This episode happened in my life during my school years. I have always been a person who is principled and have constantly endeavored to stop others from doing things that are unethical or morally wrong. The story starts off during my high school years.
Once I was going down the hallway in my school when I saw a group of five classmates that also included my best friend gathered around and whispering to each other in a very secretive manner. When I approached the group, I realized that they suddenly changed the topic and then attempted to hide something that they were holding in hand. Although I was doubtful of these people, I did not pay much attention since I thought that the change of topic might not have been deliberate. But a seed of doubt was planted in my mind since it became evident to me that a person who changed a topic on the arrival of another intended to hide something. However, I decided to finally dismiss this incidence as a stray occurrence.
However, I was wrong since the same scene repeated itself a week later. It was a normal practice for all of us to meet on the playground for recreational activities at 5pm. After the games, I left the place to change and shower. When I came back, I saw the same group, including my friend, talking something in hushed tones. Since they were standing close to the sport building, I concealed myself and listened carefully, but their voices were not audible. I could barely listen to them, leave alone understand them. After about ten minutes, I approached the group and saw the same pattern repeat itself – they changed the topic and pretended as if nothing was happening. However, this time I noticed that one of them named Alex was attempting to hide something in his pocket. Although curious, I did not inquire, since I thought it would be best to approach my friend who was part of these group meetings to find out what was going on.
A couple of days later, my friend and I met for coffee. I, then, asked him the reason for these meetings and the fact that I had noticed something was amiss. He completely denied that anything was amiss and even went to the extent of telling me that I was imagining way beyond what was needed. His defensive response indicated to me that these guys were trying to conceal something that might cause potential problems for both themselves as well as for the school. With this in mind, I approached our school counselor. When she heard these happenings, she took me to the Head of the School and asked me to recount the happenings. I told both of them everything from the start to the finish.
Although, the Head of my school pointed out that there were no strong grounds to search these boys’ lockers, ultimately the counselor’s word prevailed. She felt that these guys might be trying to conceal either drugs or a weapon. She also believed that one or two of the guys in this group might have been the reason for such a behavior on part of the group. Accordingly, she along with members of the Disciplinary Committee approached this group and grilled them for a couple of hours. They even threatened to call the police should the group not reveal the reason for this secretive behavior on the school campus.
On hearing this, one of the boys in group revealed that the only reason they met in secrecy was because they were planning to celebrate my birthday that was coming up in a couple of week’s time. They did not want either me or others to know about this and hence they were keeping this a secret. In fact, the object they hid when I approached them on the playground was a gift that my friend had bought for me. When I came to know of this misunderstanding, I felt terribly bad and realized that in the future, I should get to the root of things before making unwanted accusations. Thankfully for me, the counselor and the Head of the School chose not to reveal my name as a complainant since they realized that the whole thing was nothing but a misunderstanding. However, they warned me to be more careful about accusing others before knowing the truth.
