“Well, yeah.” Bryan had an almost offended look on his face.
“How do you know where I live?” I asked, hoping my voice sounded normal and he didn’t notice how tense I was.
“I live next door to you,” he said like I was a brain injury patient.
“Oh,” I said stupidly. I relaxed and shook my head. “Really?” I had been in that house all summer. How had I not noticed him before this?
I knew the answer. I hadn’t been paying attention. I had checked out once I arrived at my new foster home in Mesa.
“Yeah,” Bryan continued. “I wondered if I offended you somehow since you moved in two months ago and didn’t once acknowledge my existence until today.”
“Oh, no. I didn’t notice you. I’m sorry.”
“Well, I’m glad you have terrible aim.”
“What?”
“Do you not remember missing the garbage can and accidentally noticing me today?”
“Right,” I said. “Again, sorry about that.”
“Don’t be. I’m not. You ready?”
“If you’re sure it’s not too much trouble,” I said. Usually, I wouldn’t have dreamed of letting someone I barely knew come near where I lived, but for some inexplicable reason, I felt like he could be trusted. Or, at least, he didn’t mean me harm. My heart rate was already back to normal.
“I’m going that way anyway.”
“Right.” I was overcompensating. I felt like I had inconvenienced him and acted like a crazy person. I was off balance in general from today. Literally too, on the crutches. I needed some time alone to reset.
I followed Bryan out of the classroom, to our lockers, then out of and away from the school toward a residential neighborhood. On the left side of the street was a church with students pouring out of it.
“Do people normally have church services during the week here?” I asked.
“Those are the Mormons. You know, the kids who get a free period to leave campus and go to seminary at the church to learn about God and stuff. These guys must have seminary for their last period.”
“Oh,” I said. “I’ve never heard of this before.”
“Welcome to Mesa.”
Mesa was a suburb of Phoenix, Arizona, with a population of nearly half a million, and the latest stop during my tenure in foster care. Apparently, it had a lot of Mormons.
“Have you seriously not noticed the Mormons before?” Bryan asked.
“No.”
“Geez. Okay, I guess my self-esteem can recover now.”
“What?”
“If you didn’t notice the hoard of people leaving the church every Sunday, I don’t feel so bad that you didn’t notice me.”
“Oh.” I felt like a jerk.
“You know,” he said, changing the subject. “I heard they have to memorize scriptures and sing hymns every day.”
“Sounds campy.”
“Yeah, but what’s life without a little church?”
“Five days a week at school, plus one on the weekend? Sounds like a lot of church.”
“Maybe, but if you believe in something, why spend your time doing anything else?”
“Can’t argue with that logic,” I said. It basically described my obsession with researching stuff for my Hoax Files.
“And they all wear those rings that look like a shield with the letters CTR on them.”
“CTR?”
“Choose The Right.”
“Choose the right? Like everything has a right and wrong option? There are endless possibilities of not blatantly wrong options.”
“Are you speaking from experience?”
I hesitated. My life experiences had made me certain that I had no idea what the right thing to do was. I researched, so I had a lot of information, but not a lot of things I knew to be true. I tried to make the best choices with the highest probability of keeping me safe, but everything was a risk. I wasn’t about to tell Bryan about my Hoax Files, though. Describing my situation to a stranger had a high probability of getting me committed to a psych ward.
“Just a thought,” I said. “You know, life is full of gray areas. How do you navigate that into black and white?”
“So you’re a moral ambiguist?”
“I don’t think that’s a word. A relativist, perhaps. What's right for one isn't right for another. What's right for one may hurt others, so is it really right? There are too many variables.”
“True.”
We crossed the street into a residential neighborhood and turned right at the first street, where the only thing between the backyards and the school was the street we just crossed. Bryan stopped in front of the first house on the right. It was the closest house to the school and the church.
“This is your house, right?” He cocked his head toward the beige two-story structure, and my eyes followed his motion. It looked like every other house on the block. Suburbia. Bleh.
“Oh, yeah,” I said. “Not used to it yet, I guess.”
I took the lead, unlocked the door, and we entered the house. When we reached my room on the second story, I flipped on the light. On the right side wall were a desk and a window, against the next wall a bed with a blue comforter, and on the opposite wall two doors on either side of a chest of drawers. My green Army duffle bag was sticking out underneath the bed.
“This is my room,” I said. I hobbled into the room. Bryan followed me and set my school books on the desk next to the window. He pulled back the curtains, which had completely blocked the sunlight, and dust exploded everywhere. He coughed then poked his finger through the blinds to look out the window. I sat down on the bed and set the crutches down on the ground.
“Ha! Look here,” he said. He pulled open the blinds. “That’s my room.” He pointed to the second story window directly across from mine on the house next door, no more than eight feet away from mine.
“Time to get over yourself, Sera,” I said under my breath.
“What did you say?”
“I’m sorry I’ve been ignoring you the past few months.”
“My life was seriously lacking in intrigue, and it gave me something to think about. What’s life without a little intrigue?”
“Indeed,” I said. What would life be like without the intrigue of constantly wondering if someone was going to sneak up from behind and slit my throat?
“Seriously though,” Bryan continued. “Don’t worry about it. It’s expected here in Arizona. Neighbors don’t say hi. Haven’t you noticed every house is a fortress of solitude with a ten-foot cinder block wall surrounding it?”
“Now that you mention it,” I said. I don’t think I even looked at any of the houses, including the one I was living in, all summer. Of course I didn’t notice.
“Hey, where are your first three classes? I can probably come help you with your books.”
“I have gym first hour, so I won’t have any books. Second hour is E-234, and third is W-173.”
“I’m in the same buildings for those hours, so I can come to those rooms and help you.”
“That’d be great. Thank you again for everything.”
“Do you need help with anything else, or shall I just collect you in the morning?”
“Collect me?”
“You’ll need help carrying your books to school tomorrow, right?”
“Oh, right. I mean, are you sure?”
“Indeed.”
His play on my word was clever. He was clever. I liked it. “I’m good for today. I’d walk you to the door—”
“No need,” he interrupted. He turned toward the window and opened it. “I can go through here.” He started to climb out the window.
“What? No!” I hopped over to him. “You’ll break your legs!”
He looked over his shoulder at me. “What’s life without a little risk?” He faced forward and jumped.
I gasped, thinking for sure he would plummet to his death, but he effortlessly glided over, grabbed onto his window sill and hoisted himself up. His window was cracked open. He sat on the ledge and pushed it the rest of the way up. Then he swiveled his strong legs into his room while I stood flabbergasted.
“See you in the morning,” he called to me. He shut his window and closed the blinds.
I couldn’t speak, or move, or think. I just stood there, mouth agape. It wasn’t until a cat meowed and rubbed against my leg that I snapped out of my stupor.
“Hey, Clark,” I said, looking down at my foster mom’s black cat. I sat down in the chair at the desk, and the cat jumped up on my lap like he had every day since I moved in.
“How are you, little guy?” I said. He looked up at me with intense, light blue eyes and pushed his head against my hand, trying to get me to pet him. I scratched behind his ears, and he started purring. It was a great distraction from my overwhelming thoughts.
Eventually, I heard the garage door open and then footsteps coming up the stairs.
“Hi, Sera, dinner’s on the counter,” my current foster mom, Lucy, called through the door.
“Okay,” I called back.
I heard the door down the hall close, and my stomach growled. I tossed the cat on the bed and hobbled downstairs to the kitchen and found a couple of take-out boxes on the counter with a pale pink Post-it note on top.
Got Pad Thai, yellow curry, dumplings. I know you like those. Hope the first day of school went well.
–Lucy
P.S. The side of peanut sauce is for you.
I dug into the boxes and focused on the delicious food instead of all the things I didn’t want to think about.
The next morning as I was getting ready, I noticed I needed a haircut. I purposely kept my hair long, so I only had to spend money to get it cut once or twice a year, but it was in bad shape. I had lost some weight too. Apparently, I couldn’t be bothered to eat during my hibernation over the summer. My pants nearly fell off after I zipped them up, and my shirt hung loosely off my shoulders. I looked like a kid in her big sister’s hand-me-downs. I punched a new hole in my belt and cinched it around my waist.I carefully put on my shoes, wincing at the pain in my ankle, and heard what sounded like pebbles hitting my window. When I looked out, I saw Bryan in his room holding a giant bag of Skittles, eating a few then throwing one, eating a few then throwing one. This was my chance to fix the horrible first impression I had made, so I needed to make sure I seemed normal. I opened the window and a Skittle pelted me on the chin.“Eat up,” he called over to me. Balancing on my good foot, I
“For the love of—” I started. “Save the pissing contest for the locker room, boys,” I said, attempting to de-escalate the situation. “Give me my books, and I’ll manage myself.”“No, I got this,” Crew said, hiding my books behind his back.“Sera, do you want him to carry your books?” Bryan asked me, softening his demeanor.“What I want is to avoid making a scene,” I said, looking back and forth between the two of them. I couldn’t help but notice the students in the background watching us. It must have looked ridiculous to see me, a short, almost emaciated girl, between two tall, buff guys, trying to keep them from fighting each other. “So tell your guard dog to go, and we can get back to living our lives,” Crew said.I knew enough about Crew to know fighting would just make him more aggressive. Best to let him win. I faced Bryan. “I’m so sorry, Bryan,” I said. “He’s not going to let up. It’s easier to just go limp and let it happen. Will you still meet me after third hour?”“Of cours
True to his word, as soon as the bell rang to signal the end of third period, Bryan walked into the room. He let students clear out, then stopped in front of my desk and picked up my books. “Is this one of those better things you have to do?” Ashley asked after she looked him up and down. Bryan raised his eyebrows at me.“Bryan, this is Ashley,” I said, then picked up my crutches. “Ashley Abrams,” she said with a wave and a smile. “Bryan Farris.” He gave her a nod hello.“Bryan is my next door neighbor and a boy scout,” I continued, giving Ashley a look. “I thought I’d sprain my ankle so he could get his merit badge for charity.”“That was thoughtful of you,” Ashley laughed. “Helping out a boy scout.”“I’m not a boy scout. She’s making fun of me,” Bryan explained. He gave me a look, then turned back to Ashley. “I’m actually helping Sera so I can get out of class early.”“You two are a pair of comedians,” Ashley said. She stood up without losing her perfect posture. I don’t think a
“Oh my gosh,” Preeti gasped. She had been staring at Bryan but turned to me, her full lips making an “O” and her big eyes comically wide. “Are you the girl everyone’s talking about?”“Uh—” I looked back and forth between Preeti and Ella, taking in their eager expressions. “I think this has been blown out of proportion.”Ella’s head fell back, and her mouth dropped open. Then she laughed and looked at me. “I didn’t think we’d find out who the mystery girl was, much less eat lunch with her.”“There’s really nothing to this,” I said. Please let that be true, or let them get over this fast. I hoped their reactions didn’t represent the whole school. Though, it seemed like the rest of the school was doing all the messaging and spreading of the gossip. It looked like Ella had scrolled through a lot of commentary. I cursed. It was not good to be the topic of discussion for an entire school. Especially one this big. That’s how you get on the bad guys’ radar.“Oh, there’s a lot to this,” Ashley
“I guess that’s settled,” Ashley said, her green eyes going back and forth between Bryan and me. “Is it?” I asked hopefully. Maybe desperately.“Yeah. You’re a novelty. End of story.” She continued to study us, the pale, freckled skin of her forehead scrunching together. I sighed in relief, and Ashley glanced at Ella and Preeti.“I think we’ve made Sera uncomfortable enough for today,” she added when she realized her friends were having difficulty switching gears. “Let’s change the subject. Tell us about yourself, Sera.”Ella and Preeti focused on me, eager to get information.“There’s not much to know,” I said, grateful for the change in conversation. “I like to jog.”“Oh, and you’re on crutches,” Preeti said. “I’m sorry you can’t jog right now because of your injury.” “Thank you. I’ll survive.” I smiled. “What about all of you?”“Ashley does ballet,” Ella said, pointing to Ashley. “That’s where the long limbs and excellent posture come from. Unlike me, who stomps around ungracefu
“You’re both new here?” Ella asked, looking back and forth between Bryan and me. Alarm bells were ringing in my head like sirens.“Yeah,” Bryan answered. “So you didn’t already know each other?” Ella asked, her light brown eyes darting between us in confusion. “It seems like you two go way back.”“Uh,” I started, hoping I didn’t sound as rattled as I felt. “No. We met yesterday when Bryan saw me inelegantly sprain my ankle. The Good Samaritan in him felt obligated to help. Of course, that requires he shadow me, so, here we are,” I offered in explanation.“You’re such a gallant giant, Bryan,” Ashley joked while Preeti nearly swooned.“Well, I couldn’t just leave her there on the floor,” he joked back.“That’s why you call him a boy scout,” Ella said. “Yeah,” I mumbled.“Now we’re on the same page,” Ella continued. “Bryan is a giant, gallant boy scout because he steps up when he sees a girl get injured. We should get him a merit badge. I’m sure there’s something for rescuing a damsel
I’m never surprised when I spot a bad guy. They always show up eventually. Seeing the man who died saving my life when I was a child? Well, that made me look twice. Literally.I was on my way to second period at my new school, Sonoran Sunset High, when I noticed him from the corner of my eye. I did a double take, and my eyes locked onto him in disbelief. It felt like I was dreaming. My head turned to follow him in slow motion as I was transported into my very first memory—my boarding school being attacked, everyone inside killed, and the building burned to the ground. I only made it out alive because a teacher, Mr. Finn, shoved me out the door and told me to run while he stayed to fight. I assumed he was killed along with everyone else. Seeing him alive in the very hallway I was walking down was more than a shock. It took me a moment to snap out of my stupor. I needed answers about what had happened that day, about the monsters that attacked the school, where he had been all these
“Where’s your next class, Sera Frey?” Crew asked after class.“W-173,” I said on my way to the door. I knew this guy wouldn’t give up.“I’ll walk you there.” “I’d rather you didn’t.”“It’s no problem. My next class is in the West building too.”“Right. Because I was so worried about putting you out,” I said sarcastically. I couldn’t help but scan the crowd of students for Mr. Finn as we walked through the hallways. I knew the chances were slim that Mr. Finn was here, but maybe it hadn’t just been my imagination. Maybe I saw a real person who just happened to look like Mr. Finn. That would at least tell me I wasn’t having some kind of psychotic break. A sea of students fought to get around each other, and I grabbed onto Crew’s shirt so I could walk in his wake. He was a lot bigger than me and could better forge a path through the madness. I couldn’t see much. At five-foot-one-inch, I was considerably shorter than everyone walking by me. I wasn’t surprised when I didn’t spot Mr. Finn