Evan Hunter: The blackboard jungle

“I don’t think it’s proper to joke about Dadier’s knifing,” Katz said, really thinking it was not proper to joke about his gift tie.

“Who’s joking?” Solly asked. “Dadier is a very brave man.”

“A missionary,” Manners said.

Solly turned, seemingly surprised. “Are you still around, Manners? I thought you’d be teaching at Julia Richmond by this time.”

“I’m working on it,” Manners said smiling.

“It was,” Katz said thoughtfully, “an act of bravery.”

“What’s that?” Solly asked.

“Dadier’s knifing.”

“Certainly. You have to be very brave to get all sliced up.”

“You talk about it as if it were nothing at all,” Katz said seriously. “As if it meant absolutely nothing.”

“Knife wounds mean nothing to heroes,” Manners said. He flicked an imaginary cut on his shoulder. “Just a scratch, man.”

“That’s Dadier’s trouble,” Savoldi said sadly. “He’s a professional hero.”

“No,” Rick said, smiling. “I’m just a teacher.”

Solly turned from the window a moment and looked at Rick curiously. “Yeah,” he said. “A teacher.”

The men were silent for a moment, and Solly walked from the window, looped one thumb in his suspenders and pointed the forefinger of his free hand at Rick.

“You know what a teacher is, Dadier?” he asked.

“What’s a teacher?” Rick asked, straight-manning it.

“I’ll tell you, Dadier. You take some slob, see? You take him when he’s still in the cradle. You take this slob who doesn’t know a teacher from a preacher, who doesn’t even know to wipe his nose yet. You take him, and you...”

Rick sat and listened while Solly expounded his theory. He sat and listened, and the room felt very warm and very secure, and he was aware of the faces of the other men, all watching Solly while he talked, laughing occasionally, Solly enjoying himself as he spoke. He sat and listened, and he was very happy here with these other men in the lunchroom, hearing Solly talk.

But he was not sorry when the bell sounded, ending the lunch period, announcing the beginning of his fifth period, and he smiled when Solly said, “Well, back to the salt mines.”