✿
Mickey stands behind her teacher's desk as she makes sure she has everything she will need for her first day of classes. Chalk and markers? Check. Attendance sheet? Check. Material outline and models for the kids to pass to each other? Check. Worksheets? Check. Coffee? Check.
She still can't believe she's teaching at Riverdale High instead of back at home in New York. Once she agreed to help Toni, she called the hospital she works at and used some of her vacation days to take off for a few weeks. It should be more than enough time for Toni to find her replacement.
Mr. Weatherbee knocks on her classroom door to get her attention. "Ms. Lodge, it's nice to see you," he smiles warmly.
"Hi, Principal Weatherbee."
"Please, call me Waldo," he insists. "We're colleagues now."
That will never stop being weird for her.
✿
"Any questions so far?"
Mickey has gotten through three classes already. It's made her realize one thing, she never wants to deal with teenagers again.
A couple hands pop up immediately. One of them just blurts out their question, "Did you have sex in high school, Ms. Lodge?"
She halts in front of the chalkboard, locking her arms over her chest. "That's an inappropriate question."
The boy in the striped tee leans against his desk. "I only ask because teachers are so used to telling us what to do, but they forget what it's like when they were our age."
Mickey nods. She understands what he's saying, but she says, "I'm just going to tell you guys that abstinence is the only one-hundred percent, full proof way to not get pregnant at your age." She moves to sit on the edge of her desk, "But I do know what it's like to be your age and all the feelings...and excitement. If you do have sex, be safe. One day we'll discuss different contraceptives, but today we are just discussing our anatomies."
✿
"How was the first day?"
Mickey puts her glass of wine down on top of the stereo, sighing. "I have no training to become a teacher. School nurse? Yes. Teacher? No." Another job Toni needed Mickey to fill was as the nurse during the periods she didn't have a class.
Fangs asks, "Is it that bad?"
"The only topic these kids really want to hear about is sex."
Toni chuckles, "Well you've got a lot of experience."
Mickey turns around to narrow her eyes at her pregnant friend. "Ha ha ha."
"She's right," Fangs hands slide up to her shoulders. As he applies pressure, he leans into her ear, "You know I could help ease some of this tension, right?"
"That's not happening," she walks away from him to sit down on the couch next to Toni. "This isn't like one of your crazy visits to New York, Fangs."
Mickey is standing in front of the couch in her New York apartment, looking down at Fangs, who is settling into her very expensive couch.
"Your guest room is too cold," he rests his head on a throw pillow.
"Get up, Fangs," she deadpans. Mickey takes his hand and pulls him up from the couch.
Fangs follows behind her into her room. "That is a pretty big bed. And it looks so soft. And I'm so—" he yawns.
Once they're lying in bed with some random channel playing on the TV, Mickey looks up at him to see he's already staring at her. "I thought you were tired." His eyes are another story.
He reaches his hand to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear. "Not anymore."
"You sure Kev will be okay with this?"
"We have an open relationship, remember? He won't mind." Fangs leans forward to kiss her on the lips.
Mickey laughs to herself at the memory.
"She can't talk to her students about her experiences," Toni tells Fangs.
Mickey huffs dramatically. "Now can we please stop talking about my experiences and get back on topic?"
Toni says, "You are perfect for the job. And I'm not saying that because you have sexual experiences. I'm saying it because you're a smart, bad ass nurse, and you're more than qualified to teach this class."
"Don't make me blush," Mickey jokes. She yawns, "I should get going."
Fangs asks, "Why are you in the hotel still? Why don't you just rent a place?"
"Because I'm not planting any roots here."
✿
On her way back to the hotel, Mickey makes a pit stop.
"Don't you have a class to teach tomorrow? It's late."
Mickey sits on a stool in front of the counter and grins, "But this is my favorite diner. I won't be able to sleep without something to eat, and I wanted to see if the apple pie tastes the same. Or have you ruined it?"
Tabitha's brown eyes glimmer with amusement as she cuts a piece of pie for Mickey.
Once the plate is in front of her, Mickey taps her hands on the countertop happily. "So. Tabitha Tate...has owning this diner always been your biggest aspiration?"
Tabitha has gotten herself a piece of the pie too. She takes a bite and swallows before answering. "I went to all these fancy schools through the years to become a CEO. I finally got a six-figure a year job in Chicago when Pop Tate told me he was retiring."
"You turned down six figures for Riverdale?" Mickey shakes her head as she takes another bite of her dessert.
"I want to become the CEO of my family business and take everything I learned and invest it in something meaningful. I am not playing around with Pop's. I put in that gas pump out front to attract truckers driving the night shift. I have ideas for merchandising, franchising."
"You want to build. It's impressive," Mickey compliments.
Then the bells jingle by the door. A group of teens enter the diner and they instantly recognize their teacher.
Tabitha grabs a few menus and goes around the counter to go seat give them to the kids. She follows their gazes and pointing fingers to the snake tramp stamp. "I think they're looking at your tattoo," Tabitha tells Mickey.
"I guess I have to be more conscious of what I wear even outside of school. That's the thing about small towns. You run into everyone everywhere."
✿
The next day, Mickey enters the teacher's lounge. She only popped in to grab some more coffee before she has to go back to the nurse's office. Her face drops when she sees Chadwick in front of a box of cupcakes.
Veronica notices her sister steer away from the group surrounding Chadwick—who hasn't stopped telling stories about Veronica while she was in New York.
Mickey stops pouring her coffee to ask, "Did you ask him to come here?"
"No. He surprised me, but—"
"You mean he's invading your life. Tell me again how he isn't controlling?"
Chadwick walks up to them, eyeing Mickey. "Is there a problem?" He glances at his wife, "Veronica?"
"No," Veronica answers.
He's looking at Mickey again. "I know you don't like me, Mickey, and you really don't have to because I have the best of you two Lodge sisters."
Mickey scoffs. "Classy, Chad."
"My point is, I'm going to be around forever. I'm going to be your nieces and nephews' father—"
Mickey can't help but to laugh at that statement. "Hopefully my sister dumps your ass before that can happen. I have to get back to work." She leaves the lounge.
✿
That same night, they all agreed to show up at the Whyte Wyrm for karaoke night to celebrate the first two days as teachers.
Mickey has found herself playing darts with Tabitha, who has the night shift off tonight. Kevin and Fangs are singing on the stage currently.
"If I win, what do I get?"
Mickey gives her all of the green darts, not breaking eye contact. "What do you want?"
"Hmmm," Tabitha circles around her with a smirk. "I'll keep it safe and say you buy my drinks for the night."
"Okay, but if I win, I won't be keeping it safe." She aims one of her darts at the board and throws it. Mickey smiles triumphantly when it's just a couple inches off center. "Your turn."
✿
The next day, Mickey's surprised when a few parents enter her classroom with Principal Weatherbee. She was just about to make her way to the nurse's office, but judging by the looks on Weatherbee and the parents' faces, she knows that's not happening.
"Can I help you with something?" Mickey puts her folders down. She gave her first mini quiz this morning and she's kind of excited to be the one grading for once.
"I'm Peter Strode's mother," a middle-aged blonde woman says. "I went over his syllabus for your class and I found it outrageous. Then I called a couple of other parents to make sure they've read it over and none of us find it appropriate for you to be teaching our kids about sex."
"Well sex isn't some taboo topic anymore. It's a normal experience in life. It's how these kids got here," Mickey tries to joke to lighten the mood. The joke fails. "Is the sex part the only section in my syllabus that you guys are concerned about?"
Mrs. Strode and the other parents nod and answer with some version of "yes."
"I don't want my daughter to be encouraged to be sexually active," a father states.
"Well," Mickey steps around her desk to be more direct with the parents. "This class isn't all about sex. It's a health class. We're discussing many aspects of life and sex is only topic. It's a topic your kids will have a permission slip for when we reach it later in the semester."
The relief on some of their faces is crystal clear.
"If I may, I'd suggest you guys become a little more realistic. Meaning no disrespect, but some kids have sex in high school. Some kids don't. One class won't stop that from happening or not happening. Wouldn't you rather them have all the information to make the best decisions for themselves? Or would you rather them have no information and trying to figure it out as they go? Because the second option leads to more error."
"I guess you're right..." Mrs. Strode concedes. "I didn't think about it like that."
"I'm not saying you guys have to make a decision now, but please think about it. And you can call the school to speak to me directly if you have any questions about what I'm teaching."
Mr. Weatherbee pulls Mickey out into the hallway as the parents discuss amingst themselves. "Ms. Topaz shared with me how nervous you were about becoming a teacher. From what I just saw, you're handling it very well, Ms. Lodge. Maybe you're better at this than you thought."