, I was right in the middle of something. I've actually got some interesting news for you. You know Zane, the new student we were all so worried about?... Yeah, he just saved my ass.” She laughed and relayed the story to her colleague, who, in turn, shared it with the rest of the staff. Needless to say, the faculty at Fairmont High grew to be a little more accepting of new students from that day on.