"I hate those stupid sluts!" I hear one of the boys say. A slam of a locker and then footsteps toward the exit from the gym then follow.
"I don't care anymore...she has changed since fifth grade you know D," the other boy says. I glance around the row of lockers. I see Derrick "D" Gladdys and Donny Baker, both seniors in my gym class, head out to the basketball courts. Before they open the door, Derrick stops Donny. "You know that she needs to be taught a lesson, she is such a slut."
"I don't want to talk about it anymore, D!" Donny says with a stern face. Upset, he opens the door and heads out, Derrick close behind him.
From teaching at the school since I graduated college five years ago, there is one thing I've learned. The geeks and nerds of the school have much harder time than any school I've ever grown up in. Derrick and Donny are referred to as the "Double D's", not because both their names starts with the letter D but because it stands for "Dickless Dorks." I couldn't help but laugh a little when I heard it first explained to me by a jock my second year.
Apparently the name had been thought of in middle school after some prank and has followed the poor boys since then. Now, both 18, they would probably only be able to shake the name when off to college next fall.
Hearing the gossip from students and teachers, it's my understanding that "D" and Donny had been best friends with a girl named Terri. She used to play their games of make believe, play computer games and video games, even sleep over at their houses. That was back in the day however, and now, Terri had blossomed. Most likely had been blossoming for a while, but was now the head cheerleader for the high school. I grabbed my whistle and clip board and went to the basketball courts.
I did my usual "coach" things and had the class of 30 kids run laps around the courts.
Ms. Shimmer's class was using one side of the triple courted gym and my class, the other side. When the bleachers where help up, locked away, it gave plenty of space for two classes. Since the Seattle rain had forced us inside today, we had to make do.
I saw that Terri was in Ms. Shimmer's class and she turned her back on the "Double D's" when they jogged past her class. She talked with her group of friends and a few of them giggled, looking at the boys that had just passed. Something was up, and I could tell it was affecting the boys work out because they were going at a much slower pace than the rest of the class.
I blew my whistle and told the class to go into groups of six or eight and practice passing the balls. I called out Donny and Derrick's names and told them to come talk to me.
I sat on a folding chair and wrote off some notes as the boys jogged up to me. I told them to sit on the floor next to me and I leaned down to them. Luckily, with all the kids and the sounds of the balls being passed, I knew we wouldn't be heard.
"What's going on with you boys? What's got you so messed up?" I asked. The two looked at each other, then sat there for a few seconds. "Well?" I asked.
"Mr. Tripp, it's nothing really..." Donny started, but was cut off by "D".
"He's been getting treated like crap by Terri DeVine, sir." He got a glance from Donny that told him to shut up, but he ignored his friend. "We've known her for years and it's really upsetting, that's all sir."
"I figured as much, I head you boys in the locker room before class." The two exchanged looks.
"What did you hear, Mr. Tripp?" Donny was the first to speak.
"Well," I started, "I heard you call her a slut...and that she needs to be taught a lesson. What's she done?"
"We don't want to get her in trouble," Donny started but was cut off again by "D".
"Mr. Wallice is letting Terri and some of the other girls on the cheer squad get away with ditching class..."
"Now Derrick that's a big accusation," I began to say, but once again, the little prick interrupted me.
"Mr. Tripp! He also is doctoring their grades!" his protest was loud but not loud enough for the other students to take notice. I looked around to make sure no one was paying attention.
"Come with me boys," I said standing up and walking to the doors to the hallway outside of the gym. When all three of us entered the hallway, I looked around. All the doors in the hallway lead to the locker rooms, storage rooms, and the coach's office. "Now tell me more about this."
"D" unloaded on a conspiracy of how Mr. Wallace, a teacher of almost 10 years, was letting some of the girls in his classes get away with ditching or coming late. And loads of information about how "D" and Donny were told not to grade certain girl's homework and tests when they were helping out in his class for extra credit.
I thought about all the information that was given. "And this is why you two are upset?" I asked, there had to be more to it.
"Sir," Donny now spoke, "we and the rest of the club have been working our asses off for years! What have any of those girls done?!"
The club he was referring to was The Geek Club. They had read in a book a few years before about two kids that formed a geek club with their teacher and revolutionized how geeks were looked at from then on. All Donny and "D's" club did for them though was further push them away from the norm of the school.
"Mr. Tripp," Donny said, "we just want for Terri to be taught that it isn't right what she's doing. The other girls look up to her, if she got caught or learned her lesson, then maybe she'd get the other girls to stop too."
I paced a few feet back and forth by the doors. I had tons of thoughts racing through my head, I didn't know what to do with the situation. I could go to the Principal's office and tell her of the news, or I could call Terri's parents. No, she'd just get grounded for a week probably, her parents were always away to some country for vacation's that lasted for weeks. I needed to teach her a lesson, was my only conclusion.
"Alright, this is what we'll do...." and together, we formed a plan.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Mr. Tripp," the young girls voice spoke as she entered the classroom. "You told Ms. Shimmer you needed to speak to me." Terri entered the room, she was dressed in her cheerleader's uniform. It was Friday, and it was tradition for the "pep squad's" to wear their uniforms. Her golden hair was pulled back into a pony tail and a purple ribbon was tied in a bow at the top of the tail.
"Yes, Terri, have a seat here, I need to ask you some questions." A chair was next to my desk, facing my chair and the girl sat on it. "How old are you?" I first asked.
Not sure why I was asking, she gave me a weird look at she placed her backpack on the floor next to my desk. "I'm just trying to break the ice, we've never spoken before."
"Oh," she was relieved. "I just turned 18 last week, Mr. Tripp."
