Letters to Teacher

Chapter One

After three years of teaching at Westfield High School, Dean felt that he would grow tired of reading the same papers repeatedly; however, that was not the case. Dean always found reading over his student's papers to be intriguing. The students didn't seem to realize that when you write a paper, more so when it's based on something you care about, you put yourself into the paper. He had learned more about his students by reading their works than he had by talking to them and observing them in their day to day lives during his class and around the school.

Today was no different. Until he got halfway through the stack.

The assignment had been to write about a possession that you have. Explain it in great detail. Dean wanted to be able to see the item, smell the item if he could. He wanted to feel why it was of such importance to them. But when he got toward the middle of the stack, one paper stood out to him. Firstly, it was in cursive. No one wrote their papers in cursive anymore. Secondly, it did not have a name or a title on it.

At first, Dean thought that maybe someone had accidentally turned in something that was not his assignment. That is until he started reading it.

Sometimes, life puts you in possession of something you did not ask for. It is something that can be wonderful at times but can also pull you down so low you feel you will never be able to get up again. At times, you wish that you didn't have it, that you could toss it aside and never have to worry about it again. But this thing is part of who you are. Without it, you would die. Does that mean that I am dying?

This possession that came to be the most important possession I would ever have, no longer belongs to me. I no longer control how it works. I used to be able to think it into doing whatever I willed, beyond its basic functions, but it has broken free. It has chosen to become something more than solely my possession. It has become your possession as well Mr. Winchester. So, if you don't mind, I would really like for you to give it back.

"What the?" Dean muttered under his breath.

Dean read over the paper a few more times before setting it down and leaning back in his chair. What did he possess that this student was talking about? He had an idea but he did not want to jump to conclusions. Also, who wrote this? Dean shuffled through the rest of the papers, trying to match the handwriting to one of the students. None of them seemed to match.

Dean set the paper aside and went back to the other papers, needing to focus on something else for a while. By the time seven rolled around, Dean decided to stop for the night and get something to eat before calling it a night. He set his papers into graded and ungraded piles and stood up from his home office desk. He thought about leaving the other paper on his desk, but he couldn't help but grab it and bring it with him.

Dean read over the paper again while he was waiting for his food to cook. He read over it while he was eating his dinner. He read over it again before getting into the shower and twice more before crawling into bed that night. He needed to figure out who wrote this and what it meant. If he didn't, it was going to drive him crazy.

By the time he arrived at school the next morning, he had a plan. He was going to give his class an in-class assignment. Maybe someone would slip up and he would be able to match the handwriting to the paper. Maybe someone would write another one and he would be able to see who put the paper onto the stack. Fourth period could not come quick enough.

"Alright class," Dean stood up from his desk and moved around to lean against the front of it. He could see the entire class better when he was not sitting down. "I have some new assignments for the week. And before you start groaning, they are all in class. That means you will not have any homework for the rest of the week."