Mismatched at TAC

By Richard Pinkerton

There's a new principal at TAC and he's about to find that being there is more of a curse than a blessing.

Tucker Pyles, although no longer the kingpin of the school, still continues to do his dirty work.

Holly Robinson and Rick Maverick are now a couple. But already there is trouble brewing. Will their relationship last?

Rex Cassidy finds himself involved in a challenge to woo the head girl into going to the school dance, but not only does he have to deal with Tucker plotting to humiliate him, but he also has to deal with a tough new teacher who wishes to force his students into submission.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Richard Pinkerton
• Release date: Oct 27, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370317639

Richard Pinkerton

I am in my early 50s and have been writing now since I was 12. I prefer to write light-hearted drama but have written a little fantasy horror and science fiction too.I have an entire series of high school novels (19 of them so far) set in New Zealand (The Mob from TAC series), which I will gradually publish if there is a demand.I prefer to use a mix of quirky and outrageous characters you would never come across in reality and also your every day Joes.My writings are aimed at teenagers mainly, but also young adults.I have also written a series of detective novelettes, most of which can be found on my website. The majority require work, to be able to be published here, mainly due to copyright issues.Please do leave feedback or contact me if you want to know more about my books.

Book preview

Mismatched at TAC

(Book 2 in the Mob from TAC series)

Published by Richard Pinkerton at Smashwords

Copyright 2020 Richard Pinkerton

Other books by Richard Pinkerton

Dead End High

Dead End Town

Time Warped

The Rex Cassidy Investigators Series

The Mob from TAC series

1 - The Mob from TAC

2 – Mismatched at TAC

3 - Trouble at TAC

4 - Heroes at TAC

5 - Scheming at TAC

6 - Murder at TAC

7 - New Year at TAC

8 - Challenges at TAC

9 - Boot Camp at TAC

10 - Dark Days at TAC

11 - Jealously at TAC

12 - Choices at TAC

13 - Redemption at TAC

14 - Vendettas at TAC

15 - Aberrations at TAC

16 - Final Year at TAC

17 – Conspiracy at TAC

18 – Godly People at TAC

19 – Sabotage at TAC

20 – Distrust at TAC

21 – Competition at TAC

So Long, TAC

Acknowledgements

Jessica Cox

Molly Duame

Melva Gifford

Vera Gordon

Katherine Lato

To Christina

Who may have to wait until she gets to High School before she reads this.

CHAPTER 1:

Good Guy

‘So… this is what a detention looks like, huh?’

Rex Cassidy had been given many over the last month or so. He’d spent way too much time fraternising with members of the opposite sex and joking around. He had been way too cheeky to some of his teachers. He even threw a party in Maths class. That one earned him a trip to the principal’s office as well as two weeks of detention. He admitted to himself he might have gone too far with that one.

Yes, he’d been given a shipload of detentions and he wondered why they kept bothering to issue them. This was the first one he’d ever bothered to attend. He was fortunate he had wealthy parents. The grant they paid the school each month was very generous and enough to ensure his security at Te Arawa College and enable him to get away with his sometimes improper behaviour.

The girls in the room gazed at him with desire in their eyes. His tall, athletic good looks always turned heads and he was used to it. Eighteen students occupied the detention room, a bunch of them good friends of his who sat together in one cluster. They were people he had come to know in the short time he’d been at TAC.

One of his friends was Rick Maverick, a joker whom Rex had come to value. ‘Damn, this has to be a first, you turning up for detention. Have you gone flaccid or something?’

Rex delivered Mav a cheeky smile. ‘Thought it would be interesting to see what goes on in one of these things.’

The teacher on duty was Mr Franklin, who also happened to be Rex’s English teacher. He was an elderly gentleman, nearing 60 years old, who had a passion for old-fashioned literature. Rex got on quite well with him and liked him. He sat at his desk in the front left corner of the classroom. ‘Nice of you to grace us with your presence, Rex. Does this mean you’re actually going to join us and do some work?’

Rex chuckled. ‘Would I do something as crazy as that, Mr F?’

‘No, of course not,’ Franklin said with a wry smile. He gave his tie a slight nudge. ‘I guess not all the students in this school are fortunate enough to be in your position and have unofficial immunity from attending detentions.’

‘Oh yeah. My parents are very generous with their bri— I mean donations.’ Rex winked.

Another of the boys on detention spoke up in a slightly venomous tone. ‘And not all of us are buddy-buddy with one of the toughest teachers on staff, Sergeant Major Harris.’

Rex turned his eyes to the flabby face of the very obese boy who sat near the front. Tucker Pyles was one of the bullies Rex had been dealing with over the last month. He was a large imposing figure who usually had his two buddies do his dirty work for him. Rex had put them in their place at the school dance a month earlier, by taking them both on at the same time, thus earning their respect.

It was unusual for Tucker to speak to Rex in such a tone as he was normally scared of him. No doubt having a teacher there in the room emboldened him.

‘Pyles…’ Rex said. ‘I should have known you’d be in here. What did you do this time? Steal food from juniors?’

Tucker huffed but said nothing more.

Rex had to admit the accuracy of Tucker’s words. Rex was indeed a friend of one of the toughest teachers in the school, a former English Sergeant Major. When Rex had been expelled from his old school and arrived at Te Arawa College, Mr Harris, their PE teacher, had been given the job of taking him under his wing and ensuring he toed the line. So far though, all Mr Harris had done was support Rex and stick up for him. Harris didn’t see what was so wrong with the things Rex did and often insisted that the teachers who had problems with him needed to learn proper teaching skills.

Rex wasn’t about to let Tucker get away with his contempt so easily, so he strolled over and whipped the paper Tucker wrote from under him. ‘Let me see, I bet your detention has something to do with food, doesn’t it?’

‘No. I’m writing out the national anthem.’

Rex reeled. ‘Come again?’

‘The national anthem of New Zealand! The one all patriots should know.’

‘So that’s what passes for detention these days?’

Mr Franklin spoke up. ‘Tucker is here for bullying juniors, making them sing the national anthem when they didn’t have food for him to extort. So, he’s writing it up thirty times on paper.’

Rex chuckled, loving the poetic justice in it. ‘I like that. Was that your idea?’

Their teacher smirked. ‘It was.’

‘I like your style.’

Rex noticed the words on Tucker’s page. He hadn’t just copied the words down, he’d reworded it…

God of tasty midnight feasts,

Here with piles of plates of meat

Hear our ubbas we entreat

God defend our free lunch

Guard Pacific’s chocolate bars

From the shafts of chocolate thieves

Make our stomachs full of kai

God defend our cake stand

It is time to feed our face

Gather here with chocolate cake

Asking thee to bless this plate

God defend our cheese we grate

From greedy ubbheads we all hate

And corruption guard our plate

Make our food tasty and great,

God defend our cake stand

Rex had read enough. He wanted to laugh but kept a straight face, which brought concern over the flabby features of Tucker. ‘Err, Mr F…’

Tucker’s eyes bugged and he stared at Rex with horror. That was the reaction Rex hoped for but he wasn’t going to turn him in for cheating on his detention. He wanted to make sure Tucker didn’t have fun with it, as he obviously had so far.

‘What?’

‘I was thinking… wouldn’t it be a better idea if Tucker was made to write out the Maori version of the national anthem instead of the English one?’

Mr Franklin scratched the thinning spot on his head thoughtfully. ‘You know, that’s not a bad idea, Rex. It’s always good to expand our knowledge of other cultures and the Maori version is sung more than ever before. Yes, Tucker, how about you copy the Maori version instead? It’s on the next page.’

Tucker stared at his teacher with anguish. ‘But…’ He then turned his eyes to Rex and scowled but wisely said nothing.

Rex patted him on his tubby shoulder. ‘Keep up the good work, Tucks.’ He made his way over to the desk where Mav sat.

‘So, Rex,’ said a short, dark-haired beauty who sat next to him. ‘If you’re not here to join us in our detention… which we got for no good reason… what are you doing here?’

Mr Franklin spoke up. ‘No good reason? Now, now, you know it was a very good reason. Making out in Health Ed with your boyfriend is not acceptable behaviour.’

‘It’s Health Ed,’ Holly said. ‘We talk about sex and all that sort of stuff, so why not a little practical experimentation?’ She smiled a cheeky grin.

Rex had to admit she had a beautiful smile. Probably one of the most beautiful in school.

Mav smirked from his seat. ‘Yeah, I mean come on, at least we weren’t tearing each other’s clothes off and getting it on in front of the entire class.’

Holly giggled. ‘Even that should be okay because it’s Health Ed.’

‘It’s against the rules,’ Franklin said. ‘We can’t have that sort of thing going on in class, especially when you’re supposed to be paying attention to the teacher. That activity can be left until after school.’

Tucker Pyles spoke up. ‘So, how come he gets away with making out in class?’ He pointed to Rex.

‘Hmmm, yes, well…’ Franklin said. ‘I know he has been given plenty of detentions for it…’

‘Which he never turns up for. If we tried to skip detention, we’d get into even bigger trouble.’

Rex was sometimes guilty of making out. He found it so much more fun than listening to lectures and taking notes. Like Mav and Holly, he didn’t see what the big deal was, nor did he consider himself a bad student. So, he liked fooling around with the girls? They liked fooling around with him. He also enjoyed joking around a bit making his classmates laugh and often the teachers too. Breaking up the monotony was good for everyone. And yes, he was guilty of getting into fights but it was either self-defence or he was dealing with a bully who was making someone else’s life a misery.

It could be a lot worse. He could be smoking, drinking, taking drugs, assaulting innocent people, or punching out his teachers, but he did none of that. When it came down to it, he saw himself as one of the good guys

‘So, come on then, Rex,’ said Mr Franklin. ‘What are you doing here if not to actually do a detention?’

‘I’ve come to rescue a damsel in distress.’ He turned his eyes to another of his friends, his favourite of the lot. She was blonde with sapphire-blue eyes, eyes Rex found extremely alluring.

Chelsea Brown smiled radiantly at him from a chair on the opposite side of Holly Robinson.

‘Damsel in distress?’ Franklin said. ‘No matter what you might think, detentions aren’t that stressful. In fact, they’re very easy. All she has to do is write out notes from a textbook. Boring perhaps but I assure you there is little suffering involved.’

Holly snickered. ‘As if.’

Rex strolled over to Chelsea’s desk and extended his hand. ‘My lady, why don’t you come with me? Allow me to rescue you from your pain.’

Chelsea stared wide-eyed at him and hesitated. ‘But—’

‘Rex,’ Mr Franklin said. ‘You may get away with avoiding detentions but you can’t come in here and take someone out of one. She’s here for a reason.’

‘Yeah,’ Holly said. ‘The same reason Mav and I are here. For showing affection to each other.’

Rex chuckled. It was he and Chelsea making out in Maths class that morning that had spurred Holly and Mav to do the same thing. Rex felt guilty that they both had to be there when he wasn’t. He especially felt bad about Chelsea being there too, which was why he’d come. It was so wrong that the girl he was making out with had to be there when he wasn’t, especially considering she rarely got into trouble. Nevertheless, he wasn’t about to join her for detention. ‘Why don’t you come? We can spend some time together.’

Chelsea still seemed hesitant and she turned her eyes to Mr Franklin.

The English teacher sighed. ‘Go,’ he said. ‘Otherwise, Rex will hang around here and disrupt the entire detention. Holly and Mav, you two can go too. I don’t think you really need to be here. Just don’t tell Mrs McMillan I let you off early… and don’t get any ideas you’ll get away with that behaviour in my classes because you won’t.’

‘Thanks, Mr Franklin!’ Holly said and leapt to her feet. Rex grinned and the four of them left the detention room.

Five minutes later, Rex sat with Chelsea under the Puriri trees at the extreme edge of the school grounds. Other students played ball games on the fields. Some sat around or walked from one place to the other. A group of boys hung out under the trees further along the fence line. Apart from them, the two of them were alone.

‘Awesome,’ Chelsea said. ‘Thank God, we got out of that detention. I’m so glad you came for me otherwise I’d still be there.’

‘I couldn’t let you wallow in there. Not when I was out having fun.’

‘Well, it’s nice to have one-on-one time with you. I don’t get that very often.’

Rex nodded. ‘I’m sorry about that. It seems I have a lot of pressure on my time.’

‘Tell me about it. All the girls want their share of your time.’

‘And how do you feel about that?’

Chelsea sighed. ‘I can deal with it. I know we’re not a couple.’

Rex gazed into her mesmerising sapphire-blue eyes. Sometimes he found it hard to gaze because of the pain it invoked in his heart. The memories of his old love would come flooding back. Their eyes were so similar. ‘You rock, Chels, you really do and I don’t want to see you hurt. I can pull away and leave you right alone if you want, but being in a relationship is something I can’t deal with at the moment. You understand, right?’

‘Of course, I do. We’re young, right? We shouldn’t be tied up in heavy relationships. I don’t know if I’m ready for something like that anyway. Besides…’ She smiled. ‘Can you imagine how hated I’d be if you and I began going around together? The girls are jealous enough as it is with the time you spend with me.’

Rex chuckled. ‘Well, it would be tough luck for them. You let me know if anyone gives you any crap.’ He looked up to see a man in his 50s, walking along the field in their direction. He was still a distance away but he strode with purpose and a stern look on his craggy face. ‘Mmmm. Look who’s out on the prowl. If it isn’t our new principal, Mr Andrews.’

‘Was he seriously the principal of your old school?’

‘Yeah, can you believe it? The guy expels me and then gets in the shit for doing it, so they move him to a new school, which happens to be my new school. If I believed in God, I’d think he was playing a joke on me.’

‘Gee, perhaps someone in a position of power knows you and him and wanted to torment the both of you?’

‘Whoever it is, I’d like to congratulate them. They were very clever to arrange this. It’s the sort of thing you’d expect to see in a movie or a story. Incredible coincidence.’

‘Or maybe it’s karma coming back to bite.’

‘Ah, but who for? Me or him?’

‘Perhaps the both of you?’

Mr Andrews stepped right up to greet them with a frown. It seemed to be a permanent fixture on his face, as though he had a personal rule against smiling. Perhaps being a school principal was one of those jobs where there was never anything to smile about. The only positive thing about his look was the sun which left a little gleam on the bald patch on his thinning brown hair.

‘Mr A,’ Rex greeted him in a friendly tone. Were they in trouble for skipping detention? It seemed unlikely Mr Franklin would have reported them. ‘What a coincidence. Fancy seeing you here at Te Arawa College. We should catch up sometime. Have a coffee and talk about old times.’

Mr Andrews narrowed his eyes and then turned to Chelsea. ‘Young lady, perhaps you could allow me and Rex here to have a talk alone for a few minutes?’

The request intrigued Rex. Surely, if Mr Andrews had issues with something Rex had done, he would be getting called to his office?

Chelsea stood. ‘Sure. I’ll… I’ll head back to E Block. Okay, Rex?’

‘Copy that. See you soon.’ Rex remained sitting and leaned back against the tree trunk. He admired Chelsea’s fine slender figure as she departed and deliberately continued to gaze in her direction to annoy Mr Andrews.

After a few seconds, Mr Andrews spoke in a gruff voice, ‘Excuse me. Can I have your attention please?’

‘Sure!’ Rex turned his eyes up to him and smiled pleasantly. ‘So, Mr Andrews. What do you think of Te Arawa College so far?’

Mr Andrews remained standing, peering down at him with a clear sliver of contempt… maybe more than a sliver. ‘No doubt this is a great joke for you, isn’t it, lad? Seeing me humbled and now in another school with you as a student.’

Rex grinned. ‘Struck me as being a pleasant surprise, actually. It’s nice to have you here.’ There was only mock sincerity in Rex’s words but, at the same time, he held no grudge against him. He realised Andrews had only done what he thought was right when he expelled Rex from their old school. It did, however, give him a smug sense of satisfaction, knowing he would not be able to do the same here at Te Arawa. There was no way Mr Andrews would risk upsetting the school board, his teachers and his superiors by expelling Rex a second time. The more Rex thought about it, although he didn’t believe in karma, it certainly looked as though maybe the powers-that-be set this up as a punishment for his new principal.

‘You and I need to get some things straight.’

‘What? So, no official meeting in your office?’

‘There’s no need for such formalities on this occasion. What I want to say I want to say off the record.’

Rex looked at him dubiously but remained in his relaxed position. ‘So, you want to make threats?’

‘No, lad, nothing like that. I just want you to know where we stand with each other. I admit, when I expelled you from Taukauri College, it was a knee-jerk reaction. Especially seeing your file and the shenanigans you got up to in that school. I thought by making an example of you I would establish my authority in that school but, instead, it backfired. I had no idea how much the school relied on your parent’s grants and certainly had no idea of how unpopular the move would be amongst staff, students and parents alike. Yes, even teachers who complained about your behaviour ended up angry at the outcome. I even had parents angry at me for expelling you. I don’t know how you did it but in those parents’ eyes, you‘re righteous. Perhaps because they never had to teach you and only listened to what their starry-eyed daughters said about you, I don’t know but there you have it. Because of my perfectly logical and rational decision to have you expelled, I was put under pressure to leave and I thought I was fortunate to get this role here, taking over from your former principal who had to quit due to ill health. Then I find you are here.’

Rex grinned.

‘Oh, you can smile all you like but don’t think you have me at a disadvantage. Certainly, I might not be able to expel you based on your past, but you can rest assured I will be watching your every move. Don’t think you can get away with your shenanigans because of our past history because you can’t. I assure you of that, young Rex. I am going to be watching you very carefully and if you screw up… I’ll be there to make sure you suffer the consequences…’

He turned and strode back across the fields.

CHAPTER 2:

Tucker makes a declaration

First thing Tuesday morning, 30 minutes before the bell rang for school to begin. Tucker Pyles had been doing the rounds, looking to enforce his will on a few juniors.

‘I told you, ubbhead, if you didn’t bring me anything to eat today, you’d be in trouble.’ Tucker stood over his year-9 victim with the most menacing look he could muster. It was doing the trick because the unfortunate junior shuddered and stared up at him with wide eyes from the bench he sat on with his equally as intimidated mates.

‘I’m sorry,’ he whimpered. ‘But my mother only lets me have so much and last week she got upset when I told her I’d given my lunch away. She said she would speak to the school if it happened again.’

Tucker had only managed to secure himself three bowls of breakfast cereal that morning. His mother had refused to let him have any more, so in a way, he could feel for this kid having such a cruel parent. Nevertheless, he had a reputation to uphold, one that had developed a lot of cracks over the last few weeks and he intended on restoring it to its former glory.

‘Look, you little mummy’s boy,