Nicolae High by Tim Lahaye, Jerry B. Jenkins Page A

But I must remind you of the strict rule of the separation of church and state that has helped make this country great. We are a public institution, and this is not a forum in which we should espouse religious views.
    “I am aware that one of the many explanations for what happened is religious in nature. I’m not saying it has no validity. Like most of you, I lost extended family members. Their closest relatives reminded me that those who disappeared predicted this and told us exactly what to make of such an occurrence.
    “Though this happened among my own kin, and while those stories may even bear some scrutiny, I will not discuss them on school property during school hours. I’m asking that you not either. Even if I believed with all my heart that this was the best explanation for the disappearances—which, you may rest assured, I emphatically do not—I would maintain that this is the wrong venue in which to propagate that view. Thank you for understanding. I urge you to hold your questions until class time, unless anyone has something pressing that is appropriate to ask in front of the corporate body.
    “All right, then. Oh, yes, son. A question from a junior boy. Please stand and state your name and your question loudly enough for me to hear and repeat it into the microphone. And if it is not something that pertains to the whole school, I would ask—”
    “It pertains, ma’am!” Judd called out, rising, his heart thundering. “Judd Thompson, and I was just wondering if you would clarify this then!”
    “Clarify which part, Mr. Thompson? What is unclear?”
    “Why freedom of speech is extended only to those who hold certain views of what has happened?”
    “This is not a freedom-of-speech issue, young man. It’s a church-and-state issue. Thank you for raising it, but please don’t make something of it that it is not. Dismissed!”
    Judd was short of breath and knew his face was red as he gathered up his stuff. “I can’t believe you did that,” Vicki said, and he looked close to see if she was embarrassed or seemed to disapprove.
    “That wasn’t me,” he said, shaking his head. “That was my evil twin. I’ve never done anything like that before in my life. I don’t think I ever even paid attention in an assembly before.”
    “Hey, Judd, way to go, man,” one of his classmates said, punching him on the shoulder. “Way to be raucous!”
    Judd wanted to tell the boy he had been serious, but the guy was lost in the crowd. Coach Handlesman shouldered his way through to Judd and Vicki. “I liked you better when you made trouble by being a no-account, Thompson. Now you’re angling to be a smart aleck, eh?”
    “Nah. I just don’t think there should be restrictions on people trying to figure out the truth.”
    “Cry me a river,” the coach said, disappearing in the crowd.
    “Be careful,” Vicki said as they prepared to split up. “We don’t want to be too conspicuous.”
    “What’s your first class?” Judd said.
    “Phys ed,” she said. “Yours?”
    “Psych.”
    “Should be interesting,” she said.
    Judd nodded but noticed Vicki was distracted. She was looking past him, and her face paled. “Shelly?” she said. “Shelly! Is that you?”
    Judd had wanted to tell Vicki he would be praying for her, but that sounded cheesy, and she was preoccupied anyway. And his psych class with Mr. Shellenberger was at the complete other end of the school.

EIGHT
Opposition
    V ICKI had not intended to ignore Judd or abandon him, but he was gone before she knew it. She had not seen or heard from her former neighbor Shelly since the day they both discovered what had happened. To Vicki’s horror, Shelly looked the same as she had that day. She stared into the distance as if she had seen things unspeakable.
    “Are you all right, Shel?” Vicki asked.
    Shelly looked at her, flat brown hair straight and lifeless, her pale green eyes vacant. “I don’t know you,” she said.
    “Sure you do, Shelly.