"Knock, knock, knock," Tommy Hawk gently tapped on the door of the office that once belonged to teacher Ronnie Williams.
A voice inside, Ottilia Farrell's, called out, "Come in."
Tommy turned the knob and walked into the office, the décor of which had changed with the change of occupants. The baseball team-signed posters and memorabilia that Mr. Williams had liked were all gone, replaced by what looked like very upscale decorations. Miss Ottilia Farrell, currently the embodiment of a distinguished scholar from a wealthy family, was dressed in a ladies' Chanel suit and holding a dainty watering can adorned with the LV logo. She was attentively and meticulously watering several potted plants on her desk, making sure every leaf was moistened.
"Miss Farrell, uh... the school office called my home and said you wanted to see me?" Tommy Hawk stood at the door, asking tentatively.
He had been at home, reviewing his homework and preparing his high school graduation thesis, but a call from the school summoned him. It was said that Miss Ottilia Farrell, upon understanding his situation, wished to have a talk with him.
"Tommy, please take a seat, make yourself comfortable, just like how you would with Mr. Williams," Ottilia turned her head, offering Tommy Hawk a friendly smile and inviting him to sit.
Tommy sat down near the entrance: "Is there anything you needed, Miss Farrell?"
After finishing watering the plants, Ottilia Farrell faced Tommy Hawk with a sincere expression and said, "After spending some time getting to know Lincoln High School, first of all, I feel I must formally apologize to you, Tommy Hawk. I believe the question I asked when we first met was quite presumptuous..."
Seeing her look of deep contrition, Tommy Hawk knew what this woman was about to say, so he interjected decisively, "Miss Farrell, your forthcoming apology might seem faultless to me, but I would suggest not to communicate with others in the same way if you don't want to end up with a nickname that starts with a 'B' at this high school."
This was clearly the patronizing expression of sympathy typical of white city dwellers. After some time, she realized how different Lincoln High School was from Andover Phillips Academy, where she attended, and consequently recognized how embarrassing her words from that day were, which brought about intense guilt within her.
However, Miss Farrell clearly didn't understand that the words from that day weren't truly hurtful, since she was completely ignorant at the time. It was this patronizing guilt that could be truly injurious, or rather, the person being apologized to wouldn't notice the regret or the guilt, but rather sense the obnoxious sense of superiority emanating from the person opposite them.
Of course, it wasn't her fault; it was a common issue among so-called American elites. When they realize their words have hurt someone of a lower social stratum, they exhibit this so-called gentlemanly behavior. They are indeed apologizing, but the secondary harm their apologies cause can be far more severe than the initial offense.
In his previous life, he had witnessed this among his American business school classmates. Those guys, upon realizing their mistake, would immediately seek forgiveness. Despite their sincere tone and earnest expressions, the person on the receiving end just couldn't bring themselves to forgive, only wanting to punch them in the face and call them a S*nOfBi*th.
Farrell was somewhat shocked by Tommy Hawk interrupting her apology; after all, she was a teacher, and it was quite impolite for a student to interrupt. But from Tommy Hawk's expression, it was clear that her attempt at an apology was very, very bad.
"What did I do wrong?" Farrell asked, puzzled, "I just wanted to apologize for what I said that day."
Tommy Hawk glanced at his cheap wristwatch with a hint of helplessness: "Miss Farrell, just remember, don't apologize for your ignorance. Ignorance doesn't require an apology, but reflection. So, is there anything else? I have a lot of issues to address, with the AP exams looming. If you like interacting with students, you might want to find another one, like Dennis Herbs. From what I understand, he's been recently asking around for your contact information."
"Do I really irritate you, Tommy Hawk? I see a look of helplessness when you look at me, as if talking to me is like torture," Farrell said, amused yet slightly annoyed at Tommy Hawk's frustration.
Although she considered herself more administrative than a true teaching staff member, at least at the moment, her appearance and sincere attitude towards people shouldn't cause a student to show a look of helplessness.
"No, you're very beautiful and attractive, probably the type many boys—including possibly myself—like. But right now, my love for academic grades surpasses even you. I just want to use my precious time for studying, then to attend a fairly decent college and leave this place."
"The reason I called you is precisely this. As your college admissions guidance teacher, I understand that you are preparing your high school graduation thesis. However, I've noticed that our school library hasn't been updated in four years, while reference books at other private high schools have already had several new editions. I mean to say that Lincoln High School's books seem to be updating a bit too slowly compared to private high schools. So I wanted to say, I am sorry about the last time, and regarding Andover Phillips Academy, but... it seems I have messed up this meeting too," Ottilia Farrell concluded, a bit disheartened, and began to stand up: "I'm very sorry, and I hope that moving forward..."
After hearing the true reason why the woman in front of him had called him here, Tommy Hawk stood up from his seat, his eyes unveiled with undisguised eagerness, only to be addressed by Ottilia Farrell in a very earnest tone, "No, Miss Farrell, you are a great guidance teacher, even better than Mr. Williams. At least he never thought to offer students help beyond the campus."
"Really? Wow~" Farrell looked at Tommy Hawk with some surprise at his reaction.
The boy across her had almost instantaneously changed from utter helplessness to full attention when facing her.
Tommy Hawk nodded vigorously: "Yes, I really do need some reference books that are missing from our school, but they're too expensive to buy on my own. If you have a library card from another school and could help me borrow some related books, I'd be incredibly grateful."
The woman in front of him came from Andover Phillips Academy, a private high school. Although the school was 170 kilometers away from Warwick, if she was willing to help him get a library card, Tommy Hawk wouldn't mind driving 170 kilometers to acquire knowledge.
"There's no need, I just said that I hope these reference books will let you see the effort I put in as your mentor teacher. I'll strive to do a good job and treat you all equally." Ottilia Farrell walked to a storage box in the corner of her office, bent down to open the lid, and turned her head to signal Tommy Hawk: "I've purchased some academic reference books published by famous university professors, following the standards of Andover Phillips High School."
"For me? All these books are for me?" For the first time in over two months since he had arrived, a look of greed spread across Tommy Hawk's face.
Because in these two months, he had learned just how difficult it was for the lower class in America to acquire knowledge.
"No, you just have the right to use them for the near future; once you graduate and get into college, you'll need to leave them in the school library." Seeing Tommy Hawk's response, Ottilia Farrell knew she had done well.
"Of course, of course!" Tommy Hawk eagerly agreed as he incredulously stepped forward and crouched down, gently touching the unopened, brand-new books in the storage box with his hands. He knew well that book prices in the US were shockingly high, especially academic rather than recreational books, which were even more expensive. A single book could cost upwards of a dozen US dollars, and this box of what seemed to be no more than twenty or thirty academic books could very well amount to Ottilia's monthly salary.
Martin Luther King, the black leader, once said that since the founding of America, setting aside variables like economic inflation, the reason why knowledge is so hard for black people and the poor to obtain is because the price of knowledge is too high. It has always been maintained by the government that the value of a book is equivalent to seven pounds of beef. This is also the reason why the vast majority of the poor simply cannot afford both food and knowledge.
"So, you're sure you're not upset about what happened that day?" Farrell looked at Tommy Hawk, who was caressing the book covers like a greedy dragon eyeing its treasure, and asked with a smile.
"Upset? Miss Farell, you're now as revered in my eyes as the Virgin Mary herself. If the Virgin Mary doesn't blame me for blasphemy, I might just tape your photo over her image and worship it day and night." Tommy Hawk stood up and looked at the beautiful female teacher in front of him: "This is my…"
"Tommy! Hugh Spade, that jerk, was brilliantly taken down by me and Aunt Melanie at the police station, just like a Holy Paladin slaying that damned dragon!" Dennis Hebers stuck his head out from the office entrance, his expression filled with excited shouting, though he kept his voice low.
Ottilia slightly frowned and looked at Dennis Hebers with a hint of cuteness as she reminded him: "Classmate, you seem to have forgotten to greet your teacher first."
"Miss Farrell, hello, Tommy! Hugh…" Dennis Hebers flicked the hairband on his head, ready to add a greeting to the teacher before repeating what he just said, but Tommy Hawk turned around: "No need to remind me, I won't go back on my word, Dennis, they're yours now, you can take them whenever you want."
"Goodbye, Tommy." The cheeky friend quickly drew back his head upon receiving Tommy's response.
Tommy Hawk turned to face Ottilia Farrell and bowed deeply: "Today, I've gained both knowledge and wealth, making it the happiest day I've had in two months. Thank you, Miss Farrell."
But soon, Dennis Hebers stuck his head out again: "Just to confirm once more, Tommy, according to our agreement, the thirty-seven Penthouse magazine posters I've collected now all belong to me, right?"
Tommy Hawk despairingly lowered his head: "Yes, Dennis."
"Yeah." Dennis shook his arm and, as the sound of his retreating footsteps rose, he disappeared outside the door.
"I'm pleased to know your previous knowledge and wealth came from Penthouse magazine, Mr. Hawk." Ottilia shrugged her shoulders and teased, after hearing the exchange between the two boys.