Admission
With a yawn, Jasper looked eagerly at the clock, which read just before two in the afternoon. He had only one more appointment for the day. Retrieving the appropriate folder, he skimmed the names of the child and the parents, pausing over the child's scores. The one that mattered most for admission was remarkably high, higher than he had seen in his fifteen years as the Admissions Administrator for the Kent School. Extreme sensitives were uncommon.
Curious, Jasper flipped several pages to find the information on the parents. The mother had been a student at Kent years ago, which meant she was a sensitive as well. In his experience, sensitive parents were the most difficult to handle, especially in regards to their children attending a prestigious school, but funds were rarely allocated to administration. The school board much preferred to spend the money on its teachers, all of whom were high sensitives, and thus, terribly expensive. Based on where the resources went, Kent remained in the top one percent of schools in the region.
Before he had a chance to read any further, the door to his office opened as his secretary ushered in a woman. Jasper hurriedly closed the folder and stood to greet the woman. Even if he had not read the information on the mother, Jasper would have known immediately that the woman was an extreme sensitive by the way she carried herself. "Welcome," he said, holding out his hand for a shake. "I am Jasper Gleem. You must be Mrs. Worthington."
Mrs. Worthington reached for Jasper's hand, but did not complete the motion with a true shake. Her movement was rather more like a short brush, as if she were in a hurry. He gestured toward the two chairs before the desk, and waited for the parent to sit before taking his own seat behind the desk.
"Let me first say that we are excited that one of our alumni is here today to receive the good news," Jasper began. He placed the folder back on his desk, covering it with his hands in case the parent wanted to see it. "The results of the aptitude test for your child," he explained without removing his hands. "Jade is an exceptional child, and we are pleased to announce that her scores are high across the board, especially in sensitivity. Her scores are more than welcome here at Kent." He smiled, lifting his arm in a habitual motion to reach for the stack of papers in the first drawer on his right. No parent had ever turned down the offer, not when admission remained highly competitive. The Kent School opened a lot of doors.
Mrs. Worthington held up her hand. "And my other daughter?"
Jasper hesitated. If the file had mentioned a sibling, he had missed it. In any case, he did not have the other child's scores. He rubbed his forehead. "I'm sorry, I wasn't aware that you had another child tested. Give us a few moments for my secretary to find the paperwork. What is her name?"
"Shine."
After relaying the information over the intercom, Jasper tensed. He would have to make small talk with the parent now while they waited. He folded his hands over his desk to keep from fidgeting. Previously, he would have thought that years dealing with sensitive parents would have given enough practice, but these meetings always put him in an uneasy state. He had a difficult time understanding sensitives and their actions. "Are you excited that your daughter will be attending your alma mater?" he asked.
The woman tilted her head as if amused. "I am sure you know enough that if I were to say yes to that question, it would be a lie." Jasper nodded. Of course, it would be a lie. Despite their gifts, extreme sensitives were well known for not being emotionally receptive. Jasper started to rephrase his question to something the woman could answer, but she spoke first. "I am looking forward to seeing both of my children attend Kent."
"Both?" Jasper asked. If he did not have both folders on hand at the beginning, he could say with certainty that the second child's scores did not meet the cutoff. There was a fairly new change in the school's policy that could only be applied after he had seen the child's scores.
Mrs. Worthington repeated, "Both." She recited, "Statute 21.2 states that a Kent student's low sensitivity sibling that is within 5 points of the minimum acceptance may be granted admission provided all additional instruction and tuition is covered by the family."
Not particularly unused to parents quoting from the rulebook, Jasper merely nodded. Mrs. Worthington already knew about the policy. "Did you know about this change? That is a fairly recent addendum that was added only a couple years ago." He did not ask how she had known where her other daughter stood in the rankings.
"I am on the board," she explained.
"Oh," Jasper said in a singular note. Without asking, he assumed she had been a proponent, if not the proposer of the statute. Mrs. Worthington was likely a regular donor as well. He wondered why she had gone through the trouble of changing the rule just to get her weaker sensitivity child into Kent.
His own daughter had actually scored as mid sensitive, but knowing she would have been one of the weakest students, declared she would rather not attend Kent. As much as he would have liked for his daughter to attend the best school in the region, he did not want her to hate him. She had gone to the local zone school. In the end, he and his family were very happy with their choice.
Jasper relayed his story to Mrs. Worthington. He had told it many times. He continued, "Many of the weaker students here at Kent express anger and resentment toward their parents and the school when they do not perform as well as they are used to in comparison to the other students. This can become a downward spiral." Kent had gained somewhat of a reputation, and despite the overall rankings, the numbers regarding the borderline students had grown worse in recent years. "There are other schools perhaps better suited for them," he finished.
Mrs. Worthington nodded. The news was not new to her. "Enrollment at Kent will be good for both my children. It will make Shine stronger," she declared.
At that moment, his secretary had arrived with the second child's information. Jasper received the folder and opened it to read the numbers. The aptitude test reflected an equally bright child. As expected, the one in particular that would determine enrollment in Kent was shy by exactly one point, and was the reason why he did not have the folder in hand originally. "Stronger in what ways?" Jasper dared ask. He did not state his opinion that Shine, like many others, could do quite well at another school.
The woman looked him straight in the eye. "Stronger in the ways that matter." With no change in her demeanor, she admitted, "Love for her mother... is not one of them."
Jasper's mouth felt dry, and he swallowed instinctively. He broke eye contact, busying himself with placing the second folder on top of the first one. With a weary sigh, he pushed aside any thoughts he may have had about this parent and her actions. Jasper reached for the drawer on his right and pulled out two forms.
Author's Note
Intended to be an introduction to a longer piece. June 2015.
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