38 Chapter 38 (2/2)

”Some people really do just like to watch the world learn, huh?” Sarah asks with a contempt smile.

”What's that look for?” Refus asks. ”You're freaking me out”.

”In some way, I'm mostly just smiling at my past self” Sarah says. ”Laibah or not, people in general still choose whether or not to be a shitty person. So far, I think you're a model teacher, Refus”.

”Uh, thanks?” Refus asks. ”I mean... I took courses for that. Not sure if I'd be able to look myself in the mirror if I hadn't learned how to handle my job”.

”No, I mean it” Sarah says. ”You're not a bad person. Which is all the more reason I hope we can help Ryan achieve his goal. I could really see us being friends, so it'd suck if the inner city people managed to push you out in the end”.

”A friend, huh?” Refus asks with a laugh. ”Y'know, I've been so wrapped up in everything that's been going on lately, that I think I've actually forgotten to stop and make friends while I'm here”.

”Well, there's Ryan” Sarah says.

”True” Refus says.

”And Rose?” Sarah asks. ”Although, it's hard imagining that she is capable of actually making friends”.

”She's not that mean” Refus says, ”give your sister a break”.

”Pfft” Sarah says and then laughs, ”I guess so! She may be really hard headed, but she's still family in the end”. Sarah pauses then says ”You know... Ryan still feels guilty about a lot of things. When he used to have disputes with laibah, when my issue happened. That man is filled with regrets and is dead set on fixing everything. Even if he has to do it himself. Just... do me a favor, will you?”.

”What?” Refus asks.

”Please don't let him carry this burden alone” Sarah says. ”If he ever takes the time to reach out for help, it likely means that he's put a lot of thought into the matter before asking for help. That man will only ask for any amount of assistance if it's absolutely necessary. So just... don't let anything hinder him when he asks for help, and please try to lighten the burden on the poor man?”.

”Yeah, Ryan is a clever man” Refus says. ”I can't imagine it'll ever be a good sign when he asks for help”.

”Anyways” Sarah says as she stands up, ”I think I've kept you for long enough. Isn't it about time you head back to work, Mr...”.

”Maloney” Refus says. ”Refus Maloney”.

”Right” Sarah says as she shakes his hand again. ”Thanks for the food”.

”Thanks for the talk” Refus says. ”I needed to know at least a little bit, as I didn't really understand much about the situations that Ryan's dealing with”.

”Anytime” Sarah says. ”I'll see you later”.

When Refus comes back to school at the end of the lunch period, he quickly runs into Rose. Rose seemed to be in a panic, so Refus explained what he was doing, leaving out the details of Sarah's story. ”I've been here, worrying about the situation at school” Rose yells, ”and you were off on a date with my sister!?”.

”A date?” Refus asks. ”You're both too old for me”.

”I don't care what the details are!” Rose says.

”What's the matter?” Refus asks. ”What's gotten you so stressed?”.

”Are you kidding me!?” Rose yells. ”The school pins have been selling like hot cakes. Ryan's selling them for 50 Centi each, who wouldn't mind paying that much!? You can find 50 Centi on the ground! Through all of this, I can't help but to worry more about Ryan's situation! It's all a damn mess!”.

”Hey, Hey!” Refus says, ”slow down! You're trying to do too much. At least let some of us help you out. Come on, sit down and relax”. Refus directs Rose towards the teacher's lounge, and the two sit down. ”Look” Refus says, ”I know you're worried about what Ryan said yesterday. I'm worried too! I can't help but to be worried after something like that! But you know Ryan better than I do! He wouldn't tell us this if he hadn't considered other possible solutions, now would he?”. Rose remains quiet, and so, Refus continues. ”The best way to go about this is to support Ryan the best we can. You know how much he wants us to push this bill for the school. The selling pins idea and everything, he needs our help, Rose”.

”Yeah, but-” Rose says.

”But” Refus interrupts, ”if and when something bad may even begin to happen, we can decide from there what to do. Being worried about it is only natural, but you know better than me that we can't let Ryan down. This is very important for him. So if some people bring trouble for the school, we can find a way to handle it without needing to involve Ryan”.

”How so?” Rose asks skeptically.

”Well, there's more of us than there are of Ryan” Refus says. ”We're more than capable of having enough hands to handle a situation by ourselves. Otherwise, he wouldn't ask you to take the seat of Vice Principal. Remember that if you need help with anything like this, I'll be here to help. After all, Ryan asked me to help you out, didn't he?”.

”What's it to ya anyways?” Rose asks with an angry expression.

”Will you stop being so damn stubborn!” Refus says. ”I'm trying to help both you and Ryan! Whether you like it or not, I'm here to help resolve this issue also! It's what friends do!”.

Rose froze for a second, then says ”I don't remember asking for a friend”.

”Well” Refus says, ”that's too bad! Because regardless of you asking for it, I'm here, trying to help your ass as well as Ryan's! I don't remember asking to be thrown in this mess! I don't remember asking to be paired with such a miserable middle aged woman! I sure as hell didn't ask to be employed by a school that's falling apart! But regardless, I stuck around anyways to look out for you guys! After a while, I even grew to care about you guys! I grew to think of you and Ryan as friends, Rose! Now are you going to keep pointlessly stressing over something that you can't handle alone, or are you going to stand up and work with me to take care of this issue for Ryan's sake!?”.

”Yeah...” Rose says. ”Yeah, that old coot can't handle this, so we might as well do it for him!”.

”Good” Refus says.

”Also, say 'friends' one more time” Rose says, ”and I'm punching you in the stomach”.

”You're welcome” Refus says.

Meanwhile, as The Rejects return to their classrooms, they noticed many of the students in the school were already wearing the pins that the school was selling. ”Looks like this is going better than we expected” Aeris says.

”Almost a little too well?” Emma asks.

”What do you mean?” Wyatt asks.

”I dunno” Emma says. ”I just have this... weird feeling. Nothing in life has ever been this easy... so I can't help but to feel like things will go wrong somehow”.

”You sure?” Jackson asks. ”I mean, it seems like the classroom has finally settled in on the idea of being around laibah. It's hard to say whether we can or can not be comfortable enough to have the rest of you guys come out as laibah, but... it's getting there, isn't it?”.

”Right, but” Emily says, ”this doesn't really seem like it's gotten easier. I know Emma thinks our goals suddenly became easier, and Jackson feels like our fighting may be coming to an end, but I feel like you're both wrong”.

”What do you mean?” Aeris asks.

”Well... we've made it over one hurdle for sure” Emily says. ”But now, with the bill and everything, isn't it basically our school together against the whole world now, like Aeris said yesterday? There's still a lot to do, and I don't think it'll be getting any easier from here on out. Just... enjoy this grace period while you can, guys, because I feel like we're going to be put right back to work”.