Another YouTube Fairytale: Matt's Life In Hope Square; Book 1

Chapter 4 - The Teacher Becomes The Student

Mark knocked at the door one night. Jack opened it. "Mayor Mark! What a nice surprise. Please, come in." Mark thanked Jack and stepped in the front door. Virgil looked up from his book and stood up abruptly, stumbling over a few words before running upstairs, most likely to his room. 

Virgil used to have his own room, but being the oldest one there, (an assistant to Jack,) at age 25, he had to share a room with 6-year-old Matt. Half the room was covered in black cloth and skulls drawn on the wall with white paint, while Matt's side had a chalkboard that he had gotten from Jack and Virgil for his 5th birthday. 

Virgil slammed the door behind him. "The mayor's here." He whispered. Matt turned from the chalkboard, ignoring an equation he was working on, which was rare. 

"The mayor? Here?" Matt looked under his feet. The light from downstairs barley showed through the cracks. However, Matt had an idea. Going into the middle of the room, he pulled up a small sliver of wood, which he pulled up on. Like a cork from a bottle, a small circular section of wood came out, making a peephole. 

"Oh Matt... not this again. Stop poking your nose everywhere. It's going to get us in trouble." Virgil said, curling up on his bed. 

"Where's your sense of curiosity, Virg?" Matt asked. "They won't see me, it's fine." Matt laid on the ground and watched the scene play out through the peephole, while Virgil hid under the covers, pulling them over his head. 

Jack and Mark sat down at the table. Mark picked up Virgil's book. "Alice in Wonderland?" Mark chuckled. "Nice choice. Has he read it yet?"

"Yes, 74 times." Jack said. Mark leaned back in the chair, a little confused. "We only have 6 books in all of Hope Square. Alice in Wonderland, The Tortoise and the Hare, Kingdom Hearts Chain Of 358/2 Days Of Birth By Dream Drop Distance, a book of nursery rhymes, the autobiography of a chair, and 50 Shades Of Dark White." Jack paused. "He hasn't read that one yet. Let's hope he never does." 

Matt leaned upwards towards Virgil. "Hey Virg? What's 50 Shades Of Dark White?" 

"I DIDN'T MEAN TO READ THAT!" He shouted into the pillow. 

Matt turned back to the floor. 

"Well, speaking of this, we have many more children than we did before. As Hope Square's population grows, so do the number of children. How many do you have here alone?" 

Jack took a second to count. "7, last I checked. Plus there are at least 12 more who live with their parents."

"Exactly. So I've decided that a school would be beneficial for all of them. Attendance will be mandatory, of course, but it will be a fun and educational place to teach the children how to be a proper member of the Hope Clan."

"Well, that sounds like a wonderful idea." Jack said. "If you want, I can host it here for you until you have something more permanent worked out."

"Of course! I was just going to ask you that. I've asked a friend of mine, Tyler, you may know him, to teach until we have something more permanent worked out." He said. "Now... there's also another problem that this may solve."

"You mean Matt." Jack said. Mark paused, but eventually nodded. "He's already very bright, more so than Virgil, and he's half his age." 

"Yes, but... this may seem counterproductive, but Matt's curiosity is getting out of hand. He'll soon want to explore someplace outside of Hope Square. That could put us all at risk. If you give him something to do, something to learn, then it may keep him... for lack of a better word, under control." 

Matt tensed up. He never knew that his curiosity was a bad thing. He knew that it was frowned upon, but only when it went beyond a certain point. Had it already gone beyond that point? He didn't want to cause trouble for Hope Square, but he knew that there was so much more to this world, and he wanted to see it all. 

"You really think that this will help him to be a better Hope Clan member?"

"I know it will. If it doesn't, I will take full responsibility." Mark said. 

Jack was silent. Matt heard the sounds of creaking as he leaned back in the wooden chair. "Okay. I'll do what I can to help Matt control his curiosity." 

Matt stood back up, replacing the peephole. He sat back on his bed. He looked over at Virgil. "You awake, Virg?"

He was, but he didn't say anything. Matt sighed. "I know you're sleeping, but I promise, I'll try to be a good Hope Clan member. I'll be just as skittish and anxious as you someday. I'll do my best." Virgil was almost tempted to show that he was awake, and talk to Matt about it. But then Matt spoke again. 

"But... if I fail, and my... curiosity ends up hurting someone... don't hold it against me, okay? And... don't hold it against yourself, either, okay?" He sighed again. "Night, Virgil."