– The Macmillan Dictionary has an entry for duh.
– Duh! Like I wanna know that.
– Ok, so what, do you want to know?

George sat exasperated; this student was fidgety, looked distressed and nothing of substance came out of him.

– Dunno.

Silence. The room of his office couldn’t look emptier, yet he felt the need this student had.

– Why were you sent here? Do you know that?
– I suppose ‘cause my grades are low.
– Is there a reason why they are low?
– Maybe.
– Humm.

George felt resistance, clearly the boy had something going on in his life, what was it?

– Do you like to go out?
– Can’t, my parents got me grounded.
– Would you like to tell me about that?
– It’s complicated.
– That’s what am here for, to help out when complications arise.

The breakthrough was finally visible, why did the student open up?

– I Got caught smoking weed.
-I see, do you like drugs?
– Sometimes, they make me feel good, I suppose there isn’t any harm in it.
– Humm, your parents don’t think so.
– What do they know … All they do is bitch around all day how am not what they expected me to be.
– I see. So they go around telling you how to be.
– Gets on my nervs you know? Pisses me off man.
– Yeah, I can understand that, I mean, who wants to be bitched at.
– Yeah man, so I try to get back at them, I mean they already think am a loser you see. So I piss them off too.
– Humm, by smoking weed?
– Naaah, that’s just for fun,
– I see. So you do like drugs.
– Not really, it’s just that the crowd I hang out with does it, so I do it too.
– Humm, you’re records show that you been an exemplary student all along until last year, care to talk about that?
– Maybe some other time, gotta split, gotta class to go to. C-ya!
– I’ll put you in for next week, is that ok?
– Suppose so.
– Take care.

The satisfaction of helping made George feel good, it was clearly a step forward, maybe he could put Anthony back in track, despite of the rest of society thinking otherwise.