* * *
Josie was terrified. For the first time in a long time, she was at a loss for words.
Principal Kerdan looked directly at Josie, sizing her up and down. She could swear he had an accusatory look forming on his face. "I think you know why you're here," he said simply. "We need to talk about your relationship with Mr. Coulson and what happened this weekend."
The words seemed to come out of his mouth in slow motion. Josie felt her body tremble as a cold shiver went up her spine. How did all this happen? How did she get to this point? Not realizing it, she slowly shook her head back and forth and looked down at her hands resting in her lap. She sighed heavily before looking back up at Principal Kerdan.
"Miss Geller," he continued, "It has been brought to my attention that you and Mr. Coulson appear to be...quite fond of each other. So fond of each other, in fact, that you spent some time together after Prom this past weekend."
His intense focus on Josie made her feel self-conscious, vulnerable and intimidated. She unconsciously squirmed and sunk lower into her chair.
"Mr. Coulson has done nothing wrong," Josie heard herself say in a shaky whisper. "Nothing! It's all my fault..." her voice trailed off into a quiet sob, as the tears began rolling down her cheeks. She couldn't bear to think that her lies and betrayal had caused Sam any further trouble than they already had. But she knew without a doubt that this was the case. The damage was done. The worst had happened. The thought made her sob even harder and she could hardly breathe.
"There, there," Jack Kerdan reached over and patted Josie softly on the shoulder. "Please don't cry." He tried to comfort her, but he always found himself uncomfortable when dealing with crying high school students. He turned to grab a box of tissue and extended it to Josie. "Here you go," he offered.
Josie looked up through her teary lashes and pulled a tissue from the box, wiping her cheeks dry. She took a deep breath and tried to calm down.
"Miss Geller," he began again, "The reason I brought you into my office is twofold. First, I want to assure you that none of this is your fault. I don't want you to feel responsible for anything inappropriate that happened between you and Sam Coulson. You are a student and a minor and not responsible in these circumstances. As a teacher of this school, Mr. Coulson has a duty to act as a professional and recognize the ramifications of getting involved with someone who is underage."
Josie felt her face flush with anger. "But nothing happened!" she gasped. "Nothing happened! I can explain!"
"Miss Geller," he had a sympathetic look on has face, "You and Sam Coulson left his apartment together yesterday morning. I saw it with my own eyes." The words burned Josie to the core.
"Josie... I understand why you would want to protect him. He's a young, handsome guy. I know that you young ladies probably look up to him. He's a great teacher, and a wonderful role model," he took a breath. 'Or used to be,' he thought to himself. "No one is blaming you for having a crush on him. But that doesn't excuse his having a relationship with one of his students."
"But we don't have a relationship!" Josie tried to convince him. "Not that kind of relationship! We're friends!"
Jack observed the flushed look on her face. 'Poor thing,' he thought, 'she obviously thinks she's in love with him.'
"Look, Josie." His expression softened. "My reason for bringing you here was to let you know that we do not hold you responsible. So please don't bear the burden of this. We are addressing the situation with the appropriate person: this has no negative impact on you. The faculty of South Glen holds you in very high regard�"
Josie was still so upset about the situation that she was barely listening. She couldn't stop seeing the hurt expression on Sam's face when he was in the guidance counselor's office, most likely defending himself against unfair and untrue accusations. Her stomach turned.
"In fact," he continued, "I mentioned there was a second reason I brought you in here." He shuffled through some papers on his desk and picked one up with some typed information on it. "Your grades since transferring to South Glen have been impeccable. You've made quite an impression in a short period of time, and it's my pleasure to tell you that you have been chosen as valedictorian of South Glen's 1999 Graduating Class. So hopefully, that should show you that the administration doesn't hold any of this against you."
Josie was stunned. She couldn't believe what she had just heard. "This is so wrong," she murmured, not realizing she said it out loud. "Principal Kerdan, I can't lie anymore!" Her voice cracked and her body shook. "You have to know the truth..."
"Josie," he interrupted, "I can see that you're a little overwhelmed; this is a lot to absorb, I know." Jack felt sorry for her. Not only had she been confronted about the inappropriate situation with her teacher, but she was also embarrassed of her accomplishments. He reasoned that she probably had low self-esteem, a fact that made him even more angry with Sam Coulson for preying on such a girl.
"I think you've had enough to deal with today," he reassured her, noticing the look of pain and fear on her face. "In fact�" he pulled open his drawer and took out a pad of paper and wrote something on it. Ripping the note off the pad, he handed it to Josie. "I'm excusing you from school for the rest of the day. Take this to the clerk in the office so she can mark your attendance file. I think you need some time to calm down."
"But...!" Josie barely had a voice left in her.
"It's okay, Josie," he interrupted again. "It's obvious how much you care about your schoolwork, but please�you need some time. Take it."
"W... What's going to happen to Mr. Coulson?"
Jack winced at her question. He was deeply troubled that he had to discipline someone used to have so much respect for.
He patted her shoulder again comfortingly. "We are taking the appropriate steps to investigate the situation. Don't you worry about any of this. Everything will be just fine." He stood up. "We can let all this rest today. But we will need to ask you some questions during the week."
He walked around the desk and placed his hand firmly on Josie's shoulder. "Why don't you go home and get a good night's sleep? Tomorrow is another day." He turned to show Josie out of his office.
Speechless and in a daze, she walked out and noticed the door to the guidance counselor's office was open. She looked inside and saw no one. Walking with a quickened pace to the receptionist, she handed her the note while searching the office for Sam, but he was nowhere to be found.
* * *
Sam was still in a state of shock. He couldn't believe it.
Probation.
His career, which he loved so much, was in jeopardy, if not over. Sam parked his car in the usual spot and got out. He was so consumed in his thoughts that he didn't notice who was waiting for him at the front door of his apartment.
Standing, with her arms folded, was Lara. A cocky grin formed in the corners of her mouth as she recognized the despondent look on Sam's face. 'He's toast', she thought.
"Rough day at the office, dear?" she gloated.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Sam said with a trembling voice. "Haven't you done enough? What more do you want?"
"I guess I came to make sure that the right thing was done."
Sam was furious. His career was ruined, Josie would probably be hurt by all of this, and she enjoyed it. He grabbed her wrist tightly and said through clenched teeth, "Get out of my life! I never want to set eyes on you again. You were a complete waste of five years and every second longer you are here is one more I've lost." He pulled her aside by the wrist, turned his back, opened the door and closed it behind him.
Lara stared at the closed door in front of her and sighed. "My work is done," she said to herself and walked away.
* * *
After pacing back and forth in his family room for over an hour, Sam knew he had to get out of there.
What Sam really wanted to do was talk to Josie, but he knew he couldn't ignore Jack's warning that he must have no contact with Josie until things were investigated. After all, he was lucky that he was put on probation and not suspended. He knew how serious the accusation was, and that these circumstances usually called for teachers to be suspended without pay. As a favor and because the school year was just about over, Jack agreed to let Sam be put on probation so he could continue teaching, but the agreement was no contact with Josie. He didn't know how he was going to do it, but he knew he had to.
Sam looked at the clock and saw that it was a little after 2:00. That meant Josie would be getting out of school in about a half hour.
Josie...
Sam had to get out of there before he dwelled on it one minute longer. He went to the closet to grab his skating gear and walked to the front door. As he opened it, he jumped when he saw Josie standing in front of it about to knock.
"Josie�" his voice cracked. The sight of her made his heart sink. Her eyes were red and puffy, still apparently moist from crying.
"I have to talk to you," she said, half whispering, half crying.
Sam wanted more than anything to take her into his arms and hold her. He loved her so much and didn't want to see her in pain. But he knew he couldn't. He took a small step backward.
"I..." he could barely find his voice. "I can't talk to you." His words seemed to cut her like a knife. Her eyes met with his and told him she was hurt. "You have to go, Josie. You shouldn't be here."
"Please!" she begged. "You have to listen to me!" She stepped forward and grabbed his hand, desperate to make him listen.
He pulled it away immediately as if she burned him.
"No. I can't. I'm sorry!" he snapped. As much as he cared for her, he couldn't allow himself to be seen with her. And moreso, Josie was putting herself into danger as well. "Don't come here again!" It took everything he had within him to close the door behind him and walk past her.
Josie stood frozen in place, motionless, as she watched him callously walk past her to his car and drive off, never once looking back.
What Josie didn't know, was that Sam could barely see the road through his tears.
* * *
"I can't do this anymore!" Josie yelled to Gus, tears rolling down her face. "Don't you understand what this is doing?"
Gus took in a deep breath. As much as he wanted the story on Sam Coulson, he could see that pursuing this story might be doing more harm than good.
"Geller," he said a little more gruffly than he intended, "the story should have been wrapped up awhile ago..." Her teary, big eyes locked on him with a flash of anger. "You waited so long that the school took action before we got to."
"What kind of monster are you!?" Josie blurted out. "Don't you care that this has destroyed a wonderful teacher who did nothing wrong but trust someone like me?" She buried her head in her hands and sobbed.
Gus sighed heavily. He felt terrible but knew that his job was on the line. Just then, Anita barged into the room. "What did you say to her?" she ran over to Josie and put her arms around her. "Shh... Josie. It'll be okay..."
"No, it won't," Josie said as she shook her head. "The damage is already done. I've failed at this job and I've ruined a man's life. I can't be a part of this any longer."
Anita looked up at Gus with a furious expression. "Look," Gus began, "I guess I could persuade Rigfort to let you ride it out until graduation to find your story. I mean, once he gets wind of the fact that you're valedictorian...who knows?"
Anita's expression softened somewhat and she patted Josie's back. "Josie, maybe you still have some time to make things better." She suggested. "Two weeks is two weeks. A lot can happen." Josie looked up at Gus with her teary eyes. "I will only continue with this if I don't have to cause any more harm to Sam," she demanded in a firmer voice than she thought she had. "I have to make things right."
"Josie," Gus took a few steps closer to both women. "I don't think I have to remind you how much is riding on this. I will do what I can with Rigfort. You just have to promise me that whatever you come up with will dazzle us all, because I can promise you, if it doesn't, I really will fire you."
* * *
Josie drove the whole way home thinking about Sam, what had been done to him, and how she was going to make it right. She no longer cried; she didn't have any tears left.
"He must hate me," she sighed to herself. She knew that she had to tell him the truth, but she didn't know how to talk to him since he wouldn't go near her.
Just then, Josie remembered seeing Sam carrying his hockey gear when he walked away from her. Instead of turning down her street, she did a U-turn and headed off toward the hockey rink.
* * *
Going into the darkened arena, Josie squinted and made out a lone figure skating by himself. As she went down the steps, she realized immediately that it was Sam. Taking a deep breath, she said to herself, 'I can do this. It's now or never.'
As Josie approached Sam, he continued to skate, unaware of her presence. She waited patiently for a moment, watching his athletic form skillfully skate back and forth while shooting the puck into the net. Suddenly, he turned and saw her. His already pained expression worsened as he blanched. "Josie..." he gasped.
Sam was stunned to see Josie. He was ashamed of how he had left her at his apartment and could barely look at her. Worse yet, he knew he was forbidden to talk to her. Reluctantly, he skated closer to her and lifted his eyes to hers as he slowed to a stop.
"Josie... What are you doing here?" He questioned softly. He could still see the hurt reflected in her eyes from earlier and it made him feel sick. "I told you, I can't�" Somehow, he couldn't finish the sentence. He was completely caught in her big blue eyes.
"I came here�" Josie paused and swallowed hard. "�because I had to talk to you." She took a deep breath and stepped slowly onto the ice, holding onto the wall for balance. Unfortunately, she was wearing sandals and her shoes slipped. As she was about to fall, Sam quickly reached over and caught her.
"Thanks," she exhaled, and slowly looked up into Sam's eyes. They stood for a long moment, with Sam's arms around her, giving her balance. Sam focused on the intensity of Josie's blue eyes and thought for sure that he couldn't stop himself from pulling her close and kissing her, as he wanted to do for so long. Instead, he found the strength to loosen his hold on her and helped her regain her balance.
"Josie..." Sam felt as though he wouldn't be able to find his voice. He looked around the room to be sure that no one else was there. They were alone. "Josie, please don't misunderstand my actions..." He slowly shook his head back and forth. "I'm so sorry for treating you the way I did back at my apartment... but..." He looked into her eyes again and noticed tears welling in them. He felt tears begin to sting his own eyes.
"Look..." he started again. "I don't want you to think any of this is your fault..."
"But it is my fault! It's all my fault!" The tears began falling down her cheek and before Sam could stop himself, he reached over and wiped them away with his thumb.
"Josie..." How Sam wanted to hold her in his arms. Instead, he placed his hand on her shoulder and squeezed it. "Josie, people are misinterpreting our..." he paused "...our friendship." He looked deep into her eyes. "Until we can clear things up, I'm afraid we can't talk to each other."
"But I can help clear things up!" She knew she had to tell him now. "You have to know the truth..."
Just then, they both heard a noise and looked over to see Adam, another teacher at South Glen South approaching. Sam backed up and stiffened. "Hey Adam... Over here."
Adam barely noticed that Sam was talking to someone. "Hey, catch you in a few minutes... gotta change first." He went to the locker room and again Sam and Josie were alone.
"Josie," Sam said quietly. "I can't be seen with you. Please...!" He pleaded with her. Seeing the hurt in her eyes, he leaned in and whispered softly into her ear. "I care a lot about you and I hate that any of this is hurting you... but please Josie. You have to go. We can't talk to each other for a while. Please understand." He looked deep into her eyes once more before adding, "I don't regret anything from this weekend. I would do it all over again if that's what it took to be sure you were okay." The words came out of his mouth before he could stop them.
Josie's heart was beating fast and she looked into his eyes. She knew that Adam would be coming back and they couldn't be seen together. She also knew that once again, she wouldn't have the chance to tell Sam the truth.
With Sam's face still close to hers, she slowly closed her eyes, exhaled and said in a soft whisper, "You are a very special man, Sam Coulson." She opened her eyes and saw his eyes shine slightly. She then, without thinking, leaned in and kissed him lightly on the cheek before turning to walk up the stairs.
Sam stood dumbstruck as he watched Josie walk out of the arena.
* * *