"I told you, there's nothing to do tonight. We'll ask Jennifer tomorrow. She said she's coming to the all-hands meeting, right?"
"Yeah... I guess I'm just still a bit shocked. She way she turned right at us and winked... It was like she could see us."
"Well, I can tell you for sure, there's no camera in that room. I gave it a good search."
Veronica, now wearing my hoodie, leaned in and kissed me.
"The ferry is coming over tomorrow afternoon, then we're all going to leave you all alone over break. Are you going to be able to survive?"
"Well, I can't say I won't be waiting for you to come back. It's going to be awfully boring without you in town."
"Feh. I'm not the troublemaker here. I'm just a simple quiet small-town librarian."
"Ok, Miss Delusional, I've seen your little fetish librarian get up." She smiled a warning at me. "You said you have to get home, so get home. Otherwise, I'm not going to be able to keep myself away from you."
"You're sweet."
I advanced on her.
"Back! Back! Do I need to get a newspaper and bop you in the nose?" She giggled and skittered toward the door. "Don't let it go to your head, but I'll miss you, too."
I leaned forward, and she gave a mock threatening scowl. I gently kissed her on the nose. "Shoo."
Her scowl vanished in a cute little smile. "'Kay."
And with that she snuck out the door into the darkness. I kept the porch light off, but who knows if anyone was paying attention. Hell, maybe there was another camera trained on my front door. Thinking in that direction wouldn't lead anywhere healthy right now. So, I went to bed, a tired, but very satisfied man.
***
The alarm woke me up much earlier than I was ready for, but I dragged myself into the shower and off to work. I had run two days in a row, so it was a good idea to take a day off, but I thought it would be nice to balance things out with an upper body or core day. A town our size probably didn't have a gym, but maybe I could use our athletics center. As I walked to the office, I thought that might be a good idea to work off some of my excess energy that I was sure to have with Veronica gone.
I was still plenty early for the meeting with the Board of Directors, but when I came into the office, I saw Kimberly on the phone wearing a clouded expression. I stood in her doorway to let her know I was in. When she saw me, I started to head toward my office, but she held up a finger to hold me there.
"Yes, ma'am. I understand. I think it would be best to have all of that in writing... Yes, ma'am. Of course, of course... I'm more than happy to relay... I do think it would be best if you speak to him... Yes, ma'am, he's here... No, ma'am, not as early as I do... Yes, I'll transfer you to him... Yes... thank you... Yes, just one moment."
She put her partner on hold and hung up the phone.
"That was Dr. Cline. She's the Chairwoman of the Board of Directors. They've canceled the full meeting with you today, but she's been authorized to respond to your proposals on their behalf." She looked at me carefully. "This is very strange. They've never made decisions like this before. She's one of the members who supported you most, but I'm not sure what this means."
"Ok. Strange. I shouldn't be surprised. Thanks!" I headed to my office as Kimberly patched her through.
I was able to pick up the phone on the second ring as I sat down in my giant chair.
"Dr. Cline? This is Ben Lee." I tried to sound chipper and optimistic.
"Mr. Lee." The voice was unemotional, very hard to read. I wished I could see her eyes. "It is good to speak to you again. We didn't get much of a chance to talk during the interview. How are you finding things over at Bright Hall?"
"It's a wonderful place. There is so much potential here. Plenty of things that I would like to see improved, but I know we can do great things."
"I am pleased to hear that. I am unable to guarantee that the future will be smooth for you, especially with the changes you are already proposing. There is a significant amount of... inertia there in Bright Hall."
"I've heard similar things from a few different corners, but everyone has been vague." I didn't know how much I should push this, but I had to at least try. "I don't suppose you could enlighten me?"
"Not to the degree you might prefer, I am afraid. Of course, the town itself is very conservative, and you will need to keep a good relationship with them. We have also had some personnel issues in the past, but I am unable to speak to those in any detail. And to be candid, there are some problems, particularly financial problems, to which we still have no answers. In any case, my time today is limited, so I think we should get straight to your proposals. The board has read the materials you sent, and has made recommendations, but I would like to hear your thoughts before I issue our decisions."
She stopped without asking any questions, so I just started to talk on general principles.
"Bright Hall has been an excellent school in the past, but for whatever reason or reasons, things have become challenging in the past several years. While there are financial difficulties, the problem doesn't seem to be financial at the core. The way I see it, a few years of regular enrollment will put the ledgers right, although it will cost money to turn things around. The actual problem in my view seems to have been one of conflict among the faculty, staff, and even the student body, and a fundamental lack of direction. I think this problem has been largely, but only temporarily, alleviated by the staffing shakeup and rehiring. I am very pleased with the core staff and faculty I currently have. We still have a couple of openings, but right now, I am confident we have a strong foundation we can build on. I should say that a great deal of this is thanks to Kimberly Adams. Her insights and judgement have been indispensable to me on numerous occasions. She deserves more than the promotion I have given her."
The voice coolly interrupted. "Kimberly Adams... You have promoted her?"
"Yes. We're still working out the details. She'll be something akin to a dean at a larger school. Do you think that is a bad idea?"
"That level of decision is yours to make."
"So, you think it's a bad idea. I would welcome your thoughts." Was this a test, or was there really a problem?
"Please continue your general comments."
Slightly knocked off my rhythm, I tried to concentrate. "So... With a strong faculty and staff, I think the next priority is to refocus the entire school on the students. My impression is that some students feel neglected, and to be frank, I was quite disturbed at how much of the educational and athletic facilities of the campus had been shuttered and neglected. The only building that has been kept up to date and fully functioning is the administration building. That's a very bad look.
"This is part of the rationale behind the proposal to become Bright Hall Academy, a women-only school. By rebranding and narrowing our focus, we can double down on our reputation as a retreat for thoughtful, intensive study, and for producing exceptional women. We want to be not just a school that students choose because they aren't ready for college, but a school that students choose instead of college.
"My hope is that the attention we get by making this change will drown out the current ambivalence that has been growing about our reputation. It's risky, of course, and expensive, too. The remodeling and renovation have already begun, and the rebranding will not be cheap. Also, we will temporarily lose tuition income from the loss of male students."
I wasn't sure how much she wanted to hear, but then I realized she had most of the information already. She probably just wanted to hear me talk to get a better idea of who she had hired.
"I can go into more detail about the thinking that led to these choices, but you have most of the specifics in front of you already. I would rather answer any questions you have."
"Very well. I have one question that isn't covered in the information you sent. Please explain your thoughts about the uniform. Realize, of course, that the uniform is not something about which the board can make decisions. I am simply... curious."
That was certainly a question out of left field. "Sure, I personally am not a big fan of the uniforms at all, but I am persuaded that the tradition is of real value. In all honesty, I think if we are going to have a uniform, it should be completely redesigned from the shoes up for the comfort and pride of the students, and I plan to look at that option soon. All that said, I have asked Kimberly to look into ways we can make the uniform more suitable and hopefully less expensive as it is."
"I would recommend you look into who runs the clothing store that provides our uniforms."
I was taken a bit aback. "Thank you. Is this likely to be a problem?"
"Possibly. But perhaps your Dean Adams can solve it for you."
There was a lot to unpack in that sentence, and I wasn't sure how to respond.
"Do you have any questions before I inform you of the decisions of the board?"
"I am curious as to why our meeting this morning was canceled. I would like to meet as much of the board as I can."
"Oh, it was just a confluence of several small logistical issues. Herding cats."
