《In the Pursuit of Flowers》 November 2019 "Listen," She started. "You can''t keep doing this. Im tired of dealing with it. So is Lina." He opened his eyes and looked up. She was furious. Her left eyebrow perked up as silence filled the gap. He closed his eyes again and leaned his head back on the hammock. "So what? Im the one thats skipping. Not you guys. What does it matter," he replied. "What does it matter?! You haven''t gone to school in 4 days! You didn''t even text us for the first two." She turned around, brought her hand up to her forehead, and rubbed her temples before turning to face him again. "Look, you barely got away with it last week. Stilton almost suspended you. You got lucky with after-school detention." She said. "Shouldn''t even have shown up to that. They put me in a cubicle and I wasn''t allowed to talk to anyone. I tried slipping a note to the person next to me but they got up and threw it away." "Yeah. Try not showing up and get expelled. You know he''s been way more strict lately. There''s no way he''s going to let it slip again," she said. "That''s the same thing you said last time. Im still here," he replied. "We''re not kids anymore! Cant, you get your head around that and stop acting like one?" She retorted. "Exactly. We have more agency over our choices. Like the choice not to go to class this week," he yawned. "That''s not what I meant. You know that. You have to be more responsible Clint." Her hand went up to her temples again. "Whatever. Im not failing any classes. Why should they give a shit," he said. "Because you''re setting a bad example. Because you''re breaking school policy. Because people from our class are already complaining." "Okay well who are they? Why should I give a shit." She sighed. "Whatever." she said. He didn''t reply. A song, by Pierce the Veil, blasting from his phone, filled the silence. She took out a stack of loose sheets from her backpack and placed them on top of the half open guitar case that lay at the base of the tree. "That''s our lecture notes, assignments, homework, and my personal notes. It''s why I came over in the first place," she explained. He opened an eye and glanced down at the stack of papers. Then opened the other and looked up at her. "Fuck, that''s a lot. Thanks." He said. She rolled her eyes and said, "I''m not the one skipping school halfway through the semester." "Whatever," he said. "Well, I have to get to practice. I''ll see you tomorrow," she turned around and started walking towards the gate at the end of his parents backyard. "Hey, Claudia, can you do me a favor?" he asked. She glanced back, "What?" "Jerry owes me half an ounce of weed. Think you could get it from him and give it to me the next time you do a homework delivery?" he explained. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. "What?! No! Im not going to be carrying around a bag of weed at school. Don''t drag me into your vices. If you want it, go pick it up tomorrow," she replied. "Well, it''s not like I''m dry anyways. I''ll see you next week then." "Tomorrow," she said as she started walking towards the gate. "Hey!" he shouted as she was almost out of the backyard. "Close the gate behind you. You always leave it open." She almost slammed it. But, not quite. The sound echoed around the backyard. As it faded he could already hear her footsteps on the sidewalk. He waited till they faded too. He got up from the hammock and gathered the loose sheets as he left the yard and headed into the house. His room was starkly devoid of character. The walls were painted with a coat of light grey. The floor wooden, tinted beige. There was a brown sofa bed by the doorway. On the opposite wall, a simple black desk with a bookshelf that mostly held graphic novels and sheet music. A green Jan-sport backpack leaned against the foot of the desk. Two sliding doors, presumably leading into a closet, were on the wall to the right side of the desk. To the left was the room''s only window which looked out into the homogenous suburban development. He grabbed the backpack then sat on the couch with his right leg folded under his left one. He flipped through the papers, sorting them into three separate piles. Once he was done he placed one of the piles on his desk, another in his backpack, and the final one went into a small wastebasket at the foot of the desk. He got his phone out of his pocket and looked at the time. It was 2:35, his sister would be home at 4:30, he had to get to it. He took out an older, black, backpack from his closet and took it with him into the yard. It was already starting to look like late afternoon. A quality of fall in Washington. First, he went to the gate and opened it. Then he sat down on one of the two garden chairs near it. The backyard was bordered by a wooden fence that separated it from the dozens of identical backyards in the neighborhood. Beyond it, the forest. There were two young birch trees on the left side of the yard. In between, a white threaded hammock. He sat down in one of the beige garden chairs by the sliding doors. The contents from his backpack spilled out onto the glass coffee table that separated the two chairs. He took the pipe and held it up. The bowl was stained with tar and some other, gooier, substance. He brought his shirt up and cleaned away as much as he could. The grinder was already filled with weed. He put some in the bowl then put both grinder and pipe back on the table. He brought out his pocket knife and took out the blade. He ran it along the back of his hand. Flat side down. Then with a quick and simple motion, he ran the blade across his wrist. He smiled as the blood started to seep from the wound. He''d cut it perfectly. A long row of scars preceded the new cut. The first few looked awkward and were unevenly spaced out. As the frequency of the scars increased along his wrist so did his accuracy. The last half dozen or so were done with mechanical precision. He let the first few drops run down his wrist. They went slowly, falling only after he shook his arm. He grabbed the pipe with his good hand and brought it close to his bleeding wrist. He put it under the leaky faucet and let a few drops fall on the stem-filled weed. The pipe went back on the table. He took out a white bandage from the backpack and wrapped it around the new cut. He grabbed the pipe again and held it with the injured arm as he searched in his bag for a lighter. Bic, pink, deadly. He winced, slightly, as the flame danced up. It held, a few inches above the lighter. He brought the pipe up to his mouth and held it there for a few seconds. He closed his eyes. His breathing slowed. He took a few lung-filling inhales and held his breath in between. He was ready. The blood sizzled and let off a coppery scent as it evaporated. The corners of his eyes started to water as he kept on inhaling. He burned through half the bowl before he finally gave out a dry, painful, cough. In between the spurts of coughing he managed enough half-hits to kill the bowl. Red filled the corners of his vision. Thoughts started racing in and out but he let them pass without focusing on them. He heard the gate that led into the driveway creak. It was here. A snout pushed the gate forward. Claudia hadn''t locked it. It creaked as it swung and hit the fence. He ignored the creature as it went into the yard, he emptied the bowl and started to fill another. Its hind legs were disturbingly wrong. Slender and far too long. Its head rested slightly lower than its tail. The coat was mostly grey but a brown smudge started at at the base of its tail and spread all the way to the head. It grew a lighter shade as it went up the creature''s body. It''s jaw a soft white. Snout dry-grass yellow. -Ready for our lesson?- It asked him. He lit the second bowl and took in a long drag that killed it. The red at the corners of his vision grew larger. The constant drum of a low E surfaced below the sounds of the suburban neighborhood. "Yeah, I''m ready." September 2019 The grey sky still carried a touch of the night. An ember peaked through the thick clouds. The still monotone of the night headed towards a serene hospital-white. The world carried the air of purgatory. Thin black poles lit the parking lot. He sped up as soon as he saw how empty it was. The spots of light flickered as he weaved through them. His body grew tense as he neared the end of the lot. He shifted his weight towards his left foot. He attempted the turn. A few seconds later he was sprawled out on the wet asphalt. "Fuck," he muttered as picked himself up. He was wearing a hoodie and jeans. Not enough exposed skin for anything more than a few scrapes. He jumped back on the board and went around the school, heading towards the back entrance. The clouds finally gave in and scattered drops started to fall from the sky. There were a few buildings, separate from the main structure, on the backside of the school. Nicer and more modern than the main building. They lined the edge of the forest. He headed towards one with a plane slanted roof. The red facade starkly stood out against the backdrop of dark green and muddled grey. It started raining harder. He got off the board and quickly ran across the grass towards the main entrance of the building. He tried the door. It was locked. He took his phone out and opened his notes folder. "5-6-9-8-3-4-2 pound," he muttered to himself as he pressed the numbers on the keypad. A green ring lit around the lock and it let out a shrill, "beep". The door opened. The rain became pebbles dropping on a tin roof. For a few seconds, it was all he could hear. Then he opened the door that led into one of the school''s storage spaces. A wall of music greeted him. Lina was practicing one of her old jazz solos, A Night in Tunisia. She was killing it. He stood at the door for a few seconds, simply watching. Ben was just getting his bass out of the guitar. He looked at him and nodded. He nodded back and went back to watching Lina. She hit the hi-hat too early and stopped playing. "Crap," she said. "That was really good," he said. "Thanks. Four years of after-school jazz band at work," she said. He started walking towards the locker where he kept his guitar. "Man, if we stand any chance at not sucking it''ll be thanks to you," Ben said. Ben put his arm through the bass strap and started testing a few notes. "Is it out of tune?" Ben asked. He looked at Lina. She shrugged. He looked at Clint. "Don''t look at me. I know less than you do," Clint said Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Clint left his backpack on a chair near the entrance. He walked to the back of the room and took out a guitar case from a locker. He took the guitar out and put his arm through the strap. He strummed a few chords. "Sounds right," he said. "Check the tuner," she said. Ben and Clint looked at each other, somewhat embarrassed. "We don''t know how to use the tuner," Ben said. He pushed his glasses further up his nose. "What?" she said and stopped adjusting the height of the hi-hat. They both gave blank expressions. She stood up, the hi-hat fell. The metallic clink briefly filled the room. "You did buy one like I told you, right?" she asked the both of them. "Yeah," Clint replied. "I got mine at Steve''s," Ben said. "I got mine on eBay," Clint said. "I don''t care where you got it. Let me see one." She held her hand out. Ben walked towards his bass'' case and got out a red-white aluminum square. He walked back and handed it to her. "Okay play a note, Clint," she said. He played a G. "Are you trying to play G or G#?" she asked. He looked down at his finger and thought for a second. He moved it up and down the third string. "G" He said. "Well," she laughed, "you are way too sharp." He looked down at his guitar again. He pinched the string with both fingers and followed it up the neck. "This one, right?" He said as he pointed at one of the tuning pegs. Lina looked at him blankly. "Let me see," Ben said. Clint turned around and showed him the headstock. "Yeah, that looks right," Ben said. "How do I use the tuner?" Clint asked as he turned around to face Lina. "Like this." She said. She placed it on top of a music stand and turned it on. She went behind him and grabbed his left hand with hers. His shoulder was at her eye line. She had to stand on her toes to see the guitar. He looked behind and laughed. "Gotta be at least this tall to ride this ride," he said as he drew a line a few inches above her head. "Don''t make fun of me," she said, laughing. He shrugged, grabbed a chair, and sat down. "Better?" he asked. She muttered something under her breath. She leaned her head over his shoulder. Grabbing his left hand again. "Okay," she said, "play the G" He played the awfully sharp note. "See how far off that is? It''s gotta be dead center." She said. He continued playing the note as she moved the tuning peg his fingers held. She let go of his hand and stepped back. "There," she said. He closed his eyes and listened to the note as he played it. "Oh," he said, "I see. Yeah, that was so off," he laughed. "Yeah, it was. Can I see my tuner?" Ben asked. Clint jumped up from the chair. He threw it with a curve. Ben barely caught it. "Asshole. This is a $40 tuner," Ben said. "What the hell. Mine was $5," Clint said. "Are we ready?" Lina asked. "Give us a second," They said in unison. She went back to adjusting the hi-hat as the two of them finished tuning. Ben looked at Clint. Clint nodded. "We''re good," Ben said. "Let''s warm up first," she said. "Why?" Clint asked. "You''re always supposed to warm up first," she answered. "It takes too much time," Clint said. "I do have to study with Claudia before first," Lina said to herself. "See, extra 5 minutes of study time," Clint chimed in. "Okay well, how about Freebird ?" Lina asked. Ben nodded. Clint quickly ran to his backpack and pulled out some loose sheets. He ran back to the music stand. "Listos?" Lina asked. "Ready." Clint said. Lina held her sticks up then did a four bet tap, "Un, dos, tres quatro." The three of them opened in perfect unison. They made it through 2 measures before Ben started missing chords. Clint looked over at him which made Ben miss more chords. Somehow Clint switched to D major. Lina stopped playing shortly after. "What the hell," Clint said as he let the song die in the middle of a lick. "You switched keys," Lina said. "I don''t know what I''m doing," He laughed, "Ben stopped playing and that sounded better," he said as he continued messing with chords. "Don''t blame me," Ben said. "Let''s try again?" Lina asked. "Sure," they both said. The rest of the morning practice did not go much better. Wet World "Are you ready?" Lina asked. He closed the last latch on his guitar case. "Yeah. Let''s go" He said. "Don''t take too long," Ben said. "He won''t," Lina said. The noise grew loud; outside of the sound-dampening practice room. "It''s raining?" Lina asked. "It started when I got here. Sounds like it''s picked up," Clint said. "Did you bring an umbrella?" Lina asked. "No, I never bring one. I have gym first period so I can always change. Where''s yours?" he asked. "It''s in my locker," she replied. A brief silence followed. "What do you if it''s raining after school," she asked. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. "Free shower," he said. She laughed. The rain hadn''t let up the whole morning. The world didn''t seem all that different from the way he''d left it. The basketball courts, which usually sported at least a few egotistical student-athletes practicing, off-season, in the morning, were empty puddles. Students, usually going through the gym''s exit to cut through to the other side of the school, were absent. He took off his hoodie and handed it to her. "Here," he said. "Thanks," she said beaming. She took her backpack off and put it on. "It smells nice," she said. He blushed and looked off in the distance while she tried to make eye contact. She let out a playful laugh. He drew a line in the air above her forehead. "Gotta be this tall to make fun of me," he said. He grabbed her hand and ran off into the rain. "W- wait. My backpack," she said. She only had one arm in a strap. "Take it off," he yelled. It trailed behind them as they ran through the rain. "Where are we going?" she shouted. "Second-wing entrance," he replied. "Why?" she asked. "If no one''s used the gym exit then it''s locked," he replied. They both burst out laughing once they made it to the entrance. "You didn''t have to go so fast," she said. "Yeah, I did," he said. He was still holding her hand. He brought his other hand up to her face and fixed the loose strands of hair. She smiled. Without giving her time to react he grabbed her head, leaned down, and kissed her. She stood on her toes. After a few seconds, they separated. "I''m going to be late," she said. He let go of her hand. "I''m keeping this," she said and walked into the building. Wetter World "You''re soaking wet," Ben said. "I took Lina to the left-wing entrance," Clint replied. "Why not the one by the gym?" Ben asked. "Dude, who''s going through there today? It''s probably locked" "True. Did you make out in the rain?" Ben inquired. "Not quite. But, we did make out near the doors." Ben laughed. "How long do you think it''ll last?" Clint asked. "I''m not sure. Probably till noon." Ben replied. "What do you want to do?" Clint asked. "We could try going to the treehouse," Ben said. "Dude, Hammel caught me skipping last week. He was pissed," Clint said. "Did you leave through the parking lot?" Ben asked. "Yeah, I was almost at the sidewalk," Clint replied. "Follow me," Ben said. He grabbed his backpack and took out a small black umbrella from the side pocket before they walked into the rain. Clint grabbed the hilt of the umbrella and got under it as Ben released the canopy. They walked in sync for a few seconds. Then Ben noticed Clint walking closer to him than he should have been. He looked down at his shoulder, then looked at Clint. Ben pulled the handle away from him. "Fuck off," Ben said, laughing. "Don''t want to share?" Clint asked. "My shoulder gets wet if we''re both under," Ben said. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. "Oh, I''m sorry. I didn''t know your fragile shoulder was getting wet," Clint said. They were near the edge of the forest now. He tried grabbing the umbrella again. Ben shoved him out "Why does it bother you. You already got wet," Ben said. Ben started walking straight into the woods. Clint trailed behind him. "I don''t want to get wetter," Clint said. "You''re wet or not wet. You can''t get more wet," Ben snickered. "Yeah, you can. If I get under your umbrella your shoulders going to start getting more wet." Clint retorted. "It''s either wet or dry," Ben said. "Well, it''s already wet. Let me get under the umbrella." Clint said. "You''re already wet." Ben let out. "I''m getting wetter," Clint said. They looked at each other and laughed. They walked in silence for a bit. Clint got more wet. "I can''t believe you barely figured out that we can get to the treehouse from here," Clint said. "Right? It would have been so useful before," Ben replied. "Dude, I swear. Remember when we got caught sneaking out during the veterans day assembly?" Clint asked. "Oh god. I can''t believe they got so mad about it. It wasn''t even the first time we got caught," Ben said. Ben hadn''t noticed but the two of them were now walking shoulder to shoulder, under the umbrella. "Detention was fun," Clint said. They both stopped, looked at each other, and started laughing. "I can''t believe you didn''t tell me they were edibles," Ben said. "I wanted your first time with brownies to be an interesting experience," Clint said. "I thought I was going crazy," Ben said. "All I remember is you standing up and throwing a whole bunch of shredded assignments in the air and yelling, ''fireworks for the veterans.'' I couldn''t breathe," Clint said. "I don''t get why they gave me so much shit about it. I almost had straight A''s that semester," Ben said. "See, the ''almost'' is the issue. If you did have straight A''s you''d be smoking shitty cigarettes in the teacher''s lounge," Clint stated. "I have straight A''s now," Ben said. "No shit?" Clint asked. "Yeah. I mean the semester just started so it''s easy right now," Ben said. Clint ran a hand through his wet hair. "I already have a few D''s," he laughed. "Was it Sapkowski''s daily homeworks that got you?" Ben snickered. "Yeeaaah those were part of it. The only A I have is in Shield''s," Clint said. Ben looked straight at Clint. "You mean the class we just skipped," Ben said. Clint looked off into the forest. "Maybe." "Dude you''re not going to graduate," Ben laughed. "Worse comes to worst, I can just copy all of your assignments," Clint said. "What''s that going to do? Tests are 60% of the grade," Ben said. "I can handle the tests. I just hate doing the assignments. Isn''t that the spot?" Clint asked. "Yeah. I told you, this shortcut''s great," Ben replied. "It''s like 10 minutes more the normal way," Clint said. "Don''t exaggerate. C''mon, don''t you want to stop getting ''wetter''?" Ben asked. They both ran up the small set of stairs that led to their arboreal abode. Arboreal Abode "Lina wants to know where we''re at," Clint said. He was sitting on a red beanbag chair in the corner of the treehouse, checking his phone. "And?" Ben asked. "Should I tell her about the shortcut through the forest?" Clint asked. "I don''t know. You can easily get lost if you''re not from here." Ben said. "She''s from here," Clint said blankly. "Well, she moved here. There''s a difference," Ben said. "What''s the difference," Clint asked. "She was raised in the city. She''s still, for the most part, a girl from the city," Ben said. Clint was quiet for a moment. "Yeah. I guess," he said. He put his phone down and picked the acoustic guitar up from the floor. He strummed a few chords before Ben interrupted him. "So, is Lina coming?" he asked. "Yeah. She''s bringing Claudia with her," Clint said. "Why?" Ben asked. "I don''t know, they''re hanging out I guess," Clint said. "I still don''t know why she''s friends with her," Ben said. "She''s not as bad as she used to be. Lina doesn''t really care that she has such a high ego," Clint said, plainly. "She hasn''t had to deal with that ego for 13 years," Ben said with a slightly bitter tone. "12 years," Clint corrected. "C''mon we haven''t seen her since June. It''ll be cool to catch up." "Catch up with what. I can assure you she spent the whole summer studying," Ben said. "Well, I can assure you you''re being a dick," Clint said. He went back to strumming his guitar. A few minutes later there was a call from the bottom of the treehouse. Ben looked out through the empty doorframe. "Is Clint in there?" Claudia asked. "What? I don''t even get a hello?" Ben asked. "Hiiii Ben," Lina said. Clint stuck his head through the door frame. "Hey, Claudia." "Can we come up?" Lina asked. "Sorry, no girls allowed," Ben said. "Very funny," Claudia said. She started walking up the stairs. Clint walked back to the beanbag chair and sat down. He picked up the guitar and started playing a rendition of Autumn Leaves. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. "Wow, it''s been a while," Claudia said as she walked through the doorway. "What happened to the decorations?" she asked. "We figured having a whole bunch of Pokemon posters was a tiny bit ''middle school''" Ben said. "I liked them," Claudia said. Clint missed a D major chord and stopped playing. "Of course you did. You''re a nerd," Clint chimed in. He started playing again, at the start of the phrase. "Shut up. I''m not," Claudia said. "At the very least you''re a band geek," Ben said. "Don''t call me a geek if you want to keep on using the practice room," Claudia said. Clint played the same chord wrong and stopped playing again. "You can''t use your geek privileges to shut us down," Clint said. "If you were a band geek, you wouldn''t suck so much at playing," Lina commented. Claudia laughed. Clint stayed quiet and slowly set the guitar down. "So you guys aren''t going to put in any new decorations?" Claudia asked. "We have decorations," Clint said. "Yeah," Ben agreed. Lina and Claudia looked around the room. "That?" Claudia asked, pointing at a sheathed sword hanging on the wall. "Yeah," Clint and Ben said at the same time. "What is it?" Lina asked. "It''s a saber from the revolutionary war. We bought it at a flea market during the summer," Clint said. "I bought it," Ben said. "You were too scared to hold it! I''m the one that carried it around all day. I almost got arrested!" Clint exclaimed. "I''m the one that spent the summer working to pay fo-" "Can I see it?" Claudia asked. "What do you think? Is she worthy?" Ben asked Clint. "I''m not sure. She did ignore the ''No girls allowed'' rule," Clint said. "That''s a very good point," Ben said. "Please?" Claudia asked, without much emotion in her voice. Ben and Clint looked at each other. They didn''t speak but they said a lot. "Okay," Clint said. He stood up and took it down from the shelf on the wall. "Careful with it," he said as he handed the sheathed saber to Claudia. "Hmm, it''s lighter than I expected," she said. "It''s hardly 300 years old. Essentially, a modern saber, with modern technology, state of the art." Clint said with a salesman''s voice. Claudia pulled the sword out of it''s sheathe. "Yeah, modern," Claudia snickered. The metal was dull. A faint patina started at the lower half of the sword, going all the way down to the hilt. Yet, the blade still glistened. "Relatively," Clint said. "This is cool," Claudia said. She swung it in an arch. "Careful," Ben said. "Scared?" She asked. "Frightened," He replied. "You want to hold it?" she asked Lina. Lina shook her head. "I''ll probably end up cutting myself," she said. Claudia sheathed the sword and handed it back to Clint. He placed it back in its spot and sat down on the red beanbag chair. Ben sat down on a blue beanbag chair that was on the other side of the room. "Any seats for us?" Claudia asked. "Afraid not," Ben said. Lina walked up to Clint and motioned for him to scoot over. She sat down in the small space Clint made for her. Ben looked at Claudia and patted the empty area next to him. "Thanks. I''ll sit on the floor," She said. She took off her backpack, leaned against the wooden wall, and sunk to the floor. "What''d we miss?" Clint asked. "Not much. It was the deadline for a few of the syllabi. There''s a test in Civics on Friday. But Clemens said we''ll go over it tomorrow," Lina said. Despite there being enough space on the chair for some distance, the two were practically on top of each other. Clint had his arm around Lina and she had her head on his shoulder. "Did he say if it was multiple choice?" Ben asked. "Short essay answers," Claudia said. She''d opened her backpack and pulled out a black folder. Inside there were two stacks of sheets, each held together by a paperclip. She handed one to Clint and the other to Ben. "That''s what you guys missed today. Sapkowski''s homework, my personal notes for Lenards, and there''s a transcription of Autumn in New York I did in Strummers," Claudia said. "So we skipped for nothing," Clint said. He reluctantly stuffed the notes into his backpack. Ben took out a grey binder and put the papers in separate sections. "Thanks," Ben said. "Well, I have debate practice to get to," Claudia said. "So you just came to assign us homework?" Clint asked. "Pretty much," she said. She waved without looking as she left the treehouse. "Can I hear you play again?" Lina asked. "Of course. I''ll serenade you," Clint said. Ben started sorting through Claudias notes while Clint started playing a very off-tune cover of Can''t take my eyes off of you. Stress "Did you do Sapkowski''s homework?" Ben asked. "I did the first few questions. It seemed pretty easy so I just looked up the answers online," Clint said. "I told you not to take pre-cal. I''d get so bored in there," Ben said. He took his shirt off and grabbed a plain athletic jersey out of his locker. "That''s the point. It''s our last year. I''m trying to take it easy," Clint replied. "You''ve taken it easy every year," Ben laughed. "How was the homework for A.P?" Clint asked. He''d already gotten dressed and was leaning against the lockers, waiting for Ben. "It took me two hours," Ben said. "See! I don''t need that kind of stress in my life," Clint said. "You don''t have enough stress in life," Ben retorted. "Hey, Clint. That''s my locker," a guy with large rimmed glasses, and a lot of acne, said. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. "Fuck off Jerry. We''re having a conversation," Clint said. "Can you have it somewhere else?" Jerry asked. Clint dramatically stood up straight and skirted over to the adjacent locker. "That''s where you''re wrong. I have plenty of stress with the battle of the bands," Clint said to Ben. "What''s that about a battle of the bands?" Jerry asked as he took off his shirt. "We''re signing up for a battle of the bands in Seattle," Ben said. "That''s crazy. I didn''t know you guys were in a band," Jerry said. "We just started it this Summer," Clint said, coldly. "Wow. You know, I play the tuba so maybe I could jam out with you guys sometime," Jerry said. Ben closed his locker and nodded at Clint. Clint nodded back. The two started walking towards the door. Clint opened it, held it, and looked back at Jerry. "We play Rock Jerry. Not Polka." Clint walked into the gym before Jerry had a chance to reply. "Classic Jerry," Ben said. "I don''t think he''ll ever learn," Clint replied. "It''s too late for that," Ben agreed. A few boys were shooting basketballs at the hoop on the opposite end of the gym. "Guess it''s a game day," Ben said. "We''re going over the quiz in Lenards today, right?" Clint asked. "Yeah, it''s the only thing Claudia said about it in her notes," Ben replied. "You want to get together and study for it after class?" Clint asked. "Why not. Treehouse or The Bean?" Ben asked. "How about The Bean. It''s been a while since we''ve gone. Cool if I invite Lina?" Clint asked. "I don''t see why not. Hey, there''s Shield. Check out those booty shorts." Ben said. Clint chuckled. "Alright, everyone. Line up!" Shield shouted. "God I hate this," Clint said. "Too much stress?" Ben asked, a smile playing at the corners of his lips. "Yeah. Too much stress," Clint said sarcastically. Tadpoles "Buenos dias Se?orito," Lina said. She was standing outside the door of the Spanish classroom. Which Clint had just walked out of. "Buenos dias Se?orita," Clint said. "?Seguimos en espa?ol o es todo lo que entiendes?" Lina asked. "Don''t make fun of me. You talk too fast," Clint said. "I don''t think speed is the issue, Se?orito," Lina said. She grabbed his hand and pulled him along as they headed towards the next class. The classroom was a mere 4 rooms down the hall. "After you," she said and stepped back. "Thank you Se?ora," he said and walked into the classroom. "Don''t be rude!" she exclaimed. He sat down in the second seat of the third row, she sat down in the first. "How am I being rude?" he asked. "You know exactly how," she said. He stared blankly. She looked away. Giving a stern expression which was clearly an act. "Well, I''m lost. Hey, me and Ben are going to The Bean to study for the quiz after school. You want to come with?" Clint asked. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. "Why don''t we go to my house instead? We can use the garage," Lina said. "Ah, the famous garage. Won''t your brother be smoking in there?" Clint asked. "No. He''s visiting some friends in Portland. He won''t be back till next week," Lina said. "Perfect. I stole some joints from my sister the other day. Can we smoke them in there?" Clint asked. Lina rolled her eyes, "Yeah I don''t see why not. If my mom catches us I''m telling her you forced me." "You can tell her I held you at gunpoint," Clint said. "Alright, class," a short, pudgy, lady said. "Compare the worksheets I assigned with your partner." "Crap. I didn''t do it," Clint said. "Me neither," Lina said. They both pulled out a blank worksheet. "What''s my name?" Clint asked. "Not sure. That was a difficult one. I only have an ''L''." Lina said. "Maybe an ''I" comes after," Clint said. "Yeah. That sounds right. Then?" Lina asked. "Crap. These are difficult questions. How about a ''C''?" Clint suggested. "I don''t think that''s right Mr. Stiller," the teacher said. Clint looked up. She was standing a few feet away. Looking straight at them. "Hi, Ms. Hoffman. Are you having a good morning?" Clint asked. "So-so. I''ve had a few students misbehave," Ms. Hoffman said. "Oh no. That''s awful. You know, people really should pay attention. It''s a very interesting class," Lina said. "It really is. Very valuable information. You never know when-" he looked down at the worksheet, "you''ll need to know if pH levels affect tadpole growth." "Lifesaving information," Lina added. "Can you answer the question?" Ms. Hoffman asked. Clint thought for a few seconds. "Yeah. Low pH levels will affect body size and delay metamorphosis. High pH levels will convert ammonium to ammonia which is toxic," Clint said. Ms. Hoffman looked at him suspiciously. "Carry on," she said and walked away. "How''d you know that?" Lina asked. "She went over it the other day. Anyway, if it''s not a ''C'', maybe an ''A''?" Clint said. "Maybe you should actually help me with this," Lina held up the worksheet and laughed. "That''s so much stress," Clint said. He got a mechanical pencil out from his pocket and started telling Lina his theory on frogs secretly being alien tourists in disguise. Dads Garage "Wait so it''s not graded," Ben asked. Ben passed the joint to Clint. He took a hit and passed it to Lina. "No-" Clint coughed. "It''s extra credit so it can affect your grade but it''s not grade-" he coughed again. "What the hell. Why are we studying for this then?" Ben asked. "We have to, you don''t. Did you not pay any attention," Clint replied. He said, "No. Lina beat me at pool on messages during lunch. I couldn''t let her win like that." Lina passed the joint to Ben. She coughed. Then said, "Don''t blame me. You''re the one that kept distracting me whenever it was my turn." "You cheated during lunch!" he yelled. "I did not. Just admit you lost," Lina said. He threw the filter at her and got up from the couch. "Are you sure your dad won''t mind us smoking in here?" he asked as he grabbed a bottle of purified water out of a container that was near the entrance to the house. "No. My brother smokes. It always smells like weed in here," she said, fishing the butt out of her hair and throwing it at Ben. He stepped aside and it went straight into the large garbage bin behind him. "Nice one," Clint said. "I could have made that," Ben retorted as he sat back down. "Yeah right," Lina laughed. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. "Why are we studying then if it''s extra credit?" Lina asked. "Yeah I have a A in there, I''m not worried," Ben said. Clint looked at the floor and muttered, "I have a D-." "What?" Lina asked curiously. Clint looked up, "I have a D-. I thought Civics was going to be as easy as World History so I skipped most of the assignments and that first test killed me." "Why were you yapping at us for not paying attention then?" Ben asked. "Lina, what''s your grade?" Clint asked. "Its a C-," she said. Clint looked at Ben, "That''s why." "Then why do I have to be here?" Ben asked. "If we have to suffer, you have to suffer," Lina said as she grabbed one of the three notebooks that were sprawled out on the coffee table. The garage door started to rise. "Crap, pass me the other joint." Lina quickly told Ben. Ben took the single joint that was on the coffee table, near his end of the couch, and tossed it at Lina. She caught it and stuffed it into her hoodie as the door slid up past the car''s window. "That was close," she said quietly. She waved at her dad as he pulled the car into the garage. He turned the car off and stepped out. He was holding a suit jacket in one hand and a grey computer bag in the other. "Hey Lin, hey guys," he said as he walked up to the couch in the corner of the garage. "Hey dad," Lina said. "Hey, Rick," Ben and Clint said unanimously. "Are you kids studying?" Rick asked. "Yeah. We have a history test tomorrow," Lina said. "I see. Well, make sure you study well," Rick said. Rick started walking towards the door that led into the house. "It''s only for extra credit so it''s not like it matters," Ben muttered. He stopped at the door and turned to look at Ben. "It''s not the credit. It''s the knowledge. Study hard," he said and went inside. Lina said, "It''s not about the credit. It''s about the knowledge." Ben and Clint both snickered. Her father''s voice could be heard from the other side of the wall, "I heard that." Lina muttered under her breath and Ben and Clint laughed harder. "Whatever, let''s just get this done," she said. ... "You guys want to go see a movie after school tomorrow? Small compensation for the bad time we''re set in for with that exam." Lina said. "Yeah. Im not doing anything." Clint said. "Is Claudia going?" Ben asked. "No. She has knowledge bowl practice." Clint snickered. "I''m down to go but not right after school. Tomorrow I''m staying after for half an hour or so." Ben said. "What for?" Clint asked. "I asked Sapkowski to help me with a few assignments for the A.P class." Ben said. "What a nerd." Clint said. "Shut up Mr. Failing Pre-Cal." Ben retorted. "Don''t tell me to shut up Mr-" "We can wait. The movie I want to see doesn''t start till 4 anyways." Lina interrupted. "Cool. Where should we meet up?" Ben asked. "Let''s just meet up at theatre. I''m sure we can find some way to kill the time." Clint replied. Evening Chats "Still no word from him?" Lina asked. "Nope. He always does this." Clint replied. "I didn''t realize he studied so much until we started hanging out." Lina said. "Yeah, Ben tries to hide it. He used to be such a nerd. Like, back in middle school. He asked a girl out once, I think we were in 6th grade, and her reply was to burst out laughing. Her friends started chanting, "Nerd in love. Nerd in love." whenever they saw him. He stopped wearing dress shirts to school after that." "Wait, he used to wear dress shirts to school?" She asked. "Oh yeah. His mom is one of those way-too-christian Koreans. So, for most of elementary and middle school, he wore a bowtie." Lina burst out laughing. He started to laugh with her then something caught his attention off in the distance. He quickly glanced to the right but the shadow was already gone. "You okay?" Lina asked. "Yeah. Sorry. I thought I saw something." He replied. "Big scary wolf in the woods?" She asked. "Yeah. Scared it''s going to eat me." He said with a laugh. "What time does your sister come home?" Lina asked. "Usually, around 4. But sometimes on Fridays she drives out to Tacoma to see her boyfriend and stays for the weekend." Clint replied. "You''re home-alone every weekend?" She asked. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. "Sometimes. She never tells me when she''s leaving so I usually don''t find out until I see a wad of cash for groceries on the kitchen table. I''m pretty used to it. She hates this town. Tries to be out of it as often as she can." "Isn''t she kind of neglecting you?" She asked. "I guess. But, well, she''s gotta have a life too. I don''t know." He hesitated, "Sometime''s I feel guilty about it all. She put so much effort in to leaving. Now she has to stay here another year because of me. Looking after the house on weekends is hardly enough to make up for it." Lina got up from the lawn chair, picked it up, and moved it around the glass coffee table. She set it down next to Clint and sat down. Her arm went under his and she put her hand in his hand. "You shouldn''t feel guilty about it. You didn''t ask her to stay. She made the decision." He laid his head on her shoulder. "I know. I know. But thats how I feel. I can''t change that." He said in a soft tone. "Well you can focus on other things. Instead of feeling that way." She said. He twisted his head and looked up at her. "Like what?" He asked. "Like your phone ringing and you somehow not noticing." She said. He perked up. It was on the glass table. The vibrations were bringing the panel to life. He quickly reached his left hand out to grab it. Immediate regret. Pain shot up and a muffled whimper escaped him. He''d missed his phone and punched the metallic edge of the table. "Shit." He said, somberly. "Dude, be more careful." Lina said as she reached across him and grabbed the phone. The coffee table''s incessant buzzing stopped. "Heyyyy Ben. How are you doing?" Lina said. She put the call on speaker and held the phone between the two of them. Ignoring Ben''s response, she whispered to Clint, " You okay?" "I''m fine. But that hurt like hell." Clint replied while he shook his fist. As if somehow that would undo the punch. "-then Jerry showed up out of nowhere and we got stuck talking to him for like 15 minutes. I swear. Anyway we''re almost in town. Where are you guys at?" "We''re at Clint''s house. Let''s meet at the movie theatre?" Lina asked. "Okay, cool. See you there." Ben hung up. They both stood up. "Who was he with?" Clint asked. "No clue." She replied. They exited the yard through the garden gate. As he was closing it, Clint thought he saw the same shadow flicker in his peripherals. He ignored it and closed the latch. Clint and Lina walked hand in hand through the romance filled streets of the suburban development. Plans Change "Is that them?" Claudia asked. "Look at the lovebirds, so cute." Ben said. "Have you even had a girlfriend?" Claudia asked. "I kissed a girl I met in Bellingham while visiting some cousins in the summer." Ben replied. "That doesn''t count." Claudia said. "Have you?" He asked. "I met a guy at drum major camp, he''s from Puyallup . He came over to visit last week." She replied. "Ah. So they go to another school?" Ben asked. "At least I have one." Claudia retorted. "I''m sure he''s real." Ben said. "Who''s real?" Clint asked as him and Lina arrived. "Claudia''s boyfriend." Ben said. "Definitely not real." Clint replied. Lina laughed. "You mean Mat?" Lina asked. "Yeah, Mat." Claudia said. "I haven''t met him but I have seen his instagram profile. Of course, that could also be fake. Maybe she''s getting cat fished." Lina said "I have pictures of the two of us together." Claudia said. "Photoshop." Clint said. "Hey, shouldn''t we head in? The movie''s starting soon." Lina said. The building was rather unassuming. A red-brick square with a few posters at the front. A large neon sign jutted out from the front face of the building. It simply said, "Roxie''s". No posters, or schedule boards, betrayed that it was a movie theatre. Two green doors led in to the building. "Where''d you even run in to her?" Clint asked. "Yeah. I thought you said you couldn''t make it." Lina added. "I was leaving Sapowski''s when I saw her walking down the hall." Ben said. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. "Yeah. Practice ended early. He asked me if I''d just gotten out of detention." Claudia said. "The practice thing could be a farce." Clint said. "It is suspicious that she has something every day. But what would she be in detention for?" Lina asked. "Rowdiness." Ben said. "Yes, rowdiness." Clint agreed. Claudia rolled her eyes and walked up to the ticket booth. "Hi I''d like a ticket for It." Claudia said to the box office attendant. "We only have one ticket left. Sorry. Would you like to buy it?" The attendant said in a deadpan tone. "Crap." Lina said. "I really wanted to watch it today." "We could come tomorrow." Ben said. "It''s not the same." Lina said. "How come?" Clint asked. "It''s a tradition. When there''s a Friday the 13th we watch a scary movie at the theater after school. Then, we usually steal her brothers computer and play a horror game till midnight." Claudia said. "This is the first one since July of last year!" Lina''s voice carried the air of defeat. "Well, Meg''s not home. Why don''t we watch one there?" Clint suggested. "I don''t want to walk home at night." Lina said. "Does he live far?" Claudia asked Lina. "Like 5 minutes from here. Slightly far for us." "How about my house then. That''s pretty close to you Claudia." Ben suggested. "Yeah. Lina''s not far from me so that works." Claudia said. "We can get some ''authentic'' theatre popcorn at the store." Clint suggested. "Sounds good to me. What do you think." Claudia said. "Hmmm... not authentic enough. Can we get an annoying kid to be disruptive?" Lina asked. "I would invite my sister. But, I think my mom will get mad if I start traumatizing her with scary movies." "That''s too bad. We''re so close to the authentic experience." Lina said. "Ben, do you still have the projector we bought when Breath of the Wild came out?" Clint asked. "I''m not sure. Let me call my dad, he may have thrown it out." Ben stepped away from the group. "What should we watch..." Lina said to herself. "What do you guys usually watch?" Clint asked. "Pretty much anything. We''re not strict about the genre." Claudia said. "We started with thrillers since Claudia couldn''t handle horror back then. Last time we watched It. The sequel seems cool but can''t exactly watch it at home." Lina said. "Yeah. Actually I''m not sure if we should go with supernatural horror since that''s what we saw last time." Claudia said. Have you guys seen Super Dark Times?" Clint asked. "No. But I have heard about it." Claudia said. "What''s it about?" Lina asked. "It''s not exactly horror, maybe a thriller. But it''s about two guys, our age, that are best friends. They both get a crush on the same girl and thats a whole thing. But the real scary shit happens when they steal some weed from one of the friends'' brother''s room, he''s in college. I can''t remember why but this real ''Jerry'' type goes with them. Guys brother has a katana and they take it too. They''re fucking around with it when the ''Jerry'' type steals the weed-" "Jerry wouldn''t do that." Lina butted in. "Jerry wouldn''t do what?" Ben asked as he rejoined the group. "You know that movie we watched when my cousin came over?" Clint said. "Super dark times?" Ben asked. "Yeah. Im telling them about it. We''re thinking about watching it." Clint said. "What does Jerry have to do with it?" Ben asked. "You know the guy they stab?" Clint said. "Daryl?" Ben asked. "Yeah that guy. Total ''Jerry'' type." Clint said. "I can see that." Ben said. "Well it sounds interesting. What do you think Claudia?" Lina said. "Why not. So do you have a projector?" She asked. "My dad didn''t answer. He''s probably at work." Ben said. "Well let''s go then." Clint said. Procuring Snacks "Hey, Rita. Is my dad in his office?" Ben asked the first cashier he saw. "Hey, Ben. I think he is. You can go check." Rita said. "Alright, thanks." He turned towards the group, "You guys want to go get the snacks while I go talk to him?" He asked. "Yeah. See you in a bit." Clint said. "Yo Sam!" He yelled at one of the cashiers as he left the group. "Know if my dad''s in his office?" He asked. "I just went to look for him. Not there. Come on he''s probably in the stockroom." "So his dad owns this place, right?" Lina asked. "Yeah. It''s a long story. His grandpa had the first grocery store in town. Back when it was just Indians and lumberjacks. Steven, Ben''s dad, went to WSU, got a business degree, and opened this place up when he graduated." Clint said. "We still don''t have to pay?" Claudia asked. "Still don''t have to pay." Clint said (for some reason) pridefully. "Here we are." Clint said once they reached the snacks aisle. "Where''s the ''authentic'' movie theatre popcorn?" Lina asked. "Over there." Clint pointed at a shelf down the aisle. "What''s new with Ben?" Claudia asked Clint. "Quite a lot. His sister''s big now. She''s in second grade." Clint said. "Wow. Somehow that''s hard to believe." Claudia said. "It''s been a while since the three of us have hung out." Ben said, metallically. "Yeah. It has." She wanted to say something, but seemed unsure if she should, "Hey. I- i''m sorry I wasn''t there for you sophomore year." This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. "Don''t worry about it." Clint quickly said. "It''s just... It must have been hard. I''m sorry I wasn''t able to help." Claudia said. "It''s fine. That was a while ago." Clint said. "Clint-" "Hey! Check this out! They have kettle corn too!" Lina yelled from down the aisle. "OOh. Get some." Clint said. "Will do!" She was already holding four different boxes of microwaveable popcorn. "It may have been a while ago. But that''s not something you just drop and forget about." Claudia said. "Claudia, I know that. I know that too well. But can we not talk about this now?" Clint said. "Sorry, my bad. I guess the middle of a grocery store isn''t the best place for the topic." Claudia said. "This enough?" Lina asked. She had 6 boxes of popcorn tucked under her arm. "Hmm.. isn''t that a bit excessive?" Claudia asked. "But they''re all a different kind!" Lina exclaimed, "Theres even some lime with chili ones!" "How about-" Clint took the top two boxes out like jenga blocks, "we get rid of these and make some guac instead." Claudia and Clint had been standing next to the tortilla chip shelve. He reached out and took the first one his hand grabbed. "Let''s get some avocados." Claudia suggested. "Where are they?" Lina asked. "Follow me. You''ve never shopped here?" Clint asked. "No. My dad hates grocery stores. Says they''re too American. Since he has to drive out to Seattle for meetings at least once a week, he usually goes to a farmer markets somewhere along the way and buys our groceries there." Lina said. "That''s so much effort." Clint said. Lina shrugged, "It''s how he is." "So what do you do if you get a random craving for chips at 7pm on a Saturday?" Clint asked. "I don''t eat chips." Lina said. "Really?" Clint asked. "My mom didn''t let me eat them as a kid. She says junk food is how capitalist keep the working class unhealthy and poor so that they can overexploit them." Lina said. "Wow. I think my mom would have gotten along with yours. But, she did let me have the occasional snickers and bag of Doritos." Clint said. "Do we all just have weird parents? I''m still not allowed to eat anything with sugar." Claudia said. "Remember how pissed your mom was when she found out Ben''s dad was giving you free chocolates?" Clint asked. "Oh god. I''d forgotten about that." Claudia laughed. "What''d she do?" Lina asked. "We both got grounded." Claudia said. "Both?" Lina asked. Clint broke out laughing and couldn''t stop for a few seconds. "Mrs. Kitteredge had a very long conversation with Mr. and Mrs. Brooks. After that Mrs. Brooks was very mad at Mr. Brooks. It was hilarious from the outside in. Ben couldn''t get permission to leave the house for like two weeks." Clint said. Claudia covered her face with her hand. "It was so embarrassing." She said quietly. "You scared of running in to Steve?" Clint asked. "Slightly." Claudia said. Steve Clint spotted Ben near the produce aisle. They waved at each other. He was still with Sam. "Any luck?" Clint asked. "Nope. I swear. He always disappears right when I need to talk to him." Sam said. "You guys get everything?" Ben asked. "We just need some avocados for guac and we''ll be ready." Claudia said. "We have some at home. Actually, I''m pretty sure we have everything for guac at home." Ben said. "You look familiar." Sam said, "Do I now you?" He asked Claudia. Her cheeks filled with a faint shade of red. "No I don''t think so." She quickly said. "Are you sure?" Sam said. Ben turned to Sam and whispered loud enough for everyone to hear, "Remember the chocolate debacle of 2016?" "Oh my god. You''re that lady''s daughter!" Sam exclaimed. "No I''m not." Claudia said, mostly to herself. "You haven''t come in since, huh?" Sam asked. "My mom said I wasn''t allowed to come here anymore." She said in the same quiet tone. "Sam!" A deep male baritone yelled, "Why aren''t you in the Deli." "Steve! Ive been looking for you. Look we really nee-" "Shit." Claudia said. "Don''t want him to see you?" Lina asked. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "Of course not!" "Well. Look''s like it''s too late for that." Clint said. "Hey kid. You need something?" Mr. Brooks asked Ben. "Hey pop. We were going to watch a movie but the theatre was full so we''re just going to watch something at home instead. Do we still have the projector?" Ben asked. "It''s good that you came over then. It''s in the staff room now. I don''t think we''ll have any training seminars soon. You can take it. Please don''t break it." Steven said. "I won''t, Dad." Ben said. He left the group and started walking quickly towards the staff room. "Hey Clint." Steven said. "Hey Steve." Clint said. "Who are your friends?" Steve asked. "This is Lina." She reached her hand out and he shook it. "Pleasure." Steve said. "Same here." Lina said. "And her?" Steve asked. Claudia had turned away from the group and was mindlessly sorting through the tomatoes. She turned around and faced Mr. Brooks. "Oh. Hi." Claudia said. Steven laughed. "Claudia! How nice to see you. It''s been so long since I''ve seen the girl that made me spend a week sleeping on the couch." He said laughing. Her cheeks were noticeably flushed. "Sorry about that." She said. "Sorry? What for! That is probably one of my best dinner party stories. Say, you want to take some chocolates home? We''ve have new ''artisan crafted'' ones in stock." He asked, bellowing. "Im fine, thanks." She said timidly. "Can I take some home?" Clint asked. "Clint, I practically pay for all of your groceries. We don''t need to add artisan chocolates to the mix." Steve said. "Chucks." Clint said. "Did you just move here?" Steve asked Lina. "No. Actually my family moved here in 2016. But we don''t shop here." Lina said. "Who''s you dad?" Steve asked. "Ricardo Sanchez." She said. "You''re Ricks kid? How great! Your dad and me play pool together. I''ve heard a bit about you." "Good things or bad?" She asked. "Bit of both." He said jokingly. "Hmmm, does that mean I get some artisan chocolates?" She asked. "Of course. You can take whatever you like. But don''t take advantage like a certain someone over here." He ruffled Clint''s hair. "Hey!" Clint exclaimed, "That was hard to style!" "Kid, you look like you just woke up." Steven said. "It''s a hard look to nail!" Clint said. "Oh, im sure it is." Steven said. "It is!" Clint exclaimed. "Whatever you say. Well, you kids enjoy the movie. I have to handle an issue over in the Deli." Steven said. "See you Steve." Clint said. "Bye Steven, thanks for the chocolates." Lina said. "Bye Mr. Brooks." Claudia muttered. "See you kids." Steve said. "That was awful." Claudia said. "What do you mean?" Clint asked. "She''s just shy." Lina said. "I''m not. He was making fun." Claudia said. "So are. He was joking." Lina said. Ben came out of the hallway that led to the staff room with a projector tucked under his arm. "Alright gang, let''s go." Clint said. Home Clint knocked on the front door then entered. Claudia and Lin followed. There was an asian, middled aged, woman reading a book on the living room couch. She set the book down once Clint walked in. "Hi Clint." She said. "Hey Mrs. Brooks." Clint said. "These are?" Mrs. Brooks asked. "This is Lina and... Stephanie." Clint said. "Hi girls." They both waved at her. "Stephanie you look familiar." She remarked. Claudia quickly stammered, "Maybe you''ve seen my sister around. We look very similar. Her name is Lucy." Mrs. Brooks squinted, "Yeah, maybe. I heard you guys are having a movie night." "Yeah. Ben''s setting it up in the backyard right now." Clint said. "In the backyard?" She asked. "Yes. We''re using the projector we bought in 9th grade." Clint said. "You mean, the projector I bought." Mrs. Brooks said. "Yes sorry. The projector you bought." Clint corrected himself. "Can Jen join you guys?" Mrs. Brooks asked. "Well, it''s a bit scary." Clint said nervously. "Is it supernatural?" She asked. "No, no. It''s not really horror, more of a thriller. Still, not exactly what she likes to watch." Clint said. "Yes. I agree. It would probably give her nightmares. Like that time you showed Ben the video game where you summon demons. What horror." She said. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Clint stayed quiet. "Is it alright if we use your microwave to make popcorn?" Lina asked. "Yes, that''s fine dear." She said. The trio synchronously moved towards the kitchen. Mrs. Brooks went back to her novel. Claudia took the boxes of popcorn out from the shopping bag. "Which ones should we make?" Claudia asked. "How about one of each?" Lina suggested. Clint laughed. "You want to try them all?" He asked. "Yeah." She said in a chirpy voice. "What was your plan with the original dozen you wanted to buy?" Clint asked. "One of each." She replied. "Theres only four of us." Claudia said. "One of each." She said, again. "You''re hopeless." Claudia said with a smile on her lips. She took a bag out and placed it in the microwaved. She kept on opening the boxes while the first bag cooked. Once the kernels started to pop Lina leaned in close to Clint. "What was that?" She whispered. "They''re supposed to have bible study today. Her son''s watching a movie with his heathen friends instead. Not exactly in the best mood." Clint whispered back. "Is she always like that?" Lina asked. "She has her moments." Clint said. Clint entered the living room through a pair of sliding glass doors. "Hey mom." He said. She put her book down. "I take it you''re not going to be at study today?" She asked. "No. We wanted to watch a movie since it-. Since we studied a lot yesterday." Ben said. He pushed his glasses further up his nose. "How''d you do on the test?" She asked. "It''s not graded yet." He said. "How do you think you did?" She asked. "Pretty sure I aced it." He said. "That''s good. Well," She turned to address the group, "I''ve got some laundry to fold. I''ll leave you kids be." She said and stood up from the couch. "She give you a speech?" Ben asked Clint after his mom had gone upstairs. "No. Just called me out for getting you in to ''sacrilegious'' video games." Clint responded. "Of course." Ben shook his head. The microwave beeped. "One down, three to go." Claudia said. "Let me get started on the guac." Ben said. "I can help with that." Lina said. They moved to the other side of the kitchen. Clint reached for the freshly popped bag. Claudia smacked his hand. "Hey!" Claudia remarked, "Those are mine." "What?" Clint exclaimed, "I wanted the caramel ones!" Claudia looked at the bags spread out on the counter and picked one out. She threw it at Clint. "You can have those." She said. He held up the bag. "Who the hell puts barbecue on popcorn." He said and threw it back at her. "Just take them." She threw the bag back at him. "I''d rather not eat than eat this." He threw it back at her. "How about we mix them then?" Claudia asked. "You want to mix caramel with barbecue?" He asked, disgusted. "That sounds gross." Ben said. "Aren''t you supposed to be making guacamole?" Claudia asked. "She took over." He beckoned. Lina was quickly chopping an onion. It was clearly a developed skill. "Yeah. She loves cooking for some reason." Claudia said. "That''s good to know." Clint said. "If you don''t mess it up." She glared at Clint, almost a threat, "You''ll definitely get a lot of baked goods." The last part was said in a sweeter tone. Popcorn Debacle The microwaved beeped again. Claudia took the bag out and handed it to Ben. "I don''t want these." Ben said. "My god." Claudia said. "There''s caramel ones, right?" Ben asked. "Sorry dude. They''re mine." Clint said. "No they''re not." Claudia argued. "I don''t get a claim?" Ben asked. "No." Both of them said at once. "Here." Claudia handed him the barbecue flavored bag. "Hmm... I wonder what they taste like." He said. "Barbecue. Obviously." Claudia said. "But what kind of barbecue." He pointed his index finger at his temple, "That''s the real question." "You''re an idiot." She said. "I''m analytical." He said. "You''re an analytical idiot." She retorted. "Guacamole''s done." Lina said, "Are the popcorn ready?" "Give me that." She took the bag from Ben. Who, was busy reading the ingredients. "Hey!" He said. "There''s a book over there." She pointed at the novel Mrs. Brooks had left on the coffee table. "We''re still waiting on two bags. You finished quick." Clint said to Lina. "My grandpa owned a taqueria in Guadalajara. He thought me the trade." She said with pride in her voice. Ben whispered to Clint, "Seriously dude, don''t fuck it up." The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. "I won''t." He said. Clint took the tortilla chips out of the grocery bag. "Can I try it?" He asked. "Wait for the movie." Claudia said. "Just a bite." He pressed. "No. It''s a movie snack. Not a right now snack." Lina said. "A dollop?" He continued. Lina shook her head. "Where can I put the trash." She asked Ben. He was transfixed with the inflating, spinning, luminous, popcorn bag. "What?" He asked. "The garbage." Claudia said. "Oh. It''s under the sink." He went back to staring at the popcorn. Claudia gave Clint a questioning glance. He shrugged. "Are mine done?" Lina asked. "Yeah. Here." Claudia handed her the Lime & Chili bag. "You guys decide who gets the caramel ones?" Lina asked. "How about this," Claudia suggested, "I eat half of the caramel corn. You eat half of the kettle corn. Then we switch." "You''ll cheat." Clint said. "How?!" She exclaimed. "You''ll find a way. But, i''m open to further negotiations." She placed her palm on her head. "Okay. I eat half of the kettle corn first?" She suggested hesitantly. "There we go." Clint said. The microwave beeped. In a single motion, Clint opened it, took out his bag of popcorn, threw in the other bag, then pressed the ''popcorn'' button. "Since that''s your bag, you can wait for it. Let''s start the movie." Clint said. He started walking towards the exit. Claudia followed. Lina grabbed her popcorn and the guacamole and made an ''L'' with her fingers at Clint. Five camping chairs were neatly lined up around a medium sized projector screen. The middle chair was taller than the others. Boxes propped it higher. The projector, along with a laptop, were sitting on it. "Careful with the cable." Ben said as they stepped in to the yard. "Wow. Not a bad getup." Claudia said. "No food on the ground. No crying babies. No puddles of piss. Im very impressed with this establishment." Lina said. "Puddles of piss?" Ben asked. "God it was so gross." Claudia said. Lina said, "We went to watch a movie over the summer and some dickhead pissed in a cup and put it on the ground. We were leaving and Claudia accidentally stepped on the cup." Claudia made a gagging noise. Lina continued, "Her foot got all wet. It flowed down the aisle and made a huge puddle." "It smelled awful. Pungent." Claudia said. "Well, you can be sure there won''t be any piss puddles here. Actually, you kind of do have to worry about him." Ben pointed at cream-colored Pomeranian sleeping in the corner of the yard. "You have a dog?!" Lina asked excitedly. "His name''s Twinkie." Ben said, smiling. "That''s actually kind of cute. Is he yours?" Claudia said. "I raised him. But I gave him to my sister for her 5th birthday." Ben said. "How come we haven''t met her yet. Is she at a friends house?" Lina asked. "My mom has her studying for bible study right now." Ben said. "You have to study for bible study?" Claudia asked. "Yup. Well, I don''t have to. But she still does." "That can''t be any fun." Lina said. "I hated it. I don''t know why but she actually enjoys it." Ben said. "Really?" Lina asked. "Yeah. It''s weird." Ben said. Clint walked in to the yard holding the bag of chips under his arm and eating out from his (shared) bag of popcorn. "Did I miss the trailers?" Clint asked. The Night Dies "That was actually really good." Claudia said. "What? Did you not expect us to have a good taste in ''film''" Ben asked. She hesitated, "Yeah. She admitted. I thought boys just watched funny movies. Well, dumb funny movies." "Madame, we are connoisseurs of the arts." Clint said in a bad French accent. Claudia rolled her eyes. "Well, I should probably be heading home." Lina said. "Yeah me too, it''s getting dark." Claudia said. "You''re house is pretty close, right?" Clint asked Lina. "Yeah. I''m on the other street. Less than 3 minutes walking." She said. "Huh, I hadn''t realized we lived so close." Ben pondered. "Yeah. Can I borrow some sugar?" Lina asked. "No. We''re out. What about you Claudia." Ben asked. "I''m not far either. Maybe ten minutes." Claudia said. "You''re going her way Clint. You can walk her home." Lina suggested. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. "Okay. But if we get mugged, or a bear shows up, im running. It''s on you to keep up." Claudia rolled her eyes. "Fine. You can just walk me to Higgots Rd. I''m not far from there." Claudia said. "Can I borrow your skateboard?" Clint asked ben. "Yeah. It''s in my room. Let me go get it" He took a few steps towards the house then turned around. Lina was picking up the discarded popcorn bags. "Thats finde, dude. I''ll get to them later." Ben said. "You sure? I''m really not far from here." Lina said. "Well, I guess you can help then." Ben said. "Let''s go?" Clint asked Claudia. "Yeah." Claudia said. Ben walked in to the house and quickly ran up the stairs. Ben''s parents, and sister, were occupying the living room. "Hi. Sorry for interrupting you guys." Claudia said. Mr. Brooks had been in the middle of reading a bible verse. "It''s alright. We''re almost done anyways. How was the movie?" Mr. Brooks asked. "Really good actually. I expected these boys to like... more immature movies." Claudia said. "Ben likes looking silly, for some reason. But it''s not who he is." Mrs. Brooks said. "Ben is silly." Ben''s sister butted in. "You''re silly." Ben said as he came down the stairs. He handed Clint the skateboard. "Alright dude, see you later." Ben said. They did a handshake. Which, included them making finger guns and shooting them at each other. "Have a good night Mr. Brooks, Mrs. Brooks, and?" Claudia asked. "Stacy." Ben''s sister said. "Well, bye Stacy." She said. Stacy giggled. "See ya." Clint said. The pair exited the house and started walking down the street. "So formal." Clint said. "They were nice." Claudia said. "Weren''t you there for the whole ''projector'' conversation." Clint said. "Did she buy it?" Claudia asked. "Yeah." Clint said, "Still..." The words got carried off by the subtle breeze. They walked in silence till they reached the main road. "I can walk myself from here." Claudia said. "Alright. See you." Dark Forest He let the board fall on to the sidewalk and stepped on to it. He waved without looking as he started towards the city center. He immediately felt lighter, the wind swifter, almost like he was flying through the empty road. Immense pines lined both sides of the asphalt. There was a dip ahead. He crouched on the board and let gravity take him full speed. He went from 15mph to 25mph. He leveled out to 20mph as the road straightened again. Then the coyote came out. He saw it but didn''t have time to stop. It felt like hitting a spongy wall of mist with a few hard bones in between. He flew off the board. It launched him straight towards a jagged tree stump. His left arm took most of the impact. He lay on the ground for a few seconds. He tried getting up but quickly fell back down. He lay still for a bit. His left ankle was slightly twisted but the pain wasn''t horrible. He managed to get up, using his right arm to pull himself up with the help of the stump. His left arm felt awful. It was torn up in multiple spots. Splinters and dirt filled the skin deep wounds. The pain in his ankle quickly subsided. He was able to walk with only a slight limp. The coyote was gone. There was a red streak which led across the road in to the other side of the woods. It was dotted with tufts of grey-brown fur. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Surprisingly the skateboard was fine. He checked his phone. The screen protector was shattered. He took it off and stuck it in his pockets. He limped over to the board and hopped on. He no longer felt pain. Endorphins already cursing their way through his body. This is going to suck tomorrow. He thought to himself. The somber light of early moonrise put the forest under a muddled shadow. He hurried home as the evening let go of its last hold on the day. He was nearing the edge of town. He moved towards the sidewalk and occasional street lights lit the path. A passing car caught his attention and he glanced towards the road. Then he caught sight of the red. His arm was painted with it. It struck him strange how normal it felt. He took a right turn at a four way stop that lay at the entrance to civilization. A few 3 story apartment buildings broke the monotony of the suburban landscape. This wasn''t the most inspiring part of town. He got to the end of the development and stepped off the board. The house was at the edge of the forest. Trees hugged the wire fence that lined the backyard. The front yard was unfenced as all of the other yards in the neighborhood. A short driveway separated it from his neighbors yard. A small garage was at the end of the driveway and to the right a small gate led in to the backyard. He stepped off the board in the driveway and didn''t bother to pick it up. Quickly, he headed in through the front door. Essential Oils The lights were off. He didn''t bother turning them on and them and headed to the bathroom in the dark. He looked like he was the one that''d been hit. There was a bleeding gash on his forehead, above his right eye, he hadn''t noticed. Tons of other small infractions dotted his body. A scrape above his lip. A gash below his knee. Slowly, the pain was starting to seep in. He couldn''t ignore it any longer. He lifted his left arm up to the mirror. A shiver coursed through his body. Slivers of sharpened pine wood, the largest about 6 inches in length, were lodged all throughout his forearm. Clint turned the shower on and let the water warm up for a few seconds while he studied it further. He touched it. The mix of blood, dirt, and wood shavings had created a grainy goo that felt awful to touch. "Fuck." He cursed to himself. Small pockets of steam were starting to emanate from the shower floor. He placed his arm under the running water. "Fuck." He whimpered. Tears came as he waited for the water to carry all the dirt and shavings. The water seeped deep into the dozens of tiny scrapes. Every severed nerve reactivated. He turned the water off. Flesh blood quickly started to cover his arm again. He heard the front door open. "Are you home, Clint?" A female voice shouted from the entrance. He managed a painful, "Yeah, I''m in the bathroom." "Why are the lights off? Everything okay?" She asked. "I just got home. I thought you went to visit Zach." Clint shouted, his voice was clearly strained. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. "Just because im gone doesn''t mean you''re allowed to be out so late, Clint. His sister needed someone to driver her to Portland. I went out with Donna from work instead. Are you okay?" She said. "Can you get the first aid kit we have in the laundry room?" He asked. "Did you hurt yourself?" She asked. "Could you just get the first aid kit?" He demanded. She opened the bathroom door. A trail of blood had followed Clint, almost making a cross on the bathroom floor. There was blood all over the sink. "Clint! What the hell happened!" "I had an accident on my board." He stammered. "Clint! I told you it was dangerous." She said. She quickly moved towards Clint, making sure to avoid the wet parts of the floor. She grabbed his wrist and quickly lifted his hand up. He tried not to show the pain. "Clint. My god." She shook her head. She turned around and ran in to the hallway. A few seconds later she came back with the white box. She set it down on the small flat space between the round hanging sink and the mirror. "Wait." She said as she ran back out. "Meg!" He called after her. She came back with a humidifier and some essential oil bottles. "Meg I told you that stuff doesn''t work." He managed. "Shut up. You''re in high school, you don''t know anything." She quickly plugged the device in and put it on the windowsill. She quickly filled it with water and a concoction of the oils. "You do?" He asked. "Enough." She said as she took a hairband off her wrist and tied her hair back. She opened the first aid box and took out some pill bottles, bandages, and a set of tweezers. She held up a bottle of pills, "I wouldn''t take these. But, they help with the pain. So, its u-" "Open them." He demanded. She did. He held out his right hand and she shook two on to his palm. He looked up at her. "Really?" She asked. He didn''t advert his gaze. She shook out 3 more. He swallowed them dry. The room started to fill with the aroma of lavender, chamomile, and a hint of rosemary. "They do smell nice." He admitted. "See." She said. She beckoned towards the toilet. He went around her and sat down. "Doesn''t change the fact that it''s b.s." He said. "Whatever." She said. She held her hand out. He extended his arm towards it. She grabbed his wrist and twisted it. Exposing his lower forearm. She winced. "What the hell dude." She said as she pulled out one of the smaller splinters. "I hit a coyote." He said. "What?!" She stopped and looked at him. "I hit a coyote. Fast. It threw me off and I hit a stump. It was all pointy." He said. She looked back down. "I can tell." She said. He let out a small gasp as she pulled out a 3 inch splinter. Midnight Smoke The effect of the pills faded as he''d started to fall asleep. The pain grew until he couldn''t bare it. He stood up and opened his backpack. They''d planned to smoke the remaining joint on Sunday but he couldn''t think of a better alternative. He took it out from the ziplock bag it''d been stored in. He went to his closet and took out a glass pipe, a box of matches, and a bottle of water. Clint sneaked past Meg, who''d fallen asleep on the couch (watching late night soap operas), and went out in to the yard. He sat on the same chair''s Lina and him had sat on earlier. In the pale moonlight, he unrolled the tip of the joint. He held it between his forefinger and thumb, flipped it upside down (with the tip resting on the bowl), and rolled it. The loose weed fell out in sporadic bursts. Some fell on the table. With a bit of effort, he scooped it up with his left hand and put it in the bowl. He stopped once it was half full. He set the joint down and picked up the matchbox. He struck it and it lit. He set the matchbox down and picked up the pipe. He brought the pipe up to his lips. The flame danced around the sides of the glass bowl as he took in the hit. He started coughing immediately. The smoke that escaped his lungs was murky yellow. He grabbed the water bottle and took a large drink. He tried swirling it around but the urge to cough was too large and he spat it out. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. He couldn''t get the rotten, coppery, taste out. Most of the bowl was unlit. He grabbed his phone and turned the flashlight on. The weed was red. He touched it. It was moist. He looked down at his hand. The bandage was hanging off. A gash that ran across his palm was bleeding. He heard a rustling in the woods. He looked up, the glow of the moon didn''t reveal anything. He ignored the rustling and went back to his hand. He grabbed the water bottle, tilted it, and let the water slowly trickle down the wound. There were nuggets of weed inside the gash. He placed the phone at the edge of the coffee table and turned on the light. He heard more rustling coming from the edge of the forest. He ignored it and slowly started picking them out. Once it looked clean he rewrapped the bandage around his palm. He grabbed the joint and started to roll weed on to the bowl again. This time he checked it. There was no blood. But, there were a few loose strands of fur in it. He looked at the sleeve of his hoodie and saw that whatever he''d struck had likely been shedding. He pinched it with his fingers and threw it out in to the wind. His eyes reflected the golden glow of the burning match-head. He finished the bowl in one hit. He stood up. The rustling grew louder. He quickly picked his phone up and shone the light at the forest. The shadows of the wire backyard fence spread across the tree trunks. He moved the light around. The rustling was gone. He turned the light off and took a few steps towards the entrance. This time it was closer, far closer. It sounded as if it was at the edge of tree-line. Too loud for a fox, can''t be a bear. He thought. He shone the light. The cobwebs of the fence spread across the pine trees. He stood up and walked closer to the fence. He moved the light around but saw nothing. Then he heard the gate that led in to the drive way creak. He turned around. The Devil Went Down to Cannalt A canine was at the entrance to the yard. Its hind legs were disturbingly wrong. Slender and far too long. Its head rested slightly lower than its tail. It was dripping with blood. Tufts of fur were missing all throughout its right side. The exposed flesh gleamed in the twilight. Clint started walking backwards, towards the fence. He shone the light around the yard as he looked for a deterrent. The creature edged closer, silently. Clint hit the fence line. He started edging around the perimeter towards the entrance to the house. The canine stopped and followed his movement. It edged closer once he stopped at the corner. Then it started towards Clint again. Clint was immobile. It sat down on its abnormally long hind legs a few feet from where Clint was planted. He heard its voice in his head. "Heal me." It felt like a thought. But it wasn''t his own. Clint tried backing away further but he hit the fence post. The shock traveled up his arm. The pain was immense. "I can get rid of that. But I need your help." The creature thought. "What the hell were in those pills." Clint muttered to himself. "I''m not a hallucination." It said. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. It started walking closer towards Clint. He tried backing away again but this time he hit his swollen ankle on the post and the pain drove him to the ground. His back leaned against the post and his legs splayed out in front of him. He could see it better from the new angle. The proximity helped. The coat was mostly grey but a brown smudge started at at the base of its tail and spread all the way to the head. It grew a lighter shade as it went up the creature''s body. It''s jaw a soft white. Snout dry-grass yellow. It looked like a coyote. It had the lean quality, the ears, the face. But it was way too large. It was taller than a wolf. If it stood on its hind legs; it''d likely be taller than Clint. It pushed its snout against his twisted ankle. The pain rekindled. "See." It communicated. "What the hell." Clint said quietly. "You ran me over. That could have been that. I could have simply cursed you and been on my way." It told him. "You''re what I hit?!" He said in disbelief. "Who you hit. Our paths didn''t have to cross again. Tell me then; why did you summon me?" The creature relayed. "Summon you?" Clint asked. "You smoked blood mixed with canines hair. That is how I''m summoned." It told him. "I- I didn''t know. It was an accident." Clint said. "There''s no such thing." The creature told him. "You ran out of the woods. I didn''t even se-" "You saw perfectly. You choose to go faster." It relayed. "I-" "Stop talking. You hit me. Then summoned me. You have no choice but to help me." "What happens if I don''t?" Clint asked nervously. It barred its teeth. The way its mouth curled made it seem as if it was smiling. "Want to find out?" It asked. Stray He stood in the doorway. The frozen steak made a thud as he threw it in to the yard. "No cutlery? Not even a plate? Think I''m some kind of stray dog?" Somehow the thoughts carried the air of a bark. "I- I didn''t think." "Guess I''m not far off from one, nowadays." The piece of meat crackled as he tore in to it. He ate it in three large bites. "Any more?" It asked. "We have some chicken defrosting in the fridge. But my sister was going to cook with it tom-" "I don''t care. Go get it." It demanded. Clint crept through the house. Meg was snoring on the couch. Throwing raw meat in to the yard would be difficult to explain. The creature caught the breasts mid-air. "I missed this. Good, human, food. I was growing tired of squirrels and chipmunks." Clint didn''t say anything. A temperate gust hit him. He shivered and stepped out in to the yard, closing the sliding door behind him. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. "If you''re not a hallucination. What are you?" Clint asked. It finished the last piece of meat and sat down. The slender hind legs crisscrossed. Both forelegs set on the grass. The moonlight shone off the lighter parts of its coat. A somber glare fell on its features. "I don''t recon you know me. People used to. Not anymore." "Do you have a name?" Clint asked. "Hue-" The thought stopped mid-word. The creature looked up at the moon. The breeze furled its hair. "Coyotl. Coyote. Kayot. Whichever one''s easier." "What are you?" Clint asked. It stopped it''s moonlit pondering and looked straight at Clint. "Why don''t you answer that for me." It said. "A coyote?" Clint asked. "In a sense. An old one at that. Asking me what I am is the same as asking the sole pine where it came from. There may be an answer but im too far removed from it to tell you what it is." "Are you going to curse me?" Clint asked. "I''m still considering it. I may if you keep asking so many questions. But my stomach is full and im content. For now." Coyotl started walking back towards the garden gate. "Get more meat. I''ll be back tomorrow." It pushed the gate open with its snout. Before leaving the yard it turned its head and added, "We''ve already established a linkage. You won''t need to add Coyote hair next time. Spare you the trouble." Clint felt the heat returning to his body. He hadn''t even noticed how cold he''d gotten. He let out a shudder and sat down. He sat still for a few minutes. The only movement; the wind trying to carry his hair off. A small sob escaped. The fear was barely starting to dissipate but he knew it wouldn''t fully leave. He headed in to the house. It took too long to fall asleep. Crippled Clint walked in to the practice room with Ben''s skateboard tucked under his arm. "What the hell happened?!" Ben asked. "What?" His tone was distant. "Your arm!" Ben exclaimed. "Oh. Right. I hit a Coyote on my way home yesterday." "How?!" Ben exclaimed. Clint yawned and sheepishly walked towards the guitar. "I was going pretty fast. It came out of nowhere." "Can you play?" Ben asked. "I can try." Clint replied. He opened the latches on the guitar case with his right hand. He picked it up by the neck and grabbed a chair. He tried the first few bars of Carry on my Wayward Son. Chord changes were either delayed or played wrong. "You sound like like a bigger pile of shit than usual." Ben said. "You''re really going to diss on a disabled man?" Clint asked. "You''re hardly disabled and you''re definitely not a man." Ben said. "Don''t I get at least some pity?" Clint asked. "Only the dog deserves pity." Ben said. "Coyote." Clint corrected. "Hey guys, any luck at sounding competent today?" Lina asked as she walked in to the room. "Opposite. Garbage collectors won''t even touch Clint now." Ben said. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! "Shut up." Clint said. Lina still hadn''t seen Clint''s arm. Although, she did notice the large bandaid on his forehead. As she walked closer to the two boys Clint stood up and angled it away from her, hiding it with his torso. "You know, something seemed off about your drums when I walked in. You should check the hi-hat." Clint said. She was close. He''d put his arm behind his back. She kept trying to glance around but he twirled in a semi-circle and avoided her gaze. "What are you doing?" She asked, jokingly. "Nothing. Just felt like moving around. I''ve been siting too long." Clint said. "Ah, then; you came extra early today?" Lina asked. "It''s Saturday, of course I did." She was a few feet away from him. She quickly dashed behind him but he spun around before she saw the bandages. "Just show her dude. You''re going to end up making it worse. Watch, she''ll tackle you." Ben said. Lina stopped making arcs around Clint. "Make it worse?" She asked. "Don''t get mad." Clint said. He brought his arm forward. "What the hell Clint." She said, plainly. "It happened last nig-" "Why didn''t you tell me?" She asked. "I didn''t want to worry you. I wasn''t sure how you''d react." He said. "You could have bled out and I wouldn''t even have gotten a goodbye." She said, with a strikingly melancholic tone. Ben snickered. "If I''d been on the verge of death I would have called. It''s only a scrape." She wiped an imaginary tear from her eyes. "I''m sure I wouldn''t even cross your mind. Same as last night." Clint ran his good hand through his hair. "You were my first thought. But-" he hesitated, "my phone broke." "Really? How''d you text me good morning then." "Telekinesis." He said. She snickered. "Can you play?" Lina asked. "Not well." Ben replied. "Yeah, my shoulder''s still stiff and moving my hand quickly makes the pain flare up." Clint said. "Well shit. So you''re going to lose a few weeks of practice. We''re already so behind." She said, mostly to herself. "I can still practice." Clint said. "You practice now; it''s going to take longer to heal." She said. Ben walked over to the chair where Clint had left his guitar and picked it up. Clint didn''t notice him. "I can''t just sit on my ass till it heals." Clint said. "You can still study. Learn the key''s. Maybe study chord progression. Actually get to know theory." Lina said. "Why would I do that." He said, disgusted. "It would help you stop playing random chords every few measures. You could even start improvising and composing if you really dedicate yourself these next few weeks. We could open with an original song." She winked at him. "That''s so much work." He said. "You said you didn''t want to sit on your ass." She said. "That isn''t what I meant." He replied. "I''ll send you some YouTube videos and a few websites later. But, as of now, you are officially banned from playing on any guitars." She said. "How are you going to enforce that?" He asked. Prisoner She took a lock out from her backpack and chucked it at Ben. He caught it midair, turned around, and locked one of the many empty instrument lockers at the end of the room. Inside was Clint''s guitar. The innocent prisoner. "Like that." She said. "What the hell Ben. You''re taking her side?" Clint asked. "Hey, it''s for the betterment of your health." Ben said sarcastically. "You just want to see me tortured." "Dude, you''ve been playing that thing nonstop ever since your sister bought it. You still sound as shitty as you did the day she gave it to you. It''s not like practicing is doing much." He shrugged and walked back to where his own, unopened, case lay. "You both suck." Clint said. Claudia walked in. "Clint, what happened to your arm?" She asked. "He beat up a Coyote." Ben said. "Really? It only bit his arm?" Claudia asked, skeptically. Clint joined in. "You see, I was holding it back with this arm. My forearm was in it''s mouth. With my free hand, I punched it." Clint said. "I thought Coyote''s didn''t attack people." Claudia said. "Well, It was rabid." Clint said. "That''s a better story than you running over the poor thing." Lina said. "You ran one over?!" Claudia asked. "Yeah. On my way home last night. It just came out of nowhere and I didn''t have time to stop. I flew off Ben''s skateboard and hit a stump." "Are you okay?" Claudia asked. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. "I took like three different pills and smoked half a joint before coming. For now, yeah." "Have you seen a doctor?" She asked. "No. My sister cleaned it up." "You should go see one. Get a note to excuse you from Shield''s for a bit." Ben suggested. "You''re right. I don''t need that kind of stress in my life right now." "Such a stressful class." Ben agreed. "You definitely can''t play. Why are you here?" Claudia asked. "I wanted to see if I could. These two barred me from trying further. My guitar''s in a cage right now." He pointed, with his good hand, at his guitar. Claudia said, "Hm, this could actually be a good thin-" "Me getting injured could be a good thing?" Clint interrupted. "Think about it." She was talking to Ben and Lina, "He''s going to get bored. He has no option but to study theory." "Oh no. Not you too." Clint said. "Why don''t you give him your old keyboard?" Lina asked. "That''s perfect." Claudia said. "I don''t want to learn the keyboard." Clint said. "I don''t think you have a choice anymore." Ben said. "My parents are dragging me on a hike after this. I''ll be back after sunset. You can pick it up tomorrow." Claudia said. "Yeah, sure." Clint said. "Are we ready?" Lina asked. Claudia quickly rushed over to a keyboard that was next to the drums and turned it on. "What are we playing?" Ben asked. "How about some Nirvana?" Lina asked. "Lithium?" Ben asked. "Yeah thats perfect. You got the guitar part?" She asked Claudia. "Let me listen to it first. Why don''t you sing the lead?" She told Clint. "I haven''t really sung before." "It''s not that hard. You have a decent ear. Im sure you can handle it." Lina plugged her phone in to an aux chord and the pre-chorus riff filled the room. "I think it''s tuned down a whole step." She told Lina. "Is it?" She asked. Claudia echoed the riff on the keyboard. Ben and Clint looked at each other. "You''ve played this before?" Ben asked. "No." She said. The drums came in and Lina echoed the drummer. "What the hell." Ben muttered. Lina and Claudia continued to echo the song. Not perfectly. But, competent. "Ready?" They asked after the song finished. "Yeah, sure." Ben said. "Don''t stress too much. Stick to power chords. It''s not that complicated." Claudia said. "What the hell are power chords?" He asked Clint. He looked blankly at Ben. Lina handed Clint her phone, they lyrics were on it. "Ready?" She asked. "Sure." Ben said. Claudia opened with a riff that almost sounded exactly like the original. Lina came in on the drums and Clint followed with the lyrics. "I''m so happy ''cause today I found my friends, they''re in my head. I''m so ha-" Ben came in. He played random chords for the first few measures. Some fit, most didn''t. Then he found the groove and started paying a simple descending two note bass line. The rest of the song was surprisingly coherent. "Wow." Ben said, "So that''s what happens when we get you off the guitar." "Shut up. You messed up at the beginning." Clint said. "But, I didn''t stop playing." Ben replied. "Let''s try again?" Lina asked excitedly. "Yeah." Clint said.