Posted by Civilian Karina Enger (Director of Education) in Oed High School- Picking Fights (Jessie)

Posted by Civilian Jeannette Mathis (Federation Ambassador) in Oed High School- Picking Fights (Jessie)

Posted by Civilian Karina Enger (Director of Education) in Oed High School- Picking Fights (Jessie)
Posted by… suppressed (5) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

A few minutes later, a woman stepped into the office, looked Jessie over and approached the secretary, speaking softly. She disappeared into the office.

Jessie watched for a moment, guessing it might be Josh’s mom. From what he understood, this kind of thing happened quite a bit lately. Leaning back in his seat, he looked up towards the ceiling. Above the planet, his own mom was working, doing her thing, and apparently pissing off the locals. It wasn’t the first time. But it was the first time it had involved him directly in some way.

A couple minutes later, a tall figure with auburn hair stepped into the office and glanced at Jessie. His per’s eyes widened and they stepped up to the secretary’s desk. “I’m Ren Mathis, here for Jessie.”

~The Mathis Family

The secretary nodded, “If you would, have a seat with your son. Headmaster Ch’zaahril will be with you in a moment. Do either of you need anything? I’m happy to get it for you.” She thought it best to not interject. Jessie could explain or wait for the headmaster.

Admin Secretary

“I’m fine, thanks,” Ren said. Jessie just shook his head. Ren sat next to their son and gently took his jaw in their hand, studying the injuries. “We’re going to have to stop somewhere and get these healed. Are you okay?”

Jessie both shrugged and nodded. Ren arched their brows as they gazed at him and Jessie sighed. “Does mom know?”
“Not yet. It’ll be awhile longer before she’s back on the surface. But I think you already know what she’s going to say.”
“I wasn’t trying to embarrass her.”
Ren’s expression softened. “I don’t think she’ll think that at all. But if you reached the point of physical violence, then there’s a much bigger problem. Do you want to tell me what happened?”

“No,” he sulked, but his per just kept their gaze on him. “This older kid has bene picking on me since I started and I just figured it was new kid hazing or whatever. But then he starts insulting mom and I just…” He sighed. “I punched him. Next thing I know we’re on the floor.”

For their part, Ren just nodded slowly. “And were there other options available to you before you decided to hit him?”

“Yeah.” Jessie bent forward and buried his head in his arms.
Ren leaned in and put their arm around him. “We always knew this would be a tough transition. Fortunately for you it’s not treaty negotiations, it’s high school.”

~The Mathis Family

As Josh and then Mrs. Woods left, Headmaster Ch’zaahril appeared in the doorway. “Jessie, will you and your parent come and have a seat, please.”

Headmaster Ch’zaahril

Ren patted Jessie’s shoulder and stood, giving the headmaster a sympathetic look. No educator liked having to call in the parents for something like this. They waited for Jessie to enter the office and then followed, taking a seat. “Jessie’s mother would be here, but she’s not available right now. Jessie told me at least a little bit of what happened, but I’m sure there’s more I don’t know.”

~The Mathis Family

Ch’zaahril nodded in understanding. He was sure Jessie’s mother was quite busy. He sat down after they had and looked at Jessie. “Alright Jessie, why don’t you tell me what happened. From the beginning.”

Headmaster Ch’zaahril

Jessie sighed and spoke, if quietly. “Every since I started, Josh Woods has been picking on me. Just little stuff, minor pushes or insults. I just thought it was because I was new, but today he was all in my face, saying I shouldn’t be here and he said stuff about my mom. I told him to take it back. He wouldn’t. I told him again and he asked what I was going to do about it. Called me a spoiled ass and said my family and I should leave before we made things worse, or maybe we should just let my mother take care of that. He didn’t finish that sentence but I knew what he was going to say and I… uh, punched him before he could finish. He said I was dead and the next thing I know we’re on the floor trading punches.”

“What could he have possibly said about her that would have made you that angry?” Ren said, their brows furrowed.
“You don’t want to know,” Jessie said, his voice low.
Ren wore patience effortlessly as they tried to meet their son’s gaze. “You’d be surprised the insults people will throw when they are angry. Trust me, your mother has heard many over the years.”
Jessie looked at his per with pain in his eyes. “He called her a high-priced hooker and that when things went inevitably bad with her work, she’d at least be able to meet ends meet that way.”
Ren actually allowed surprised to slip onto their face and they just looked at the headmaster. “That’s a new one.”

~The Mathis Family

Ch’zaahril suppressed a groan. It was no wonder that Jessie punched Josh. He was sure that Mrs Woods would be mortified to find out what Josh had said. They would have to discuss that later. “Your reaction is understandable, Jessie. When I was your age, I would have done the same.” He smiled gently, but there was no humor to it. “However, we do not condone fighting here. First let me say, we do not tolerate bullying. I know sometimes, it’s hard to go to an adult when you feel you can or should handle things yourself. Bullying and harassment are serious offenses. This may have been missed in your orientation, but we have a student led group that acts as a miniature Oed police force. They actually train and apprentice with investigators from OPF and learn how to diffuse situations, make inquiries, mediate, and etc. Kupi and Ghampeq are members of the group. They are always a resource.”

“There is a mandatory cooling off period. First offense is one day. So you will be required to attend classes virtually tomorrow and then return on Wednesday. You will also be required to meet with the school counselor when you return.”

Headmaster Ch’zaahril

Jessie nodded quietly and then sighed. “I know it was wrong to punch him. I don’t plan on repeating it.”

Ren studied their son for a moment before focusing on Ch’zaahril. “This is Jessie’s first time in public school. We’ve homeschooled him and he’s had tutors because the nature of his mother’s work made attending a local school difficult at times. We could then ensure he had uninterrupted studies. But it was his request that he try attending school here and it’s a big transition for all of us. Not the least of which given the delicate situation that brought us to Oed in the first place.” They shifted their gaze back to Jessie. “Which is not an excuse in any way, but a reminder that things were complicated to begin with.” Ren returned their gaze to the headmaster. “That being said, I believe I’m well within my right to question my son’s safety. Outside of school he has mandatory protection- we’re used to it. But this is the first time we’ve had to turn his safety over to others we don’t know well. I can guarantee his mother will want some assurances.”

~The Mathis Family