Chapter 37
The next day, when The Rejects club gathered, they began talking about whether any of them have decided what to do when they graduate. "With all of this going on at school" Jessica says, "I think it'll help us clear our minds if we just focus on the main reason we formed this club. We've got enough to worry about, so why don't we try focusing on one thing, rather than worry about everything?".
"Getting a little overstressed, are we?" Aeris asks.
"I can see why" Lily says. "Were only a little ways into the first semester, yet a lot has happened".
"Focusing on what we want to do after graduation, eh?" Darren says. "It's true I haven't put much thought into it yet".
"I have" Jerry says. "I definitely want to be a musician".
"Neat" Emily says. "I wanna be left alone...".
"You're kinda bitter, ain't ya?" Gregg asks.
"Emily is a nice person!" Emma says.
"And what about you?" Gregg asks.
"What about me?" Emma asks.
"I meant, what do you want to do?" Gregg asks.
Emma thinks for a moment, then says "I guess to be the first laibah to open a clothing store, and sell my own stuff...".
"That's actually a great goal" Darren says.
"Is it?" Emma asks. "It doesn't seem like it's all that much. There's not a whole lot of bells and whistles in that dream".
"It sounds peaceful, at the very least" Wyatt says. "And you're great as a clothier! You should do well!".
"Have you finally thought of something also, Wyatt?" Emma asks.
"I think I really will try for being a teacher" Wyatt says. "The more I think about it, the more... appealing it sounds to me. I wasn't very interested at first, but now I feel like it's something I should really do".
"A teacher?" Emily asks. "You're really gonna strive for something like that after all? What would you teach?".
"Well..." Wyatt says as he thinks, "if all goes well with this bill, I actually thought of something that'd be really good. People tend to have aggressions towards laibah because they don't know what laibah are capable of. So, if we finally started teaching laibah history at schools, I feel like that'd really clear the air between humans and laibah. It's a subject that I've never known well about, but has always really interested me. As well as, I'm sure your parents could use someone to purchase their works for both profit and for knowledge, Emily".
"My parents?" Emily asks as she thinks. "They... may actually be really happy to hear about that idea. Not only would their efforts come to fruition, but they could even one day be known as well respected scholars...".
"That's a great idea then!" Emma says. "Not only could you help Emily's family, but we could all learn a lot about laibah... including us laibah who don't know about our own history".
"I-I thought you were a human, Emily" Tina asks, "so how do your parents know more about laibah then us laibah do?".
"My parents are laibah" Emily says.
"Then... you're a laibah?" Lily asks.
"No, I'm human" Emily says.
Most of the newer members of the club seem to stand dumbfounded, as they get lost in thought. Trying to connect the dots about Emily, eventually Jerry speaks up and asks "How?".
"I'm adopted, you dolt!" Emily says. "Seriously, am I going to have to hold this conversation with everyone?".
"To be fair" Jackson says, "it's not a very common occurrence. You are probably going to have to hold that conversation with literally everyone...".
"I'm going to start using one of your excuses then" Emily says. "I don't like having to explain it all the time. What was that one thing you've said before? Sucks to suck?".
"Please don't quote that" Jackson says.
"Sucks to suck" Emily says.
"Oh, god damn it..." Jackson says.
"You've dug yourself another hole" Aeris says with a laugh.
"With this hole opened, it'd be nice if you'd shut your hole" Jackson says.
Aeris elbows Jackson in the side and says "Make me".
At first, Jackson flinches and says "Ow!". Then, when he looks over at Aeris, he could see she was smiling. Jackson couldn't help but to smile back as he thinks "Just like old times, I guess".
After a little while of talking, the door to the rooftop opens up. After the door swings open, Rose and Refus enter onto the rooftop. "The club got bigger..." Rose says. "I guess that's a good sign. Bringing the bill to the attention of the students was the right move after all".
"Yes, well" Refus says, "we've got an important task to ask of you Rejects". Refus then sighs and asks quietly "Why'd you have to go and pick a name like that?". When Refus looks back up at the club, he says "Bringing the bill to the attention of the students has made hiding his issue from the students unavoidable. In trade, we'd like to ask you small group of students to... represent the community that supports this bill directly".
"It's nice to know we can help somehow" Wyatt says, "but how should we go on about this?".
"Some of the students in school are worried about the possibility of the school shutting down" Refus says. "I'm not sure how to go about this, but that's why we're asking for your help. Can you guys help us brainstorm a way to, for the many students who have signed this bill, show their support in some way?".
"What he means" Rose says, "is that we need to think of a way to show how many people have supported this bill, as a way to put students more at ease. We don't want to pull up a list of names, but we want to find a way for the students interested to show that they've supported. For the students worrying, this may show that the odds are so far in our favor".
"But are the odds in our favor?" Jackson asks.
"Well, so far, yes" Rose says. "We're getting close to the amount of signatures needed for this bill".
"Can't you announce that?" Jackson asks.
"Look at mister simple solutions over here..." Rose says. "Of course we can announce that. We will announce that, however, we're trying to build up the support for those who haven't decided whether or not to sign the bill yet, as well as put the others who have at ease. Some students may feel like the odd ones out, as students in some classes are either the only ones who've signed the bill in their class, or are thinking of signing but feel like they'll be singled out for it".
"So we need a psychological support to keep them motivated, rather than let the mental state of the school deteriorate" Wyatt says. "Then I have an idea, although it's more like reusing an idea we never put in motion yet".
"Already?" Refus asks.
"Well, before" Wyatt says, "we were thinking of making pins other people not in our club could wear to show other students that The Rejects isn't a club people should be embarrassed about joining. We were thinking of saving that idea for when the club became either more popular or became the point of topic across the school. You know, rumors and such... anyways, the point of it was; people who didn't join our club, but still wanted to show appreciation for the idea could wear these. Instead, we could use these pins to show support for the bill".
"School pins are relatively easy to make" Rose says. "They can be produced fast enough, so it could work as a quick and makeshift solution, as well as maybe even generate some funding for the school. What design should we use to show support?".
Emma shrugs and says "The club logo?".
"That just may be able to work" Rose says. "Not bad, for a bunch of kids...".
"Long story short" Refus says, "the morale of the school is low. We, as teachers wanted to try and fix this. Leave handling the bill to us, we'll make sure the school remains running. However, we would like to ask you to continue representing the support of the laibah community as you were asked by Principal Schafold".
"Yeah, in any way we can" Wyatt says.
"Just let us know" Jessica says. "We don't want the school to shut down either".
"Thanks for the support, you guys" Refus says.
After the two teachers leave, Jackson says "Well, that was a rather... random interruption".
"Do you think the school is going through that hard of a rough patch?" Emma asks.
"To me" Emily says, "it sounds like the teachers have been scrambling to keep the school open".
"Do you think... that we'll actually be able to save this school?" Tina asks.
"Who knows?" Wyatt says. "I'd sure like to hope so".
"I don't think any of us stand a chance at our futures we have planned" Jessica says, "if this bill things doesn't work out. Most of us, human and laibah, need this to work out".
"Yeah, that's true" Lily says. "It's starting to feel like it's us... the entire school against the rest of this city".
"More like Harrison University versus the entire world as we know it" Aeris says. "This is a rather big change we're trying to push for. Of course there's some hesitation for many. However, if this bill passes, it'll likely have a chain effect on the rest of the world. It's hard to tell what's going on outside the gates of this college...".
"Pins..." Rose says as her and Refus walk down the halls. "Freakin' buttons! That's the solution?".
"What's wrong?" Refus asks.
"It's such a simple idea" Rose says, "that I can't help but to feel something is wrong here".
"Are you mad that you didn't think of it?" Refus asks with a laugh.
"No, that's not it" Rose says. "I just... feel some discontent about the matter. Like, the pins could very well settle the morale with the students. However, what if this oversells?".
"That'd be a good thing" Refus says.
"Yeah, at first" Rose says. "Think about this carefully... if this plan goes too well, people throughout the city will no longer speak out against the bill itself. They will have a target".
"What do you mean?" Refus asks. "I thought Ryan said the bill was blowing over well with people in the city".
"No, the bill is blowing over well with people on THIS side of the city" Rose says. "The bill has been gaining some bad rep with people from the inner city. They only know of the bill and Ryan so far. However, if this... pin idea oversells, and people around the city begin to see it frequently, they'll begin to make the connections between this school and the bill".
"Right, but what are they going to do?" Refus asks.
"You haven't experienced the potential insanity that is the human race, have you?" Rose asks. "There's a reason I make it a mute point for me to not socialize well with anybody. A good reason".
"And that is?" Refus asks.
Rose stops walking and stares at Refus with an annoyed expression. "You're clueless... how much trouble did you have becoming a teacher?".
"I've had enough to know how many people hate the idea of a laibah being anywhere in a city" Refus says. "I've been mocked, laughed at, threatened... the list goes on and on".
"Yeah, well" Rose says, "you've received the nicer treatment of the anti-laibah side. I'm talking gun violence, burning houses, pitchforks, riots... the list goes on and on, Refus".
"You expect them to pull that off at a school?" Refus asks with a skeptic look.
"No, I'm SURE they'll do it" Rose says.
"Let's try taking it up with Ryan" Refus says. "He'll be able to see it under a new light. He's good at taking these things into account".
Rose sighs and says "Yeah, maybe that's not a bad idea. C'mon, let's go to Ryan".
"Pins?" Ryan asks as he thinks for a little while. "While the issue you brought up, Rose, could very well come to reality... I don't think that should be our point of focus".
"You're talking in riddles again, gramps" Rose says. "What the hell do you mean?".
"I mean" Ryan says, "I'm not going to sugarcoat this... while yes, the direct representation of support for the bill could very well put our school in the spotlight, we should push forward with this idea regardless".
"But why?" Rose asks. "Aren't you more concerned about the safety of our students than I am?".
"Of course I am" Ryan says. "But... it's only a matter of time before that were to happen". Ryan then pulls out a stack on several letters delivered to Ryan's office, all of them threats of different kinds. "This week, it's so far been fifteen of these letters. Last week, it was only seven".
"What is all that?" Refus asks.
"Threats..." Ryan says. "Threats directed to me. With this much going on, protecting the school completely will be impossible. The school appearing on their radar, them targeting the school... is unavoidable. They will do whatever they can to keep the world on their side. If we even think of backing down now, then we'll end up letting them win".
"Gramps... why didn't you tell me?" Rose asks. "There's gotta be a way to keep you from being targeted! Some way to keep you safe!".
Ryan shakes his head and says "The moment I proposed this bill was the moment I sealed my fate. Of course I saw this coming".
Rose's eyes start to water, as she clenches her fists and storms out of the office. "T-then appointing Rose as the Vice Principal, and asking her to take your seat...?".
"Listen, Refus" Ryan says, "nothing is more dangerous than a man with a plan. I'm sure you're smart enough to connect the dots here... and so is Rose. Whatever Rose says, keep pushing your efforts to support the bill. I believe I've already said this, but you'll likely see a side of Rose that you've never seen before. The two of you are closer than Rose is to anyone else in this school, me aside".
"What are you suggesting?" Refus asks. "We're not that close! How am I supposed to help her in this situation?".
"You have to be there for her" Ryan says.
"B-but... I'm not interested in her like THAT" Refus says. "She's got like... ten years on me".
"What I mean is" Ryan says, "you've got to be that friend there for her. Not every relationship has to lapse into romance. Love isn't bound by romance, Refus. There can be love without romance, like my relationship to Rose. I know I asked Rose to take my place as principal, but I want you to take my place as the friend who's there for her".
"I'm not even sure if she'll want to depend on me as a coworker" Refus says. "Not to mention as a friend. I don't think she can even bare the idea of having friends, to be honest".
"Everyone needs someone to understand them" Ryan says. Ryan then pulls out a note, the letter to Rose he had written about Sarah's issue and how she had to give up Emily. He keeps the note in the envelope and hands it to Refus. "I want you to give this to Rose when the time is right" he says. "This will be important to her".
"B-but!" Refus says.
"Listen to me carefully" Ryan says. "If I can no longer be around to give that to her, I want you to do it for me. One more thing". Ryan then gestures with his finger to tell Refus to come closer. After Refus leans in, Ryan whispers "This is a letter explaining everything about Sarah's issue. The story that she tried to hide from her sister, Rose. You must not talk about it, but since you'll be the keeper of it, I'll let you know a few things about this".
"H-how important is it?" Refus asks.
"Sarah..." Ryan says in a low and saddened voice, "she had to give up a child. Emily Bernnigan is that child, Refus. Rose is her aunt, and looking after their family has been an important task for me".
"W-why are you telling me all of this?" Refus asks.
"Because" Ryan says, "the universe has already begun to take its course. When the issue with the school has blown over, give her this letter for me".
"You don't think you'll be around to do it?" Refus asks.
"I suspect many things" Ryan says. "I am simply hoping for the best, and preparing for the worst".
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