BONUS: Kid Missy Gets a Letter...

The poll to vote on which Welcome to Puttsdale character gets enrolled in the Academy will be open until Friday, 5/13/22: CLICK HERE TO SEE IT! As of now, though, Kid Missy has a pretty strong lead. 

So, as a little bonus for this month, I wanted to share a piece of writing done by our very own Fred Key, who also came up with and wrote most of the Puttsdale Prom scenarios. In this scene, Kid gets a letter...and I'll let you read the rest for yourself!

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As she reached into the mailbox and withdrew the contents, Kid Missy simultaneously reached down the back of her jeans and tried to pull her favorite sky-blue undies out from the deepest reaches of her backside.  Just my luck that I run into Leah after she finds out she’s got summer school…

Letters (and panties) in hand, she made her way up the front stairs to the porch, stopping just long enough to give one last yank and gasp in relief as fabric emerged from places it didn’t belong.  Despite the pain, though, Kid was grinning from ear to ear.  Leah’s going to be in summer school…which means I know exactly where she will be, and where I won’t!  She almost pitied Leah, really—summer school meant rules and work, two things Leah Salt didn’t do well, and that likely meant Leah was going to be back at PHS for another year.  That was a fate she didn’t wish on anyone, even Leah.

No, Kid Missy would never be back to PHS- not to the halls, not to the classrooms, and certainly not anywhere near the principal, his “assistant”, or that ginormous paddle of doom that she had experienced more than once.  She wouldn’t even be back to the pool or to visit with her former swim coach, even though that swim coach had ended up being her savior.  Nope.  Too many post-practice sessions over the starting blocks as the coach used her hand, hairbrush, or an abandoned flip-flop to “motivate” her to improve her time and cut down on the snacks.  Even Ivy Grace, who had been a state champion in a couple events, received plenty of coaching.

Kid?  Well, it wasn’t like she wasn’t used to it.  Most seniors would be thrilled to win a “senior superlative” like “best smile” or “most energetic”.  Kid had skipped the pep rally where those seniors were recognized, not particularly excited to be named “Most likely to be seen with red cheeks on both ends.”   It was a good thing, too, since she heard Leah had been waiting in the gym for the announcement to try to help her demonstrate the accuracy of the title.

Nope, Kid thought. I’m out of there.  And I’m out of here, too!  She could still see the words on the letter tacked over her desk—notice that she had received a full scholarship to swim at CSU - out of state, and out of the reach of Puttsdale!  No more Kid Missy, perpetual victim and joke.  No more spending so much time with her butt on display that boys never even noticed her when she was half naked, except to laugh.  No more Leah Salt!

Come fall, there wouldn’t even be a Kid Missy.  She had already decided she was going to use her middle name in college.  No more Kid. She was going to enjoy herself, work hard, and maybe even meet someone.  The future was only two months away, and she was going to hit the ground running.

Kid walked to the refrigerator, pulled out a bottle of OJ, and took a big gulp as she leafed through the mail.  Bill, junk, bill…huh, one for me.  She rolled her eyes as she saw the PHS logo in the corner, and the official “URGENT! Open immediately! Time sensitive!” on the front.   Man, if they think I’m donating as a “recent grad”, they’re really idiots…

Kid opened the letter and took another swig of juice as she read.  Then she dropped the bottle, which bounced, spraying juice everywhere.  Kid didn’t even notice as her socks slowly turned damp and orange.  She just stared at the letter, mouth agape, reading it again and again.

Numbly, she walked out of the kitchen, sopping socks leaving wet tracks behind her.  She walked up the stairs and into her bedroom.  She sat down on her bed and looked at the letter again.  Finally, she spoke.

“It’s got to be a prank.  Someone is pranking me.  They're outside, waiting to hear me screaming  and flipping out." She looks up. "Kailee.  She’s gonna laugh and tell me I fell for it, and that I’m way too gullible.  I’m going to go outside, and she’ll be there with the others and we’ll laugh.”  She set down the letter, walked out of her room, headed down the stairs and out the door to the friends she knew were there, because they had to be.  The alternative was unthinkable.

There's no way what the letter said was true...

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Dear Kid,

During the week following graduation, PHS officially closes out all school transcripts and forwards them to the state for certification of the graduating seniors. This is a state requirement, and is generally a formality.

This year, however, we were notified that a handful of records were red-flagged for lacking required state course credits.  This is something that our counseling department verifies well ahead of graduation, so we were baffled by the notices, and immediately audited our records.

Unfortunately, it appears that a handful of students were the victims of a clerical error on our part.  These students were enrolled in Environmental Science as juniors.  However, when their transcripts were updated and run, the code number entered into the system was one number off from the state code for Environmental Science, and you were instead credited with Environmental Studies.  This is an elective course, and does not meet state graduation requirements.

We have asked the state to recognize the error and allow the transcripts to be altered, but as the error occurred more than a full year ago, we have been informed that such a change is impossible.  We therefore regret to inform you that your status as a PHS graduate has been revoked pending completion of the missing credit in an approved summer program.

PHS does not offer summer school Environmental Science, however, so we have arranged for you to be enrolled at the school’s expense in the nearest available program, D.A.I.R.Y. Academy. Please plan on attending the orientation and first class on Monday, June 11.

We regret any inconvenience this may cause you.

Sincerely,

Anna McKenna,

PHS Registrar

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And so, this is how Kid Missy winds up enrolled at D.I.A.R.Y. after years of being the butt of everyone's jokes (and spankings) for years at PHS. I personally love this piece, especially the first few paragraphs -- the writing is just awesome! And the letter, of course, is perfect.

Fred Key is working on some other possible "enrollment" scenes, so if you enjoyed this, let us know!