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After the summer, Janet began her first year of Junior High School. She had a great summer hanging out with her friends, enjoying John and Michelle’s wedding, and playing basketball. Janet practiced basketball daily, hoping to make the school’s basketball team this year. She grew to admire the sport just like her dad did. John continued playing in the adult league, hoping to keep Janet inspired. He did a lot of research about people with Down syndrome and sports; the more she was active, the less chances of her health declining due to her condition. Her doctors were incredibly pleased with her health and John always took a sigh of relief when her doctors gave her a clean bill of health.
One day after school, John came home to see Janet crying in front of their house. John was concerned and he could see Nancy in the window, pointing down at her phone. She sent John a text explaining that Janet came home upset and did not want to talk to anyone. John looked down at Janet, whose head was lying in between her knees.
“What’s going on, peanut?” John asked as he sat down next to her.
“Nothing,” Janet said.
“Well, if it was nothing, then I guess I could tickle it out of you,” John said as he tried to tickle her side.
“Stop! I am not in the mood,” Janet said sobbing.
“You know you can tell me anything right? We are a team,” John said.
Janet looked up at John and wiped her face. She looked as if tears wear about to explode through her eyes and they did.
“I am ugly. I am goofy looking,” Janet sobbed as she hid her face.
“Now what makes you say that?” John said. He knew the answer and could feel his blood boiling. He took a deep breath and waited for her answer.
“Some of the kids at school. They called me mutant face and said I should go back to space with my own kind,” Janet cried.
John knew how cruel kids can be, especially these days. With cyber bullying and rarely any consequences for kids bullying other children, John always feared Janet would have a challenging time in school. He contemplated having her go to a school where there were more children like her and less risk of her getting bullied, but she excelled in school and did not need special education, other than the speech work. John was terribly upset that his little girl was going through so much pain because of a few punks who wanted to be funny. John took a deep breath and held his anger in. He wrapped his arm around Janet and comforted her.
“Peanut, one thing I can tell you is that people judge other people because they are ignorant and are intimidated by people who are different. No one has the right to belittle people they do not know. You are a great young lady. You are not ugly, you are not a mutant, and you are the best thing that could ever happen to me and your mother. If someone wants to judge you because you look different from them without getting to know you, then they can go FUCK themselves. You never change for anyone no matter what,” John said strongly.
Janet laughed and called him out for saying a bad word. John joked and told him not to tell her mother and then tickled her. She laughed and hugged John. She wiped the tears from her eyes, thanked John, and they both went into the house.
The next day, John got a call from Janet’s school asking for him to come to the school. John called Michelle and they both went there. John found Janet sitting in front of the principal’s office, playing with her thumbs looking guilty.
“Janet, what happened?” Michelle asked. John had a feeling what happened and his little secret with Janet was about to come out. Janet shrugged her shoulders at the question.
The principal opened to the door to his office.
“Mr. and Mrs. Remington? You may come in,” Principal Weston said.
John and Michelle walked into the office. His office was highly organized, and he looked to be someone who did not spend too much time with the children; someone who demanded order and respect without him returning it. There was also woman in the corner of the office with her arms crossed in the corner. She did not look happy.
“Mr. and Mrs. Remington, this is Ms. Kelly, and she is Janet’s homeroom teacher,” Principal Weston said. John and Michelle did not get a chance to say hello before being interrupted by Principal Weston.
“Now you both are here because Janet did something horrible. Ms. Kelly, would you care to explain the incident?” Principal Weston said.
Ms. Kelly explained the so-called incident to both John and Michelle. Ms. Kelly talked about how this morning she was doing attendance. When she called Janet’s name, Janet stood up and went in front of the classroom. She printed her name on the board and read it to the classroom. She told them that her name is not mutant face and if people wanted to get to know her, then great. She ended her speech by saying that if people do not want to know her and to continue calling her mutant face then they can go FUCK themselves. The classroom then laughed and became uncontrollable. Janet then took a bow and sat down. She was immediately taken by Ms. Kelly to Principal Weston’s office.
John and Michelle looked at each other. Michelle gave John a look as she knew who Janet got that from. John smiled at her and almost chuckled.
“Is there something funny, Mr. Remington?” Principal Weston questioned him.
John put up his hands and shook his head as to sign that nothing was funny.
“This institution does not accept the behaviors displayed by Ms. Remington. She unjustly caused an uproar in Ms. Kelly’s classroom. She should go to a school with more people with her condition as they are more equipped than we are to manage such outbursts. Until you get her new schooling managed, she will be suspended,” Principal Weston said sternly.
John looked at Michelle, who looked like she was about to jump across the desk and choke the principal. He smiled and gently grabbed her knee as to signal to her that he would manage this.
“Mr. Remington, I do not understand the humor in this. Please explain,” Principal Weston demanded.
“Principal Weston, thanks to you and Ms. Kelly for giving us your feelings about our daughter. Have you asked her what her motivation was? No, you did not. Instead, you call us in and tell us that she was in the wrong and that she should be transferred to a special school that can manage her outburst. Yesterday, I held my daughter in my arms as she was crying that the other children were calling her mutant face and laughing at her because she looks different. Is that the kind of institution you run? Sounds to me like you are not going to ask this young girl as to why she decided to tell the class to FUCK themselves for judging her by her looks. In fact, she should tell you two the same. As you both can see from her report cards, she has wonderful grades and has the same rights to be in this school as all the other children. In case you both did not know; my wife here works for DCF, and I have been a police officer for a long time. We know people who would love to report about these kinds of things. We should call them, but we will give the same courtesy as you both have given us. We will wait to hear you call in the morning. Until then, we will take Janet home and we expect that she will be back to school tomorrow morning. Goodbye,” John said as he smiled sarcastically.
As John and Michelle stood up to leave, Michelle held John’s hand. She saw that her husband took charge of that room. They both left Principal Weston’s office. They saved Janet from the boredom of the waiting room. When they both got outside the school, John and Michelle gave Janet a group hug and told them how proud of her they were for standing up for herself. They went out for pizza for lunch.
That afternoon, Principal Weston’s secretary called John and Michelle apologizing saying Janet will not be suspended and can return to school the next morning. The school district then implemented a yearly pep rally for respecting others in all their grades. They also implemented each grade to have an anti-bullying committee, which Janet was elected president in her seventh-grade committee.