Marlow Preparatory Academy has had a long-standing reputation for graduating its students into positions of prestige. Over the last fifty years, their students have become Senators, Congressmen, chief executive officers of fortune five hundred companies, scientists, doctors, lawyers, and of course dare they say, presidents?
But today it seems that one of their top students with a grade point average of 4.0 is struggling. Alexis Harper Castle came in to take her algebra test this morning at 9 a.m. and the test she was taking was the last one she had to take before her school year ended. The problem was once she walked into Mr. Brickman's classroom and the tests were handed out, she simply sat there looking into the corner of the room resting her head on her hand. When the proctor, Mr. Brickman had called time indicating that the test was now over he noticed that she had nothing marked off on her answer sheet to indicate she had even taken the test. This is why Dean Nolan has her in his office right now.
"Alexis I'm concerned about your participation in today's algebra test. It's a test that I know that you have studied for intensely and imagine my surprise when Mr. Brickman tells me that you just stared at the corner of the room during the time you should have been taking the test. This is not the behavior we expect of a 4.0 GPA student. So tell me what do you have to say for yourself?"
As she sits in the plush leather chair across from the Dean of Students she is at a loss for words. This isn't like her, she usually just speaks her mind and often she can explain any situation that's presented to her. Alexis interlocks her fingers looks down at her hands and can't come up with something to tell him other than she has no answer for him. She won't lie to him because her father had told her that lying is only going to make any situation worse. So she tells him the truth. She looks up from her clasped hands and has a rough idea of how she wants to tell him what's going on in her life.
"Dean Nolan, I was prepared to take the exam in my algebra class today but I was preoccupied with what is going on with my father," Alexis says.
"Alexis, I'm so sorry! I didn't know that there was anything wrong with your father. Is he okay? Is he sick?" The dean asked with a concerned voice.
"Dean, he is going through a rough time. It's not a physical thing, It seems that he has lost his motivation for writing anything. Believe me when I tell you he's been trying to write for the last six months and hasn't been able to come up with a sentence that makes sense."
"Alexis while this is a family issue it should have nothing to do with you taking your final exam. So after hearing why you were distracted, I'm afraid I'm going to have to fail you for the semester. The reason being is that this final exam is counted as 40% of your grade." The Dean states.
She can't believe this! Her personal life should not be a factor in her failing her last and final exam.
"Dean Nolan while I appreciate your candor in this matter, my personal life is not the issue here. I think that you are being unfair. I know I am only 15 years old and you seem to think that I have my whole life planned out in front of me. I'm here to tell you that I don't. There are times in anyone's life when something major like this will give a person an outlook on life that they weren't expecting. I think I have been very straightforward with my grades. I'm sure that if you look past this little hiccup I had this morning, I can be granted a second attempt at this test. There are students here who were given more chances than they deserved during the school year to get themselves a passing grade and I think I deserve the very same chance they had."
The dean leans back in his high-back chair, steeples his hands together, and thinks over what his star student had just told him.
"Alright, Alexis I will grant you your request. But I do have conditions. First, the test will be proctored by me. Secondly, your father will be called to explain the situation that happened here today." The dean counters.
"I don't believe you. And the fact that I don't believe it makes it true. How could a person who can't be any more than 28 years old know that I am having an issue writing anything? Maybe I could just be taking a break from life, relaxing and enjoying the fruits of my labor."
"Do you honestly believe what you're telling yourself now?"
"Hey, I'm doing just fine. I don't know where you're getting your information from but I can tell you that it's wrong."
"My sources are very reliable. I have what your culture would call a little birdie and he tells me everything. For instance, he tells me that you'll be going to court on Thursday. He also tells me that your publisher is going to try and take everything you own away from you."
Kate looks at Rick and can tell that he is brushing her off or he doesn't believe a word of what she's saying to him. Why do writers have to be so pigheaded? Shakespeare was the same way.
"I can tell that you still don't believe me. So how about this, your daughter who is so distraught about your inability to write anything for the past six or seven months, has been sitting in her dean's office trying to get him to let her take her algebra test again."
"Wait, what?" Rick asks with a shocked voice.
"Yes, that's what I said, my dear writer. It seems that your daughter has become very concerned about your welfare. So much so that she thinks you're going to end up going off the deep end."
"I still don't believe you. Alexis would tell me if something was bothering her and she was fine when she left for school this morning."
"I get this all the time." Kate sighs. "Okay superstar, why don't you try calling your daughter because right now I think she is available."
Rick decided to follow the advice that this woman Kate had given him and he pulls his cell phone from his pants pocket.
When she heard her phone vibrate (she was grateful that she had set it not to vibrate and not ring) she looked at the caller ID and thought the worse case scenario had happened. Why would her dad be calling her?
"Dean, I need to answer this call."
The dean acquiesced to her request and she answered her phone.
"Dad? Are you okay? Is something wrong?"
"Alexis where are you right now?" Rick asks.
"I'm in the Dean's office. I'm trying to convince him to let me take my algebra test."
"What do you mean you're trying to convince him? You were there at 9 a.m. Your test should have been done hours ago."
"I can't explain now but I will tell you about it when I get back home. Right now I have an exam to take and Dean Nolan is going to proctor the test."
"Okay, sweetie. Good luck!" Rick says he ends the call.
Rick turns and faces Kate and she stands by the living room couch. His face shows all sorts of anger and distrust and he needs to know who she is.
"Who are you and how did you know everything about what was going on with my daughter? My court proceedings are happening two days from now and you seem to know what is going on with my lawsuit! No one could know what I just found out about my daughter. So either you talk now or I kick your butt out of my loft."
"I told you Rick I know things. And just so you know your daughter is feeling like she can't figure out what's wrong with you. She thinks that she is the adult between you and her and she thinks that she's the one to blame for your current situation. I have news for you, she's not. She is too young to be taking on the role of deciding how you live your life. So I need you to man up and pull up your big boy pants and get your life straight. If it's ideas that you need I'm your girl."
Rick stood there looking at her and he had to admit that she was good. She put him in his place without even batting an eyelash. He just doesn't know who she is. And he doesn't think he'll get a straight answer if he comes right out and asks her. So he takes a different approach.
"I have no ideas. Nothing! Every time I put something together since I killed off Derek Storm nothing has not made any sense that would be considered to be printable!"
"I understand. And I'm here to help. Consider me what you Earth people would call a muse."
"I'm sorry, Earth people as in humans?" Rick asks knowing that he just received his first clue on who or what she could be.
Right then and there Kate knew she had misstepped. So she tries to cover her tracks by telling Rick that she's from a different country and that she was only kidding.
"Rick I was kidding as in making a joke. Everybody is from Earth, right?" She said trying to smooth over her flub. "I'm from a country far away from here and we speak with different words with different meanings. What I meant to say was that people need guidance you could say. And that's what a friend does."
"So that's what you are a friend? If that's true tell me, friend, how do you plan on helping me? As I told you I haven't written anything that made any sense in the last six months."
"I'm pretty sure that we can figure out something that can get you back on track."
Rick was skeptical but he was starting to believe what she was telling him. So he would make her prove it. He would wait until Alexis can come home from school and then they would sit down together and talk about what she could or could not do. He just hopes that she can make something happen before he has to go to court.
TBC