The last bell rang for final period, as dozens of anxious students departed the Scientology lab, awaiting the long weekend ahead.
"And don't forget, we have a pop quiz when you return Wednesday," Mr. Richard announced to the class, rounding up his set of notes beside the projector. "Study pages 47 to 51 on the human brain."
That's all Allen Ricardo heard, as he plugged in his Apple earbuds and merged to his locker on the second floor of the school, the whole time listening to his favourite Jimmy Hendrix playlist. Allen was definitely into classical music, a lot that his 20th-century friends would often roast him for.
After punching in the code to his locker, grabbing his sweaty socks and gym shorts from PE class in second block, Allen was tapped on the shoulder by his football teammate, Darius Miles, a massive defensive lineman.
"What's up, bro?" Darius asked, he too pulling out a set of earbuds to talk, the school hallways flowing with students passing by.
"Not much legend," Allen replied, dabbing him with a fist bump. "You ready for that game Thursday?" Allen was a wide receiver himself, with hands softer than butter, able to snag down those tough one-handed catches.
"Of course bro. We gon' smoke em'." Just like Allen for his old-school taste in music, Darius was often roasted for talking slang, especially when he was whiter than Casper the ghost, and came from the mean suburban streets of Jerika. A town with grass greener than a golf course, along with houses more extensive than an entire standard apartment.
"They know they can't fuck with us," Allen edged on, speaking of the Mattonfield Wildcats, who had been a strong rival of the school as far back as could date. Coincidentally, and rightfully so, Allen pulled out his football jacket and fit it into his backpack, the same one the team tried to rock every game day. It had red stripes with black arms, along with a wolverine standing across the chest to represent the school mascot.
"Alright," Darius said, ready to head home and rest after a long week of classes. "I gotta head out and study. Have a good weekend bro."
"You too," Allen replied.
After making sure he had all his stuff, and that his locker was snugly closed, Allen began making his way down to the south campus, where he'd meet his buddies like always for the legendary Bus Ride Home.
On the way there, he passed by the track team, running relay matches for the upcoming provincial finals at the end of the month. He also saw Miss Paterson, his math teacher, but she was too busy having a discussion with another student to notice him attempting to say goodbye for the long weekend.
As he reached the south campus within minutes, Allen saw his great friends Mattias and Jacob waiting for him. They were in that same spot, never once missing a ride home together, unless terribly ill or sick at home.
"Your wrist good?" Mattias joked, as Allen was six minutes later than his usual time.
"We were about to leave without you," Jacob also messed with him.
"Sorry, yo. I had to grab my PE clothes from my locker, then had a quick chat with Darius about the game Thursday."
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. We're gonna miss the bus." Jacob led the way. He was short yet stocky, as opposed to Mattias, tall and on the skinnier side. Despite Allen being a high-level player on the football team, Jacob and Mattias were more academically gifted, like being able to put together computer parts, and always getting higher scores on tests and exams than Allen. But that didn't interfere with their friendships.
