Dead Poets Society By N.H. Kleinbaum

CHAPTER 15

In the room, Neil's bed stood stripped and his desk empty. Todd sat at the window, looking across the campus at the administration building. As he watched, he saw Meeks escorted out of the building and toward the dorm by Dr. Hager. Todd peeked out of the door of the room. Meeks and Hager entered the hallway, and Hager waited while Meeks walked silently back to his room. He passed Todd without even looking at him, and Todd saw the tears streaming down his face. Meeks slammed his door shut behind him.

"Knox Overstreet," Dr. Hager called, as he waited impatiently at the end of the hall. Knox came out of his room and joined Hager. They walked out the door and back across the campus. Todd waited a few minutes, then walked across the hall to Meeks's room. He knocked.

"Meeks, it's Todd," he called.

"Go away," Meeks said, his voice hoarse and throaty. "I have to study." Todd paused, realizing what had happened.

"What happened to Nuwanda?" Todd asked Meeks through the closed door.

"Expelled," Meeks said flatly. Todd stood stunned.

"What did you tell them?" Todd asked, again through the door.

"Nothing they didn't already know," Meeks said. Todd turned away. He returned to his window and watched as Knox was escorted back to the dorm. Again, Todd peered into the hall. Knox and Hager entered. Knox's chin quivered, on the verge of breaking down, and he went into his room, quietly closing the door. Todd stepped back into his room and leaned against the wall. He was shaken as he realized that Knox had been broken. Then he heard his own name called.

"Todd Anderson." It was Dr. Hager. He waited at the end of the hallway. Todd took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling. He opened the door and walked slowly toward the teacher. Dr. Hager shuffled across the campus, huffing and puffing from the obvious strain of all the running back and forth. He stopped outside the administration building, caught his breath, and walked in. Todd followed Hager up the staircase leading to Mr. Nolan's office, feeling like a man climbing to the gallows. Nolan sat at his desk, and Todd was startled to see his parents seated nearby.

"Dad, Mom," he said.

"Have a seat, Mr. Anderson," Nolan ordered. Todd sat in the empty chair that had been placed in front of Nolan's desk. He looked at his parents, who sat steely-eyed and grim. A drop of perspiration fell from his brow and stained his shirt.

"Mr. Anderson, I think we've pretty well put together what's happened here. You do admit to being a part of this Dead Poets Society?" Nolan asked. Todd looked at his parents and at Nolan. He closed his eyes. Before he could nod "yes," his father spoke.

"Answer him!" Mr. Anderson said angrily.

"Yes," Todd said faintly.

"I can't hear you, Todd," Nolan said.

"Yes, sir," Todd answered, not much louder than before. Nolan looked at Todd and his parents. He held up a piece of paper.

"I have here a detailed description of what went on at your meetings. It describes how your teacher, Mr. Keating, encouraged you boys to organize the club and use it as a source of inspiration for reckless, self-indulgent behavior. It describes how Mr. Keating, both in and out of the classroom, encouraged Neil Perry to follow this obsession of acting when he knew it went directly against the explicit orders of Neil's parents. It is Mr. Keating's blatant abuse of his position as a teacher that led directly to Neil Perry's death." Nolan handed the paper to Todd.

"Read this carefully, Todd," Nolan added. "If you don't have anything to add or amend, sign it." Todd took the paper and read it, spending a long time doing so. By the time he finished, his hands and the paper were shaking. He looked up.