THE SCHOOL board meeting was scheduled for 6:00 p.m. on Monday. I’d told Dad I wanted to be there, and he agreed to pick me up at home after he finished work. I came home from school planning to have dinner, but I couldn’t eat. My nerves were so jittery, they took away my appetite. I grabbed a shower and put on clean clothes—khakis, a button-down shirt, and a sweater. Something told me the dorkier I looked before the school board, the better.
I waited in the living room. The clock on the wall over the sofa read 5:36. Damn, Dad’s really pushing it. Where is he? Then I heard his car in the driveway. The horn blew sharply three times. I grabbed my jacket and pulled it on as I rushed down the steps and went to the car.
I was surprised to see Mom sitting in the passenger seat. I slid into the back behind her. “Hey, Mom. I wasn’t expecting you to come.”
“I’m always there for you, honey.” She smiled over her shoulder at me.
“Buckle up, son,” Dad barked.
THE MEETING was held in a big conference room at Jeddersville City Hall, which is where the school board regularly met to conduct its business. We got there only a few minutes before six, and the other interested parties were already present. The five members of the board—three women and two men, all in their fifties or sixties—were seated next to each other on one side of a long black table. On the other side of the table sat Principal Perry next to Mr. D.
It was the first time I’d seen him since Tuesday morning, nearly a week ago. He looked like he always did, handsome and composed, his hair loose about his shoulders. He wore dark blue slacks and a white shirt and a tie instead of his usual jeans and denim shirt. He glanced over his shoulder as we came in and saw me. Neither of us smiled at the other. I guess we both knew that wouldn’t be a good idea. My heart filled up at the sight of him. The feelings I had for him were still there, and I knew I’d fight to hell and back to protect him.
Mom and Dad guided me to a row of chairs lined along the wall behind the principal and Mr. D, where several parents were already seated. They all looked at me curiously, like I was some exotic new animal at the zoo.
A gavel rapped like a gunshot, taking their eyes off me. A thick-faced woman with gray hair sitting in the middle of the board members put aside her gavel and let her eyes travel across the faces of the people gathered in front of her.
“Good evening, everyone. This meeting of the Jeddersville School Board is hereby called to order. First on our agenda is the issue of Paco Dakota’s continued employment as a teacher at Jeddersville High. Mrs. Perry, we have reviewed your report regarding your investigation of the incident between Mr. Dakota and one of his students. Is there anything you’d like to add to your report at this time?”
“No, Madam Chairwoman,” Principal Perry replied. “I’d like to hear what others have to say here, and I may have something to add afterward.”
“All right. We have also read the report of the police department’s Sex Crimes Unit about its review of the matter. We will now proceed directly to the questions we have for Mr. Dakota.” The chairwoman turned to Mr. D. “Sir, Mrs. Perry’s report states that you allowed the student in question to come to your home not once, but on at least three separate occasions. I must admit that I am astounded. Did it not occur to you that such visits could become problematic? Why didn’t you discourage the student after the first visit?”
Mr. D spoke out clearly. “I did explain to Brodie Baker that there were boundaries we both had to respect—”
“And yet, Brodie came to your house on at least two more occasions,” said the man to the chairwoman’s left. He was thin, dressed in a brown suit with a narrow plaid tie that complimented his narrow face. “Not only that, you actually took him to a movie last Monday night as if you were… on a date.”
If the man was trying to rattle Mr. D, it didn’t work. “With all due respect, you are wrong to characterize that as a date. My understanding was that I would be escorting Brodie and two other students to the movie so they could write reports for extra credit. At the last minute, I was informed the other two students were unable to attend, and Brodie felt it would be unfair to him for me to cancel the trip to the theater. I’ve held student meetings at my home and escorted students on after-school outings before.”
The woman on the chairwoman’s far right spoke up. She wore her dark red hair pulled back in a bun. “But on those meetings and outings, the parents gave written permission for the students’ participation. Did Brodie Baker’s parents give any such permission?”
“No.” Mr. Dakota looked a little uneasy as he answered.
“And yet you took the student to this movie anyway. Why?”
“I didn’t want to deprive Brodie of the opportunity to increase his grade.”
The red-haired woman looked down at some papers on the table in front of her. “I’m looking at the grades you recorded for Brodie. I don’t see any notation of extra credit for an essay about a movie. Did Brodie ever write the paper he was supposed to write?”
“He did, and he submitted it to me. But I was suspended before I could read and grade it. Brodie has since been assigned to another class. I read his paper during my suspension and will note the grade in his records before I transfer them to his new teacher.”
The chairwoman spoke up again. “I’m very disturbed by the fact that you and your student kissed. We’ve read the record of your comments about this to the police and to Mrs. Perry, but I’d like to hear from you directly, Mr. Dakota. What happened?”
“Brodie came to my home as planned and informed me that the other two students were unable to join us. I suggested that we reschedule. Brodie said he shouldn’t have to give up his extra credit, and I agreed to take him to the movie without the others. As I was about to take Brodie out to my car, he kissed me. I was caught off guard, but I pushed him away and made it clear there would never be any type of romantic relationship between us. I then took him to the movie and afterward drove him home. There was no other intimate contact between Brodie and me before or after that incident.”
Nailed it, I thought, and I was proud of Mr. D. He was as steady as a ship on a flat sea.
Skinny Man with the Skinny Tie frowned. “Mr. Dakota, it seems awfully bold for a male student to kiss a male teacher out of the blue. Mrs. Perry noted that you answered yes when she asked during her investigation if you were gay. Did you tell Brodie about your sexuality?”
“No, I did not.”
“So Brodie had no idea you were gay when he kissed you?”
Again, Mr. D looked uneasy. “Well… yes, he knew. He told me that he saw a picture of a friend of mine on my refrigerator, found him on Facebook, and discovered the man is my ex-boyfriend. I want you to understand that I’m not ashamed of who I am. In my first year of teaching, a student asked if I was gay, and I said yes.”
Skinny Man got this gassy expression on his face. “Do you think that was appropriate, sharing such information with a student of yours? I’m troubled by your doing that. I’m even more troubled that information about your boyfriend is available to students online.”
“It’s not as if the link to my ex-boyfriend’s Facebook page is posted on the school’s website. Brodie only found the page because he saw my ex-boyfriend’s name on the back of a picture at my home. And I do understand that Brodie never should have had such access. But the whole student body knows Mrs. Perry here is married to a man. She makes no secret of that. She even introduced her husband at an assembly in September when he spoke to the kids on safety issues in his capacity as a Memphis police captain. In knowing that she’s married to a man, the students know something about her sexuality. No one thinks there’s anything inappropriate about that. Why then would it be inappropriate for those same students to know that I am attracted to men?” Mr. D held up a hand, stopping Skinny Man just as he seemed to be gearing up to ask another question. “And I should point out that, while I would never try to hide my sexuality, I’ve never randomly announced it to my students either.”
That appeared to shut down Skinny Man. He turned to look at the chairwoman.
The chairwoman looked out at the people assembled behind Principal Perry and Mr. Dakota. “The board will now hear comments from the floor.”
Aside from Mom and Dad, there were thirteen parents present. They stood up one by one, and they all said that they didn’t want an openly gay person teaching at their child’s school. “Especially one who goes around preying on boys,” one father added. I almost cussed at him. Hadn’t he listened to one word Mr. D said?
Then Dad stood up.
“My name is Cedric Baker, and I’m Brodie’s father. I was extremely angry when my ex-wife told me about this kiss, and I wanted Mr. Dakota fired like the other parents who spoke here. But after listening to what Brodie told me about this, and now having heard what Mr. Dakota had to say, I don’t feel the same anymore. My son told me that he may be gay. I wasn’t happy to hear that, and for a while I even blamed Mr. Dakota for it. But it’s clear to me now that… my son had a crush on Mr. Dakota, and he acted on it. I don’t want to see a man fired from his job because my son did something he shouldn’t have done. That’s all I have to say. Thank you.”
I was stunned. I was so stunned I couldn’t even move. Dad sat down, and I saw Mom reach over and take his hand.
The chairwoman nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Baker. Are there any other comments from the floor?”
Maybe it was because I was still stunned from Dad’s speech, but somehow I was magically on my feet. I was never big on public speaking, preferring to be part of the background, but I wasn’t nervous at all, even when all eyes turned on me.
“Uh… hi. I’m Brodie Baker, the… uh, student in question. I just want to say that Mr. Dakota never did anything to hurt me. The kiss was my fault, totally. And just like Mr. Dakota said, he did tell me we couldn’t have the kind of relationship I wanted. Nothing happened between us. I just want to be clear about that. And I also want everyone here to know that Mr. Dakota is an amazing teacher. He’s dedicated to his students and he got me to love reading, which, if you know me, is a miracle in itself because I never even read comic books before. If you fire him for this, for something that wasn’t even his fault, it’ll be a loss to the whole school.”
I sat down, still feeling like my head was floating somewhere in another part of town. Shit, my whole body was shaking. Dad must have felt it. He reached over with his free hand and took mine.
“Thank you, Brodie,” said the chairwoman. “Mrs. Perry, you’ve heard the comments from the floor. Do you have anything you wish to add now?”
Mrs. Perry smiled a little. “No, I believe Brodie said it all.”
THE MEMBERS of the school board excused themselves to a small room in the back to deliberate. They came back after maybe twenty minutes, filing in one after the other, and resumed their seats at the table. The chairwoman gaveled the meeting to order again.
“Earlier this afternoon, the Jeddersville Sex Crimes Unit notified us that its investigation of this incident was completed, and no criminal charges are warranted. We took that under consideration along with the other reports and commentary presented to us. Mr. Dakota, it is the conclusion of the board that you did not willfully engage in inappropriate contact with Brodie Baker, and we therefore see no reason to terminate your employment at this time.”
I almost jumped out of my seat with joy. The other parents immediately began grumbling in protest of the decision, the sound like the grinding of rocks against each other.
“Order, please,” the chairwoman called, banging her gavel. The parents quieted down. “We do feel, however, Mr. Dakota,” the chairwoman went on ominously, “that you acted irresponsibly in taking a student on what is arguably a field trip without parental permission. We also feel you did not take sufficient steps to end Brodie’s visits to your home. You should have notified your principal and his parents for assistance in the matter. Finally, we feel you did not adequately address the issue of Brodie’s inappropriate contact with you by notifying your principal and having him transferred to another teacher. For these reasons, we are recommending that Mrs. Perry extend your suspension for the remainder of the semester. We are also asking Mrs. Perry to record these lapses in your file for review when your employment contract comes up for renewal consideration. As Mrs. Perry has already noted in her report that you and Brodie have been directed to have no further contact with each other on school grounds, this review is concluded, and we now move on to the next item on the agenda.”
Mr. Dakota stood up and shook hands briefly with Principal Perry. Then he headed for the exit, clearly wanting to avoid the still-angry parents in the room. “I’ll be right back,” I told Mom and Dad and then hurried after Mr. D.
I had to fight my way past some of the parents, who were also moving toward the door. When I got into the corridor, it was mostly empty. I looked up the hall and there he was, with Sylvia. She handed him his coat as they pushed through the door into the cold autumn night.
“Mr. D!” The door closed behind them as I called out.
I ran down the hall and through the door. I wanted to apologize, wanted to see if he was okay. By the time I reached the parking lot, they were speeding away in Sylvia’s sporty little car.
I wished I could go riding off into the night with him.
DAD DROPPED Mom off. He waited while I walked her up to her apartment.
“Well, the meeting turned out better than expected,” Mom said as she fished in her purse for her key.
“Yeah, I know. I really thought Mr. D was gonna get booted.”
“That was wonderful, what you said about him, hon. I’m sure it had an impact.”
“What about what Dad said,” I reminded her. “Now that was wonderful. I really wasn’t expecting that. I thought for sure he was gonna be like those other parents and ask the school board to fire Mr. D.”
“Ah, here we are.” Mom triumphantly held up her key.
Before she could put the key in the lock, I nudged her with my shoulder. She looked at me. “What is it?”
“I was wrong about Dad. And I feel bad about it.”
“What specifically do you feel bad about, honey?”
“I don’t know. Well… I kinda thought he hated me for being into a guy. And I was so mad at him for what I thought he was gonna do to Mr. D. I thought Dad was gonna do Mr. D in the way he did you.”
Mom turned to me with this serious glare in her eyes. “Brodie, your dad didn’t ‘do me in’ as you put it.”
“He wouldn’t help you, and he wouldn’t let me help you. How is—”
“He was right not to let you help me. It’s not your job to take care of me. It’s not your dad’s either, not anymore. Honestly, with all the drinking I was doing, I wasn’t a very good wife or mother.”
“Don’t say that, Mom.”
“It’s true. I don’t blame your Dad for walking away from me, and you shouldn’t either. You’re a kid. I was a complete mess, and he had to make sure he took care of you. I was as much a danger to you as I was to myself. He couldn’t allow that to keep happening. Don’t think so harshly of him, hon. He loves you very much. Besides, your dad helps me in lots of ways. Who do you think picked me up from the hospital when I was released? Who do you think set me up with the job through the temp agency? He even takes me to my AA meetings. So can we agree he’s not such a bad guy?”
Shame can be like salt on a slug. It boiled me inside. “I think I owe Dad an apology.”
She kissed me on the cheek. “I think you do too. Good night, Brodie.”
“Good night, Mom.”
I went back to the car and slid into the passenger seat.
“Is your mom all tucked in?” Dad asked.
“Yeah.”
“Well, let’s get home. I’m starving.”
He started the engine and we made our way through the dark streets. The silence between us didn’t feel bad at all.
“Hey, Dad?”
“Yeah, Brodie?”
“I’ve got something I need to say.”