The Honor Roll: Episode 3. The Substitute Nightmare

   It's evening, and at Thomas' farm, where he lived as a child, and his Grandparents former home, in the countryside of Caswell County, Thomas sits inside the living room, as he meditates, when he hears a car pull into the driveway, and Thomas walks outside onto the porch, as Alice pulls up, and Alice tells Thomas "I seen there was some land being graded off." Thomas sighs "I planned to build a house there, but.." Thomas welcomes Alice inside, as Alice tells Thomas, looking around "This place looks barren." Thomas tells her "Only a home. Valerie and I planned to move here..." Thomas grows quiet, and quickly changes the subject, as he notices Alice with a plate, and tells Thomas "I thought I'd bring you dinner. I imagine it gets tiresome driving to Newnan for dinner." Thomas laughs "I do like a home cooked meal, and thank you so much." Alice tells Thomas "I just got news today I have to go to a convention tomorrow, and they just pop up all of a sudden, and I'll need someone to watch my class." Thomas asks "Find anyone?" Alice responds "Nope. I hate this is last minute, but I did call Dwight, and he said he'd look for someone, and called back, and said nobody was available." Thomas tells Alice "I'll teach your class if you need me." Alice quickly tells him "You focus on being the principal, and I'm sure someone will take my place, maybe Judy." Thomas asks "Mrs.Judy?" Alice smiles "I'm sure Pat wouldn't mind her filling in my place." Thomas tells Alice "Well I will miss you tomorrow Mrs.Gore. I love Mrs.Judy, and she's been at the school for many years." Alice tells Thomas "Well I need to hurry home, and remember not to think about Maura too much, and let Dwight deal with her. No plotting!" Thomas quips "As long as she doesn't tempt me." Alice leaves, as Thomas takes the plate into the kitchen, and smiles, as he responds "Ahh, my favorite, Fried Chicken, Biscuits."
   The next morning, at Waters Elementary, Thomas arrives in the Secretary's office, as Bill sits on the side, as Mary tells Thomas "Mrs.Judy called out for the day. She's got a cold, and I've made some calls, but nobody is willing to teach her class." Thomas turns to his Father, as Bill tells his Son "I drove those little bastards here today, and I have things to do. I'm not babysitting!" Mary asks Bill in a sarcastic tone "Oh, watching me and trying to ask me out for the millionth time Bill?" Bill nods, and goes "Oh, tell Maura that if she has a damn complaint over Peanut riding with me, to kiss my..." Thomas stops his Father, and reminds him "This is a school Dad. Not home." Thomas heads to his office, as Dwight waits, and tells Thomas "I've spoken to Dr.Elliott, since she only works three days a week, if she could fill in, but she had a prior engagement." Thomas goes "Who's going to teach her class?" Dwight sighs "Right now Mrs.Waters is watching them in her homeroom." Thomas and Dwight walk out into the Secretary's office, as Bill flirts with Mary, and Mary tells Bill "You need a hobby. Ever considered knitting?" Bill responds "An insult to my manhood!" Thomas looks at Dwight, as Dwight and Thomas both looks at Bill, as both of them takes deep breaths, and Thomas tells Dwight "Go down to Anna's classroom, and bring Alice's students to her classroom." Thomas looks at his Father, and asks 'Want to make $100 dollars?" Bill looks at his Son, as he tells his Father "I have a job for you." Bill is silent, as he sighs "For $100 dollars, I'll do it." Mary quips "Good Bill, something functional for you to do and I can do my job." Bill gripes to himself, as he heads to Alice's classroom, as Alice's substitute teacher, as Bill reminds his Son in a whisper "Don't get mad if I take that damn paddle after them!" Thomas whispers back "You'll be monitored."
   As lunch-time arrives, in Alice's Classroom, a student looks at Bill, as he has a belt on Alice's desk, and the student, in a scared tone goes "Mr.Bill?" Bill yells, as he's awaken "What in the hell is it?" The student tells him "It's lunch time." Bill snaps "Go have lunch! And didn't you read the board? Shut up, do your work, and don't ask me any questions! I'm just babysitting! I'd rather be home in my recliner, with Peanut, and watching Bonanza!" Next door, in Pat's classroom, Thomas walks inside, as he asks Pat "So how things been running next door?" Pat takes a deep breath, and responds "He should stick to the school bus. This surely isn't his line of work." Anna walks inside, as she tells Thomas "A student just told me Mr.Bill put his belt on his desk, and most of Alice's students have been telling me he's napping." Thomas sighs "Dad was our only option." Pat responds "How about Maura's assistant? God knows she could use a break from her." Thomas quips "Someone needs to monitor Maura." Pat responds "True." In the lunchroom, Maura's monitoring, as Dwight walks inside, and Maura asks Dwight in a silent tone "Why in the hell did you let Bill Duncan substitute Alice's class? The man is old and crazy, and it only shows more of Thomas' incompetence at being a Principal! Dwight looks at Maura, and tells her sternly "How about you worry about your classroom, and leave the work of Principal, and Assistant Principal jobs to Thomas and I, and shut up." Maura threatens "I am going to the board on this! I heard he used profanity.." Dwight reminds Maura "And your partner no longer heads Special Ed for Caswell County. So don't even waste your time. Mrs.Betty approved. I called her earlier when your assistant came to my office." Maura shakes her head, as she snaps "Ok Mr.Waltrip, since you are the ASSistant Principal, you watch these kids, and I'll do as you say!" Dwight asks "Need to remember why she was fired, and her license revoked?" Maura storms out, as Dwight watches over the lunchroom. Meanwhile back in Alice's Classroom, Bill sits at Alice's desk, as he goes through it, and snoops around, to find candy, and helps himself, as Thomas walks inside and goes "Dad!" Bill quips "She has all my favorites in here. If I eat them, then those little bastards won't be so damn hyper!" Thomas looks at his Father, as he sees the belt, and tells him "Dad, I didn't pay you to sleep." Bill responds "I have things to do at home." Thomas asks "Sleeping in your recliner and widening the doggy door for Peanut?" Bill sighs "Thomas, I drive the bus to make extra money, and at my age, I can't stand children, and you know why Son." Thomas looks down, and Bill stands up, and tells his Son "I don't know how you can do this line of work, but it's hard for me." Thomas responds "This would be what Valerie would have wanted me to do, and try to be nicer, and if Mrs.Gore calls later, I'll tell her to call you about that bag of candy." Bill asks his Son "That will be another $100." Thomas tells his Father "How about we do this, if you do as I say, I give you that extra $100 dollars? Deal?" Bill shakes his head, as they hear the kids, and Bill agrees, as Thomas walks out, and Bill looks at the students, and tells them "Forget what I said, do what you want to do the rest of the day, and anything goes!" The classroom goes wild, as Bill says to himself "And meanwhile I'm sneaking up to visit Mary."
   As the day ends at Waters Elementary, the kids return home, as Alice walks into the school, as she sees Dwight, and asks him "So how did the day go?" Dwight is silent, as he slowly responds "Well Alice, we had trouble finding someone to substitute for you today." Alice asks "What happened with Judy watching over my classroom?" Dwight tells Alice "Well let's head to your classroom, and I'll explain along the way." As Dwight and Alice approach her classroom, Alice sighs "Well I think Bill was decent for last minute." As Alice unlocks the door to her classroom, she sees her desk ransacked, desks turned over, her zap-board torn apart, as Dwight stands silently, with a scared look, as Alice walks around in disbelief, and shakes her head, and turns to Dwight, and stares at him, and Dwight sighs "Thomas is back home." Alice tells Dwight "Write a note to the cleaning crew to leave my classroom alone." Alice walks out, as does Dwight. A hour later, at Bill's trailer, sitting across from Thomas' farm, Alice pulls up in the driveway, as she sees Thomas' car, and inside Bill's trailer, Thomas tells his Father "Well you really surprised me, and thank you for the dinner." Bill sighs "Well I thought we could bond and have some time to talk about things." Alice knocks on the door, and Bill yells "Come in." Alice walks inside, and asks Thomas "Did Bill tell you about my classroom?" Bill smiles and says with pride "I made $200 dollars!" Alice looks at Thomas, and pulls out her phone, and hands it to Thomas, as he looks at pictures, and gasps, as Alice glares at Bill, and sternly tells him "You destroyed my classroom." Thomas responds in a disappointing tone to his Father "So this was how you got the kids to behave? Let them run wild?" Bill yells "Hell it worked! And I made $200 Dollars!" Thomas puts his hand out, and tells his Father "Hand me that money." Alice tells Thomas "No, I'll take care of this, and I'll take that $200 Dollars for damages." Thomas agrees, as Bill yells "I earned it!" Alice yells "And you had my students destroy my room! You either give me that money, or I call Betty!" Thomas is silent, as he looks at his Father, and tells him "I'm with Alice." Bill pulls the money from his pocket, and hands it to Alice, and yells at her, and Thomas "Ok. Now that you both robbed an old man, leave my home before Peanut bites both of you!" Peanut sleeps in the recliner, as Alice tells Bill "And there's something else you're going to do." As the night's fallen, at Thomas' Farm, Thomas sits in his chair, as he listens to music, as he calls Alice, and asks "So how's things going?" Alice, at Waters Elementary, sitting at her desk, as Bill cleans the mess he allowed earlier, responds "For the moment it's ok. Just don't ever let him watch my class again." Thomas laughs, and responds "Will do.", and hangs up." Back at Waters Elementary, Bill tries to head to the door, and tells Alice "I'm tired." Alice pulls out her phone, and asks Bill "If you don't finish, I'll play some videos Eliza sent me of her and Pedro, and...." Bill yells "Blackmail!", and gets back to work, as Alice pulls out a piece of paper, and writes "Zaps", and below "Bill", as Bill repairs Alice's classroom, as Alice watches on, with paper and pen in hand.