The Tragedy of Tower High School

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IN the early morning light, robert chippendale, English teacher for more than 20 years at Tower High, punches in at 7:04. he will never touch the card again. he is unaware that before this day is over, Tower will be rocked by murder, spotlighted by the ten o'clock news and denounced by the general public. Dressed in a blue jogging suit, he carries over his shoulder his sports jacket and newer slacks- his school clothes- in a garment bag, which he hangs in the teacher's locker room. Lightly jogging down the stairs to the back dorr, he pushes it open to cross the short path to the running track. He lets his mind wander. Is it too late to change his life? Season spent running in circles, starting and stopping at the same point on the track, a metaphor, he thinks, for his teaching career, now rutted like the track itself,in the soft years of familiarity. he bends down to retie his laces and notices that the air is surprisingly

mild. he does not see the face inside the red-hooded sweatshirt, the body that bowls over him over. lying sprawled on the ground Chippendale tries to find the face, the morning sun blocking his view. he certainly hears the torrent of words.

The red- hooded sweatshirt

Hey, man, watch where you are goin'. Ain'tcha heard of excuse me? hey i'm talking to you. Chippendale thinks, a morning run cancelled, an incident report to the dean a trip to the office. Not worth it, no way, not on this glorious winter's day. The voice again: Hey man, wher you going'? You owe me an apology. you think i'm nobody?

something psychotically edgy in the voice, more of a reason to let it drop. As Chippendale gets up, he watches the red-hodded sweatshirt pick up a long thin package and head through the back door, into the school...

... middle of paper ...

...me cool program you ran last period. I liked it; it made him sound like a famous person, a movie star or somethin' like that. I think you're wrong though, about murderers being forgotten. Plenty of bad guys get remembered. I want to

be famous, too, one day. Maybe like in the movies, one of those guys who get to climb theoutside of buildings, or get to shoot hundreds of people, Like this one movie i seen where this German World War II guy is standingon a balcony with this big rifle, and he is pickin' off people left and right, like it's no big deal. So cool. People were fallin' down all over the place. Hysterical, man. Why are you lookin' at like that, funny like? Anyway, I gotta get to class. Yiou seem my red sweatshirt? i swear i had it when i came in here. Okay, okay, I'll wiat. Who do you want me to meet? IS he a new teacher? Is he gonna replace Mr. Chippendale?

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