You Can't Handle Me Ch. 02

"I must say, Denise, I was hoping to meet some of Richard's teachers, though not quite this soon," Mr. Masters said as he sat down on the couch. He glanced over at the woman who was still standing in front of the chair. "Oh, yes, you haven't been properly introduced; this is my maid, Candy. You may sit down now," he said to Candy as he looked back over to Denise, who was still standing in the doorway to the living room. Candy sat down in the chair as Denise took another step into the living room.

"Well, Mr. Masters, I don't normally show up at student's homes like this, but I felt strongly that I needed to speak to you about his behavior."

"I see," he said to her as he lifted his hand in his direction. "Come, have a seat." He motioned his hand towards the couch and patted the seat next to him. Denise blinked and then walked over, sitting next to him on the couch, crossing her ankles as she settled into the very comfortable sofa. The angle of the couch put her seat directly across from where Candy was sitting.

"I can tell you take things very seriously, Denise. Whatever is on your mind must be troubling you quite greatly." He smiled at the teacher as she settled into her seat.

"It is, Mr. Masters. Richard's behavior towards females in particular has been very disturbing." And Denise began relating the events of the other day; catching him in the bathroom with Sara, and then the incident with Melanie in class. She didn't make any mention of what happened after school, or the next day -- partly because of how humiliating it had been for her, and partly because she didn't want to seem as if she was making it a personal issue.

Mr. Masters nodded and his smile vanished as Denise spoke. "I must say, Denise, I'm very disappointed in him. This isn't the first time he has gotten into this kind of trouble. I only wish the people at his last school had been as proactive as you are, and taken it more seriously -- perhaps he would still be there now."

"I understand, and yes, I take discipline and behavior in my class and towards my students extremely seriously, Mr. Masters. The two girls, they are the two top students in the senior class, with bright futures, and I won't allow anything or anyone to derail them." She glanced over at Candy, who was just sitting there blankly, leaning forward a bit and giving Denise an eyeful of her assets. Denise blushed a bit as she turned back to Mr. Masters. "I don't mean to pry, but is there a Mrs. Masters?"

"No, there isn't, not for a long time now," Mr. Masters sighed. "Perhaps if there was, I wouldn't have such difficulty with Richard. He is very strong-willed and stubborn." He noticed Denise's glances towards Candy and smiled. "Candy has been a wonderful addition to the household -- she does all the cooking and cleaning, and a house as large as this, it keeps her quite busy. I could almost do with two of her, I think." He glanced back towards his maid again. "That reminds me, Candy, we haven't been very good hosts, we haven't offered our guest a drink yet, go and bring us two cups of tea." Candy immediately rose and walked out of the room.

"This is a really nice house, Mr. Masters," Denise said as she glanced around again. "May I ask what you do for a living, and what brought you here to Virginia?"

Mr. Masters smiled again as Candy returned with the tea. Denise picked hers up and took a sip, marveling at how smooth and delicious the taste was. "Well, I made a few wise business decisions in the past, you see, so I haven't had to worry about things like money for quite some time." He continued to smile at Denise as she sipped her tea. "This house was in Mrs. Masters' family, and had been vacant for some time, so it only made sense for us to move here, and so far I quite like the area, and what I have seen of it."

"I am glad to hear that! I've lived here all my life and I couldn't imagine being anywhere else," Denise remarked as she watched Candy sit back down in her chair. "This is really great tea, thank you!"

"I'm glad you like it," Mr. Masters said as he leaned a bit closer to the teacher, smiling as he took a whiff of her perfume. "Candy, are you making strawberry shortcake in the kitchen?"

Candy shook her head no as Denise looked back at her, then it dawned on her what the smell was. "Oh no, that's just my perfume!" They both laughed a bit, and then Denise asked, "Is it just you and Richard then?"

"No, Candy lives here with us -- and even though I call her a maid, she's very much a part of the family." Candy smiled happily as he continued. "And then there's Ashley and Barbie -- they work nights, so they are still asleep."

'He has sisters,' she thought, 'well, that's a good thing.' "So anyhow, back to Richard..."

"Yes. Again, I am very disappointed in what you have told me. Believe me when I tell you that I will handle this. I know it must be difficult enough for you to teach without such distractions. I'll have a talk with him right after school." He paused a moment and then added, "That gives me an idea...I'd like to invite you to come back for supper tonight. I feel like it's the least I can do for everything you've been through, and it will give Richard an opportunity to apologize and make things right. Believe me, after I am finished with him, he'll be falling all over himself telling you how sorry he is." He stopped and waited for her response.

Denise was amazed. Finally, someone understood her, and was taking her side, and was going to help fix this situation! "Yes, she quickly replied, "I'd be delighted to join you for supper, thank you for your support!"

"Again, it's the least I can do," he smiled. "I could tell when you walked in here how troubled you were about it all, and that's no fun at all. I feel somewhat responsible, and I hope I've lifted your burden a bit."

"Oh yes, I feel so much better now!" Denise exclaimed. "I am already looking forward to it...but I couldn't impose on you for a whole meal, would you allow me to bring a dish, at least?"

"Hmm," Mr. Masters thought, "yes, actually, why don't you bring something for dessert? And," he added, "when you come, wear something fun -- we are very relaxed and casual here, and you'll be off duty by then. Okay?"

"You bet!" Denise replied as she started to stand up. Mr. Masters leaned over as she did, and kissed the back of her hand. Denise smiled at the warm gesture -- she had definitely made the right decision in coming here! she thought as she took her leave.

5

Denise made it to school in time for lunch. The weather was even nicer than it had been earlier in the week-it was up to 70, unusual for late January! Many of the kids were in short sleeved shirts and shorts. Denise decided to take off her jacket for the rest of the day.

Her afternoon went very smoothly, one of the best days she could remember in quite some time. Denise was looking forward to that evening, to supper with the Masters'. Dick's father had put her completely at ease -- she just knew that things were going to be better from here on out!

On her way home, Denise stopped by the supermarket and picked up a gallon of vanilla ice cream, two quarts of strawberries, and two cans of whipped cream -- she had agreed to bring dessert, and he had mentioned strawberry shortcake, so that seemed like a good dessert to bring! The only problem was, the store was completely out of the little round cakes for the base of the dessert. Denise decided to forgo that part -- maybe they had something there they could use, or maybe she would have time to whip up a quick cake before she got there.

Once she got home, Denise got a shower and then went into her bedroom to find something 'fun' to wear for that evening. As she looked through her dresser, Denise thought this would be a great opportunity to wear something out that she normally couldn't get away with wearing at school! After quite a bit of time, she settled on a pink crop top and a black miniskirt, with a pair of black pumps. She checked herself in the mirror -- both seemed a bit tight, but then, she realized, it had been a number of years since she had worn either! She spent a good bit more time applying her makeup just right, and then she sprayed on a bit more of the strawberry spray she had used that morning. She sprayed a bit on her neck, a little on her arms and legs, and even a little bit on the exposed part of her stomach.

Denise had spent so much time primping herself that by the time she was finished, it was a quarter to five! There was no time to bake a quick cake for the dessert -- she'd just have to do without. She packed the other ingredients in a bag, grabbed her purse, and headed for the door, almost skipping to her car in her excitement.

The drive there seemed to take forever, and finally she pulled into the driveway and made her way to the front door. Once again, Candy answered the door, dressed exactly as she had been that morning.

"Welcome back, Denise," she said. "Is that for dessert?" She began to walk towards the kitchen, and Denise followed her.

"Yes," Denise replied, "I brought stuff for strawberry shortcake, but they were out of the little cake cups at the store, and I didn't have time to make a cake..."

"That's fine," Candy replied as she looked over the teacher's appearance and smiled. "We have something here that will work even better!"

"Oh great!" Denise breathed a sigh of relief. She sat the bag on the counter. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Thank you, but everything's almost ready, the girls are setting the table now, and we'll be eating before long. Would you like something to drink while you wait?"

Denise thought for a moment. "Do you have any more of that tea? It really was quite something!"

"As a matter of fact, I just made a fresh pot!" Candy exclaimed. "You did seem to like it," she added as she poured Denise a cup and set it on a saucer.

"Thanks!" Denise said as she picked up her tea and wandered into the dining room. Two girls were busy putting out the plates and silverware; they were both dressed similarly, in halter tops, cutoff shorts, and heels. Denise looked down at her own appearance, and realized she wasn't dressed much differently.

"Oh hi!" the taller of the two girls exclaimed as she turned to see Denise standing there. "You must be Denise! I'm Ashley, and this is Barbie!"

"Hi, yes I am, nice to meet you both!" Denise replied. "I'm one of Richard's teachers from school."

"Oh yes," Barbie said, as she also turned to face Denise. "He's told us all about you! Wow..." she added as her eyes roved over Denise's body.

"Wow?" Denise asked, a bit surprised.

"He said you're 38? You don't even look 28! He said you were hot, but, wow..."

Denise blushed deeply at this unexpected statement. She opened her mouth as she tried to think of something intelligent to come back with, but all that came out was "umm...thanks!"

"It's really cool that you came over for supper," Ashley said to Denise. "Most teachers I know wouldn't be caught dead having a meal at a student's house! But then you seem so much cooler than any of them!" As she finished speaking, Candy walked in with a casserole dish and shot Ashley a disapproving look as she sat it on the table. A moment later, she returned and refilled Denise's cup of tea, before going back for a second bowl of food for the table.

"Are we about ready?" came a familiar voice from the next room, as Mr. Masters strolled through the doorway, still dressed in the short sleeved shirt and shorts from that morning. "Oh, Denise, you made it! Welcome again to our humble abode..." and he sat down at one end of the table. Denise looked around and counted eight place servings at the table. She wondered who else was going to be there -- Dick seemed to be the only one missing.

"Thanks again, Mr. Masters, for your warmth and hospitality, you really do have a beautiful home here!" Denise gushed as she continued sipping the wonderful tea.

"Why don't you sit here, between me and Ashley?" Barbie asked as she pointed to the right side of the table, where three places were lined up. Candy finished bringing in the rest of the food as Denise took the seat in the middle, and Ashley and Barbie sat down on either side of her.

"We're not late, are we?" came another familiar voice just then, as Dick walked into the spacious dining room from yet another doorway. Behind him were Sara and Melanie, and they were dressed much like Ashley and Barbie were, in halters and cutoffs. Denise sighed as she saw her students walk in -- she should have known that Sara and Melanie would be here. They were obviously still smitten with Dick, for reasons unimaginable to Denise. They all sat down, Dick at the other end of the table, opposite his father, and Candy directly across from Denise, with Sara and Melanie on either side of her.

Mr. Masters waited until everyone was settled, then he stood up. "Before we start eating, I think Richard has something he wants to say." And he sat back down, glancing down the table at his son, who began to stand up slowly, looking nervously at Denise as he turned to face her.

"I'm really sorry for everything that happened this week at school, Denise," he started. "I made your job even more difficult than it already is. I promise I'll do everything I can from now on to make things easier and more comfortable for you." And he sat back down, as everyone turned to look at Denise for her reaction.

"That's okay, Richard," she answered. "Thank you for your apology; perhaps I overreacted a bit myself with how I tried to handle things." She turned to look at his father. "Now that I know I have your father's support, I'm confident we can move past this unfortunate situation."

Dick looked visibly relieved as he smiled at his teacher. "That was the hardest thing I've ever had to do..."

"I could tell. The hardest thing to do is to admit you're wrong and sincerely apologize for it, and you just did it. I'm quite proud of you!"

Everyone smiled and applauded. "Now, we can eat!" Mr. Masters exclaimed. "Somebody pass me the meat, I'm starved!"

The plates were passed around the table until everyone had a full portion. Candy got up as soon as everyone was eating and quietly refilled everyone's drinks. Denise took a couple of bites of her meat -- it had a very succulent flavor, one she didn't recognize immediately, similar to pork, she thought. She waited until Candy was seated again, and asked her, "What kind of meat is this? It's delicious!"

Candy was about to respond when Mr. Masters blurted out, "It's that girl who came around yesterday trying to sell us some cosmetics. Apparently she didn't read the sign over the door."

Denise gasped a bit as the others started to laugh. Then she realized he was completely kidding, even as she asked, "what sign?"

"Oh, you didn't see it either, Denise? The one written in Latin? 'Salutor ero perussi'?"

"Oh yes, but I didn't know what"-

"It means, 'visitors may be consumed'." They all laughed again. "Just a little humor. We can't take ourselves too seriously, now, can we?"

"I guess not!" Denise laughed.

"It's closely related to pork," Candy stated. "All kidding aside." She got up again and refilled Denise's teacup.

"You really are a wonderful cook, Candy," Denise said between bites. "Were you a professional chef before you came here?"

Candy looked down to Mr. Masters, who nodded as if in approval. "Actually, Denise, I was a high school teacher."

Denise gasped in surprise. "You were? A teacher? And now, you're a..."

"Maid, yes, that's right, Denise. Being a teacher was very difficult, as I am sure you know all too well...I got to a point that I realized I just wasn't cut out for it. Having to keep control of a class of hormonally-challenged teenagers, constantly having to think on my feet...things are much better now, I'm where I belong, and I couldn't be happier!"

"Did you teach around here? What subject? Do you ever miss it?" Denise peppered her with questions.

"No, not here, in California. I was a history teacher too -- seems we have a lot in common! Do I miss it? Not really...maybe I miss being around the kids a bit, but that's all..."

"We both had Miss Candy in school!" Barbie blurted out suddenly.

"Did you...umm..." Denise was trying to think of something more to ask, but something was happening to her, almost like a fog, enveloping her mind, keeping her thoughts from forming...She picked up her teacup and drank some more, hoping it might clear her head a bit.

Mr. Masters looked down at Denise, smiling at her glazed expression. "I think the teacher likes your special tea, Candy..."

"Special...tea..." Denise mumbled.

"Yes dear, you seemed to like it so much this morning, that I had her make an entire pot, just for you...I think you've drank it all!"

"Drank it all...ohh..." Denise mumbled again. She began to look around for the bathroom. "Umm...where's the..."

"The bathroom?" Candy asked. "It's in the back of the kitchen, just go straight through and you can't miss it."

"Thanks..." Denise mumbled as she got up slowly, shaking her head a bit as she made her way slowly to the bathroom. As she sat down to relieve herself, she put her suddenly dizzy head in her hands. Her head felt so heavy, she almost felt like she could fall asleep right there in the bathroom! After she was done, she washed her face and hands, running cold water over her face to try and invigorate herself a bit. It seemed to help, she thought as she made her way back to the dining room.

Candy and the girls were starting to clear the table as Denise slowly walked back in. "You look a bit peaked," Dick chuckled as he walked over to his teacher and held her hand to help support her. "We were going to watch a short movie before dessert...do you think you're up for it?"

"A movie...?" Denise asked, "umm...sure...sorry...don't know why I feel so...exhausted..."

"Well, it's been a long week, and we just ate a big meal, it's no wonder you're a little tuckered out," Dick responded. "Here, let's go into the theater room, the chairs are quite comfortable, you can rest a bit..." and he led her out of the dining room, and into a mostly darkened room that did resemble a mini-theater, with ten or twelve plush seats and a large screen at the far end of the room. Dick led Denise to the front row, seating her in the center. There was a table between the seats and the theater, about six feet long and two feet wide, similar to a coffee table.

Denise settled into the seat and leaned back, her head resting comfortably against the back of the chair, at a perfect angle to see the big screen in front of her. She opened her mouth briefly, to ask what kind of movie they were going to watch, but then the fog settled back over her mind and that thought drifted away. She was aware of the others entering the room around her; two of them seemed to be carrying something, which they set down on the table, but Denise didn't make any effort to look down and see what it was.

Dick had sat down directly behind his dazed and sleepy teacher. He leaned over as the lights were dimmed completely, and whispered into her ear: "I think you're going to really enjoy this, Denise, it has a lot of personal meaning for you," and then the movie began to play.

Denise gasped, and her heavy eyes widened as much as they could, as she saw herself, in her classroom, sitting alone at her desk. She immediately realized she was watching a film of the complete events from after school, two days before. The angles changed as the film showed Dick entering the room -- there had obviously been multiple cameras in her room, oblivious to her.

As a camera zoomed in to capture the moment where Denise hit her head on the bottom of the desk, the audience gasped, and then there was intermittent laughter and talking as the events continued beyond that. Denise could do nothing but stare at the screen, the images burning themselves deep into her hazy mind. As the film showed Dick touching her exposed stomach, she once again felt him reaching around and touching her there, and she let out a soft whimper.