Chemistry

Ch. 2

AN: Here's part 2. Things are beginning to get a little crazy ;)

Winter break was over almost as soon as it started, and before he knew it, Will was back in his classroom with a group of kids that were just as upset to be back as he was.

He heard the kids murmuring about something with a mix of giggles and grunts, so he decided to inquire. "Is there something happening I should know about?"

"You didn't hear? Mr. Clemons isn't teaching anymore. He didn't show up today. Guess the break made him realize how much he hated his job." The kids began to laugh, but Will was hung up on the fact that no one had informed him that someone from his department quit. He simply nodded and focused his attention back on his computer screen, ignoring the chatter of the class until the bell rang and he had to begin teaching.

After class, Will walked out of his room and to the Science office. He noticed a few of the teachers sitting at the round table looking a bit stressed while chatting and picking at plates of breakfast. The ecology teacher, Jess, sipped her coffee and then looked up towards him. "Oh, Will, you would probably know more about this than we do since your rooms are close. What happened to Greg?"

"That's a good question, actually. He didn't tell me anything. I found out from the kids. What do you guys know? Are we hiring anyone?"

"Admin hasn't told us anything. Mike said he heard something about an interview over break, but that hasn't been confirmed. They've just been putting his classes in the library today," Jess answered. The rest of the table nodded and hummed as she finished her sentence.

-

At the end of the school day, Will walked downstairs and headed through the office to get to his car and head home. As he turned past the front desk to collect his belongings from the staff mailboxes for the day he noticed more people than usual sitting at the table in the conference room. He peeked through the door and knocked on the wall to be courteous. "What's going on in here? Is there a party I wasn't invited to?"

The principal, who was sitting at the head of the conference table, turned to face Will. "No, we're just going over some candidates for the new science position."

"Ooh, I should be in on this. His room is connected to mine, you know. Don't wanna get some weirdo on the other side of the connector wall. What if he peeks through the door while I'm teaching? Eugh." Will added while walking into the room. "Who are we thinking?"

"Well, we have a few candidates that are standing out right now." The principal, Mr. O'Connor said while turning his computer to show Will the resumes that the group of administrators were reviewing.

"This is Rebecca Manning. She's 26, a recent college graduate, but she has been doing plenty of lab work on the side and studied under a few good teachers from nearby high schools," O'Connor explained while showing him a picture of a nice-looking young lady with curly brown hair.

Will nodded and pictured what he thought she would be like in the position. "She looks nice, but I'm not sure she would be able to handle the kids. Clemons had tons of behaviorals."

Mr. O'Connor and a few others at the table nodded in agreement at Will's commentary and then clicked over to the next teacher. "The other option we're heavily considering right now is Jack Howard. He is only 28, but he's been teaching high school biology in the state for 3 years, so he looks pretty good for us."

Will leaned over to look at the picture on Mr. O'Connor's computer and the face looked a little familiar. "What did you say his name was?"

"Jack Howard. Have you heard of him?"

"Yeah, I ran into him at the zoo this winter. We talked for a bit, he's a nice guy. I think he would be a good fit. Sounds qualified, at least."

"Okay, awesome. We'll review them some more, but I'll definitely consider your input." Will took his win and headed home for the day, daydreaming the whole car ride home about what the remainder of the school year will be like with the new member of his department.