Page 9 of For Your Own Good

Teddy had brought a bowl just for the ballots. The handcrafted potteryis a deep shade of blue with a gold rim, a wedding gift from thirteen years ago. One of Allison’s favorites. Teddy picks it up like it’s a piece of Tupperware.

He walks around the room, holding the bowl out for each student. Some have folded their ballots in half. Others have folded them three, four, even five times. Everyone votes, even the Invisibles.

When he’s done collecting, Teddy returns to his desk. He mixes up all the votes and sets the bowl down.

“Let’s count them together,” he says, smiling at the students.

They look surprised, like they were sure he would count them in private. Sometimes being unpredictable is a good thing.

“The first vote,” he says, unfolding a ballot, “is forMoby Dick.”

One by one, he goes through each vote, tallying the results on the board for everyone to see. The closer the vote, the closer the students pay attention. He can see it in their eyes, which are neither glazed nor half-asleep. They are alert and interested, and as the votes continue, the tension in the room rises.

Counting the votes together may be one of the best ideas Teddy has ever had.

“Three more left,” he says. There’s a sparkle in his eye as he pulls out the next vote. “Bleak House.”

A few students groan.

Teddy makes a tally mark next to the title and takes out the next ballot.

“And the penultimate vote is for...BleakHouse.”

If anyone wasn’t paying attention a minute ago, they are now.

“Down to the last vote,” he says, unfolding it as slowly as he can. The students are surprised the vote is this close, and they should be.

Because it’s a lie.

The truth is, the class had overwhelmingly voted forMoby Dick. The expected result, but not fun at all. Nothing like a little drama to keepthe class engaged. Teddy has no problem fudging the results to make things interesting.

Unlike the students sitting in front of him, he didn’t get the best education. In fact, it was hardly an education at all. No one told him that right and wrong aren’t always what they appear to be. He had to learn that for himself. He also had to learn that lying isn’t an option; it’s a necessity.

He walks to the board and, with no small amount of drama, makes the final tally mark—next toMoby Dick.

The students breathe a collective sigh of relief.

“Your choice has been made,” he says. “Have a good weekend.”

As the students grab their phones and leave, Teddy says one more thing. “Zach, can you stay behind for a minute?”

Zach nods, checking his phone while he waits for the class to clear out. Teddy doesn’t speak until the room is empty.

“I’ve given your last paper some thought.”

Zach says nothing. To his credit, he does not smile or smirk.

“And I’ve decided to give you some extra credit work to help raise your grade,” Teddy says.

“Thank you. I really appreciate that.”

“What I’d like you to do is read the book the classdidn’tchoose and write a paper on it.” Teddy leans back in his chair and clasps his hands behind his head.

“You want me to readBleak House?” Zach says.

“That’s exactly what I’d like. And I want that paper one week from today.”

Zach’s jaw drops. For a second, it looks like he’s going to argue. Then he makes the better choice. “Um, okay. Sure, I can do that.”