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As I drew near my locker, I saw students running through the halls. The stoners had taken the opportunity to get high in the hallways; no one was paying attention to them. Putting my backpack in my locker, I passed my classroom and found it empty. I followed the hallway to the parking lot where I saw the remaining student body loitering on the lawn or standing around their cars. Spotting Mandy, I saw her head bent in a group of cheerleaders—who knows what they were talking about. I saw Devon sitting on the back of his truck, Jasmine was hanging on him with the rest of their crowd lounging around. Tray leaned against the pickup, his arms crossed over his chest as he seemed to be listening to whatever story Amber was telling. Bryce and Grant were both grinning.
Dropping to the grass, I leaned against a tree, pulling out my iPod, but I didn’t press play right away. I was listening to a conversation between some sophomores (I think) behind me. They were talking about the music and what the school was going to do, wondering if classes were going to be cancelled or not. I couldn’t stop the grin on my face; there was no word about Mandy, Devon, or Jasmine. That’s all I cared about. Then I pressed play.
*
They ended up canceling school. They couldn’t get around my passwords, which surprised me. Pedlam usually blasted through my passwords within an hour. As I walked through the hallways to my car, my science partner (with the microscope glasses) ran up to me and told me excitedly that the school had to call in a specialist; that whoever had done the prank was a god and it was the coolest thing that had happened to Rawley, ever!
Told you I was a legend at my skill.
However, I didn’t like that they called in a specialist. When I pulled a similar prank at Pedlam, they had to call in a specialist too. If it was the same specialist, I was in deep shit. I hadn’t even thought of that. Hopefully they won’t put two and two together. As a shiver ran down my back, I veered away from her (I still hadn’t caught her name) and got inside my car quickly. Starting it, I pulled into traffic and drove home.
As usual, it was empty. Shelly and Kevin had called last night telling us they wouldn’t be home till later this week. Austin had let out a whoop of joy as he bounded up to his room.
Grabbing a soda, I went to my room and turned my computer on, telling myself that I was going to do some research for one of my papers, but I found myself clicking on eBay, checking out wire-trimmers and pick handlers—marketing tools for breaking and entering…
Hearing voices downstairs, I clicked out of the website and closed my laptop. Making my way downstairs, I heard Mandy giggling, exclaiming, “We can get so much done now that we have the whole day off. I heard it was Mark Jenkins and his gang that did the prank.”
“I heard it was Tyler Justins.”
“Whatever, we all know who was behind it. He might not have done it, but I bet he knows who did: Tray Evans.”
“Ooh, did you see him today? Tray Evans is seriously hot,” another girl moaned.
Great. She’d brought the entire cheerleading squad to her house—our house—which meant I needed to leave. Now. I didn’t mix well with cheerleaders.
“Taryn!” Mandy yelled excitedly, seeing me turning around on the stairs.
Busted.
Plastering on a fake smile, I turned back and said warmly, “Hey.” I was met with varying reactions: hostile, curious, and/or clueless.
“We’re gonna have practice here since school and all…and I’m going to have our student council meeting this afternoon, okay?”
“Uh…what do you want me to do?”
“Nothing.” Mandy shook
her head, a dazzling smile on her face. “Just letting you know…in case…”
“I want to cut and run,” I finished for her dryly.
“Yeah…” The hesitation was enough. Mandy didn’t want me to leave, so that meant that Devon must have been on the student council. Devon would be heading over to the house and she was nervous about it.
“What time is your student council meeting?”
Relief flashed in her eyes as Mandy responded, “At 2:30.”
Nodding, I murmured, “I’ll be back after lunch.”
Darting back up to my room, I quickly changed clothes, putting on a white halter top and some tight blue jeans. I slipped on some sandals and grabbed my purse. When I walked back downstairs, the cheerleaders had gone out to our backyard—thank goodness—and I left through the front door, crossing to my car. Climbing in, my phone went off. Seeing Brian’s name flash across my screen, I put it away, silencing the ringer as I drove off.
*
Returning at two, I was surprised to see ten or more cars in our driveway and on the street. Apparently the meeting had started early or they’d come early to gossip. Probably the latter. Walking inside I was met with the same reaction as the cheerleaders: hostility, curiosity, and/or cluelessness.
Fuck them. I shrugged it off as I zeroed in on where Mandy was. I found her in the kitchen, busying herself with drinks and food. Making my way through the crowd, I stared at one of the girls in the kitchen and said flatly, “Leave.”
She ran.
