By Terosk
Copyright 2022 by Terosk, all rights reserved
* * * * *Ars Puniendi
Part III
Chapters 16-20
Chapter 16 - Adelaide & Angelina
As
I was about to step into the hallway outside the conference room, I
heard two older women chatting as they walked our way and I
instinctively stepped back into the conference room to let them pass,
but Mr. Innovata turned back to check on whether I was following and I
quickly recognized the futility of following that impulse – I was going
to be spending the day being on display and I’d had better get used to
it, so I stepped into the hallway pretending that everything was
normal, even resisting the strong impulse to thrust my hands in front
of my privates, which I fully realized would only make matters worse
and draw attention to my unbearable discomfort. The women were clearly
engrossed in their own conversation and didn’t really look up to notice
the head of discipline walking down the hall with a naked middle school
boy. But as we got closer, one of the women looked up, saw that I
wasn’t wearing anything, and let out a little shriek of surprise as she
stopped dead in her tracks.
“What in the world is going on around here?” she exclaimed with evident horror.
“Why hello there, Mrs. Angelina,” responded Mr. Innovata, “Please don’t
be alarmed; this here is Tyler Formale, the boy who played that
unfortunate prank on his classmate Arthur Little. As a direct result of
that serious breach of school’s norms, he’ll be spending the whole day
in the state you now find him in. The two other boys involved paid a
similar penalty yesterday afternoon.”
“And well I know it!”
Mrs. Angelina said, “I saw that other boy walking naked across the
campus yesterday and the shock of it nearly did me in. I haven’t seen
anything like it since I was a little girl.” and she turned to her
colleague, “You know, Adelaide, back then, in Catholic school, any boy
who misbehaved got a full wallop on their bare backsides in front of
the whole class. Did them good too – made men of them.”
As
Mrs. Angelina related that story of her catholic upbringing, I looked
at the woman called Adelaide. She had adjusted her glasses and was
looking at me with an intense scrutiny, initially at my face, but her
eyes slowly traveled down my torso to my middle and was simply staring
at my boyhood package when Mrs. Angelina said that last part about the
spanking making men of them. Then she said in an awestruck tone,
“Beatrice, if you ask me, this young Tyler boy is very much a man
already.” I began to blush instantly and looked down at my middle and
saw to my dismay that my dick was beginning to respond to this
unfettered attention in a most unwanted way.
“Yes, I can see that. Very different from that boy yesterday.”
“Excuse me, ladies,” Mr. Innovata interrupted as his face also
reddened, “that’s enough of that kind of talk. Tyler and I are heading
to my office to sort out the details for this morning’s classes. I bid
you both a good day.” and he put his hand on my shoulder and directed
me past the two women towards his office just around the corner. I
couldn’t help peeking back behind me as I stepped into his office as
both women were still in the hallway staring at me. My hands had
instinctively moved to cover the growing embarrassment around my middle
and I could feel my face begin to flush as well.
As we moved
past them and towards his office, I kept on thinking about how
humiliating it was going to be if I popped a boner in one of my classes
and recognized that it was almost inevitable given how my testosterone
filled adolescence was now responding to the attention those two ladies
paid to the size and shape of my developing manhood. And I thought to
myself: “That was nothing; I am in for a lot worse once I enter a
classroom full of my friends. How the hell am I going to survive this?”
I followed him into his office and shut the door behind me
while doing my best to press down on my growing erection. Mr. Innovata
turned and looked at me and quickly saw the new source of my distress.
To his credit, he made no mention of it but said instead, “Tyler, I am
so sorry you had to hear the comments of those two women. They should
never have spoken like that – they’re adults and should have a better
filter than that.” He pulled out a chair and motioned for me to sit.
Meanwhile he took the seat directly across from me rather than his
chair behind his desk. I was horribly uncomfortable as I sat now with
both hands artfully placed in my lap. He looked me in the eyes for
quite a while without speaking and I stared right back doing my best
not to show any emotion though I could tell my face was flushed and my
eyes still swollen from my earlier tears. I could feel the tension in
my jaw – I’d been grinding my teeth in desperate defiance ever since my
father appeared on the scene.
“Okay, Tyler, take a few deep
breaths. …perhaps you’d like some water?” He got up and poured me a
glass from the cooler even though I hadn’t responded. I took it
gratefully “Thanks,” I mumbled
“That was rough back there. Is your father always so …so sure of himself? …such a force?”
“Always …I knew I was screwed as soon as I saw him. He’s not around all
that often – he’s always away on business, but when he’s home, he’s in
charge. What he says goes. …though he never raises his voice or is ever
unpleasant about it. He just has this way about him. People do what he
asks.”
“Yet you tried to resist him?”
“Yeah – what an
idiot I am. So now I won’t get my clothes back until this evening. …and
only if you give him a good report. …otherwise, I may be in my birthday
suite for the rest of the week …for the rest of the year for that
matter. I’m screwed.” I fought back tears once again.
“I
agree, Tyler; it looks like you clearly lost that battle back there and
only made matters worse in the way you handled it. But can you tell me
why this is all happening? Why this punishment? How does it fit the
crime? What is the lesson you’re supposed to be getting from all this?
…. for you see, the report I give your father at 4:00 today will depend
on whether you can understand the lesson. …whether you can successfully
see outside yourself and put yourself into the shoes of somebody else.”
“Empathy of course.” I said. “Yes, I get it. I’m naked now because I
forced ‘Arthur’ to wander around naked on Monday. It’s not rocket
science – I get it.”
“Well …I hope so.” Mr. Innovata said as
he looked at me skeptically. “So anyway, since you have to spend the
day in your birthday suit, let’s get on with it; you’re not going to be
spending it in my office. To be honest, after yesterday’s refusal to go
along with my alternative plan for you, I was expecting today simply to
outline with you and your parents the timeframe of the suspension and
probation as well as some of the specific consequences, but your father
called me late afternoon. He was very upset. He noted that he believed
the alternative was a very good one and exactly what you needed, so he
asked if I’d reconsider and allow him to impose that same punishment on
you this morning himself. He said he’d arrange a flight home right
away.” Then after a pause he added, “I’ve got to confess, your father
is a most persuasive and strong-willed man, and I was persuaded to go
along with his plan. So, the important thing now is to make sure that
you successfully learn what you’re supposed to from all this. The first
class on your schedule is English, which seems a good place to start.
While I had a specially designed science class for you yesterday, I
didn’t have time this morning to let anyone know about this or sort out
anything special for you thus far, so unless you hear otherwise, you’ll
simply go through your normal rotation of classes. I’ll escort you now
to your English class which has just gotten underway. Grab your books
and come along; you’re a bit late. I’m sure Ms. Tomaso will understand
when she sees you. So come along.”
I got up and followed,
taking a few very deep breathes and putting on the best poker face I
could. This was going to be a horrible day, but I was determined not to
make it worse by letting anyone see me cry. But then in a sudden panic
I recalled my predicament in the hallways with those two women no more
than five minutes prior and once again I could feel that tingling
sensation in my groin alerting me to impending trouble. I simply
couldn’t allow my first encounter with my classmates to be with a bona
fide boner. “Mr. Innovata,” I said, my voice cracking, “I think, …I
think I need to visit the boy’s room before we go on. Do you mind
…please.” I made my request with one hand pressing down once again on
my swollen appendage and the other holding my book bag. I was too
mortified even to look up at him as I made my request, but after a few
seconds without his response, I forced myself to glance upward. His
amused face made it clear he understood the cause of my concern, and to
my great relief, he nodded his accent but then said softly but firmly,
“Okay Tyler, give me the book bag and you take care of business, but
I’ll expect to see you back in my office in less than 5 minutes or
there’ll be more trouble in store for you. Is that clear?”
I
quickly nodded my thanks, handed him my books, and headed across the
hall to the boy’s room. As soon as I opened the door and took a few
steps in, I was shocked by the image of a naked boy starting back at me
in the long mirror that lined the wall above the row of sinks. He was
desperately hunched over and holding his hands over an obvious erection
- what a pathetic, humiliating sight. Thankfully no one else was there
and greatly relieved, I stood up straight, remove my hands and let my
penis bounce up to its full length. I tried to affect an air of calm
indifference and tried even to put on a self-assured and confident
smile which admittedly looked a little less pathetic, but my erection
was inescapably a problem. I entered the stall and quickly set to work
to relieve the built-up tension. I wasn’t the least bit aroused
sexually, but that doesn’t seem to matter to the willful appendage
between my legs. It had a mind of its own and I was hoping to satisfy
its needs for now and hoped that that might prevent a reoccurrence
later in class. I finished the job as quickly as possible without even
trying to savor the orgasm. Being in a toilet stall in a high school
boy’s room isn’t remotely erotic if you know what I mean. I cleaned up
and returned to the hallway, looked both ways and scooted across to Mr.
Innovata’s office. I didn’t bother knocking. I found him standing there
with my book bag in his hand and knowing smile on his face. He simply
said, “Okay Tyler, it’s now time for your experiential learning to
begin. Let’s be quick - we’re almost a third the way through first
period, I just spoke ever so briefly with Ms. Tomaso so she knows
you’re on the way. No more stalling.” And with that he handed me my
books and set off down the hallway. I followed.
***
Chapter 17 - Creative Writing
“Oh
- one more thing,” Mr. Innovata said to me just as he was about to open
Mr. Tomaso’s classroom door, “I should point out that your father’s
last words were very true. ‘The more fully you embrace this, the better
it’ll go for you.’ You’d do well to keep that in mind.” and then he
opened the door and ushered me in. The class was already engrossed in
some writing assignment, but as soon as I stepped in the door, there
was a collective gasp. All eyes on me. I stood still and looked back at
them all without blinking. I wasn’t going to let on how embarrassing it
was, so I resisted every impulse to cover up my front which had
thankfully returned to its regular size. I just let them look and I
even forced myself to return the hint of a smile, trying to appear
unfazed. Meanwhile, Mr. Innovata spoke, “Please forgive the
interruption and Tyler’s tardiness, Ms. Tomaso; He had a lengthy
meeting this morning and it took some time to sort out the details of
his ‘experiential learning’ experience today. As you can see, he does
have his books with him, and he’s fully prepared to participate in
whatever you have planned for the day. ...though, if you don’t mind,
I’d love a quick word with you out in the hall. Tyler, please get
yourself settled for class while I speak with Ms. Tomaso.” and with
that Ms. Tomaso followed him into the hallway and I sauntered as
nonchalantly as I could muster to my seat on the far side of the room
and unpacked my copy of Huckleberry Finn and my notes.
As I
did so, all eyes followed in silence; I pretended not to notice. A kid
named Marvin mumbled something in my direction as I passed, “Must have
been quite a ‘revealing’ meeting – seems to have left you a bit
disarmed.” I pretended I didn’t hear, but then Matthew who was sitting
next to him followed that with, “On the contrary, it seems to have left
his sword unsheathed.” which broke the silence as everyone laughed.
While one part of me had to admit was a funny comment, the other part
of me was struggling to find a response that would help me maintain
some dignity and put a stop to the ridicule. So I turned to Matthew
with a condescending smile and said slowly, “That was a good one, smart
ass.”
“Great retort, Tyler,” said another boy, “given that
your own ‘smart ass’ is on full display.” I immediately turned my
backside in his direction so he could have a better look and said, “Go
ahead, kiss my ass.”
“Excuse me, Tyler!” it was Ms. Tomaso as
she stepped back into the room, “that’s not the way we talk to each
other in this room.” and she glared at me for a few seconds to get her
point across. Then she continued, “Okay class, we’re going to try
something a bit different in the latter part of class – a creative
writing assignment. Please rearrange the desks so that they are in a
full circle.” and as she gave that instruction and the class dutifully
slid their desks to the edge of the room, she placed a sturdy
rectangular box in the center of the circle. “OK class, our creative
writing assignment today will focus on the effort to see the world
through a lens other than our own. As you all can see, our friend and
classmate, Tyler, is enduring an unusual “experiential learning’
exercise today. Would you be so kind Tyler to step forward and stand on
the platform I’ve put in the middle of the circle.” and then she smiled
ever so slightly as she waited to see my reaction. I gave her a
pleading stare and considered refusing but quickly recognized the
futility, so I took a deep breath to steady myself and dutifully walked
to the center of the room and took a step up onto the box. I
instinctively crossed my hands in front of me which obscured my
privates from view to a small degree, but at the same time I was keen
on appearing as natural as possible, as if I wasn’t bothered by my
nudity. To display overt embarrassment, I knew, would only have made my
humiliation worse and clamping my hands over my nuts would only confirm
it. I decided I had to deal with this ‘experiential learning’ with
stoic fortitude – and so I purposely yawned, covering my mouth with my
right hand and then left my hands nonchalantly at my side thereafter
leaving myself totally exposed. Even so, I purposely kept my eyes above
the level of my classmates, so I didn’t have to make any eye contact.
Meanwhile, Ms. Tomaso continued with the assignment, “I am asking all
of you to imagine that you’re in Tyler’s shoes,” at which point she
looked down at by bare feet and amended, “not literally in this case,
but metaphorically, if you know what I mean.” and she chuckled at her
own little joke and the class responded accordingly with an amused
groan. “I want you to write a short journal or diary entry explaining
exactly how you would feel being Tyler right now. Be sure to write from
the 1st person perspective, as if you yourself were Tyler, standing in front of the class right now ….in his exact state of undress.”
“Do you mean ‘buck naked’?” asked Sarah just to clarify.
“Or is that Butt naked!” quipped Samantha, who was standing directly in
front of me and clearly enjoying the view – her eyes didn’t even
pretend to look at me, but only at my middle, my manhood, which I was
aware extended below the reach of my crossed hands. I was discovering
very quickly just how remarkably awkward this day was going to be for
me. …and I couldn’t think of a single thing I could do to escape it.
Ms. Tomaso took the question at face value, “Yes dear, you job is to
pretend you are Tyler, get inside his thoughts and feelings as you
write your essay from that perspective. And Tyler, it is going to be
your task to choose one of your classmates and write a similar essay as
if you were one of your classmates who happens to have been assigned
the task of writing about seeing this classmate named Tyler standing
before you fully naked; got it? This whole exercise is designed to
invite you to imagine the world through another’s lens, which, as you
all know, is the beginning of empathy, a core value for this school. So
please sit down at your desks and begin writing. I’ll give you about10
or so minutes at which point we’ll give you all an opportunity to share
your efforts. …and Tyler, you can now return to your desk and begin
your assignment.” and so I happily stepped off the crate, leaving
center stage, and returned to my seat which by chance happened to be
beside Samantha, who registered my arrival with a delighted grin as she
whispered, “glad to have your cute buttocks beside me.” …to which I
rolled my eyes at her as I tried to figure out what in the world I
should write. Should I confess the truth, that I’m pissed at my parents
and completely mortified to find myself stripped of all my dignity in
front of my peers. I glanced up as inconspicuously as I could and
noticed that lots of kids were stealing glances my way, with laughter
written all over their expressions. How in the world can I ever live
this down. I began writing:
So poor Tyler is finally
paying the price for his arrogant antics – well deserved, I’d say; let
him suffer our collective derisive laughter – maybe it’ll do him good.
Maybe it’ll finally teach him that he’s no better than the rest of us.
Maybe it’ll teach him that the rules apply to him as well. Perhaps …
and then I looked up again and noticed Samantha busily writing, she was
clearly into it and had this amused grin on her face. She suddenly
looked up and caught my eye, then whispered just loud enough for me to
hear, “Hey Tyler, why not pretend you’re me ? …I’d love to learn what
you think I’m thinking.” and then she gave me this enticing wink before
lowering her head and returning to her own writing.
I was
not at all sure what to think of that exchange, but Samantha was
certainly one of the more popular girls in our class and pretty hot, so
I took her suggestion and pretended I was Samantha. I tore up the
confessional bullshit that I started before and approached it now from
a very different angle, one designed to be entertaining when I read it
aloud which I now realized I’d have to do. Then I whispered back to
her, “OK, Sam, I’ll do it; I’ll be you ….and I look forward to hearing
what you think I’m thinking as well.” She looked over at me with
eyebrows raised and a naughty grin, “Oh - you’ll find out soon enough,
big boy.”
The ten minutes passed quickly – I think the class
was getting into this assignment, as was I to be honest, now that I
found an angle that seemed to offer me some solace …and I knew that if
I could make the class laugh, even at my own expense, then I’d have
gained back some of my machismo.
At the end of ten minutes
Ms. Tomaso said, “Okay, I see that you all seem to enjoy this exercise.
Is there anyone who’d be willing to read aloud their creative effort?”
“I will.” said Thomas without hesitation, though that was a typical
pattern despite the fact that his work was typically not very good, but
I was admittedly keen on hearing what others thought I was thinking. He
started reading,
Hi, I’m Tyler and I’m naked in front of
class. It’s horribly embarrassing. I know that I sort of deserve it for
what I did the other day, but even so, it is hard to keep one’s dignity
when stripped of clothes. The only good thing about this is that once
the bell rings and we get dismissed for recess and head outside,
everyone will envy me because it’s so hot outside that the normal coat
and tie uniform will be really uncomfortable while I’ll be as
comfortable as one can be in this heatwave. Maybe my classmates will
envy me! Of course, I’ll have to be careful not to get sunburn on my
you-know-what. I’ll have to ask about getting some suntan lotion before
I go on out.
The class all laughed as Ms. Tomaso
grinned and thanked Thomas for his contribution. She then asked if
there was anyone else that would like to share. My friend Evan
tentatively raised his hand after a bit when no one else volunteered.
“Yes Evan, please read us what you’ve written.” His also was a bit on
the simplistic side but not far from the truth. Here’s what he wrote:
Oh
my – what a day this is turning out to be. I never imagined in my worst
nightmare that I’d be standing in front of my English class totally
naked and having the class writing all about me in this state. Very
embarrassing I can tell you that! But here I am trying to endure their
stares and their laughter – not fun. I really can’t wait for this to be
over. …only I also know that from this class I have to head to other
classes and who knows what I’ll be asked to do there? Oh my- this is
going to be a horrible day!
“Thank you, Evan, – this is
good. You’ve made a good guess as to what anyone of us might feel if we
found ourselves in Tyler’s circumstances. It’s not always easy to see
the world from someone else’s perspective and you’ve done well. And
anyone else willing to share? There were 2 others eager to read theirs
which were much the same as Evan’s. Then I saw Samantha raise her hand.
“Mine,” she said, “is a bit different – while I do think that Tyler’s
embarrassed by all this, I suspect there’s a lot more going on in his
head.” and with that she stood up and walked to the center of the room
and stepped up onto the platform. She then thanked Mr. Tomaso for such
an ‘interesting and entertaining’ assignment, and then, after stealing
a mischievous glance my way, began reading:
Life is a
game, and I, Tyler Formale, am fully accustomed to winning. I tend to
get what I want, when I want it, and manage to have a lot of fun,
joking around and playing pranks along the way. It no doubt helps that
I am blessed with brains, good looks, and a very quick wit. Some may
accuse me of arrogance, but that’s their problem, not mine.
But every now and then, despite my superior intellect, I miscalculate
and find myself in some trouble. I’ll not admit to it, of course, for
that would be a display of weakness and I don’t show weakness; always
best to pawn off one’s mistakes on other factors. In any event, today I
find myself being punished for some small prank I pulled a few days
ago, and thus I stand before you stripped of all clothing.
So go
ahead, my friends, feast your eyes, on my god-like body, my rippling
muscles, my six pack abs, and of course, my man sized appendage and its
two low hanging accomplices. Yes, my friends, feast your eyes.
And while you do, rest assured that I’ll figure out some way to survive
this experience with as much of my dignity intact as I can. It won’t be
easy but I’m clever and I’ll find a way; I always do. I won’t allow
myself to be beaten – mark my words.
And as I roll over in
my mind the best strategy to employ, my eyes wander over my classmates,
and I notice a beautiful girl staring at me off to my right side. She
smiles when her eyes meet mine. It is clear she likes what she sees –
hardly a surprise. I give her a smile back as if to say that I was
standing before her of my own free will and this was my gift to her.
Indeed, I shifted position, turning towards her so that she could have
a more direct view of my glorious manhood. Her smile broadened in
thanks, and I could see her shift her focus from my eyes to my middle
and back again. She winked and very subtly blew me a kiss which
triggered a predictable but unwanted response in my hormone filled
adolescent boy brain. My heart began to beat a bit more forcefully, my
pulse quickened, and o my, …o dear, O NO! I could feel another part of
me, the boy part of me, beginning to respond as well. My face began to
flush, my ….
And then Samantha suddenly stopped
reading and after a dramatic pause said with a mischievous grin, “I
fear that that’s as far as I got. Hope you all liked it.” and she then
stepped off the box and walked back towards me as she approached her
seat, but she looked back at Ms. Tomaso and said, “There isn’t all that
much time in class remaining. I do hope we’ll get a chance to hear what
Tyler has written.” And she winked at me as she sat down while the
others in the class seconded her suggestion. Ms. Tomaso seemed a bit
shocked for a second but quickly recovered and seemed eager to move on.
“Yes, Samantha, thank you for your …um, ‘creative contribution’ – but
let’s move on. I think you’re right; we only have another 5 minutes or
so left so we’d better let Tyler share his contribution.” and then she
looked at me and motioned for me to begin. I was still recovering from
listening to Sam’s and wasn’t quite ready to begin my own, so I fumbled
with my paper for a few moments as I gathered my wits. Sam’s was really
good, but it was far too close to home for comfort.
I took
another deep breath, picked up my paper and began to read, but before I
got the first few words out, Sam’s best friend Sophie interrupted,
“Don’t you think Tyler should stand in the center as Sam did. It serves
as our little stage after all, and we’ll all be able to see him and
hear him more clearly if he stands up, don’t you think?” she said as
she looked around the room and everyone was quick to approve of her
suggestion, and Ms. Tomaso seemed to think it a good idea despite my
efforts to signal to her otherwise.
“Yes, of course. That’s
a good idea, Sophie.” and she turned to me with a bit of grin, “Okay,
Tyler please take ‘the stage’ and share your effort.” I gave an annoyed
glare at Sophie as I stood up and walked to the center of the room and
stepped up on the box. I could feel all eyes once again on my groin but
I resisted all temptation to block their view – I had to pretend that I
liked showing off my body. It wasn’t good enough to simply read what
I’d written, I had to perform it with a confidence that belied the
horror I was feeling on the inside. I took a deep breath and began:
Today
is turning out to be quite an entertainment. One of my classmates, this
super-hot boy named Tyler, who is not just one of the smartest kids in
our grade, but a first rate athlete as well, seems to have gotten
himself in a bit of hot water. Rumor has it he was involved with a
prank with some other boys in the locker room that left another kid
without his clothes. His punishment, designed to help him learn the
meaning of empathy, was to endure the same fate that he forced upon
that other boy, which, to my great delight, has placed him totally
naked right in front of me during English class – how awesome! My
classmates and I are enjoying the remarkable privilege of feasting our
eyes on every inch, front and back, of this specimen of boy beauty –
standing there like a victorious Olympic athlete posing for Athen’s
most celebrated artists, each doing their best to capture in marble or
bronze the lean and powerful physique so perfectly proportioned.
As awestruck as I am at having Tyler stand thus in front of me, I am
equally amazed to see the wonder in the eyes of my classmates, the
girls especially, as they drink in with their eyes the essence of
youthful male beauty - Aphrodite herself clearly favors this young man
– a real life Adonis. And behold also the calm composure that Tyler
himself exhibits while standing before us baring all; does he recoil
from public view? …does he cover himself up in shame? Hardly - he seems
utterly at ease in his own skin; he stands before us almost as if he
enjoys it, amused by our eager and lustful glances.
If only
there were time to go into greater detail, I’d spend all day happily
describing every graceful curve of his sinewy muscles, his six pack
abs, his deliciously shapely buttocks, and above all, his large but
perfectly proportioned package hanging so gracefully between his legs.
I’ve taken a snapshot of it all in my mind’s eye and can only hope that
the image visits me in my dreams tonight ….and tomorrow …and the
tomorrow after that. Oh would that he’d misbehave more often – I could
get used to seeing him thus attired on a regular basis!
And
with that I looked up from my paper as many in the class laughed out
loud and I even got some applause. I took it as a sign that they
appreciated my creative response and so I took a mock bow before
stepping down and returning to my seat. My eyes met Samantha’s as I did
so and I could see by her expression that she fully enjoyed the erotic
game we had initiated.
I’m not sure Ms. Tomaso was in full
approval of my creative response, and she grimaced a bit before
intervening and taking back control of the class. “Well, Tyler, I guess
that sort of fulfilled the assignment, but it wasn’t exactly what I had
expected, and I’m not sure your response showed a deeper understanding
of empathy which, may I remind you, is what you are supposed to be
focusing on during today’s so called ‘punishment.’
“But Ms.
Tomaso,” I interjected, “I thought my response fit the assignment
perfectly. It was my job to put myself in one of my classmate’s shoes
and share exactly what she was thinking as she was looking at me in my
glorious nakedness. I’m sure that’s exactly what Sophie and a few
others no doubt were thinking.” and then I turned directly to Sam and
Sophie who were sitting together, “Aren’t I right?” I asked, “Be
honest.”
“Only in your deluded dreams, Tyler.” Sophie
responded without a second’s hesitation. And before I had a chance to
say anything more, the bell sounded ending class. Ms. Tomaso, I think,
looked relieved and quickly collected our creative efforts, reminded us
of the night’s assignment and the test on Mark Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer at the end of the week. We all gathered our books and headed off to our next class, which for me was Math.
Chapter 18 - Math
Even
though I had done what I believed to be an admirable job pretending I
was unfazed by my nudity during my first class, I was suddenly super
self-conscious once again now that I had to head off into the hallways
by myself wearing nothing but my book bag. Mr. Innovata had escorted me
to 1st period English class and even reprimanded those 2
women who comment on my naked state. Now I was on my own and the
inevitable comments which were to come my way would have to be dealt
with without the help of adult intervention. It then quickly occurred
to me that I’d have to get used to it since the whole day stretched in
front of me and I’d have to wander these halls and stairwells multiple
times during the day. So, I took a deep breath, hoisted my book bag
onto my back, put a stoic smile on my face, and headed out the door
into the busy hallway.
I hadn’t taken more than one step before the comments began.
“Wow” shouted one boy, eyes wide.
“Oh my – look who’s lost his clothes now!” said another with delighted
derision as he elbowed the kid next to him. It was Theo who turned
bright red almost instantly upon seeing me and he sort of waved an
embarrassed hello before moving on in the opposite direction. Brad, who
had done the elbowing just laughed and followed along with Theo. I knew
that I’d be catching grief from both Theo and Thane at some point as I
couldn’t avoid the fact that I lost this battle.
“Got to love the tan lines.” said one girl with a big smile.
“It’s a good look on you, Tyler!” added another girl named Sydney. She
was cute and I’d be seeing her later in the day in History class.
“Thanks” I heard myself responding as I continued to navigate the
hallway without losing my pseudo smile and fake macho swagger. I did
however peek down at my front and noted that she was right about the
tan line; it was quite distinct.
Math thankfully was only
just down the one hallway and I arrived before I had to endure more
direct comments, though there were tons of raised eyebrows and barely
concealed giggles which I pretended not to notice. To my relief, I was
the first one to arrive. I entered the room and quickly made my way to
my regular seat by the window on the far side of the room. My math
teacher, Dr. Anthony, was all business and barely looked up from his
desk as he addressed me in his traditional monotone.
“Mr.
Formale, you’re out of dress code. Please take the seat in the back
corner of the room. We have a lot to cover today, and I don’t want
your, …your … unusual attire to distract from today’s lesson.
Furthermore, I’ll expect you to keep silent for the entire period.” and
then he added as he looked up directly at me, “Thankfully you are a
bright young man and I suspect you’ll be able to figure out this lesson
on your own if need be. Now please sit down and do your best to be
invisible.”
“Yes sir,” I replied obediently as I turned to
find the seat in the back corner. I had to admit that it would be
wonderful if I could indeed be incognito for the period though I
suspected that my unusual state would cause a stir regardless. Two
boys, James and his sidekick Charlie, entered before I had a chance to
sit and both immediately started to laugh as they saw me and I think
James was about to make some snide comment when Mr. Anthony
preemptively spoke, “Sit down you two without saying a word and get
your books open to page 56. We have a lot to get done today and I don’t
expect any distractions.” then he looked at them with a death stare as
he added, “Have I made myself clear?” Both boys took their seats
without another word, though I noticed Charlie looking back my way with
an amused smirk. The rest of the class shuffled in and Mr. Anthony
quickly directed them to their seats and silenced the one boy who
started to point in my direction and was about to make a comment.
And thus Math class passed without incident. I happily played the role
of being invisible in so far as one can, and I carefully wore a face of
intense concentration on the mathematical formula that Dr. Anthony was
outlining on the board. There were initially a few glances back my way,
but I carefully kept my eyes either focused directly on the board up
front or on my notebook where I was taking notes or pretending that I
was. When the bell rang, I kept my head down pretending I was finishing
up some critical notation while the rest of class packed up and headed
off. My next class was History which was down a flight of stairs and
through the main corridor; it was likely to be crowded for the next few
minutes and delaying a bit might be to my advantage. I slowly packed up
my math book and notebook before heading for the door.
“Mr. Formale,” Dr. Anthony said softly just before I reached the door.
I looked up, “Yes sir?”
“May I have a brief word with you?”
“Of course,” I responded, “Now?”
“Yes - please sit down.” and he motioned for me to take the seat in
front of his desk, which I did by just sitting on the edge without
taking my backpack off my back. I folded my hands in front of me as
naturally as I could.
He just looked at me for quite a while
before speaking. He had a disappointed expression on his face. I sat
totally still with my head lowered a bit to avoid direct eye contact.
He finally began, “Would you please stop making such bad decisions and
getting yourself in trouble. You’re far too bright and capable to
sabotage your academic and athletic talents with this sort of BS.” He
paused awaiting some response from me. I looked up and made eye contact
ever so briefly and I could feel the weight of his judgement. “It is
time,” he continued, “for you to grow up and show greater maturity.”
And after another long pause added, “Any questions?”
“No Sir,”
I replied softly, “I’ll try; I really will. …and thank you.” I fully
recognized that such a brown-nosing response was a bit out of character
for me, but no one was there to witness it and I also knew that Dr.
Anthony wasn’t someone to joke around with. I therefore put a super
sincere expression on my face and left the room. The hallways
thankfully by this time were pretty much empty as the last few kids
scurried to get to their next class. I raced off to History class as
quickly as I could without running. There is no good way to enter class
when you happen to be naked - you can’t help but make a stir and the
teacher is going to be upset no matter what you do. Given that I was
already on the late side and things weren’t going to be made better by
being even later, I took another deep breath, fastened onto my face an
expression of confident, unfazed nonchalance, opened the door, and
entered.
Chapter 19 - History Class
[Thane]
The
rumors of Tyler’s punishment had, not surprisingly, spread quickly and
thus by the beginning of my second period English class, I was fully
aware that I’d see him in my 3rd period history class. I
wasn’t sure what to expect - one can never tell with Tyler. On the one
hand I felt a perverse sense of excitement to see him endure the same
embarrassing punishment that I had been forced to endure only a day
earlier, and all the more so since he had given me and Theo such grief
for yielding to the punishment. At the same time, I was genuinely
horrified by what I knew he was going through. I barely survived one
period in that horrifyingly vulnerable state, and he was going to have
to spend an entire day in that state, stripped of all clothing and all
dignity. I felt for him - I really did! …but I must confess that I was
equally intrigued to find out how Tyler, who never even once had showed
the slightest lack of self-confidence, was going to deal with being
naked, especially after saying in no uncertain terms that there was no
way that they could “make him get naked.”
So it was that I
hurried to Mr. Justi’s history class as early as I could with mixed
emotions. Was it that I was expecting to see Tyler, finally beaten,
hunkering down in the corner, subdued and humiliated, avoiding all eye
contact? …or was he going to find some way to turn this undeniably
horrific experience into something other than what it was? …something
other than a total defeat? Somehow, I knew in my heart that if anyone
could find a way to salvage such a situation, it was Tyler, only I
couldn’t imagine how.
When I got there, Tyler hadn’t yet
arrived and as each member of the class entered, Mr. Justi asked our
help in arranging the desks into a large circle along the periphery of
the room. He explained, with undisguised amusement, that this was going
to be a “most entertaining and enlightening” classroom discussion.
While we dutifully pulled the desks into the requested position along
the outside of the room, he took a single chair and placed it in the
very center of the circle. I knew immediately what Mr. Justi was doing
and I couldn’t help but picture myself in that seat with all my
classmates laughing at me. I was horrified on Tyler’s behalf, even if
he was in fact guilty of spearheading the prank against Arthur that
precipitated all of this. We all settled into our chairs as the bell
rang and I could see Mr. Justi looking at the door with anticipation.
Not a second later it opened, and Tyler walked in with his book bag
slung over his shoulder, and that was that - otherwise he was as naked
as the day he was born.
He stepped into the classroom as the
entire class took a collective breath awaiting his response. He simple
looked around without revealing much with his expression. He quickly
surveyed the room and seemed to nod almost with some amusement at the
arrangement in front of him.
Mr. Justin greeted Tyler with a
wide smile and motioned for him to take the one seat left in the center
of the room. “Mr. Formale,” he said with theatrical flair, “welcome to
our lesson on Ars puniendi - the art of punishment. We can all see from
your, …your …ahem, how shall I put this delicately, the simplicity of
your attire, that you’re in the midst of our school's most recent
innovation of its disciplinary code. So we’ve shifted our agenda for
today’s class to address, or “undress” as the case may be,” (openly
laughing at his own joke which triggered groans from the class,) “the
issue of punishment and the history of punishment through the ages. So,
Tyler, it seems best for you to take center stage for this
unprecedented shift in programming.”
It was not hard to tell
that Mr. Justi was really enjoying this and that poor Tyler wasn’t
going to be able to keep a low profile for these next 40 minutes. I
watched, holding my breath as Tyler paused, looking directly at Mr.
Justi for a long few seconds. I tried to read his expression. His jaw
was jutting out slightly, his teeth clenched somewhat, and his eyebrows
lowered with a hint of.… what was it? anger? Not really. Certainly not
resigned humiliation as I suspect would be the case if it was me. No -
he was quietly defiant. Tyler was used to being in charge of his
circumstances and it was clear he wasn’t happy about what he was going
through and wasn’t about to accept it without a fight. It was defiance
for sure, but not without some creative resilience as well. This, I
recognized, was going to be an interesting class indeed, not just
because I got a chance to see one of my best friends naked, but because
it was clearly going to be a battle for him to maintain his customary
bravado. The deck was stacked against him for sure, but part of why I
so admired and enjoyed being around Tyler was that he was so smart and
unapologetically self-assured.
At the same time Mr. Justi
was also one of the class’s favorite teachers who seemed for the most
part, at least as far as adults go that is, reasonably empathetic to
the social challenges of growing up and with a wry smile and quick wit,
was able to draw important life lessons out of the chaos of our
adolescent angst. Thus, the stage was set; Mr. Justi was in charge for
the next 40 minutes and poor Tyler was compelled to take center stage
for what promised to be a most entertaining class. …at least for those
of us on the periphery of the classroom. I was hardly alone in holding
my breath awaiting what was to come.
Tyler, after taking in
the scene in front of him and clearing his throat said with his own
theatrical flair, “It will be my great privilege to sit in the seat of
honor. Thanks so much for saving it for me.” His sarcasm was only
slightly evident as he approached that one remaining chair, laying down
his book bag at the foot of the chair unhurriedly, and then calmly
sitting down while making every effort to pretend everything was
absolutely normal. I was, I have to confess, quite impressed with this
initial performance. I was also, I have to admit, in awe of his strong,
well defined, athletic body. I couldn’t help thinking that it was the
sort of body I remember seeing (and giggling over) in our Western
History textbook when the class had studied ancient Greece. Tyler could
easily have been a model for that famous sculptor, Praxiteles. While
I’d spent a lot of time with Tyler over the last few years, including
some sleepovers, not once had I seen his boy parts - we live in a
culture where once we hit puberty, we shut the bathroom door tightly
and keep our budding privates private. But there he was now in front of
me without a stitch of clothing to cover himself and he wasn’t even
trying. None of us could help but notice right away that he was very
well endowed; his boy package wasn’t really boyish - it was big. His
manhood swung freely as he walked to his seat and then lay gracefully
across his upper thigh when he sat down. His two low hung balls
meanwhile bounced back and forth and tucked themselves comfortably
between his legs.
Tyler, as I mentioned, is super bright and
it is not uncommon for him to take a lead role in class discussions;
his impulse was always to get a laugh wherever possible, but there were
indeed times when he was willing to be serious and the teachers were
always impressed with the comments or observations he made. It had
always seemed to me that Mr. Justi really liked Tyler, or at least
admired his intellect, despite the arrogance that went along with it.
It occurred to me at that moment that it must be hard for teachers when
the smartest kids in a class were also the biggest troublemakers.
Mr. Justi began, “The question in front of us is simple: What is
punishment? What use does it serve? Who is entrusted to decide who gets
punished and for what? And who is it that has the task of administering
the punishment that is decided upon. Who sets the rules? … So let’s
begin very simply with the question, ‘What is punishment?’ Can anyone
offer a good definition?
I looked around the room as Mr. Justi
was speaking and saw that my classmates were all gazing intently at
Tyler, many hiding smiles, as they tried to discern the level of his
discomfort and embarrassment. Joey, a boy he often makes fun of, had a
look of utter triumph as he stared at him, his frequent tormentor, now
the center of ridicule.
“It’s what’s happening to Tyler right now!” Joey said with evident glee.
“True enough,” Mr. Justi responded, “Tyler’s navigating the day in his
birthday suit as a punishment for misbehavior of some sort. But that
isn’t really an answer to my question. What exactly is punishment as a
concept?”
“Isn’t it anything bad that you’re forced to suffer as a result of something bad you’ve done?” Jordan asked.
Mr. Justi nodded, “Good response - that’s a bit more specific. And what different types of punishment can you think of?”
“When I do something bad, my parents send me to my room, and I can’t come out until they say so.” Andrea offered.
“That’s not so bad,” responded Adrian, “My parents will take away my
online privileges for a week. Do you know what it’s like not being able
to communicate with my friends? It’s like being in exile with only my
parents as company. It’s torture!”
“Torture?” Ricky quipped,
“You’ve got to be kidding - my old man embraces a more archaic notion
of discipline. If I step out of line, my father will send me to the
woodshed, force me to bend over, and whip my backside with his belt.”
“With or without your pants on?” chimed in Shane, Ricky’s best friend,
under his breath. The comment quickly brought a deep red to Ricky’s
cheeks. One was certainly left to wonder how often his father had
turned his butt cheeks that same bright color.
Before anyone
could follow up on Shane’s comment, Mr. Justi put his hand up for
silence. He then redirected the discussion asking, “I suspect all have
been in some way or another on the receiving end of this thing called
punishment - it is an inescapable part of growing up. But it seems that
you all have experienced it in different ways. Adrian loses his online
privileges, Andrea gets sent to her room for an indefinite period,
Ricky is subjected to the more physical type known as corporal
punishment. Does anyone know the origins of that word?
There
was a long pause as no-one offered a response. “It’s from a Latin
word.” Mr. Justi explained, “It’s from ‘corpus’, meaning ‘body.’
Corporal punishment therefore is any pain inflicted on the body, and it
can take many forms. In our culture, it is almost always comes in the
form of spanking, performed most often with an open palm by a child’s
parent, though, as Ricky has volunteered, it can also be done with a
belt or cane or whip. Is there anyone in here, besides Ricky that is,
who has been subjected to spanking or any other form of corporal
punishment?” He paused and looked around the room and a few kids
tentatively raised their hands, acknowledging that as young kids they’d
suffered a spanking at least once.
Sophia volunteered that
her father told her stories about his growing up and going to a
Catholic school where the nuns used to smack the knuckles of any kid
who spoke out of turn or didn’t do what was asked. Christian nodded at
that and added that his father also had the back of his hand smacked
with a long wooden ruler by the nuns when he was in grade school.
“OK - so some of you have had direct experience with corporal
punishment and others have at least heard about it second hand from
others. It is true that in the last half century, schools have for the
most part done away with any physical punishments and have turned
instead to other methods to ensure discipline. The disciplinary code at
this school, like so many others both public and private, now use the
revoking of privileges or after hour detentions as punishment for those
who break minor rules and suspension or expulsions for egregious
offenses. No child anymore returns home, no matter how poorly they
behave, with real cuts or bruises.”
Tyler followed along
with this discussion simply by turning his head to observe who was
speaking and was content to let everyone else enjoy sharing their own
stories rather than invite any attention to shift back to him, but it
wasn’t long before things were redirected at him.
Ricky raised
his hand and asked, “So what type of punishment is it that Tyler’s
going through now?” All eyes then returned to the center of the room as
Tyler did his best not to notice.
“Very good question,
Ricky.” responded Mr. Justi. He then turned to Tyler and asked, “Tyler,
can you tell us whether since your arrival at school this morning
you’ve been subjected to anything physical that would classify as
‘corporal’ punishment?’
“No,” responded Tyler after a few
moments, “Nothing actually physical. Just …this.” And Tyler spread his
hands and gestured to his own nakedness before returning his hands to
rest in his lap as before.
“So, being without clothing is itself the punishment?” said Mr. Justi to clarify.
“Yes - I guess so.”
Then Mr. Justi turned to the class and asked, “Can anyone tell me what
specific behaviors separates the human species from all other living
creatures?”
I was puzzled by this seemingly off topic
question, but I knew at least one answer, so I sort of raised my hand
and called out, “Humans have language.” My answer quickly solicited
some laughter from Mr. Justi and the rest of the class joined in.
“Yes, Thane, there is truth in that. Language is a distinctly human
characteristic, though to be fair, other animals certainly communicate
through sound and while it may not be as sophisticated as human speech,
it is in its own way a language. You might also have said that we
humans are the only species of animal that cooks our meals. But to be
honest, I was thinking of a specific human behavior that is a bit more
relevant to this particular class right now. Can anyone offer a
distinctly human behavior that is relevant to our discussion today?”
“Oh, I get what you mean. Humans are the only animal that wears clothes.” I felt stupid for not thinking of this first.
“Yes -exactly. We humans are the only animals that cover our bodies.
So, keeping this in mind, let’s return our focus to our investigation
into the different forms of punishment.” And here he turned once again
to Tyler, “Tell me Tyler, when you walked into the school building this
morning, what were you wearing?”
I could see from Tyler’s body
language that he wasn’t keen on this line of inquiry. “Clothes of
course.” he finally said. His jaw was jutting out slightly and his
posture had lost its nonchalance.
“I thought so - the school
uniform in fact. I happened to have seen you when you arrived. …and do
you mind sharing with us exactly how it was that you went from the
clothed state when you entered the conference room with Mr. Innovata
and your parents to the unclothed state in which you now find yourself?”
Tyler stared directly at Mr. Justi with both anger and panic in his
eyes. As he tried to formulate a response, I saw his hands curl up into
fists and his breathing begin to quicken; he couldn’t seem to find his
voice, indeed, I saw a shudder of distress ripple through him. Mr.
Justi just waited letting the tension build. No one uttered a sound; I
found myself holding my own breath. Tyler’s face was turning a deep red
and his eyes were no longer focused on this classroom but inwardly as
he was remembering and reliving that meeting. I could tell he was
fighting desperately to hold back tears. “God” I thought to myself,
“that meeting must have been absolutely horrific.” I felt for him and
wanted to say something to break the tension and save him from this
torment, but the scene in front of me and Mr. Justi’s question
triggered instead the painful memory of my own meeting with Mr.
Innovata yesterday and that horrifying moment when I first turned the
corner and saw Theo sitting naked on the bench outside his office and
realizing that the same fate awaited me. I remember feeling lightheaded
and overwhelmed with fear as I anticipated my humiliation upon entering
his office. Suddenly, I discovered my own eyes had become flushed with
tears and I broke the silence unwittingly with my own agonizing,
shuddering sob as I shared Tyler’s emotional agony. Mr. Justi looked my
way, momentarily puzzled as he registered my distress, but then an
empathetic smile of understanding crossed his face. He signaled to me
gently to catch my breath as he shifted his gaze back at Tyler. I wiped
my eyes dry as I tried to settle myself even as another involuntary
shudder shook my body as I stifled yet another sob.
Finally,
after what had to be a full minute or so of increasingly awkward
silence, Mr. Justi spoke ever so softly, “So Tyler, I guess your pained
silence answers the question for us. It must have been a very tough
meeting this morning and it really shook you up. Let’s put that aside
for now and return to another critical question about human behavior.
Why do we wear clothes? What purpose do they serve? Can anyone propose
an answer to that?”
“For warmth” I quickly called out,
thinking that it was the only thing I could do to help shift the
conversation away from Tyler’s early morning misadventure and my own
recollections of my horrifying humiliation yesterday.
“Yes -
for sure. For warmth primarily. And anthropologists believe that it was
the invention of clothing that precipitated mankind’s ability to spread
beyond the equatorial zone where it is always temperate, to the colder
climates to the north and south. However, in our present circumstances
with temperatures topping 90+ degrees with oppressively high humidity,
I hardly think an extra layer of warmth is truly why we all put on our
clothes this morning. So, is there another reason why we need to wear
clothes?
“We put our clothes on this morning because we have
to.” Ricky inserted, “We have a school uniform that we must wear. If we
don’t, we get in trouble.”
“Yeah - that’s for sure.” Sophia
agreed, “But I get what you’re asking Mr. Justi. Maybe we don’t need to
wear clothes all the time physiologically, but because we need to
socially. Our society doesn’t let folks run around naked. And we can
often tell what social class someone is in by the clothes they wear.”
Andrew, who was sitting next to me then added, “I’ve heard my folks use
the term, ‘white collar’ to refer to the banker and lawyer types who
work in offices vs. ‘blue collar’ to refer to the men who work with
their hands doing manual labor, and folks who work in factories and the
like.”
Mr. Justi nodded, “Yes; clothing has become a deeply
embedded part of our social identity and when we get dressed for the
day, we do so inevitably to enhance or reinforce our sense of where we
belong within our community. We at St. Francis Academy have a school
uniform specifically to signal our unity as a group, and it serves the
purpose also to send the signal that all students here share the same
values and social status because all students look identical in their
uniforms. Everyone has the same color shirt, tie, blazer and slacks.
It’s the same for both boys and girls. We believe in equity across the
board and our dress code is designed specifically to reinforce that.”
“Then why is Tyler out of dress code?” Asked Sidney without raising her
hand; and then added with a sly smile, “Not that I’m complaining of
course. He looks pretty good in his birthday suit. I especially like
his tan line.” Her comment garnered the anticipated laughter from the
class, and I noted that she was looking at Tyler with more than just a
friendly grin. I think she’s got a bit of a crush on him and that it’s
maybe even reciprocated. I saw Tyler smile a little, but he kept his
eyes averted.
“Okay, Sydney,” Mr. Justi said thoughtfully
and not taking the bait to discuss the ‘tan line’ she was focused on,
“Let’s investigate the symbolism behind this particular punishment and
why Mr. Innovata thought that it might fit the crime that Tyler
committed.” And then, to my horror, he turned and addressed the next
question to me, “Scholar Thane, if what I understand about this affair
is accurate, you yourself were similarly attired just yesterday as a
direct result of being involved with the very same incident that has
triggered Tyler’s punishment. Is that true?”
I turned beet red
in a matter of seconds as I stammered, “Yes sir.” I could feel
everyone’s eyes now shift to me and even heard two boys whispering
purposely loud enough for everyone to hear, “Can’t deny that one,
Thane; we all heard about your, …how shall I put it, …your ’uplifting’
demonstrations in gym class yesterday,” a comment to which everyone
gave a laugh before he continued, “and we all saw your buddy Theo
trying to conceal his boner as he walked back from Art class.” And then
under his breath to Ricky he added, “I should have won that bet too but
that upper school kid wouldn’t let us peel his hands away ...” Mr.
Justi interrupted him thankfully,
“That’s enough boys. Thane
paid the price for his crime already and we don’t need to dwell on the
specifics further. What we do need to focus on is the symbolism
represented in this particular punishment. What’s the significance of
being stripped of your school uniform?” The way he said ‘stripped’
triggered again in me the horrifying flashback to yesterday. I kept my
head down to avoid any eye contact with my classmates.
Thankfully Sophia answered his question, “It sends the message that you
are no longer a student in good standing at St. Francis Academy.”
Everyone seemed to nod in agreement. Then Mr. Justi asked a followup
question again forcing me to participate, “So tell me, Thane, what is
the purpose of punishment? Why for instance do we have a whole section
in our student handbook called “discipline’ which outlines the various
punishments for various infractions?”
I regained my composure
as quickly as I could before answering, “Probably to enforce the rules.
There’s got to be consequences, I suppose, for breaking the rules.”
“Yes, I think you ‘supposed’ correctly.” Mr. Justi confirmed with a
nod, “Living in a community is a constant balancing act between
allowing individual expression and enforcing certain community norms.
We can’t live together peacefully if individuals can break the rules
with impunity. So, let’s return to Jordan’s initial observation, ‘that
punishment is anything unpleasant that someone is forced to endure as
result of breaking society’s rules.’ Can anyone argue against this
definition …or add anything to it?” There was a lengthy pause as no one
offered anything more.
Finally, Sidney spoke up inquisitively,
“But Mr. Justi, I see a slight problem with this. Since we’re all
different, is it really possible to determine a universal standard of
what constitutes ‘unpleasant’? Let’s just say for sake of argument that
there are some folks who like running around without any clothes, in
which case the so-called punishment that Tyler’s enduring now wouldn’t
really be a punishment. In fact, some might be drawn to commit some
crime just so they could have the great privilege of running around
nude. …especially on a day as steamy as this!”
Silence,
…then perhaps a slight giggle or two at the notion that anyone would
openly wish to switch places with Tyler right now. But Mr. Justi seemed
to give it honest thought, “That’s a fascinating observation, Sydney. I
suppose you’re right of course. If there were folks who liked being
naked, then this particular punishment wouldn’t really be an effective
deterrent. So, let’s take an impromptu poll. Please raise your hand if
you’d willingly trade places with Tyler right now?”
Total silence as everyone shook their heads vehemently. “Not a chance” said Ricky summing up the sentiments of the class.
As Sydney’s hypothetical was being discussed and the impromptu poll
taken, I was looking at how Tyler was responding and was intrigued by
the expression I thought I saw on his face. It started with a slight
tilt of his head and his right eyebrow slightly raised inquisitively.
Then his eyes appeared to widen in what seemed an ‘Ah-hah’ moment. I
definitely saw the corner of his mouth lift in what could only be
described as a hint of a grin. Tyler, as I let on earlier, has always
fascinated me; he is not someone to allow the events of life to
diminish him, not if he could twist them around to suit his own
purposes. That hint of a grin grew as I watched. He sat up a little
straighter and then signaled to Mr. Justi.
“Mr. Justi, if you don’t mind, I’d like to make an observation.”
Chapter 20 – Embracing ‘Fully’
[Tyler]
I
had been doing a pretty good job overall, I thought, of pretending my
nakedness wasn’t all that big a deal and I was hiding my embarrassment
with reasonable success. My essay response in English went well I
thought, and I could see my classmates impressed with my impromptu
performance. I can’t deny that it is humiliating being stripped of
clothing while my peers are all in uniform, but I was dealing with it
pretty well …. thus far. But when Mr. Justi asked about how, after
arriving to school in uniform, I had managed to lose my clothes, and
asked me to retell the details of that horrifying encounter with my
father. Well, I lost it - totally and horribly. Utterly undone - I
couldn’t even find my voice, and worst of all, I allowed tears to
escape my eyes. My classmates all saw me 100% defeated, my bubble of
bravado burst.
After that agonizing minute of my
humiliation, Mr. Justi had painfully summarized the significance of my
silence, he thankfully turned the conversation in a different direction
during which I was able slowly to compose myself, but the damage was
done; I could no longer pretend otherwise. “So, what now?" I asked
myself. How was I to carry on from this point. How was I to regain at
least something of what I’d just lost. I had carefully kept my head
down avoiding making any eye contact with anyone since that moment and
was only half paying attention to the discussion now underway -
something about why humans wear clothes at all, then about societal
norms and social status, and then about the symbolism of our school
uniform. It wasn’t until Sidney asked bluntly why I was “out of dress
code” that my focus snapped back fully to the discussion at hand. I
laughed inwardly, “Out of dress code” - what a dramatic understatement
that was. I briefly raised my eyes and saw Sydney looking at me with an
undisguised grin on her face and I must confess I had to smile back.
She’s got a quick wit and real flair. We have a weird relationship - we
give each other a lot of grief and openly taunt each other whenever we
get the chance, but I sort of like her, if I was to be honest, though I
wasn’t really ready to admit that to her or anyone else. So, when I
made brief eye contact with her, I had to smile as I mouthed; “clever
euphemism.”
The discussion went on and I listened with
increasing attention as the conversation shifted to the nature of
punishment and to Thane’s “uplifting” moment during gym class
yesterday, and the image of poor Theo trying in vain to hide his
erection. At least, I thought, I haven’t had to deal with that yet,
though I fully recognized that the bulk of the day lay ahead of me, and
I could easily suffer the same predicament before long. I was lucky to
have relieved myself before my first class, which certainly helped
avoid such an unwelcome arousal during English class, but that was now
a while ago and my exposed middle had by now recovered enough to
respond in unwanted ways should something trigger it. I suspect that
Sydney’s comment about liking my “tan line” was perhaps her effort to
do just that, but the discussion quickly moved on before I could react
…. thankfully!
The discussion had shifted now to the purpose
of punishment and again Thane was called upon to participate. His
response was perfectly good even if a bit obvious, that punishment was
to enforce the rules. But it was Sydney’s objection about the nature of
what constituted something as universally “unpleasant” that began to
get me thinking. The hypothetical being discussed was whether this
forced nudity was in fact unpleasant. Well, I had to acknowledge that
it certainly was deeply unpleasant for me this morning when I was
forced to remove my clothes, and hardly pleasant as I endured the
ogling stares and comments of those two women, and hardly better as I
navigated my first two classes scrutinized by everyone around me. I
normally like being the center of attention, but that’s because I’m
usually in control of how I’m doing it.
And yet, as I let
the implications of Sydney’s hypothetical play out in my mind, I
couldn’t help but acknowledge that perhaps it offered a possible way
for me to play my cards going forward that might put me back in charge
of how I was being perceived. At the moment, they all saw me as the
victim of this “unpleasant” punishment. Some seemed sympathetic to my
distress and others clearly reveled in my humiliation. Either way, I
was losing this battle in a big way. But what if I could manage to turn
the tables on this innovative alternative punishment from this point
forward and make it seem like there was nothing more privileged than to
navigate my day naked. It occurred to me that I had two advantages in
this regard. The first is that it was oppressively hot and humid
outside and in just another 5 minutes time, the bell would ring, and
we’d be heading outside for a brief recess before lunch. No doubt all
my classmates would be shedding their blazers and loosening their ties
in an attempt to keep cooler, but in this heat, nothing would work
better than what I already had - the gift of nudity. And second, I was
admittedly blessed by the fates and had a strong, athletic body that I
could be proud of. While I wasn’t accustomed to letting other see it
unclothed, I knew that I had nothing really to be bashful about.
So, when Ricky responded “Not a chance!” to Mr. Justi’s impromptu poll
about whether anyone would willingly trade places with me, I figured
that I’d better jump in to set the record straight and put my new plan
into effect. I signaled to Mr. Justi.
“Mr. Justi,” I
interrupted, “If you don’t mind, I’d like to make an observation.” I
waited until all eyes had turned in my direction. “I think Ricky
summation of the class’s silence is perhaps less than fully accurate.
Here’s why: In just another few minutes, when that bell rings, we’ll
all head out for recess in this oppressive heat and I bet you that more
than a few of you will envy the fact that I am ideally suited for these
unpleasant temperatures.” Though I added a parenthetical with a sly
grin, “or perhaps ‘happily unsuited’ as the case may be,” which
received, as I had expected, a groan of amused disapproval from the
class. “In any event,” I continued, “I’ll have the great privilege of
softening this ‘tan line’ that so intrigues Miss Sydney.” At which
point I stood up and showed off the distinct tan line around my waist,
even doing a full turn so it could be admired from all sides and then
added with a grin, “It’s a tan line, I suspect, that the rest of the
boys have as well.”
There were amused smirks of what I took to
be approval as I did my 360 showing off my tan line. I continued, “And
I should point out that there are some cultures where nudity is the
norm. Do you all remember back in October when we studied the ancient
Greeks? When I head out for recess, I’ll just pretend that I’m in
Athens spending some time in the gymnasium training for the Olympic
games. Anyone up for a little game of ‘ultimate discus’?” I looked at
Thane and he quickly nodded his willingness to join me, and further
prompting picked up another 3 boys. I then looked at Sydney and said,
“Come on Syd, if you join, we’ll have an even 3 on 3, and you can study
my tan lines as closely as you want.” And I raised my eyebrows
enticingly. She rolled her eyes at me, but I could see the hint of a
smile as she agreed to join the impromptu contest, at which point two
other girls volunteer as well. The bell then rang, and I grabbed my
book bag and headed for the door along with the gang I’d assembled for
the pickup ‘ultimate’ game. I must confess that heading out the door
surrounded by a gang who had already gotten used to my nakedness made
matters much easier since I was less likely to be interrupted or
taunted by others when I was already in a group and gabbing away as
friends do. A wave of heat hit us as we left the sanctuary of the
air-conditioned building and I had to smile as I saw all the boys
tugging at their collars and loosening their ties.
“Hey
Tyler,” Thane said to me quietly as we made our way outside, “I must
confess you’re dealing with this really quite well. Sounds like that
early morning meeting wasn’t so hot, but at least since then you’ve
been able to keep your composure. But I must say it was a bit of a
shock to me, after what you said yesterday to me and Theo, that you let
the school do this to you.”
“Don’t kid yourself - the school
didn’t do this to me. Give me more credit than that for god’s sake.
This was my father’s doing. He ran the meeting this morning. I knew I
was screwed the moment I saw him walk into the conference room. He had
flown all the way back from some conference in Canada.”
I saw Theo’s eyes go wide in horror. “Holy shit - your father’s never around.”
“Not normally, but you’ve met my old man - there’s no arguing with him.
He gave me a choice of this or leaving St. Francis and enrolling in
some military academy boarding school. So, I opted to stay, but he now
has my clothes, and I won’t be seeing another stitch of clothing until
he gives the OK.” I shrugged, then added with a lighthearted laugh,
“Don’t be surprised if I show up bare assed tomorrow as well.”
The gang from History class had followed me and Thane to the center of
the campus green and I said, “Ok- Thane, Sidney, Sophia and I will take
you all on,” as I pointed to Ricky, Shane, Adrian, and Andrea. We play
ultimate on a regular basis so it didn’t take too long to get the game
underway and not surprisingly, many other students quickly gathered
around, eager to see a naked teenager running around in the middle of
the campus green, but I was determined to pretend as best I could that
this was normal. It wasn’t long before a few of those watching spoke up.
“Hey Tyler, I see you’ve dressed appropriately for this weather!”
“Trying to impress the girls, are you?”
“Or more likely, ‘intimidate’ them with the size of that thing between your legs.” said another with a look of admiration.
“Better not stroke his ego. It’s big enough already.” Ricky retorted as he heard the comment.
“Better not do any ‘stroking’ or that thing could grow to become a
lethal weapon!” It was Harry, one of my longtime friends who loved to
give me grief at any opportunity - no doubt because I’d been doing the
same to him for as long as I can remember. I was fully aware that if I
allowed my mind to wander in that direction, I could well find myself
getting hard which was something I’d like to avoid, so I was quick to
hurl the frisbee and get the game going. I am a competitor by nature
and really quite good at whatever athletic activity I engage in, and
once a game is underway, my focus inevitably shifts to how best to win,
which I hoped would save me from that embarrassment.
After
we’d been playing for about ten minutes, I had worked up a healthy
sweat and it actually felt pretty good to have the slight relief of the
breeze on my skin as I ran around. The rest of the boys had tossed
their blazers on the sidelines, loosened their ties as much as they
dared, and their white dress shirts were now soaked in sweat. A healthy
crowd of classmates had gathered around and were very much enjoying the
spectacle of one of their colleagues conspicuously out of dress code
pretending all was normal. There were some colorful comments hurled my
way, but I managed to ignore them for the most part and to keep my mind
focused on the game. There were even a few moments when I was almost
able to pretend that this was a regular pickup game on a regular school
day, that is, until Mr. Innovata showed up on the sidelines and
summoned me over.
*****