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Little Suzie Godwin had spent the entire summer preparing for this moment. She’d rewatched every interview on the school website, read every article, taken notes on every little detail, and even practiced in front of her bedroom mirror with a hairbrush as a microphone. She knew she could do this.
No—she was going to do this. She’s dreamt of being a reporter for as long as she could remember, and a gig like this while she was only in middle school would be the perfect way of starting her adult career.
But now, sitting in the newspaper office with Mr. Alder and Coach Reynolds staring her down, she was starting to feel like she’d walked into an interrogation.
“I’m sorry, Suzie,” Mr. Alder said, shaking his head. “But you can’t go into the boys’ locker room for interviews. Which means that we’re going to have to find a different candidate.”
Suzie blinked. “But… Michael did.” Michael Steffans was the closest thing to a celebrity Pinebrook Middle School had ever produced. ‘The Kid with the Golden Voice.’ He went on to be a viral success online when thousands heard his great interview voice-and by the time he’d went to high school, he’d been promised jobs once he graduated by major sports companies!
Coach Reynolds snorted. “Michael was a boy, Suzie. It’s different.”
Suzie frowned, gripping the edge of her chair. “How?”
Mr. Alder sighed, like he was dealing with a toddler who just wouldn’t let something go. “Because BOYS can be in the boys’ locker room. And GIRLS can’t. That’s just how it is. It’s in the names.”
Suzie felt her stomach twist. That didn’t explain anything. “But I won’t be going in as a girl to use them! Mrs. Greene the janitor cleans the boys’ bathroom but she’s a girl!!” she said, trying to stay calm. “I’ll be doing a job, like Mrs. Greene. Interviewing players when they’re JUST done with the game is what made Michael’s interviews so good! He talked to them while everything was fresh!”
Coach Reynolds shook his head. “It’s not about that. What we’re worried about is WHY a young girl would want to be in there. It’s disrespectful to the boys. Do you see where we’re going with this?”
Suzie blinked. “Uh… because I want to do my job?”
Coach Reynolds gave her a weird look. “Look, I’ve been around middle school girls long enough to know how these things go. Boys are changing a lot at this age, and a girl in their locker room is just going to upset them. And I don’t need you affecting their performance.”
Mr. Alder nodded, like they were in some secret grown-up boys club Suzie wasn’t invited to. “Suzie, I think you’re ambitious, and that’s great. I would love to have you in any position OTHER than the school’s sports reporter. But let’s be real. You’re a girl trying to get into a boys’ locker room. That’s not going to happen.”
Suzie sat there, stunned.
They weren’t saying no because of a rule. They were saying no because they thought that as a girl, she had some weird, creepy ulterior motive.
Heat rushed to her face, but not from embarrassment—she was furious.
She had been raised by two loving parents who had taught her from day one that she could do anything a boy could. They’d told her stories about women who had fought for their rights, who had changed the world. Suzie had always listened, nodding along, but deep down, she’d never really felt it. Sexism had always been something that happened to other people, in other places.
Until now.
She sucked in a breath, forcing herself to stay calm. “Okay, so… you’re worried girls might have ‘ulterior motives.’” She made air quotes with her fingers. “What if Michael Steffans was gay? What if he had ulterior motives? Did you never think about that just because he was a boy?”
Coach Reynolds frowned. “Michael wasn’t gay. Besides, that’s different.”
“How?” Suzie shot back. “Because if you were worried about people acting weird in the locker rooms, we would have private showers and changing stalls. But we don’t!” She leaned forward, pressing her hands on the desk. “So I guess no one really cares about if someone’s looking where they shouldn’t. You just care that I’m a girl.”
Mr. Alder looked uncomfortable, like she was saying things he genuinely hadn’t thought about before but really didn’t want to think about now. As a professional newsman himself, he could smell a potential legal issue from miles away. Coach Reynolds, on the other hand, just rolled his eyes.
“This isn’t a debate, Suzie,” he said. “It’s a rule.”
Suzie narrowed her eyes. “Then maybe the rule needs to change.”
Neither of them answered, but she could tell they weren’t taking her seriously.
Fine. They weren’t going to help her?
Her mother was a lawyer. She’d just have to change it herself.
*To be continued…*
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Whelp, there you go everyone! By popular demand, my next project is going to be all about a school paper!
Fans of Sister’s Anatomy Lesson, don’t worry, it will be finished.
Make sure to let me know your thoughts on this newest story early, so I can have things go in all sorts of fun directions!
