The Phenomenal Event
Copyright© 2025 by A Well Traveled Man
Chapter 5
Grif rode his e-bike to North Texas Academy, which was only a few miles from their house. He checked in at the office and told the attendant he was there to take tests arranged by Ms. James. A lady arrived, and introductions were made. Her name was Mrs. Pierce, and she would be giving his tests. They went to a room, and the testing began. After every test, he was given a break, and they completed four tests by noon.
They ate lunch in the teachers’ lounge, and Mrs. Pierce asked why he was testing out of high school. Grif said there were several reasons, but the main one was that he got an acting part in a movie. It would require him to miss a couple of months of school. He could have tested out earlier, but his dad wanted him to have interaction with his peers. He’s already taking online college courses during high school to pass the time with the school’s approval.
The need to test out was accelerated because he plays football and was promoted to the JV team due to a defensive end injury. The injured player took exception to my taking his position and attacked me in the hallway with a knife. The player’s dad is a high-ranking member of the city government. The day after, two friends of the attacker assaulted me in the locker room before practice. I wasn’t hurt in either altercation, but if I defend myself, I’m to blame no matter who’s at fault.
Mrs. Pierce said, “Oh my god, you’re the young man Carl Plummer assaulted.” They finished lunch, and he took four more tests in the afternoon. They finished at 3:30 p.m., and Mrs. Pierce gave him a tour of the school. At the end, she said to be here at 8:30 a.m. tomorrow, and they should be done by lunch. Grif thanked her for the help and rode his e-bike home. When he arrived, Grif put on his sweats and did his martial arts workout on the heavy bag in the garage.
When he finished, Grif stripped off his sweaty clothes in the laundry, showered, and turned on the computer. He resumed programming the anti-virus program until he sensed Dad was close, saved his work, shut off the computer, and went to the kitchen. While they ate, Dad asked how his testing went, and Grif said well. He finished, and Mrs. Pierce gave him a tour of the school. Tomorrow will be a half-day, and he expects the hard sell to happen then.
Dad said he met with the company president, Gerry Reed, this morning, and he agreed with your assessment and fired the IT tech. He also authorized you to locate and buy new anti-virus software and a firewall. Gerry was shocked to hear what was in our computer system and wants to fix it immediately. Grif asked about his salary, and Dad laughed, saying it’s a no-go. But Gerry was open to you working as a part-time IT tech for $4500 monthly. Grif asked Dad what percentage he was taking, and they laughed.
After dinner, they watched Monday night football. It was the New Orleans Saints vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars. It wasn’t a good game, so we turned off at halftime, said goodnight, and went to bed. Grif immediately fell asleep, feeling the tingling throughout his body, and then fell into a deep sleep.
Grif arrived at North Texas Academy at 8:15 a.m. and checked in at the office. Mrs. Pierce met him, and they went to a room, and the testing began. With breaks, they finished at 11:30 a.m. and went to the teacher’s lounge for lunch. When they finished, Grif followed Mrs. Pierce to a conference room. He met the North Texas Academy president, Alan Kaine, and the Vice President of Student Affairs, Jordyn Walters. They presented a slide show of the different subjects he could study there.
Then the football coach, Charlie Lott, entered and told him about the football program. Coach Lott put on his slide show and described how superior their program was to public schools. Then, President Alan Kaine told Grif they wanted him to attend and would offer him a scholarship to cover all costs. Vice President Jordyn Walter then gave him a packet with the school’s information, application, scholarship offer, his test results, and their business cards stapled on the front. Grif said it sounded good and would discuss it with his father tonight.
They shook hands goodbye, and he rode his e-bike home. It was late, so he waited for Dad to get home. The sales pitch took almost three hours, so by the time he got home, it was close to 5 p.m. Dad arrived at 5:30 with dinner and reviewed the North Texas Academy information packet while they ate. He asked Grif what he thought of the school, and he said it was a lot nicer than my old school and had a first-class training room. But he wondered what he would do there other than play football.
Dad told him to take the packet to Ms. James tomorrow, and she would know more about it than I would. Then Dad changed the subject and said Mitch Renolds called. He threatened them with another lawsuit, and they offered 125k to settle. The principal and the IT tech have been fired and arrested for destroying evidence and obstruction of justice. So, he accepted the offer, which will be deposited into your trust account.
After dinner, they watched John Wick with Keanu Reeves. Grif paid attention to the fight scenes, and they said goodnight at the movie’s end. Grif went to his bedroom and imagined fighting John Wick, mimicking his moves for thirty minutes. Then he lay down and went to sleep. He felt the tingling and fell into a deep sleep.
Grif rode his e-bike to school on Wednesday morning and saw Greg and Nick at the entrance. They asked where he’s been, and Grif told them he was testing at the North Texas Academy. Greg asked if he was transferring, and Grif said he had no choice after last week. After Carl Plummer’s friends attacked me in the locker room before practice last week, it wasn’t safe to stay here. My Dad said if I defended myself, I would be expelled, no matter who started it.
Grif told them that the North Texas Academy offers scholarships, and they should apply. He told them he had an appointment with his guidance counselor and wished them good luck with their last game. They said goodbye, and he went into the office and requested a meeting with Ms. James. When Grif entered her office, he said hello, Mommy Amber, and she laughed. She asked what this was about, you starring in a movie soon.
Grif said, “Daddy spilled all our secrets on the first date. He’s doomed,” and they laughed. He told her the movie is Flying Eagle’s Revenge, and he plays Flying Eagle. There are a few weeks of training on the Navajo reservation before filming the movie, so it may start production after New Year’s. His agent is finalizing the contract this week, so we’ll have more information when it’s done.
He handed Ms. James the folder from North Texas Academy to review. Grif said the school was nice, but questioned what he would do besides play football. He’s already taken the tests to graduate from high school, and by next semester, he’ll have his BS in computer programming. Ms. James said, “What?” Grif said, “Oh, Daddy is holding out on you,” and they laughed. She said, “I need to consider this and will call Richard later this week.” They said goodbye, and Grif returned home.
Grif continued programming his anti-virus program and finished it by lunch. After lunch, he tested the program and then started on the firewall program. He was in a zone and completed programming the firewall when he sensed Dad was nearby. Grif saved his work, shut off the computer, and went to the kitchen.
Dad arrived with dinner, and they sat and ate. While they ate, Dad asked about his meeting with Ms. James. Grif said it went well, and she would call you later this week. Then Joanne called, said the contract was done, and emailed it to Grif. She asked us to review it as soon as possible and call her back. He went upstairs, got his laptop, and returned to the kitchen. Grif opened the email and read the contract. Then he gave it to Dad to review.
Grif called Joanne back and said it looked good. She asked where they wanted the contract couriered, and Dad gave her his work address. Joanne said it would arrive by noon, have your signatures notarized, and return it in the prepaid FedEx envelope. Then she said your training will begin after Thanksgiving. The movie production will start after the New Year, and an itinerary for your training will be emailed by Saturday. Joanne said she was reviewing some scripts and would be in touch, then said goodbye.
Dad said he can’t believe they will pay you that much for your first film. Grif said it’s because he’s a “tall drink of water,” and they laughed. They called Mom and said he would be coming for Thanksgiving. She asked when he got out of school, and Grif said he’s off for the week. Mom said she would book a flight for Monday, and you can return on Saturday after Thanksgiving, then said goodbye. Grif said that sounded like a business arrangement, not a loving mother inviting her son for the holiday, and they laughed.
After dinner, they watched The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly with Clint Eastwood. Grif memorized the movements and looks Clint gave before the gunfight scenes. When the movie was over, they said goodnight and went to bed. Grif fell asleep, and the tingling sensation started, and then he fell into a deep sleep.
Grif tested the firewall program on Thursday morning, then saved the anti-virus and firewall programs onto a USB stick. He ordered a Lyft ride and went to Allied Technologies. Upon arrival, Grif deleted their anti-virus program and installed his on the mainframe computer. Then, he ran a scan and found three more viruses and a worm. Grif removed them and installed his firewall.
The courier arrived, and he and Dad signed the contract with a notary at the company. Grif ordered a Lyft ride home, stopped at a FedEx office, and sent the contract back to Joanne. When he arrived home, Grif rode his e-bike to the Whataburger for lunch. Returning home, he changed into sweats and practiced martial arts on the heavy bag in the garage. After an hour, he was soaked with sweat, he stripped off his clothes at the laundry and guzzled two bottles of water.
Then he went upstairs, showered, and turned on the computer. Grif selected Arabic as his next language and listened to six CDs. He sensed Dad was near, so he shut off the computer and went to the kitchen. When he arrived, we sat and ate dinner. Dad said Amber called and said you’re wasting time attending North Texas Academy. She recommended attending TCU a few days a week. Grif said, “Great, do they have coed dorms?”
They laughed, and Dad said, “We’ll see if communicating by carpool or staying there is the best option.” But if you stay, we’ll have to arrange special lodging because of your age. There’s also the issue with your celebrity status, so Amber will arrange an interview at the university. Grif asked if Mommy Amber could arrange a couple of cheerleaders to show him around, too. They laughed, and Dad said he’d asked, but don’t get your hopes up. But knowing Amber, she’ll set up a tour with retired professors, and they laughed again.
After dinner, they watched Thursday night football: the LA Rams vs. the San Francisco Forty-Niners. He studied the defensive alignment against the offense and the defensive end play. It was a good game, and the LA Rams won. They said goodnight and went to bed. Grif fell asleep immediately, and the tingling started, then he fell into a deep sleep.
Carl Plummer had a hearing in family court, and the county prosecutor petitioned the court to try him as an adult. His Dad wasn’t there, and the judge granted the request due to his juvenile record. After the court hearing, Carl was pissed and went to the Ford dealer looking for his father instead of going home, per his probation. He was stopped for running a red light, arrested, and booked into jail. Dad wouldn’t answer his phone, and Mom wouldn’t help him, so he was stuck in jail.
Kenneth Plummer wasn’t doing any better than his son. The police arrested the school principal and IT tech for evidence tampering and obstruction of justice. They named him for ordering the CCTV footage erased and paying them to do it. The principal also said he was ordered to alter Carl’s school records. Kenneth was arrested and bailed out two hours before his son was arrested again. He was in his attorney’s office when Carl called, and he ignored them. Kenneth’s attorney said he faced 5 to 7 years, and they had a strong case against him. Kenneth left knowing he was screwed.
After breakfast, Grif finished the last two Arabic language CDs and went for a ride on his e-bike. The courthouse had news media vans parked outside, so he locked his e-bike and went inside to see what was happening. A man was being tried for killing his wife and her lover in their house. Grif watched the lawyers and jury and noticed something odd. A female juror was looking at the prosecutor with admiration. It was a look a relative would give for an accomplishment.