The Honor Roll: Episode 2. Fighting For The Top

   It's the next morning at Waters Elementary, and as the kids get off the school buses, as Dwight stands at the door, with coffee in hand, Bill Duncan, known as "Mr.Bill" walks off his bus, as he has two children, and Dwight asks Bill "What's the problem?" Bill snaps "These two wouldn't shut the hell up. Fighting and raising hell..." Dwight sighs, and tells Bill "Take them to the office. Coffee's ready, and Thomas may be inside. How does it feel to know he's home?" Bill quips "Good for me. At least I can keep making some extra money driving the bus since my Son's Principal." Bill walks inside, as the kids continue to insult each other, as Bill snarls "If this was when I was a kid, I'd take my belt off!" Inside, the kids head to their classes, as Thomas sits inside his office, as he reads files, and drinks coffee, as Erica walks inside, and Thomas responds "Good morning Dr.Elliott. Coffee?" Erica declines, and responds "I drink tea, strictly tea, and unsweetened!" Thomas sighs "I'll remind the board to order another machine." Erica changes subjects, as she tells Thomas "I didn't get to say congratulations yesterday, so I wanted to say I'm glad you're here. I'm ready to retire, and had my papers ready, but I think I'll hang around for a few more years." Thomas responds "That will be good. I was reading your resume, and you are very qualified in the education field." Erica smiles, as Thomas asks "So how do you and Maura get along?" Erica rolls her eyes, and sighs "That bitch. Anytime a student has a problem, her solution, Graveyard." Thomas asks "I see you taught before?" Erica nods, and responds "I did when I worked in Bankhead County, I was actually over Special Ed." Thomas is quiet, as he hears his Father, and tells Erica "I'll come to your room later. I have an idea." Erica heads out, as Mary Cook, The Secretary tells Thomas "Your Daddy's here." Bill walks inside, as Thomas asks his Father "So is this your hangout after driving the bus?" Bill responds "Free coffee, and I get to check out Mary working. I got these two kids who were fighting on my bus this morning, and I want to know if I can use the paddle on the bastards. I did raise you." Thomas sighs "I'll just send them to Detention." Bill sighs "Too soft Son." Bill tells his Son "I'm going out to sit and visit Mary. I'm glad you're home Son." Thomas hugs his Father, as Bill walks out, and sits in a chair in the front office, as Mary rolls her eyes, and Bill asks "So considered that offer?" Mary responds "No."
    As the day begins, and the teachers teach their students, Dwight sits inside his office, as he's the Assistant Principal, and Counselor, and he gets a page from Alice, as she tells him "We got some problems in here." Dwight responds "On my way.", as Thomas walks inside, and Dwight tells him "Mrs.Gore's got some students causing trouble. I think it's those brothers who Bill brought in here this morning." Thomas tells Dwight "I'll handle it. Keep an eye out for the front office. Dad's in there." Dwight quips "He's always in there. He has the hots for Mary." Thomas quips "He said he was here for the free coffee?" Dwight quips "Until Mary runs him off." Thomas asks "And what's her method?" Dwight goes "Your Mama." Thomas laughs, as he heads for Alice's classroom, and inside the Front Office, Bill sits in a chair, as he goes "I cleaned out my trailer yesterday, and got some TV dinners. I thought we could go out on a date Mary. We're the same age." Mary rolls her eyes, as she smiles at Bill, and asks "TV dinners as food on a date, and your trailer? Aren't you the romantic?" Bill quips "I'm not spending no extra money." Mary asks "Aren't your Westerns on by now Bill? Don't you have somewhere to be?" Bill responds "Nope, just admiring you Mary." Mary pulls out her phone, and responds "Want to see pictures of Eliza and Pedro on their trip to Rio? I miss her working here." Bill snaps "Ok I'm going home, low blow Mary. Bringing up my Ex-Wife." Mary quips "Have a nice day." Bill snarls "The hell it is. Got to be back later to drive these damn kids home. May just carry my dog with me."
    Meanwhile in Alice's classroom, two of her students, argue loudly, as she yells "The two of you are zapped out!" Thomas walks inside, as he goes "Oh these two." Alice responds "Eli and Kevin's been fighting all day. They are disturbing the class, and if you turn towards my zap-board." Thomas quips "Still using the zap method?" Alice nods, and responds "And I've run out of room with these two." Thomas looks at the kids, and tells them "I heard the two of you were fighting on Mr.Bill's bus also?" Eli hits his Brother, and yells "Kevin started it!" Eli snaps "No I didn't!" Thomas tells them "Head to see Mr.Waltrip, and he'll handle this." Eli and Kevin head to Dwight's office, as they continue to hit each other, and Thomas yells "Keep it up you're meet the big orange." Eli and Kevin instant cool out, as Alice tells Thomas, as they stand outside her room for a moment "So what are you up to?" Thomas smiles "I am planning to make things easier for everyone. I caught up on things, and I think I know how to knock Maura off her pedestal." Alice reminds Thomas in a calm tone "I know you don't like her, but focus on what's best for the students here, not her." Thomas responds "I am." Thomas heads up the hall, to Erica's office, as she plays a game with her small group of students, as Erica tells her students "Well guys, time to head back to your classrooms." Erica hands candy to each student, as they leave, and Erica walks Thomas into her office, as she asks him "So what's your idea?" Thomas asks Erica "Would you like to be the leader of our Special Ed department?" Erica takes a deep breath, and sighs "I don't know Thomas. But I like the idea." Meanwhile, Maura walks inside, as she has overheard Thomas and Erica, and snaps "Thomas! Are you trying to strip me of my position? And to her?" Thomas responds in a sarcastic tone "We were discussing something else. Don't you have a class to teach?" Maura snaps "My assistant's handling things. As lead teacher, I have to keep an eye on the people below me." Erica's eyes turn red, as she snaps at Maura "Check your credentials, and check mine, and you should know I could be much better at heading up the Special Ed department." Maura snarks at Erica "Shouldn't you be retiring?" Erica smiles, and snarks back "Since Principal Duncan's here, I decided to stay on a few more years." Maura shakes her head, and warns Thomas, as she grins "I'm going to call the board on you." Thomas quips "Do it. First though, head back to your room. Teachers shouldn't be snooping around when kids should be learning." Maura warns Thomas "I don't like you, and I don't like you either Erica!" Erica quips "Feeling's mutual bitch." Maura storms out, as Erica tells Thomas "I really don't want the added responsibility. I enjoy what I have now." Thomas heads to the door, and Erica tells Thomas "Oh did I tell you who heads up the Graveyard?" Thomas asks "Who?" Erica responds "Maura's Daughter. But she's about to be hired to work here soon." Thomas has a flashback, and tells Erica "I think the longest anyone stayed at the Graveyard was 5 years." Erica nods, and responds "I stayed a week, and quit." Thomas heads back to his office, as Erica says to herself "I'd take the spot, if I didn't have to deal with Maura."
    Meanwhile in Dwight's office, Dwight looks at Eli and Kevin, as they explain their reasons for fighting, and Dwight tells them "When I was young, I had a Brother I fought with often, and when I went to school, you got paddled, though it's not allowed nowadays without a parent's consent, and from checking your files, your Mama allows it." Eli looks at Kevin, and yells "Your fault!" Dwight warns them "I don't do the paddling, but Principal Duncan does, and I hear him now coming. Let's go to his office." Dwight walks the boys to Thomas' office, as Thomas returns and sighs "I thought it'd work, but it didn't." Thomas walks inside, as Dwight tells Thomas "Mr.Duncan, we have a paddling to do on these two boys. I tried to talk reason into them, but they wouldn't listen to me." Thomas asks "We still paddle?" Dwight responds "With a parent's consent. These two always fight. On the bus, lunchroom, classroom." Thomas tells Dwight "Bring me the paddle." Dwight heads out, as Thomas looks at the two boys, and sighs "Have you ever been paddled before?" Eli snaps "No!" Thomas responds "It's No sir!" Kevin pleads "Please don't paddle me Mr.Duncan. Please????" Thomas asks "So why do the two of you fight so much then?" Eli and Kevin both respond "Mr.Waltrip, and Mrs.Gore ask the same thing." Thomas tells them "I personally hated the paddle myself. I got it once, throwing rocks at my Cousin on the playground, and the Principal I had, was nicknamed "Mr. Black and Blue." Eli looks at Kevin, and tells Thomas "Well, he is favored more than me." Thomas asks "Where? At home? Here?" Kevin quips "At least I don't have a class with Ms.Carson!" Thomas looks at the boys, and in a gentle tone tells them "The two of you need to stop fighting, and help each other. Learn to conduct yourselves." Eli tells Thomas' "Mr.Duncan, I get mad everyday with Ms.Carson tells me she'll send me to the Graveyard, and I heard it's like prison." Kevin is quiet, as Thomas tells Kevin "Ok Kevin, I have a job for you, and for you too Eli." Both of them are curious, as Thomas tells Kevin "I see you are very smart, as are you Eli. The two of you sign this piece of paper I have in hand to make peace, and I'm giving a copy to Mrs.Gore, Mr.Bill, and the other one, and if you break the rules, then I'll be forced to use big orange." Eli looks at Kevin, as Thomas hands over a pen, and the brothers sign the agreement, and Thomas tells them "Now go back to class, and behave yourselves, and don't give Mr.Bill a hard time on the bus." Eli looks at his Brother, Kevin tells Eli "He's good." Eli and Kevin heads back to Alice's classroom, as Thomas makes copies of the agreement, and Dwight walks inside, and he asks "So did they take it well?" Thomas shows off the agreement, and tells Dwight "I tried another method, and take these to Alice, and Maura, and I'll give one to Dad when he returns." Dwight shakes his head, as he asks "Are you sure you this will work?" Thomas responds "I talked to them, and got them to talk, and we came to an understanding." Dwight reads the agreement, as he quips "I think that agreement did the job. Or let's only hope." Thomas nods, as he responds "I figured things out, and took care of it. We'll see what happens."
     As the day comes to an end and the kids are taken home, Thomas sits inside his office, as Alice and Pat walks inside, and Alice tells Thomas "Whatever you did, worked!" Pat looks at the agreement, and tells Thomas "Alice showed this to me, and I was impressed." Maura meanwhile walks inside, as she asks Thomas "So breaking the rules of protocol Thomas?" Thomas looks at Maura with disdain, as Alice and Pat looks up and prays, as Thomas calmly tells Maura "There's a lesson in this you should learn." Maura snaps "I know what I need to know!" Thomas responds "Apparently you don't. Sit down with your students, and understand them, and talk to them, and sometimes, it actually works." Maura snaps "I don't have time!" Thomas looks over to Alice and Pat, as Pat tells Maura "A great teacher will make time." Alice agrees, as Maura storms out, and Thomas tells Alice and Pat "She's mad I was going to dethrone her." Alice asks "That was what you were plotting earlier?" Thomas sighs "It was, but Erica declined the offer." Alice and Pat walks out, and Alice reminds Thomas "Remember what I told you earlier. But, I knew you would do the right thing." Alice and Pat leaves, as Thomas sits at his desk, and says to himself "That's the problem these days, nobody takes time to listen and understand, otherwise things would be much better."