The Adventures of Stevie #107
These stories were told to me by friends and other people. Some of them
are true. Some of them are only partly true. Some of them should have
been true. LOL
My first post about Stevie ("Call me Stephen!") was when he was 12 and
in summer camp and was told by another camper. This was from a time
before computers would fit on a desk and when people communicated with
friends in other countries by actual letters sent through the postal
service. When children did this those friends were called "penpals".
Carlos is Stevie's penpal in Argentina and knows English. This is a
fictional contrivance to enable Stevie to tell us his stories because
he isn't here in person. I think.
All characters are fictitious, even if some of them might have names
that belong to some actual people, or act like people we know.
Stevie's school is for gifted children who don't fit in regular schools.
The stories may not be posted in chronological order.
Stevie is 13 in this story, in Spring of year 3 of his special school.
The Adventures of Stevie #107 "Student Futures"
Dear Carlos,
I discussed my job and my education plans with Dr. Knot. He liked how
my job was going, and tried to joke, "Pretty soon, you will be running
the place." I looked at him like I was conspiring, and he said "Oh my
God, you are!" I said "Only as much as I want to, and that's very
little. I could do that here and you know it, but I don't want to. It
won't change the fact that this school is mostly a failure." Dr. Knot
looked guardedly interested, and asked me to continue. I said "Did they
really think they could make geniuses do their dirty work, the way they
want them to? It's not very smart to have tools smarter than you are.
Not if you want them to follow you. Instead, it will be the other way
around, if they pay attention to what you want at all. You knew this
before the school started. So, why?"
He said "You're right. I tried to tell them that, before the plans
for the school were finalized, but they didn't believe me. The Director
still doesn't know you run as much as you want to of his entire
operation, through ability and personal loyalty, just as you do here,
and may never realize it. I don't know if I could convince him, or the
Board or Trusties, but I won't try, because you are doing a very good
job, irritating as that often is to me." He gave me a big smile. I gave
him a small one back. He said "I care more about the students, than
their plans for them. Your family, and the families of the other
students, could not have provided the kind of education the students
here receive, no matter how much money they had. All of you needed it,
and I could be involved in seeing that you received it, the best way
possible. That's why. There are no strings attached to you, because,
being minors under the law, no contract, even with the federal
government, is binding on you. When you turn 18, you can just walk
away, and they can't legally do anything about it." I said "They could
try to go after our parents, or blacklist us, but the people who would
do that, won't. Not now." He looked surprised, then grinned, and said,
"Machiavelli would have loved you." I said "Who knows? Maybe I taught
him, in one of my supposed past lives."
I said "I'm going to be very busy. I want to keep teaching here part
time, as long as I can. It will help me, help them, and I want to
protect my people. That's why I will go to sumer camp only one more
time. I have things to finish there. Then I will have more time for
work, teaching, and studying. You're right about the unique education
opportunities here. I plan to take full advantage of them. It's good I
really like learning! I want to take every available course on
psychology. Maybe I can find something in it that's more than pure
guesswork. I will study anthropology and sociology, too. I will
continue in education, engineering, and physics. I want graduate
degrees in all of them, and as many final degrees as I have time for,
before I'm 18. Because there could be a problem with people who won't
believe one person could have that many degrees, I will arrange for
extra identities to be established and built up, so I can be who I want
to be. Even more than one person at a time, if I want to. I have
already decided what I'm going to do when I turn 18, but I'll keep that
to myself. Until then, you bring in the teachers, and I'll suck them
dry. How is all that for a plan?" He said "Fine, if you can do it. Just
stay healthy."
Then I went to have a private conference with Chad. In my private
room, I say next to him and hugged him, and kissed him. I said "I'm
sorry about calling off the experiments with the charmed pictures. I
know you had some great experiments planed, but I think you know why I
wanted to not do them." He said "Yes, I figured it out. Too dangerous.
I'm glad you put the restrictions in. Now I don't have to worry if I
could resist trying them myself." I said "I did try one, and I wish I
had never done it, I was so sick after. I don't think I could ever do
it again." He said "What was it?" I said "You know the card with the
picture with this room on it? Have you tried it?" He said "I saw it,
but didn't do anything with it." I said "I made a card of my bedroom.
Behind the Temple where nobody saw me, I looked in the card and made it
real, like I was contacting somebody. I saw nobody was in it. I pushed
my mind through it and the next thing I knew I was on the floor of my
bedroom, really sick. I ran to the bathroom and threw my guts up over
and over. I thought I was going to die, and almost wanted to, just to
get it over with. I felt bad the rest of the night. I don't ever want
to do that again, as long as I still have a stomach." Then my stomach
growled, like it remembered. Chad said "Yes, it agrees." and he poked
me there. I poked him back, then he tickled me and I did the same to
him. Then we were grabbing monsters and kissing all over. After we
squirted, we talked about my job.
Then I said, "I thought about having you with me there sometimes, but
decided not to. It's NOT fun listening to some of the things they say.
Nobody should have to, but I do it anyway, because I have to. Have you
guessed why?" He said "Yes. Partly. If I know you, you have them eating
out of your hand like a tame dog, rolling over at your slightest wish.
You knew it would happen, which is why you did it. What I don't know is
why. I know you had a very good reason for doing something like that,
you don't like." I said "It's because the money for this school comes
from them, and other parts of the government. They wanted to make us
tools they could use. I turned that around, and made them tools for our
fancy education. The students are safe from them as long as they don't
sign any contracts with them after they get to be legal age. I fixed it
so they can't do anything about it, or hurt our parents. I know all
their dirty little secrets. They know it, so they won't dare to bother
us, even if I'm dead. My secret files are safe, but would become public
if they killed me. I made sure they know that. I did all that for you,
mostly. The older kids weren't in much danger, because they aren't as
good as you and me with what those people are looking for, except
Jarod, and he can't go on missions, and would probably like the
analysis work they would have him do. Dr. Knot knows all about this,
and is on our side. His loyalty is to my father first, and then to me
and the other students."
Chad said "Wow." I said "Is that proper genius talk?" We both
laughed. I said "I have something serious to say to you. It's important
to me. You are the first genius I ever loved, and the first one younger
than me I ever met. I can't believe how lucky I am to know you. I can
be myself with you, like I can with nobody else. It's like us being a
nudist family in the mind, and I love it." He said "Wow" again. Then he
said, "I was thinking almost the same about you." Then we both said at
the same time, "When geniuses talk to each other, only one needs to
speak." We giggled and tickled each other. Then we just sat for a wile,
hugging and loving. Then we went back to class.
Your friend,
Stephen
--
Grant
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