My father already left when I got up, probably off to his odd little office job of keeping books for an annoying factory that he hated. A small note greeted me from the fridge.
Hey girl! Left for work as usual. Might be a little late getting home, checking out a theatre to try and get back in the show biz. Maybe come by if you want. You could sign up to be part of the crew in their production, since I know you don't like being on stage. Address is here:
A complicated address followed, and I took a picture of it with my phone. My dad the acting nerd always managed to seek out a place to pursue his passion wherever we went, so I honestly wasn't too surprised that he'd found one. As much as I really hated acting myself, I loved supporting him and watching shows. He once played in a show called Deer Camp that had us both rolling with laugher for months afterward; the whole plot revolves around four drunken men holed up in the mountains while hunting.
I threw the note away and readjusted the backpack on my shoulders. I had a habit of never leaving my room in the morning until I absolutely had to. I felt prepared to get on that bus and endure another day of confusion.
I soon found myself inside the school hallways. As I got back into this crazy game, I started to pick out the things that everyone wore to identify their characters' species. Sparkling wings, odd contacts, articles of clothing, even ways of talking served as labeling badges for different people.
"Fey!" Leighton drew my attention, bounding over to me at a full-on run. "You won't believe it," He said breathlessly when he'd reached my side, having to stop and heave for air.
"What? Someone found the gem?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I still had no idea where it could be.
"No, but Rowdy and I went out to the Catholic Church near here because we thought it fit. Turns out, it wasn't there either." The boy murmured, shaking his head. "That's not what I'm talking about though. Look at this." He showed me the screen of his phone, which held what looked like a bar graph with five columns and digits above and below them. "The bottom number is overall points for teams. The top is how many they've gained or lost in the past 24 hours."
I looked at the top numbers, where he was pointing, and only two of the numbers had changed. The Badgers had gained 100 points, and Syndicate had lost 100.
"There was a point transfer last night." The bovine creature scrolled down the list and showed a detailed list of gains and transfers. The first words showed in green letters; Ezekiel Flynn received 100 pts, and then, Jules Krieger transferred 100 pts.
"I don't have any idea what happened last night, but Arthur is beyond pissed. He got into a fistfight with Zeke this morning; both of them have in-school suspension for the day. In other words, they've vanished from Larimore until they return." Leighton bit his lip, looking around at the kids giving suspicious glances towards each other. "No one knows what happened. Arthur and Zeke didn't tell anyone, and if anyone else knows, they aren't saying a word."
I finally took a better intake of my surroundings. All of the kids looked stressed out and suspicious of each other. Something happened, and no one that knew wanted to talk about it. Next to Leighton, the nearest locker door stood open. When the kid operating it slammed shut, we looked over to see a badly injured student.
"Oh, Jesus! Jules, what happened to you?" Leighton exclaimed as he scrutinized their appearance.
"I'm fine, Leighton. Thank you for your concern." They grumbled irritably. Almost half of their face blossomed into a deep navy and swirls of purple, a huge bruise coating the base of their cheekbone and jaw. Stitches crossed across their nose, along with bandages and some gauze. They definitely looked worse for wear. Leighton didn't feel concern all by himself.
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Published || The Secret of Larimore High School
Mystery / ThrillerLarimore High School is dubbed the Land of the Forsaken by its students. Fey Norris, a latina transfer student from a different state, isn't sure what to call it. Everything seems so confusing, from the five teams that constantly brawl over the top...