You're Not My Teacher Anymore

I'd like to thank Kenjisato again for editing and my friend Anaya for input.

Sexual activity only involves characters over the age of 18. Any similarities to persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

You're Not My Teacher Anymore

I was a new math teacher and baseball coach. Baseball has been very good to me. I was an education major and wanted to be a math teacher. My mom and dad were both teachers and kept my nose to the grindstone ; while in grade school, I had very high grades. In high school, I had played baseball and walked on in college, but that was at a Division III college when I transferred to a Division I university, I did not have a chance of walking on so I decided to become a student manager.

I am Robert Watt, I kept statistics, helped the team members with video evaluations of batting form, pitching form, anything I could video record, I did. I helped the whole team improve some, and I had created a simple app on my computer to help me do it.

When I was doing my duties as student manager, I was in charge of the umpires' locker room. I took pride in keeping it clean and well stocked with toiletries, soda, coffee and things an official would want. I figured having happy umpires could not be anything but good. So the blues knew I was the one responsible and must have had a high opinion of me.

I even got to play when we had a flu run through the team, and the coach needed some warm bodies so as not to forfeit. We won the game! I had four at-bats, I hit a double, a single, a fielder's choice and struck out— 'five-hundred' ball! I looked at it as luck and adrenaline. We were so hurting for players and staff, so instead of sitting on the bench, the head coach had me coaching third base when not at bat or on base.

The Question

During the game, one of the umpires made an error on a technical call. I told Coach, "I know the rule, let me ask the ump about the ruling."

Coach looked at me and said, "Okay, I'll call time just don't get yourself tossed!" Coach called time.

As I walked out to talk to the home umpire, I said, "Excuse me, Mr. Conley, may I ask you a question?" I am always polite to an official.

Mr. Conley said, "Hi, Bob, they got you playing today?"

"Yeah. A bunch of the guys are up in their rooms hugging toilets. Is it okay if I ask about that last play?"

"Yeah Bob, I'll make you look good for the coach when I say no and you go back to the dugout," he said with friendly sarcasm.

As I mentioned the rule, Mr. Conley's eyebrows climbed up his forehead and under his hat.

He said, "Wait, Bob, I think you are right." He conferenced with the other three umpires. I could hear them give some shit to the umpire who made the call. It was good natured ribbing.

I must have done a good job of explaining how the ruling should have been called because when the opposing coach came out to find out what the hell was going on, Home plate umpire, Mr. Conley, introduced me to him as a 'rules wizard' and let me explain it to the opposing coach.

His response, "Damn it, he's right. But let me argue a little so I look good to my players." It was a little camaraderie that all players, coaches and umpires have... just a little.

I had a big smile as I strutted back to the dugout. With my 'at bat' in the next inning, I struck out on a real, real, real close pitch. I looked at Mr. Conley and smiled. I knew he could have called either way, but I was not getting any favoritism. I could live with that.

Someone got a good look at me.

There was a principal, who was looking for a math teacher and a baseball coach, sitting in the stands, just watching the game.

Educational Circus

The next day, we had, what we students called, the annual educational circus, where education seniors and unemployed educational graduates, would basically arrive at the old gym and answer a cattle call.

We signed our names to sheets for each position that each administrator had. I signed up for math on about six, and about three for baseball coach, like maybe they needed an JV coach at some schools. It turned out, one school needed both a math teacher and a varsity baseball coach. I figured what the hell, why not?

My interviews were scattered all over the gym and there was no rhyme or reason in the times. No luck in getting them into a schedule.

I was able to get four of the math interviews and two baseball coach interviews I had, about an hour before my last two interviews, which were a math position and a varsity baseball coach with the same administrator.

It was late in the afternoon, I had time to hit the men's room, where I combed my hair, took a wet paper towel to my face, and then went to the interview.

I introduced myself, "Robert Watt," and shook the principal's hand. She told me her name was Dr. Helen Stevens PhD, ED, Principal of East High School. We sat down, and she asked me if I had played baseball last night.

"Well, I did last night, but I am the student manager. We had a bunch of the guys sick, so the coach used me."

"I was impressed with how you addressed Mr. Conley; he umpires high school also," she volunteered.

"Well, thank you, Dr. Stevens."

"I have seen your student-teaching evaluations. Being an alumnus here, I get a preview for today. After last night, I was hoping you'd sign up for today. I also talked to Coach Kelley and he gave me your coach's number back at your other college."

I was really surprised; I did not even know Coach Kelley knew Coach Owens' number.

"Dr. Stevens, I have to tell you my sister attends East High."

"I did not know any student named Watt?"

"Well, she is my half sister. My dad was in the service and killed in combat when I was three years old. My mom remarried the man I now call my father."

Dr. Stevens nodded her head in acknowledgment.

"What is her name?"

"Nancy Montgomery."

"I know Nancy! So you are the big brother she brags about."

I nodded my head with a red face. "I'll have to talk to Nancy to see what she had been saying about me."

The offer.

Dr. Stevens asked, "Can you pass a background check?"

"Yes, I can."

"Here sign this permission document. When you pass, I'd like to offer you a contract."

"Wow!" I had to hold myself back from saying, "Holy Shit!"

In two days, my background check came back, and I was clean as a whistle! I signed the teaching contract and the coaching addendum.

I celebrated with my family— dad, mom, my sister; we basically danced at the dinner table when I told them.

Dad said, "You are now working, so put your notice on the apartment, we will not be paying your rent, and you can move back in with us 'til you can afford your own place, on your own."

That's when Nancy asked me where I was teaching.

With a big cheesy smile, I said, "EAST!"

Nancy said, "OH SHIT. Are you teaching pre-calculus?"

"I think I am," I said, still sporting the big cheesy smile.

Nancy whined to mom and dad, "MOMMY, DADDY!"

Dad just said, "I knew you'd be a good teacher AND a good big brother!" He handed me a twenty-dollar bill, "Here is your first informant payment!"

Nancy just screeched, "DADDY!"

We had a great dinner and I gave Nancy my dessert to soothe her hurt feelings."

I found I was going to be one of the youngest varsity baseball coaches in the state.

I finished my senior year. I did have to go with my university team to the league playoffs. We missed going to regionals by a batter who had an 0 and two count, with two outs. He hit a two-run home run in the ninth inning of our third game. I got back to town with the underclassmen. Most of the seniors went to pro tryouts or were signing with the teams that had drafted them.

There she was

I took a week off to decompress from four years of college. I drove over to the beach to have a good time. I saw a bunch of girls around the nightly bonfires. Most of the girls were college coeds and looked like they were college students, but I did my best to steer clear of the ones that looked or acted too young.

On the first night, I was basically sitting alone and a cute, little blonde sat down next to me, and said, "Hi, I'm Kate, mind if I join you?"

"Hi, I'm Bob."

My momma brought me up to be a gentleman, so I gave her some room on my beach blanket. Again, keeping my momma's teachings in mind, I behaved as a perfect gentleman as we chatted. I told her I was going to be a teacher, but she did not share with me her college, or age.

We met nightly at the bonfire and had intelligent talks until late at night. We said our goodbyes the last night. I told her I enjoyed her company. She looked like she wanted a kiss, but I still was not sure how old she was and I was not going to screw up my career, no matter how gorgeous the girl was, until I knew her age. On my drive back home I had a empty feeling inside of me, I kept thinking why didn't get Kate's number.

I reported early to my new school and asked Dr. Stevens if I could start setting up my classroom and see what I had for baseball equipment.

She said, "Sure. Here have your key. Here is the alarm code. Your first day is August fifteenth, in-services! Here the syllabus for the in-service. Your class syllabus is in your mailbox. I am going to my cabin and enjoy the mountains this weekend."

I decided to put in a three-or-four-day 'work week'. After all, I am not getting paid yet. The other days I could go to the beach or to the river. And just take it easy.

I started to go to a couple of clubs in town, where I met a few ladies. I had a couple of dates, had some intimate......er......hot nights; hey, I am a twenty-one-year old guy. I was very careful; I was always careful, my dad did not raise a fool.

One night, I was just sitting in the club. I heard two girls talking about their summer and how they did not meet any guys worth dating. One said, "My little sister even met a guy! She basically fell in love with him, but he left the beach without even a kiss."

"Your sister, Kate? Got a guy?"

"No, she did not get him, but at least she was able to talk to him the whole week that you and I were there."

"Well, she will have time to meet a guy, she is a senior at East High. I am sure she will get at least a date to homecoming and probably prom, too; almost better than we did."

My interest was piqued. I listened closer.

"Yeah, the guy is going to be a teacher, so he is the famed 'older man'."

"How did she meet him?"

"Well, when you and I were going to the 'beer' bonfires she went to 'PG' bonfires. She said he was just sitting there one night, and she sat down and they just talked. She has been dreaming about him all summer."

I started to think, was she 'My Kate' and going to be my student?

The next time I was at school, I got my class lists and looked for a Katherine on my class list. I found a Katherine, Katherine Spring. Her birthday was in late June and she was already eighteen. Phew. At least that was one worry I did not have to think about. I looked up on Facebook for Katherine Spring or Kate Spring and found a page. Looking at her pictures; yep, that was my Kate. She had pictures of her summer at the beach, the first picture had the back of my head.

"Oh shit." I looked at every picture and the first was the only one with me in it. Well, I'd have to tell Dr. Stevens, I didn't want this to jump up and bite me on the ass.

On the following Monday, I was at the school early and found Dr. Stevens.

I said, "We need to talk." First time I ever heard a man say it and it was me saying it.

She invited me into her office. I explained that I had met a young lady during the summer and that there may be trouble...

She said, "Oh my god, she isn't pregnant?"

"No, nothing like that! I just found out she is going to be a senior here and in my third-period class! Along with my sister!"

"Was your conduct totally above board?"

"Yes, it was. I swear I was a total gentleman! I'll take a lie detector test if you want! Her name is Kate Spring."

"I believe you, Bob. We will cross that bridge when school starts."

I worked the rest of the summer on my classroom. I found out the vice-principal, who will be doing my evaluations, loves bulletin boards. I hated them. I had to do them for my cooperating teacher during my student teaching. But I got an idea from a teachers' site online. I spent one whole weekend doing all my monthly bulletin boards at once. I did my June board then stapled my May board over it and I continued till my August board. All I had to do was 'rip' off the old month at the start of the new month. I felt like a teaching god... for about five minutes, 'til I started to practice my students' names.

I made a seating-chart template on my laptop. I made it so as I took attendance the first day, I could quickly paste a student's picture into it.

I would not be introduced as the new baseball coach 'til the first pep rally on the second Friday, which was also our first football game. I still looked up all the baseball players from the varsity and JV teams from last year. I noted them in my grade book; they would be useful in connecting with other students.

I spent the last two weeks practicing, in front of my video camera, my introduction and lessons to the three subjects I was going to be teaching. When I replayed the videos I kept saying, "Who the fuck is that idiot?" referring to myself whenever I saw myself doing something un-teacher-ly. I got it to what I thought was nailed down.

August fifteenth arrived and we were bored to death with speakers, who should go back to college and take public speaking again! I took notes like madman; thank god, I had the syllabus for the in-service or I would have been looking out the window saying 'squirrel!' like the dog in a popular kids movie.

School started on August the twenty-second. My classes were scheduled: first period was pre-calculus; second was algebra II and trigonometry; third was pre-calculus again. Fourth period was lunch. For fifth period was basic math which was almost remedial; followed by my prep period, and then the final period would be study hall for the first semester, and second semester it would be sports prep. On away-game days, they could put a regular substitute teacher in the basic math class, so as to, hopefully, not screw up the kids too much.

Okay, the first day, I wore a jacket and tie.

Nancy said, "Oh. My. God. Bubbie, I haven't seen you in a jacket and tie since I was a baby!"

"Hey Nancy, you have to call me Mr. Watt!"

"What!?!?"

At that point, both dad and mom walked in and told Nancy, in no uncertain terms, if they found out that she called me anything but Mr. Watt, that her 'ass was grass and dad was the lawnmower and mom was the edger!' Yes, that is what they said! They also said that until I said it was okay, she could not tell anyone we were brother and sister.

WOW, mom and dad meant business. I almost felt bad for Nancy, until she stuck her tongue out at me.

In my homeroom, I posted pictures of my family— when Nancy was little; the newspaper article about a college student pulling a man out of a burning car (Nancy made me put it up), if they stood and read long enough, they'd find out the student was me. I put the shadow box that held my first dad's medals from the service. Nancy insisted I put up a couple of pictures of me playing baseball in high school and at my D-III college.

I asked Nancy how she was going to handle the fame when I revealed that we were brother and sister? Because I went to college out of state and had my own apartment at university, I never met any of Nancy's friends.

Homeroom was okay. I gave them my homeroom rules— be quiet during the pledge and the announcements; be in the room before the bell stopped ringing and in their seat A-S-A-P. I told them they had to be quiet during the moment of silence, "Because that is when I pray that, I will not lose my temper and turn into the Hulk." I got a couple of laughs, and a bunch of eye rolls.

First period, I gave the rules after I butchered most of the names. I jumped into teaching. I walked around the classroom with my remote for my computer where I had the lesson on PowerPoint showing on a flat screen. I got a secondhand flat screen with no sound that I was able to use also. I did not need sound as I used it as a big monitor. I think my roaming around the room scared the shit out of some of them. Second period was more of the same, just a different subject. My moving around the classroom kept the students on task.

Okay, third period was coming up. I ran to the men's room and took care of business and was back in the room soon enough to catch a couple of jocks from another class hassling Kate and my sister. Kind of funny, they thought they could invade my room.

In a booming voice, I said, "Miss Spring, Miss Montgomery, are these gentlemen bothering you?"

The whole class understood I was not inviting the boys to stay in my classroom.

Kate's jaw almost hit the floor. My sister gave me the 'my-brother-the-hero' smile that I had seen once when I came to her rescue when she was in middle school.

I also found out that Nancy and Kate had been friends since before they were freshmen! Holy shit!

The rest of the day was okay until basic math, the two jocks were in that class, and guess what, they were baseball players! They tried to pull some alpha male shit, but I told them, "I know the new baseball coach very well, and I'm sure he would not approve of your behavior."

They inferred they were the best players on the team, and that they were sure they'd be okay with the new coach.

They smirked and I smirked back. I started class and gave some basic homework to the moans about having first-day homework.

Study hall was cool. It was almost all jocks and I told them as long as I was running study hall, they would use it. I set up study groups to use if help was needed. I split up the jocks so they were not with their buddies. I found a strong female student athlete for each group, and as I predicted, the girls took charge and kicked ass. After a few weeks, I was thanked by other coaches for helping the jocks stay eligible.

The Friday pep rally happened and I was introduced. As I stepped forward and gave a wave at the sound of my name, I saw my favorite two jocks slump in their seats.

Dinner at home was different, now that Nancy knew who Kate was so madly in love with! I got the third degree from Nancy, and then from mom!

Dad saved me, by telling Mom what a great job she did in raising such a fine gentleman!

Nancy was keeping Kate away from our house while I was home, at my parents' request. Nancy told me that Kate had told her about the cute guy she had met at the beach! And there she was in his class. Nancy was just dying to tell Kate the 'GOOD NEWS' that I was her brother!

The one thing that made any relationship a little easier to accept was that Kate was eighteen; still, state law prohibited a high-school student of any age from having a relationship with a teacher. That did not stop Kate from giving me looks of 'love'. I asked Nancy to talk to Kate about inappropriate behavior of teachers and students.

Mom, in her wisdom, said, "It might be time to let people know that Nancy and you are siblings."

Nancy suggested, "Our latest family picture would be great for Bob to hang up in his room; I look great in it, and Bob does look cute for a brother."

Monday morning, Nancy came into my room and put up the family picture; she had added our names to the picture. When Kate saw it, she almost fainted. Nancy asked if she could help Kate to the girls' washroom. Both girls were leading the class with the highest grades on my pre-test, so I wrote a pass out to the nurse. In the note, I asked the nurse to keep them all period and that I'd explain later.