Chapter 30: Program Week is Over, but it's Just Beginning.

On our way out of class, Linda Grover, our website content guru, rushed up.

“There you are, Kevin, a bunch of us’ve heard that the feds are trying to locate and shut down the site, you know?”

“Yeah, I heard that at lunch. Any news since then?”

“Not about the feds, but the media are trying to find the site too. There’s going to be something on the six-o’clock news about it and the kids who did the website and server setup and some of the others will be watching. They wanted me to find you and ask if you want to watch together.”

“Sure, good idea. Then if something comes up, we’ll be together to make plans. How about at my house again, it seems most of you live not far.”

“Yeah. I’ll get the word out. I’ll do a text and email. We’ll come fifteen minutes early?”

“Sure. And I’ll provide the pizza and everything, too.”

“Cool. See you later, buddy!” and she dashed off. Yeah, that girl seems to be dashing whenever I see her. What energy.

In my history class, the unit we were studying led to a spirited discussion of how civil rights was manifested in various societies in Europe of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as compared to modern times. I pointed out that in societies that were ruled by a king, common people’s rights were never clear and could be violated by royalty’s whim, and in modern times, the same could be said by the high-handed way some government agencies operated, either through mismanagement or even under the authority of laws that could be interpreted to disadvantage some classes of the society. It seemed everyone was clamoring to give modern examples, and the Program wasn’t spared as being a poster-child example of government excesses.

The school day ended with English Lit where we listened to the first group of student analyses of the short works they had chosen to report on. This was fun, listening to what the kids thought of the stories they had picked to talk about.

The final period was assembly and I hoped that there wouldn’t be any surprises. The Program kids straggled in, some red-faced from having to perform some last-minute Requests and clearly looked nervous and apprehensive about what they would hear from Fletcher.

Jane squeaked, “Hell, I’ve got my fingers and even toes crossed. No surprises, please. I’d like to get this over already; it’s been a tough week, you know.”

We all wandered into the auditorium and went to our seats. The low roar of conversation gradually damped down as we saw movement off to the sides of the stage and everyone waited expectantly. Dr Fletcher walked to the podium and adjusted the mike.

“Good afternoon, students; welcome to the end of the week.”

Applause. Teens will applaud most anything given the chance. Mainly the guys. Guys love to make noise. Must be a male sexual display trait, like a peacock’s tail.

“The main topics I want to cover today are mostly about issues related to the Program. First, I’d like to congratulate the first group to complete their week in the Program for the fall term. When school ends today, their week is essentially over because we have no school sponsored activities this weekend. But remember that the Program still encourages Outreach and we want everyone to take advantage of that opportunity. Will the students in this week’s Program stand to be recognized?”

We stood for ten seconds while a cacophony of applause, hoots, whistles, and yells rang out around us.

“I’d also like to offer recognition to a small corps of dedicated students, our Guardian corps, who were instrumental in making participating in the Program safe for our first group. These students did their jobs quietly and effectively, and have our thanks for a job well done. Will our Guardians stand to be recognized.”

They did, and received loud acclaim as well.

“I need to mention this in connection with the Guardians. Despite my words last week about behaving properly and courteously toward Program students, we had eight incidents of improper behavior. One resulted in a sexual assault charge and expulsion, three resulted in three-day suspensions, and the rest in a formal warning placed in the student’s permanent record. I also have been given to understand that there were a few cases of students’ self-policing of behavior infractions and I urge that everyone refrain from doing this in the future. Don’t take the law into your own hands; you might get into trouble yourself.

“The next matter concerns the student advisory committee. We plan to begin setting it up next week and the staff has suggested that we allow the student body to nominate students to serve. We will consider all student nominees as well as staff recommendations; still to be decided is the number of students in the committee and their class distribution. We decided that when the group convenes, they can choose a name for the group. If you’d like to nominate someone, even yourself, please get a form from a teacher at the door when you leave here.

“There is an issue coming up before the state education department, sponsored by the state’s physical education teachers’ association, that the required dress code for all high-school physical education classes be total nudity. State school officials are watching this issue and we will keep you informed.”

There was a rumble of extreme disapproval at that news and a lot of hisses.

“And on a related note. Voluntary nudity in school is still open to students as specified in the volunteer rules in the Program booklet, plus any student who has completed the Program may be naked in school at any time. These students will be given a green armband to wear; they are not subject to Reasonable Requests, and they will not have assigned Guardians. But abusing any one of them will be dealt with, just the same as with a Program participant.

“Concerning Reasonable Requests, the procedure we have previously announced concerning complaints about a participant’s refusal is working well; all refusals have been well justified, so the Program students have been taking their responsibilities seriously, as have been the Guardians. So no adjustments in those procedures will be needed. Remember, don’t ask a Program student to do anything that you yourself would find uncomfortable doing.

“Monday morning during home room we will call the next Program group to participate for the week, two students from each grade, boy and girl. They will strip in the office and be naked in school for that week. Anyone in this room who hasn’t participated can be called. It will be you—you will be called, if not this Monday, then on a following Monday. Think about how you would want to be treated when you interact with our week’s participants.

“Next, I’d like to introduce our new Biology teacher for the fall term. She was kind enough to come out of retirement to cover our junior biology class after the medical retirement of Mr Wilbur. Mrs Edna Payton, can you wave your hand so we can see you? There she is. She’s agreed to cover the junior biology class until spring term while we search for a new teacher.”

Applause.

“Finally, I have a request from the national Program office, as relayed through their district office, that the national Program has become aware of an illegal pirate website that is providing inaccurate, false, misleading, and sensational information about the Program’s operation in schools around the country. The national Program office wants every student to know that accessing the site is a federal crime and students who visit it will be arrested and prosecuted. They are also assuring school officials that the site will be shut down before Monday, and all contributors to the site will be identified and suitably punished.”

A loud buzz of conversation erupted at that news. Apparently a lot of kids hadn’t heard about that yet. Actually, the Program office was doing us a favor, they were giving our site the best publicity ever possible.

The assembly wound down with a few random announcements from the assistant principals, teachers, coaches, and the janitor (just kidding) about events coming up, student parking problems, athletic season ticket sales, all the things that make a high school run, and then Fletcher resumed the podium.

“School dismissed.”

“YES!” The eight of us, who had been sitting together for mutual support, jumped up with arms raised. Kids around us looked and grinned and then gave us the “thumbs up.”

Barbara said to me, “Kevin, are you going to ask to be on that student advisory thing? You’d be great there.” The others agreed.

“I don’t think so. What I really want is to lay low, study and learn, maybe even have a little fun, and graduate with no more excitement.”

“Well, I think you should,” Jimmy said.

Jane was watching as the auditorium emptied. “Hey, guys. You know, this could be a twitchy time right now. Everyone’s leaving and when we go for our clothes, there may not be many people out there. There could be people who want to do last second Requests or maybe even worse.”

“Damn, you’re right, Jane,” Andrew remarked.

“I’ll come with you guys to be sure you’re safe,” I assured them. “Let’s get your clothes quickly while people are still around.”

We hurried to the doors, and sure enough, there weren’t many people left.

Barbara exclaimed, “Look! Where are the clothing boxes?”

They weren’t where they were supposed to be; then I noticed a guy ducking out from behind a row of bushes about twenty-five meters away next to the building.

“Probably over there, near those bushes. See the two guys standing there?” I whispered.

I noticed that I could go in that direction between the bushes and building and keep hidden.

“Make like you’re searching for the boxes. I think they want to keep you here until everyone’s gone and then who know what. Ring 911 now. I’ll check on the clothes.”

I slipped between the bushes that grew along the building toward where those guys were standing while the others went looking near the steps and in other places near the doors.

When I got close I heard one guy say, “Alec has his dad’s van over there and the other guys are inside it. When those last cars leave the lot, I’ll call to the naked kids to tell them you found the boxes here. When they head over here, that’s the signal for Alec to drive up behind them and snatch a couple of girls while we keep the boys busy.”

That was all I needed. And here were the clothes boxes. The two guys—punks actually—skinny kids, were staring at the naked group at the door. I needed to get two at once, but coming from behind made it a little easier. There was one scenario I had learned in jiu jitsu that covered this situation but I had never practiced it. Well, if I mess up, at least I can delay them.

They were concentrating so hard that I was able to worm my way out between two bushes right behind them. The first guy began to call to the group at the door when I jumped out of the bushes right between them and grabbing both with my arms around their necks, I pulled them down to the ground with me. As I fell I drew my arms together. pulling their heads hard in front of me, hitting their temples together as I fell on top of them. I heard a double “oof” as they hit the ground and I used their bodies to break my fall. One was slightly on top of the other so I shifted him to lay crossways on the other and I sat on both bodies, then shouted to the others.

“Guys, it’s a kidnapping! Watch the girls and that black van!”

The girls shrieked and then all seven came toward me on a run; the black van was moving toward us now. Andrew shoved the girls behind the bushes.

I yelled at them, “Don’t touch the boxes—fingerprints!” and the van pulled up and four guys jumped out. “Come any closer and these guys’ll be dead meat. Four of you may be able to take me if I were alone, but I’m not. These hands haven’t killed anyone yet, but I’d really love to see what that feels like, wanna help me try?”

They were uncertain, shifting back toward the van and then toward me, looking back and forth. The two guys under me had been squirming but I had put the top one in a hammerlock and had my knee in the other’s spine. When they squirmed, I just increased my pressure until they stopped. Suddenly I heard an amplified voice.

“Freeze, all of you. Don’t move.”

The cops! They didn’t use their sirens. Cool.

“Now the ones with clothes, you guys, on the ground NOW. If you move in any other direction than down, if you wake up it’ll be in a hospital bed.”

Then I saw two cops come around the sides of the van and then another patrol car pulled up and two more police got out. The first two cops were busy cuffing the guys on the ground and one of the others came up to me where I was still restraining my pair. Then one of the girls called out.

“Officers? Is it safe now?”

The cop near me said, “Let them go, now. What the hell is going on here? We got a call about a kidnapping?”

I spoke. “Yeah. These two took our clothing boxes and hid them. I snuck behind them and heard that they were planning to try to snatch a girl or two when the parking lot cleared out. I found the clothes boxes behind the bushes; they probably left their prints on them.”

One of the other guys called, “He’s lying. No one ever touched the girls or their clothes. We just stopped by to see if they needed help and that kid just jumped two of us.”

Meanwhile the girls were peeking between the bushes.

Barbara said, “Please can we get dressed now? I’m getting cold.”

A cop looked up. “Oh my god, this is one for the books. Rescuing naked damsels in distress. My wife’ll never believe this one. Ok, sweetie, where are the boxes? I can get the clothes out without damaging any prints. On second thought, don’t you think we need to hold the clothes for evidence?”

Three girls screamed “NO!”

“I guess not. Sorry for the mean joke.”

Someone had called an ambulance and another cruiser pulled up with it and two plainclothes guys got out. Good, not Detective Conners and his sidekick. The two morons whom I had planted on the concrete had lots of facial scrapes and bruises but nothing looked very serious, but I was certain that they would have really bad headaches in their immediate future.

The detectives took all of our statements but our attackers wouldn’t say anything other than they were just driving by and had stopped to ask if we needed help. One detective was going through their wallets.

“Hmmm, all 19 and 20 years old. Are you from this high school? Where are your school IDs?”

One of the first cops to arrive said, “I see four cars in the lot. Whose are they?”

Three belonged to Sarah, Andrew, and me. We pointed them out.

“Jim,” he called, run the plate on that Chevy.”

Soon Jim came back. “Ken is running that plate. No high school parking sticker on that car.”

It turned out that the six of them had graduated high school from a different school last year and some had police records. The Chevy belonged to one of the guys I had taken down. The police wanted to take the clothing boxes but they didn’t know how to handle them; their evidence bags were too small, but Sarah came to the rescue.

“I have a roll of garbage bags in my trunk. Will that help?”

It would indeed, allowed one of the detectives. Then a car pulled up; it was none other than Dr Fletcher. He came rushing out of his car.

“What’s happening? I just left the staff lot, passed by, and saw all this.”

The police took him aside and explained; as he listened I saw his face turn white.

“Oh my god, are they all right?” he asked.

Then he came over and I told him that Jane had a premonition about this happening so we all stuck together and being together we were too much for the gang to handle.

“Yeah, right, Kevin. You just stood back and rooted for the team, I’m sure.”

Barbara told him that I had overpowered two of them while they rang 911 and then the others came and I had stood them off.

“Hell, Kevin, you’re a one-person defense force,” he said.

“Whatever, sir. We were in deep trouble and I was really lucky that those two were scrawny twits. What this shows, though, is that you need to provide some protection even after school hours, especially when there are no after-school activities. Even after evening events where kids will have to attend naked and then leave when it’s dark.”

“Yes, true. I’ll have to request an emergency school board meeting to discuss this. It’s really fortunate that, once again, you were around to save the day. Officer, what about those hoodlums? I didn’t recognize any of them.”

“They’re not high school students. We’re booking them all for attempted kidnapping and attempted rape. We found all kinds of personal restraints—handcuffs, ball gags, head hoods, leg bands, things like that, in their van, and photo prints of these girls, so this attempt was planned and they were waiting for the opportunity. The rape charge is permitted because their targets were naked and in the school Program. They’ll be off the streets for years, I’m guessing.”