𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 & 𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐄 ━ girl meets world²

12│NO HOMEWORK, MORE FREEDOM 2.0

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❛ ʟᴇᴀᴛʜᴇʀ & ʟᴀᴄᴇ​​​​​​​​​​. ❜ ° . ༄
- ͙۪۪˚   ▎❛ 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐋𝐕𝐄 ❜   ▎˚ ͙۪۪̥◌
»»————- ꒰ ɴᴏ ʜᴏᴍᴇᴡᴏʀᴋ, ᴍᴏʀᴇ
ғʀᴇᴇᴅᴏᴍ 𝟸.𝟶 ꒱


❝ BAY WINDOW TIME? ❞

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September 2014

There were times when being a teacher was extremely rewarding. When a student grasped a concept that they had been previously struggling with, when someone became more confident during a presentation because they realized that they understood the material, and when another found a subject that they truly enjoyed were only a few examples of the moments that made Cory Matthews feel as if his teaching was really making a difference. There were other times, of course, when he questioned why he became a teacher in the first place. And, coincidentally, this usually happened whenever Maya Hart was involved.

Now, don't get him wrong— when he was in 'father mode' (that is, not being his daughter's teacher), he loved Maya as if she were his own child. But as a sixth grade middle school teacher, she was the bane of his existence— and what was worse was that Riley was making every effort to be just like her. He needed to find some way for his daughter to understand that being herself was the most important influence Maya could have on her; that one person could make someone feel so comfortable they dropped all fronts to be exactly who they were.

He thought about this as he walked to school, which was only a handful of city blocks away. As the morning noise of New York City buzzed in his ears— the honking of cars, overlapping voices and occasional music that either came from too-loud headphones or open store doorways— he let his mind wander to the effects he'd seen firsthand of how Maya's strong personality and rebellious nature had a way of drawing Riley in. While he appreciated the girl's authenticity and the close bond she shared with his daughter, he also recognized the potential pitfalls of Riley trying to emulate her friend's behavior too closely.

Deep down, Cory knew that Maya wasn't a bad influence on Riley in the sense of leading her astray. Her encouragement was more about helping the brunette embrace her own identity and step out of her comfort zone. It was the over-idealization of Maya's rebelliousness that he wanted Riley to avoid. He wanted his daughter to recognize that it was okay to be herself, even if that meant being different from Maya— and perhaps, with a bit of luck, Riley's own authenticity would help pull the blonde back from the brink when her ideas were just a little too close to the edge.

Cory had seen his fair share of middle school dynamics over the years, and he knew that this was a crucial time for kids to start discovering who they were and what they stood for. He wanted Riley to have the confidence to be her own person and make her own choices, rather than simply following Maya's lead. His long-held hope was that his lessons helped his students recognize the problems they were struggling with and that they weren't alone; that even the greatest (or not-so-great) leaders of history could reflect on their own lives and assist them in understanding what they were going through. It was for this very reason that he decided a lesson on the Civil War was in order— a war on oneself.

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When the bell rang for the day, he was unsurprised to see the two seats at the front of his class were still empty. After all, it was his daughter's first parent-less adventure on the subway. The door opened not long after to reveal the missing girls themselves and he smiled with faint amusement as he overheard Riley's exasperation.