rod martinez

These kids were ready to take on the world. Now she would have to await a new school year, she didn’t have that kind of time. The pandemic changed everything.

She had only been a teacher for two years, but had learned so much with this bunch, a special class of students assigned to her for a special reason.

"Miss Roush, did you hear me? I said 24b is the answer.”

She glared back at the screen. Her entire classroom of nine middle school student faces were evenly shared on her huge monitor screen. The virtual classroom was something all the students had to get used to.

She blinked, clearing herself from the fog of her imagination.

“Uh, yes David, you are right. Now can anyone tell me how he came up with this answer?”

They could tell she wasn’t fully focused on them, like something or someone else totally occupied her mind.

“Miss Rouch, is something wrong?” asked a student.

She focused on the screen to see where the question had come from. Danielle, the quiet one.

“Danielle, don’t go asking her personal questions.” Said another face on the screen. He looked up as if he knew her framed presence was just above his, it was.

“Carlos, I’m just concerned, chill out!”

“Why are you always butting into people business anyway, Danielle?” another voice said. The teacher singled him out, Erik, her favorite student.

“Erik, Carlos… it’s ok,” the teacher exhaled, “with everything going on as it is right now, we’re all on edge, right?”

All the students nodded in agreement.

“Miss Roush, we’re all going to get through this together, know what I’m sayin’?” Jerome said. His braided hair glistened on the camera as if he had special lighting in his room.

“Yes Jerome, we are all going to pull through this together. Because we are a team, right?”

“Got that right, teach.” He smiled.

Other students chimed in agreement.

“So, when this pandemic is over, are we all going to get to meet? Can we do that Miss Roush?” Danielle asked. Her black bangs covered her eyes and she had to twitch her head each time to be able to look back at her screen.

“Honey, you know that all depends on the administration. But I don’t think it will happen anytime soon.

“Well where me and Erik are, we’re just two floors from each other. We can just sneak out and hang, can’t we?” Carlos asked.

“That wouldn’t be a great idea, yo.” Jerome informed him shaking his finger at the screen.

The teacher glared out the window from where she sat. Outside her window a family of birds congregated in the nest, the mother was feeding them. She smiled.

“Guys I wish you could see this, a momma bird is feeding her little ones.”

All her students watched as she looked away from the camera, stared out, then started wiping tears.

“Miss Roush?”

“I’m ok… I’m good.”

“Erik, I say we sneak out so we can go see her.”

“I say no.” Danielle barked on the screen.

“Well you ain’t the boss of us, so we’re doin’ it… right Erik?”

Erik’s screen shut off, then in a matter of seconds, so did Carlos’.

“Guys? Hey, you can’t - all hell with ‘dis!” Jerome said.

His screen went off.

The teacher watched as other screens blinked to black until all she stared back at was Danielle’s dark brown eyes.

The noise outside in the hallway was unmistakable. A group of people running, causing havoc – and other voices trying to calm them.

“No, you can’t go in there!” screamed a voice with authority.

The thick door burst open and her students ran in to her huge bedside.

“Children!?”

“Sorry Miss Roush, we know you don’t have much time left.”

The hospital administrator rushed in breaking his way through the eight students, all wearing hospital issue robes.

“Class is not over, you all get back to your beds,” he ordered, “you are all in quarantine. Get out!”

“She doesn’t have long, Doc. We needed to say goodbye.” Carlos said.

Her bed was surrounded by students, all of them wearing masks. She reached out, touched Jerome’s arm.

“You all are so sweet.” She rested her head back, weakened.

“Miss Roush, we need you.”

“Our two years together as students and teacher in this hospital will end today.” She whispered.

“But Miss Roush…”

Danielle’s teary voice faded along with her image on the screen.