Foolish Wisdom
22 Campaign
TUESDAY WAS PREDICTABLE in a way. Everyone wore their prison shirts. So far, no one was in violation of the dress code. We arrived at school wondering what the board’s response would be. We found out five minutes into first period. The PA system crackled to life. It wasn’t Principal Darnell’s voice, however.
“Students, this is Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Nathan Dewey. You’ve had your fun. Congratulations. Effective tomorrow, your so-called school uniform that resembles prison shirts is added to the list of banned clothing. The school board has no intention of revisiting the new dress, conduct, and zero tolerance policies. Return to normal, approved attire on Wednesday or face immediate suspension. This is not a joke. You will focus on your education and not on silly political maneuverings. That is the end of this announcement.”
Coach Mitchell looked at us. We all sat quietly at our desks.
“Does anyone know where I could get one of those shirts?” he asked.
At lunch, there was a lot of chatter and people just gathered around our table. There was no question that they were waiting for someone to tell them what to do. I offered Cassie a hand and she stepped up onto the table. We all scrambled to get our food out of the way. There was a lot of applause and foot stamping when Cassie was visible.
“Thank you. I’m sorry things didn’t go so well,” she started.
“What do we do, Cassie?” I was sure I recognized that voice and spotted Rick a couple rows back.
“First, let me bring my mentor and partner up here,” she said. She offered me her hand and I stood up beside her. The applause wasn’t quite so enthusiastic. “Now. Let me first say that the ‘C’ I got in debate is a badge I will wear proudly all year long.”
“And the ‘A’ I got is a scarlet letter for me.”
“We’ve tried radical obedience for the past month to show how ridiculous these new rules are and you’ve all done really well. I know what a strain it’s been. I don’t even do anything normally that’s against these new rules and it was a strain on me.” Everyone laughed.
“Are you okay, Cassie?” George called out.
“Well, my father hasn’t spoken to me since the debate, but other than that, I’m okay. Thanks, George.”
“So what do we do now?”
“Like I said, radical obedience didn’t work, so now it’s time for civil disobedience. We will defy the banning of our shirts. If anyone needs another shirt, see one of the seamstresses and we’ll go into production. But please remember, the root of civil disobedience is to be civil. Our teachers and even our school administrators are on our side. Don’t disrespect them. Brian?”
“This isn’t going to be easy. We might all end up losing vacation or some other penalty. But I don’t know if you all saw the News at Ten last night since we didn’t get out until after nine and everybody was pretty distracted. WBBT ran excerpts of the debate and actually had a political analyst go over it. Our real task now is to get the voters out and get a new slate of school board members elected. We’ve got a lot of community support.”
“You two on the table. You are suspended from school for disruptive conduct effective immediately.” I looked at the back of the room and saw Superintendent Dewey standing in the doorway. He was demanding attention, but he wasn’t about to wade into the crowd of students.
“So it starts,” I said. “Thank you, sir. For how long are we free from your tyranny, sir?”
“You are suspended until class on Monday. You will not be allowed at any school event. Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir.”
“The same is true of anyone wearing one of those shirts tomorrow.”
“We’ll be waiting for you all outside the school grounds,” I called. I raised Cassie’s hand and we stepped off the table and made our way out of the cafeteria to cheers and applause.
Cassie and I suddenly had a free day to ourselves. Of course, the first thing on our agenda was to walk home, which took about an hour, but then we did what teenagers thrown together in the aftermath of an emotional outburst do. We planned a demonstration. People started showing up as soon as school was out and we moved from my house over to the Zion Church basement. I took my Mac and printer with me when Sarah came by and in a few minutes, I started printing leaflets. By some fluke at the school, our parents hadn’t been notified of our suspension yet. You gotta love bureaucracy. Dr. Dewey suspended us. I’m sure Principal Darnell wasn’t filing any reports. The Catholic church had become sewing central, so it was mostly guys with Cassie, Sarah, Hannah and me working on the posters and fliers.
Jeremy Hawthorne had organized a team to go to the Unitarian church and make a huge sign. He was a junior and I’d met him when I did that bit part for the drama group last fall. He was quite an artist and knew stage construction really well. I was amazed at what he’d come up with in a few quick sketches. They needed to work fast, though, in order to get the new school sign finished and mounted before dawn tomorrow. I couldn’t wait to see the new “Lake Dewey, Future Home of St. Joe Valley Penitentiary, an Island Prison” sign go up where the current “Future Home of St. Joe Valley Trojans” sign was standing. It was too good, really. The entire twenty-acre plot was under water with all the rain we’d had the past week.
Ty and Sandra came in about five-thirty.
“We made it and got the exact district map from the elections office. We need everyone with a car to drive tomorrow so we can cover the entire district before anyone has a chance to figure out what happened.”
“While Ty was in the county clerk’s office, I coordinated with the cheerleaders and we got yard signs from all the candidates opposing the Concerned Taxpayers. They were all happy to give us all the signs they still had when we told them we were going to be unofficial campaign volunteers. All of the candidates were at the debate last night and were right with us. If we swing this election, it will be a new world in November,” Sandra said.
“Don’t forget, the new board won’t take office until January. These dicks can still do a lot of damage.”
“Look at the editorial in today’s News,” Ty said. “I’m surprised Hannah didn’t give you a copy this morning.”
“We really haven’t had time to connect with everything happening,” I said, taking the paper. ‘Student Debate Lampoons School Board,’ the headline read.
“Look at the Trib,” Shelly said as she joined us. The Tribune was the local evening paper and came out about the same time school got out. Most people picked it up on the way home from work. This was no editorial. We made headlines and both Cassie and I sank in our seats. ‘Student Debaters Suspended in Confrontation with Superintendent.’ I bet Mom, Dad, and Mr. and Mrs. Clinton were all wondering just where their children were now.
“We’d better get a ride home,” I said. “Can anyone give us a lift?”
“May I seek sanctuary in this church?” Cassie pled. “I face certain death if I’m forced to return to my homeland.”
“Is there an embassy in town? I think you need asylum.” We all tried to laugh, but we also knew we were going to be facing the music when we got home.
“Busy day?” Dad asked as I walked in. It was after six-thirty. At least I’d left a note telling them where I’d be.
“Not exactly what I expected. I’m sorry about not calling. We got a little involved.”
“Mmmhmm. Suspended until Monday. I don’t recall that there was anything in the rules about four-day suspensions. Were you kissing a girlfriend? Have too many shirt buttons open?”
“No, sir. Cassie and I were talking to the students in the cafeteria. We encouraged them to wear their prison shirts tomorrow even though Dr. Dewey banned them this morning.”
“You were raising a rabble? Starting a riot?”
“No, sir. We were trying to make sure that students didn’t do that. Civil disobedience has to remain civil. Actually, Cassie thought of that,” I said. I was proud of her.
“So, this confrontation with the superintendent that the paper is talking about… how did that come to be?”
“He entered the cafeteria as we were encouraging people to be civil and respect our teachers and administrators. He shouted that we were suspended for disruptive conduct. There was really never a confrontation. We left the school grounds immediately and walked home.”
“I think I need to make a phone call,” Dad said. “You’d better eat some dinner.”
I went into the kitchen where Mom gave me a hug.
“You know we are going to support you in this, don’t you?” she said.
“Thanks, Mom. That means a lot. I’m really worried about Cassie, though. Her dad is…”
“John, have you talked to her?” I heard Dad practically shout in the family room. “I know Martin is your friend and goes to your church, but this isn’t about religion or morals. They suspended our minor children without cause and sent them off school grounds without even notifying their parents. John, our children deserve our support in this, not our punishment.”
“I think your dad is working on that,” Mom smiled. “Look what I managed to keep warm for you.” Mom pulled part of a meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and gravy out of the oven. The ultimate comfort food.
Wednesday morning during first period every student in the school was sent to the office. The hall was jammed. Most of the teachers had also acquired jail shirts and stood with the students.
“Everyone is suspended until Monday,” Principal Darnell shouted. “Leave the building immediately. The buses will arrive shortly to take you all home.”
Cassie and I watched from across the road with our parents as a constant stream of students exited the building with striped shirts and their hands folded behind their heads. Awesome. And orderly. A sheriff’s car was parked in the school parking lot and two more were at each end of the long line of parents’ cars that was growing even as we spoke. A television crew was filming the exodus and I noticed it had network markings on it. The buses started arriving, but most of the students were either loading into cars in the parking lot or coming across the street to waiting vehicles. The deputies were directing traffic at both ends of the area, routing everyone in a single direction so there was no cross-traffic. Volunteers in yellow vests were at the crosswalks with flags, but no one was rushing to move out. Dad opened the back gate on the station wagon and Cassie and I started handing out bundles of leaflets. Hannah and Sarah had kept my printer going until it was out of ink and then their dad used the church photocopier to keep production going. I saw other trunks opening as students brought out the leaflets that had been contributed by both the Unitarian and Catholic churches. As cars pulled up alongside us, our friends yelled encouragement. This was a “day off” that the school district was going to remember for a long time as yard signs were distributed and cars began pulling out with their maps of territories to be leafleted and signed.
And speaking of signs, two hundred yards away, in the middle of the wet field that was supposed to be where our new school goes, was the new sign for our school. It was so much like the original sign that it would take a while before people even realized the rendering of the new school was now surrounded by barbed wire and a deep blue lake with the words St. Joe Valley Penitentiary instead of St. Joe Valley High School.
We were so busy getting people on the way that I was caught completely unaware when a microphone was pushed in my face.
“We are here live with the young man and young woman who, I am told, are the instigators of this mass rebellion. I’m Lilith Thompson of CBS Network News. Brian, can you tell us how you masterminded this complete take-over of St. Joe Valley High School?”
“I beg your pardon?” I said. “There’s no master plan to take over the high school. We were just thrown out of it. All the students want is the opportunity to learn and earn our diplomas.”
“And who is your girlfriend?”
“Excuse me,” Dad cut in. John Clinton stepped in front of Cassie and Dad moved between me and the news woman. “You are interviewing minors and have no right to identifying information. In fact, we will require that if you use any portion of this interview on-air that you block out facial features. John and I are their parents. Our children were suspended from school without cause yesterday. They were evicted from school grounds without even a call to their parents. We have contacted legal counsel and are preparing multiple suits against the school, the district, the superintendent, and the board.”
“Speaking of the superintendent,” Ms. Thompson said, “here is Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Nathan Dewey approaching now. Dr. Dewey, how are you responding to this student rebellion?”
“St. Joe Valley School Corporation is devoted to the education and nurturing of children to prepare them for a place in the world. While the students have every right to express a grievance against the system, they do not have the right to foment rebellion. We have a zero tolerance policy in this district. We have therefore initiated procedures to have these two rabble-rousers permanently expelled. As to the other students, those who return to classes on Monday in proper attire will be permitted to continue. We will add one day of classes to the end of the school year for every day the school is closed due to this suspension. We will not let the monkeys run the zoo.” Those last words so shocked the reporter that she stood there with her mouth hanging open. It gave me long enough to wedge myself between Dad and Mr. Clinton.
“It looks like you actually have other problems to deal with, Dr. Dewey,” I said, pointing across the street. I wouldn’t have realized it was the teachers if they hadn’t been led by Ms. Hammer and Coach Hancock. Every teacher leaving the building was wearing a prison shirt and holding a hand-lettered sign that read simply, “On Strike.” They lined up on the sidewalk, technically off school grounds, and began their picket march.
“I’ll fire them all,” Dewey mumbled as he rushed away. Ms. Thompson turned toward her cameraman and began to summarize what was going on and Cassie and I were rushed to our parents’ cars. The press toward elections was on.
It wasn’t resolved quickly.
Dewey actually called the governor and asked for the National Guard to be called out to protect the school from vandalism. The State Police sent three cruisers, assessed the situation and strung yellow tape around the building and stadium. They said there was no evidence that the school was being threatened and that they would come back Monday morning to observe the resumption of classes.
The football game Friday night was cancelled because all the players were suspended and the coaches were on strike and there was yellow crime tape surrounding the school. That didn’t go over well since it was homecoming. No game, no dance, and no homecoming king and queen.
The Unitarians had the biggest property of the local churches. A farmer had donated ten acres for their church a few years ago and aside from the building and the parking lot, the rest was fallow field. Word got out that they would host the homecoming bonfire and dance and about eight hundred kids showed up for it—all wearing their prison shirts. Several faculty members and parents volunteered to help chaperone and the local Lions Club organized volunteers to roast hot dogs. The weather cleared up and even though it was chilly, the ground was dry. The dance was held in the parking lot and cars were parked out in the field beyond the bonfire.
I took Rose.
There was a good mix of music and no one came around to force six inches of space between our bodies as we held each other in the slow numbers. Heck, I’d have had to hold Rose at arms’ length to get six inches between her chest and mine. She cuddled close to me and every so often lifted her lips to get a little kiss.
“I’m sorry you didn’t get to wear a pretty homecoming dress and that I’m not dressed up in a suit for our date,” I said.
“I don’t care. You are holding me and I feel special.” She was special. She was like a little center of calm amidst the storm that had been raging for the past few days. I just loved her for it. “You know, I really struggle hard to keep you as just a boyfriend and not get caught up in all the hero worship. I do think you are a hero, but I just want to be a girlfriend with a super nice boyfriend.” Rose had been a little sad this fall. Brenda and Sora had both been elected to the varsity cheer squad, but Rose had returned to JV. I was hoping that meant she’d be sitting beside me on the team bus during basketball season sometimes. Assuming I made the JV team.
“Rose, I wish we had more time to just hold each other and go on quiet dates like this. I love having you sit beside me in the cafeteria and study with me for English.”
“Let’s not forget cowering in the backseat during drivers’ ed.”
“Yeah, that, too. I’m eligible to get my license now. One of the first things I want to do is take you out on a real date where I drive and pick you up at your house.”
“And then take me home to your house and ravish me,” she giggled.
“Rose! I wouldn’t think of doing that. Without your permission.” We laughed. I hugged her tightly against me and she did that little move where she shifts her body inside her clothes and I get an electrical charge up my spine.
“I’ll be sixteen in December. I might get my license by Christmas.”
“I was a little surprised you wanted to be my homecoming date and not take you out on your birthday.”
“I know some of the girls are anxious to… um… celebrate their sixteenth with you. I guess I am, too, but I know you’ll make time for me. And I know that I’m going to be anxious all night while we’re out because I’ll give you permission to touch me with your hands anywhere on my body inside or outside my clothes. And I’ll be waiting all through our date for you to make your move, not knowing if you’ll take advantage of my offer or just tease me into wanting you even more. And if you do slide your fingers into my panties and I open my legs so you have easy access to my hot little furnace, will you be grossed out to feel how wet I am? Will you play with my little clit until I scream an orgasm into your mouth? Will you let me touch you, too, and feel you pumping all over my hand as I rub you?”
“God, Rose! I think I might come now.”
“Just because I’m rubbing up against you while we’re dancing over here in the shadows where no one can really see us? Dancing where I can feel your cock all nice and hard and rubbing against my pussy and my tummy? Dancing where no one could possibly see if you slipped your hand over my breast and rubbed my hard little nipple? Please?” We were kind of in the shadows and I put my hand gently on her breast and found the hard point of her nipple to rub with my thumb as I kissed her deeply. We kept moving to the rhythm of the music, but mostly not with our feet.
Everyone went back to school Monday. Everyone continued to wear prison shirts. Even the teachers. They only went on strike during our suspension and then returned to work. It let us all know that we were on the same side and we had a sense of solidarity. The board hadn’t retracted their policy, but it was understood that no one in the school was going to enforce it. After a national newscast ran, the newspapers all had a headline that was some variant of ‘Superintendent Calls Students Monkeys and School a Zoo.’ There was already pressure building for him to resign. The board twice voted down propositions to ask for his resignation. Until Election Day.
Our Halloween party was pretty low key this year. My sixteenth birthday celebration was marked by the Great Debate and the next day I was expelled from school. We’d spent the month so politically active that I hardly realized I was now sixteen. Anna brought the girls up on Friday night. There was no secret or pretense of any sort this time. I carried Anna’s bag into my mom and dad’s room when they got there while Courtney and Jennifer brought their bags to my room. We didn’t get much sleep. For the first time, the three of us undressed each other and spent a good five minutes just looking at each other before we got in bed together. Feeling that much girl skin rubbing against me was too much and I didn’t last long when they both wrapped their hands around my cock and began stroking. Skin-to-skin genital contact was no longer just a theory, but a very exciting reality.
Jennifer and I seemed to have the same idea after I’d gotten cleaned up and got back into bed. We bracketed Courtney between us and covered her face and boobs with kisses until she was squirming and threatening to pee the bed. That’s when I linked fingers with Jennifer and slid down Courtney to her hot wet center.
“Ohh,” Courtney moaned as we dragged our fingers from end to end of her pussy. “You’re doing it. You’re really touching me. I can feel you both touching me. I can feel you!” Jen and I kissed her together as we found her clit and squeezed it between us.
“I’ve dreamed of touching you like this for years, Court. But with Brian’s fingers pushing your clit against mine and sharing our love, it’s better than I ever imagined. I love you, Courtney.”
“I wanted to do this that night at the dude ranch when all those camp kids were there, Court. It was the first that I really knew you liked me and I knew that I’d be head-over-heels in love with you. I’m so happy to touch you.” We kissed her again and Jen found the right combination on her clit. I’m pretty sure that if they were listening, our parents would have heard us. If they weren’t too engaged to listen.
I woke up in the morning sandwiched between Jen and Courtney with my very rigid cock held softly between Jen’s buttocks. Oh, my God, this was nice. I’d rubbed against a girl’s panty-covered ass before, but there were no panties between me and Jennifer. A steady stream of my pre-cum was making her crack delightfully slippery as I slid between her cheeks. My hand slid down her tummy to her folds to find Court’s fingers already busy at work there. Jen was moaning and I whispered in her ear.
“Two years, Jen. We waited two years for you to be back in my bed naked with our bodies rubbing against each other. This is as much making love as if I were inside you. Our girlfriend Court has her fingers on your clit with mine. When you come I’m going to spray my hot semen all over your butt. We’re going to come together, at last. I love you, Jennifer.” That was all it took. It was a good thing, too. I couldn’t have waited any longer. She screamed. I screamed. Courtney screamed.
Then we all had breakfast and started getting ready for the party.
With all the excitement and the election coming on Tuesday, we were all pretty tired. I made pigs-in-a-blanket and kept shuffling new batches in and out of the oven for about four hours. Hannah had spent hours dipping caramel apples and then more hours cleaning up the mess. Cassie had been allowed to come and actually came over early to help. Doreen, Doug, and Rhiannon picked up Carl and Brenda to help with the last-minute details before everyone else arrived. We didn’t really play a lot of games, but mostly just sat around eating, talking, and variously holding hands or making out with our partners. It was pretty definite now that all the guys had one full time girlfriend—or in Doug’s case, two—and I got all the rest. No one seemed to object to that. At eleven-thirty, everyone took off who wasn’t part of my special eight. It would have been nine, but Cassie’s dad still wasn’t happy with her and wouldn’t let her spend the night with the rest of us. Cassie was doing a good job with him, though, and told him that she didn’t suddenly want to start dating and changing everything in her world as long as he kept his agreement to let her date occasionally when she was sixteen. Before she left, I reminded her what a kiss with intent was like.
The rest of us went upstairs and got ready for bed in proper attire. That was a little odd since Mom and Anna checked us all after we were ready for bed, completely ignoring the fact that we’d all just stripped out of our clothes and dressed together before inspection. We settled into our nest with Hannah and Sam under my arms. Courtney and Jennifer bracketed them, hugging tightly. Liz and Whitney lay head to head with me and kept leaning over to give me little upside down kisses. What surprised me were Rose and Sarah lying with their heads on my stomach holding hands on top of my cock.
Life was good and eventually I did get to sleep.
We swept three of the four positions on the board leaving the Concerned Taxpayers with just two seats out of seven. The writing was on the wall. Dr. Dewey resigned the next day. There wasn’t enough time to hire a new superintendent before the new Board took office the first of the year.
More important, Election Day was also when I got my driver’s license.
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