Yakety Yak Don't talk back (Sean)

One of the reasons that Jack’s reputation took the form that it did amongst students and staff was that his self-perception did not sync with the perceptions of other people. While Jack might characterize some of his behavior as innocent, or even magnanimous, others perceived those same words and actions as harassment and aggressive. That he could make this impression even when not actively attempting to do so only illustrated to Sean that Jack had a great deal of people skills to learn in his process of mature development.

Until Jack reached the stage where he could self-regulate (and that self-regulation took socially-acceptable forms), the psychiatrist and other faculty members would have to intervene. As they had needed to intervene during Sean’s Sexual Education Talk.

The psychiatrist had called Jack to his office, and, before the meeting, he had taken the opportunity to stop in the restroom and then to brew himself a mug of tea. He returned just in time to hear the boy’s musical expression of displeasure with the situation.

“Even if I were to agree with you about that, you and I wouldn’t see eye-to-eye on the cause of the situation or your reasons for being here,” he remarked, as he crossed the threshold into his office and shut the door. The large psychiatrist walked around his desk to take a seat in his armchair.

“The policy on smoking is that if you light up in this office, you forfeit any free time until after the New Year.” This was a situation in which certain other staff members (such as Chase Campbell) might threaten to use their powers. Sean wouldn’t, because he didn’t believe in abusing his powers, and he also didn’t believe in making empty threats. However, the only person from whom he ever tolerated smoking was Josh, and his partner had quit (and before that, would never have dared to smoke in his office).

The psychiatrist set down his mug and then settled himself behind his desk to make himself comfortable – within reason. Since this was a disciplinary meeting, Sean could not allow his posture to slip, as he had to remain properly imposing.

“Furthermore,” the psychiatrist continued, once Jack had finished his tirade. His voice was as sober as his expression as he spoke. “What you did was sexual harassment. The society that downplays the severity of offering unsolicited sexual comments to another person is the same one that lets you feel entitled to play victim over what you did and make jokes about prison rape.”
The psychiatrist was very much unmoved by Jack’s dramatic display. In fact, he was using it as evidence that the boy either didn’t understand or didn’t care what he had done wrong.

“So, if you’re finished playing Animal House for the day, you and I can have a discussion about what real injustice looks like.”

“I didn’t call you a pervert; I said you sexually harassed another student. That same culture that you continue to make light of is the culture that equates perversion with sex, and equates sexual violence with sex, as though they’re the same.” Sean’s voice remained even, as he kept his gaze trained on Jack’s face. “You made a decision to take advantage of closed quarters and to invade another student’s personal space and run roughshod over her boundaries. I know you don’t think that you did anything wrong, which is why you feel comfortable acting out, and the remedy for that is research projects, weekly, until the end of the semester.”

While Sean didn’t approve of violent rhetoric, he also didn’t fault Brooke for saying what was necessary to make Jack stop. He spoke with her weekly, and they could check in about what had occurred; however, none of that was Jack’s affair.

Besides, Jack was apparently content to dig his own grave, with every contemptuous remark he made.

“This is the part of this afternoon where you just agreed to do hard labor until the spring thaw.” Instead of frowning at Jack, or raising his voice, the psychiatrist simply smiled because he had the upper-hand. “Miss Davis has wanted to put in a topiary garden, so you’ll have the benefit of hands-on experience. Of course, if you want to make it so that you have other tasks as well, this can be arranged. Mister Campbell has been helping me with detention, and, I feel that I should warn you, his mind control is quite refined. You don’t want to act up around him; he doesn’t have half the tolerance that I do. As well, if you keep it up, you’ll be grounded.”

Nor would Yvette, but Jack had not veered off into the realm of needing to involve the Headmistress. Potshots at his authority were par for the course, and Sean would not have gone far in the Hammel administration if he couldn’t cope with a bit of insolence.

“We’ve been over this,” Sean replied, his tone even and emotionless because Jack wouldn’t earn an emotional reaction from him. “The people who are harassing others don’t get to determine whether their behavior constitutes harassment. She was uncomfortable, which means you crossed a line; it isn’t a false accusation because I overheard you and there are witnesses. Moreover, I will make this very clear: If you do it again, if you make excuses for it again, the consequences will be far greater than detention until spring break.”

Which was, incidentally, what Jack was earning for himself with his continued behavior. The boy had a very clear choice to stop digging himself in deeper by defending his behavior. If he did so, then he could get out of the psychiatrist’s office with the detention already in place and with nothing more severe. Sean was giving him that choice.

However, given Jack’s continued ranting, the psychiatrist decided to incorporate that. “In two weeks, you can give me a ten-page paper on 17th Century colonial attitudes towards sex. I expect proper citations. Depending on your findings, we’ll move on to another topic afterward.”

Until the spring, when Jack’s detention will have ended. Assuming that the boy kept himself out of trouble between then and now.

Sean was aware of the direction of Jack’s thoughts in the wake of his comments. The boy still didn’t get what the problem was, and he was still framing himself as the victim in this situation. He had a lot of learning to do, which would include exposure to people who came from less privileged walks of life and readings about the importance of boundaries and autonomy.

However, the teenager had finally demonstrated the wherewithal not to talk back or actually verbalize those (erroneous) beliefs. This meant that the psychiatrist could let him go for now (until his detention began), as long as there were no other outbursts.

And then Jack decided to flip him off. So subtly, as though thousands of people before him had never tried the same trick with authority figures.

“Your detention will begin tomorrow,” he warned Jack, so that the boy was on notice for when he had to report the next day. “You’re free to go until then.” Provided that the boy kept out of trouble.

“And, as a word of warning, I wouldn’t try that with either Mister Campbell or Missus Morgenstern. They aren’t as good natured about profane gestures as I am.” Which was to say that flipping the bird hadn’t gone unnoticed. “I was serious about the essay, so happy researching. And have a good day, Jack.”

Jack would be in for a surprise if he submitted an essay filled with personal insults. Sean didn’t believe in busywork, which was why the grounds keeping chore projects were intended to benefit the Hammel community at large. This was also why he was deliberate in the essay topics that he assigned to students when they found themselves in detention. Essays were personal, each topic chosen because it was relevant to the individual and because the psychiatrist thought that they could learn something from the exercise.

However, that was a lesson that Sean hoped the boy would only have to learn once. If he persisted, there were other avenues, which included a full gamut of faculty members far less jovial than the psychiatrist was.

“Defensive insincerity is the type of character flaw that will inhibit your future, Jack. I suggest growing out of that habit.” Lying about easily verifiable matters was also a large character flaw, but there was time for the boy to work on that as well. At the very least, Jack needed to learn when to stop digging.

“You’re free to go,” Sean repeated, gesturing towards the door. “Unless you want to spend the rest of the afternoon here, at which point you can begin your research project for me now.”