December Boys (BxB) | ✓

Chapter 38 - Rats

We continued filming Axel's class in bits and pieces over the next day, taking breaks every once in a while to edit and look over the material. People were still reluctant to be in front of the camera, but after probing Axel's teacher on the subject of reputation and school pride, a handful of students volunteered to help us out. The result was as much interview material as we needed, though we were still short on inspirational shots of the department as a whole. I suspected these clips would elude us until the end.

Seth had finally gotten out of his funk, and he'd been a whirlwind of productivity and drive ever since Friday rolled around. He personified the vitality that pulsed through December High this month and was praised by more than one teacher, even if he did speak in a slightly more high-pitched tone than usual. He'd been so busy catching up on his work that he hadn't even pestered me about the Axel thing yet. Thank God.

The weekend crept up on us soon enough, and another day of filming met us on the following Monday morning. The skies had accumulated over the city like a blanket of doom, and the promise of rain cast a depressing hue over the students' moods. At least our filming sessions were soon over. There was still an odd ache that accompanied any thought about the end of the project, but I was sure of one thing — I would not miss the stress.

I was mulling this over when I arrived on the fourth floor — winded, no matter how many times I walked those godforsaken stairs — and was met by a spectacle unlike anything I'd seen in a long time.

"Holy shit."

"Who would do something like this...?"

"Someone call Mr. White."

"Where's Nao?"

Recognizing Seth's voice, I stuffed my key card back into my wallet and sprinted down the hallway. A group of people had gathered around the door to our classroom and their voices were brimming with urgency.

"Seth," I said. He whirled around as I approached, face pale and eyes round.

"Dude! This is crazy!" He gripped my shoulder, keeping me away from the crowd. There was something wild in his eyes. "You might want to wait..."

"What? What's going on?" I craned my neck to see past my classmates' heads. Someone was shrieking.

"It's ugly, Nao, I'm serious—"

Pushing Seth away, I pressed through the crowd until it parted. A few soft gasps came from the ones that noticed me. I didn't stop until I was in the center of the group, facing the gruesome sight that awaited me.

Our classroom door was a subdued blue usually, a sensible sort of color that was supposed to inspire trust and productivity in the students. Now, however, a large portion of the wood had been painted a crimson red. In the center of that redness was a sorry little creature — a fat rat, nailed to the door in a gruesome display. Its stumpy little legs were stiff with death, and tufts of fur were missing all over the creature's belly. Worst of all still, was the graffiti. Over the rat's head was my name, huge, blocky letters, scrawled in an angry, black font. The effect was both morbid and intimidating.

My legs nearly gave out underneath me, but Seth reached me in time, grabbing hold of my shoulders and pulling me away. We staggered until we collapsed into the closest alcove. The crowd closed around the door again, whispers and cries returning in even greater strength.

"What the fuck?" I managed to gasp. Fighting the overhanging sense of dread was impossible. I felt faint.

"It was there when we arrived this morning," Seth mumbled, hand still on my shoulder. "No one saw who did it..."

"Who would...?" I couldn't even finish the sentence. The sight of the rat kept replaying in my head. Its disfigured body, the way it had been pinned to the wood, the blood... I put my head in my hands, suppressing a shudder. What the fuck. What the actual fuck.