The Ohso Project: The Recruit by Jeff Thomason (best ebook reader for surface pro TXT) đ
- Author: Jeff Thomason
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The Ohso Project
1: The Recruit
by Jeff Thomason
Drew had never been to the principalâs office before. He had always been a good kidâat least he considered himself suchâand he tried to stay out of trouble. But here he was sitting on a bench in the office waiting for his mom.
His mom. She would have been at a cooking class teaching a dozen other ladies how to make an angel food cakeâit was one of the more difficult recipesâand probably at the most delicate stage of the process when the phone call came so the cakes would be ruined when class had to be cut short. That, added to a meeting with the principal over her sonâs disruptiveness in class, was not a formula for a good day. Or a good mood.
âDonât worry about it. Your mom wonât be mad.â
His head jerked up. He looked for the source of the voice, but only saw one of the secretaries typing. Must have been my imagination, he thought. Hearing voicesâthat wouldnât help things.
âSince this is your first offense, Principal Bish will most likely go easy on you.â
He looked up again and once again saw only the secretary who was still typing faster than he had ever seen any mere mortal type before. He was amazed the computer could keep up.
âAre you the one speaking to me,â he looked down at her nameplate, âMrs. Lorraine?â
âI am,â she answered without missing a key.
âWhat if I get suspended? Thatâll go on my permanent record, and I wonât be able to get into a good college. Then I wonât get a good job, and Iâll have to go on welfare and be ashamed at my ten year reunion.â
âI wouldnât worry about any of that. I think your future is pretty bright. Brighter than even you can imagine.â
He sat there considering her words. Then something occurred to him, something he should have picked up on sooner. âHow did you know what I was thinking? About my mom I mean?â
âI could see the worry on your face.â
âOh.â He considered that. âBut how did you know I was worried about my mom and not about being in trouble or what my dad would say when he found out?â
She looked up and smiled while still typing. âYou are very perceptive, just as I suspected. Excellent! Excellent!â
Drew wanted to ask what that meant, but his mother walked in just then.
âOh, Drew dear, I must say that phone call was quite a surprise. I figured if a child can make it to the eleventh grade without getting into trouble, heâll probably make it thru graduation without a problem.â
Drew looked up at his mother unsure what to say. She saw the worry and disappointment in his eyes, sat down on the bench next to him, and put her arm around his shoulders. She lowered her head onto his.
âMrs. Charles, the principal will see you now.â
*****
Principal Bish sat in an executive leather chair behind a mahogany desk too large for the room. Behind her hung dozens of certificates and awards with dates ranging over the last fifty years. Each was custom framed and freshly dusted.
âMs. Charles, thank you for coming. I am very sorry for taking you away from your employment. I understand what an imposition it is. I wouldnât have summoned you if the matter werenât so serious.â
âItâs Mrs. Charles, and my childrenâs needs are more important than my day job.â
Bish peered doubtfully over her glasses. âYes, well,â she opened a folder, âas I said, this is a very serious matter. During first period, your son defied a teacher in front of the entire class.â
Mrs. Charles put her hand over her mouth as the corners raised, held it there for a moment, then lowered it and cleared her throat. âDefied?â
âDefied! Ms. Rowe was instructing the class on the topic of genetics. She was explaining that most of the genetic material found in the human cell has no function and was therefore termed âjunk DNAâ. Your son,â she glared thru his spectacles at Drew, âhad the gall to raise his handâinterrupting the lessonâand contradict her. In front of the entire class.â
Mrs. Charles turned to her son. âWhat did you say?â
He shifted in his chair. âI just explained that current studies have shown junk DNA does affect several cell processes and is not really junk but essential to correct cell function. Which only makes sense, because why would nature produce so much waste? Itâs not consistent with other things we know and observe.â
âAnd how did your teacher respond.â
âShe said that wasnât in the book, and we were to stick to the approved curriculum.â
âThere!â Bish poked a finger straight at him, âYou heard it for yourself: a full confession.â
âCorrect me if Iâm wrong, but to me it sounds like my son was simply trying to correct inaccurate information.â
âMrs. Charles, that book was written by a group of highly credentialed university professors and approved by the state board of education. I think they are a little better qualified to say what genetic material can and canât do than a mere high school student.â
âPrincipal Bish, science is always changing. How old was the textbook the teacher was using?â
Bish sat up slowly, taking a deep breath as she moved. âMrs. Charles, I did not call you down here to discuss the age of our textbooks. I called you down here, because your son displayed recalcitrant behavior by challenging a teacherâs authority in front of her subordinates. Respecting authority is paramount at this school.â
âReally? I thought educating our children with correct information was.â
Bish rubbed her forehead. âI see where your son gets his rebellious nature.â
âMiss Bishââ
âPrincipal Bish.â
âMiss Bish, it sounds like the wrong person is sitting in the principalâs office. Instead of harassing my son for trying to share a little knowledge he gained by learning outside of schoolâyes, some people actually take the initiative to read scientific journals and learn something on their own that isnât required by the stateâdonât you think you should be talking to Ms. Rowe about neglecting her duty by failing to stay up to date with the latest scientific findings and instead simply regurgitating the contents of a who-knows-how-old textbook to students who are capable of reading it themselves?â She stood up. âNow, if youâll excuse me, I have something productive to get back to. Come on, Drew.â
He stood up, and the two of them turned their backs on the fuming administrator and walked out the door. They took a few more steps before Mrs. Charles stopped and turned to look at her son. âDonât let any of this bother you, dear.â She ruffled his hair. âYou did nothing wrong. It was a misunderstanding, thatâs all.â She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. âIâll see you at home.â
Drew felt a great relief as he watched his mother walk out of the office.
âItâll be interesting to see how much effect the junk DNA actually has on genetics, inheritance, and cell function, wonât it?â
He turned and looked at the secretary. She was busy typing as usual and hadnât looked up. âYes it will be.â He opened his mouth to ask a question, but the bell cut him off. Time for lunch.
*****
âSo, are you going to be expelled?â Blake, one of his best friends, asked picking up his hamburger and devouring half with one bite.
âNo. My mom actually defended me. She wasnât mad at all. At least not at me.â
âReally? She always seemed so passive; so timid. I canât see her standing up to anyone.â
âYeah,â Trevor, his other best friend, added. âI donât think Iâve even seen her even disagree with anyone.â
âI havenât either, unless you count salesman or a billing department as people, then Iâve seen her go after them like a tiger.â
âReally? Your mom? Are you sure you arenât confusing her with a twin sister?â
âParents can surprise you.â
âAinât that the truth. Speaking of surprise,â Drew dipped a fry into a pool of fry sauce, liberally coated it, then popped it in his mouth, âhave you ever talked to the secretary in the office?â
âWhich one?â
âMrs. Lorraine. She seems to know things. Like, smart things.â
âLike how to type a letter or format a memo? Thatâs part of the job description.â
âNo, like intellectual things. Latest scientific discovery type things. She knew all about how junk DNA is a contributing factor in biological functions, including the transcriptional and translational regulation of protein-coding sequences.â He leaned closer and lowered his voice. âAnd I think she can read minds.â
Blake took another bite of his hamburger. âIsnât that another job requirement? That and being able to interpret chicken scratches?â
âIâm being serious. I think she can actually tell what other people are thinking.â
âWhy are you so interested in the secretary? Do you think sheâs hot or something?â
Trevor nearly laughed a mouthful of milk all over his tray. âDrew buddy, sheâs ancient. She has to be at least 30. Try looking for someone a little younger.â
âItâs not like that. Itâs ⊠well ⊠I always thought someone became a secretary, because she couldnât do anything else. But now Iâm not so sure. What ifâŠ.â He stirred his mixed vegetable.
âWho cares?â Blake finished his hamburger and licked his fingers. âSo what do you think will happen on Visitors tonight? Now that the granddaughter and the former queen are finally teaming up, the current queen is about to be in some very hot water.â
âI know. I canât wait! But there are still five episodes left, and you know theyâre going to drag the story out a few more weeks before the serious fighting begins.â
âYeah, thatâs one thing I liked better about the original miniseries. The plot was a lot tighter and the story didnât lose its momentum.â Trevor noticed Drew was still stirring his vegetables. âDrew? Earth to Drew, are you all right? Weâve been discussing Visitors for more than five seconds, and you havenât said a word. You havenât been abducted by them, have you? They donât have you mesmerized by their rapture do they?â
âHuh? Oh, no. I was just thinking.â
âDrew, sheâs still over 30 and still too old for you.â
âHa, ha. Very funny. Hey, Visitors is on tonight. Now that the granddaughter and the old queen have joined forces against the current queen, do you thinkââ
âAre you Drew Charles?â
He looked up to see an office aid standing over him with a handful of notes. âYeeees.â
He handed one of the notes to Drew, âSchool counselor wants to see you,â then walked away.
Blake put his hand on Drewâs shoulder. âWell, itâs been nice knowing you. But donât worryâyou can always get your GED. I hear there are one or two community colleges thatâll still let you in with one.â
*****
Drew had never been called to the school counselorâs office before. Ok, there was that one time when he had to update his fatherâs work number, but that only required speaking with the secretary. He wasnât sure if he had actually seen a counselor in person. He wasnât even sure which one he was
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