Jayden

That water looks amazing. 

The school’s pool is crystal clear with Jerry, the school janitor, doing his best to clean it as he always does every morning with his net. He walks along the edges picking up any debris that has fallen in. The light from the ceiling windows dives right into the water, making the small ripples glisten. 

The janitor smiles at me and I smile back, but soon enough my eyes are back on the clear chlorine water, finding calm within it. I really want to swim, I really want football season to end. I want the school to budget correctly and fix the pool heater. My finger caresses the page of my all but forgotten calculus book, and the sight of the water calms my nerves for the incoming exam. 

“Jay, are you even listening to me?” 

I blink repeatedly and my gaze turns to my girlfriend, who has been speaking non-stop. “Ye–” I start but her warning glare makes me answer truthfully, “No.” I sigh, “I stopped listening when you started talking about how all of the candles turned off.” 

“You sound like you don’t believe me,” she accuses and I nod.

“Either he’s a really good hoax, or you drank magic brownies.” 

She punches my shoulder and I laugh, knowing she hates it when I bring up the time someone convinced her to eat weed brownies by calling them “magic brownies.”

“That was freshman year, don’t be a jerk.”

“So what happened? Aren’t you well-deserving for trying to make him look like an idiot? Trying to expose his “false” actions?”

“The guy is a joke! Of course, I wanted to expose him as a fraud. Instead, he made me look like an idiot.” 

I chuckle, “Actually, the video floating around the internet makes it look like you went crazy, I wouldn’t say an idiot.”

That earned me another punch. “Stella, you’re gonna bruise my good arm.”

Her eyes move skyward before settling their line of sight on the pool. She leans back on the bleachers, her backpack becoming a pillow. 

I give in and look at her, “Why didn’t you just mind your business?”

“Because I don’t like him. People in this damn town go to that stupid shop of his to get tricked. ”

“Well… people ask for it. He just gives them what they want.”

“It’s not right Jayden. He takes people’s hope of talking to their dead loved ones and exploits it for money. Him and that old hag Rose. Something has to be done.”

I close my calculus book and turn fully towards her. Normally this is the part where she asks me to do something I don’t like. “And?”

“And I want to do something about it. If I figure out how he does it, I can ruin it next time and expose him. I can put it in the school paper. Hell, even in the town paper.”

“Alright Ms. Myth-Buster, what variable am I in this twisted experiment, because I’m not following.”

“Get close to him, become his friend or something. Find out how he tricks people.”

“...Okay.” I glance at the time on the billboard and start packing my bag. “I don’t wanna.”

Again she punches my shoulder. 

“Okay, ow. You gotta stop doing that.”

“Come on, it’s not like I’m asking you to date him.”

“I don’t even know the guy. Heck, we had an assignment in History. We split the work, and turned it in without ever even talking to one another.”

“Come on, Jayden,” she pouts, her green eyes pleading, “We’re not hurting anyone by outing him as a bad person. Right now everyone is laughing along with him. I hate being laughed at.” 

I let out a heated huff, “Fine, I’ll befriend him and find out, if it helps you sleep at night.”

She smiles, her blonde locks bouncing as she stands getting ready to leave, “Gracias.” 

“Uhuh.” 

“Also, can I borrow forty bucks?”

“Again?”

She pouts, “Yeah sure I send it to your account.”

“Double, Gracias!”

I follow her while waving bye to Jerry. 

○ ○ ○

Our calculus teacher finishes setting up before calming the idle chatter of the classroom down. 

Vaim sits at the desk in front of me, his head down and asleep. One of his friends sits beside him playing with a rubber band, and it seems a member of his usual clique is missing. The chair on the other side of him is empty, and I get an idea. I look around and raise my hand. 

“In a minute Jayden,” Mr. Buddoh replies, “I want to make an announcement first.”

I bounce my leg, hoping that Vaim doesn’t wake up anytime soon. 

“Alright everyone, Principal Jones wanted to provide a message to please stop feeding and giving the raccoon items. Selfies with the raccoon are also prohibited. It is believed that during certain exam dates, the raccoon has been made to enter the classroom to cause a disruption. This is due to the animal having become fond of students. If you see the raccoon, you are to scare it. If not, the raccoon will be caught and put to sleep. We don’t want that, do we?”

A unanimous chorus of no’s erupted before everyone chattered and giggled over the raccoon. I raise my hand, my gaze on the seat I want, but suddenly Vaim is being shaken awake as his friend points towards the window. 

At the window, the infamous raccoon is pushing the screen up. 

“Mr. Bahdoo, Trash is opening the window!”

The teacher turns to the window and then dashes towards the classroom phone, “For crying out loud!” 

The raccoon the school has named Trash Panda scurries towards the exit of the classroom before anyone can say anything else. My classmates laugh and others have their phones out recording the scene. 

“I love that raccoon,” Chris mentions beside me, laughing. His own phone is recording the scene. 

“Everyone please quiet down as I speak with security.” Mr. Bahdoo says with a serious tone, but the slight upward twitch on his lips doesn’t escape me. I put my hand down, giving up. 

How am I going to be friends with Vaim when I can’t even ask to sit next to him?

The commotion in the room only becomes noisier when the owner of the chair runs into the room. The teen sits at his table next to Vaim who is shaking his head at his tardiness. The dark-haired kid across from Vaim laughs. 

“Alright, alright everyone, let’s take the test.”

○ ○ ○

Five before the bell and I am holding back to my exam, moving my pencil aimlessly over my paper. Every so often I pretend to type something in my calculator but my gaze is focused on the boy in the other group. He is fiddling with his pencil and staring at his exam paper. He’s nervous. 

“Dude stop,” Chris whispers beside me, and I look down at my leg which has been bouncing uncontrollably since the beginning of class. 

“I would if you stopped sighing, every five seconds,” I reply in the same range.

“I’m nervous! I’m sorry I’m not a math genius like you,” he whispers back hotly. 

“Jayden, Chris, keep it up and I’ll give you both zeroes.” Chris tenses and his head whips down to his test. 

The bell ringing commands my leg to stop bouncing. Even though my test was long done, I feel a cold sweat down my brow. My gaze goes back to Vaim who is writing on his paper.

“Time’s up, everyone who hasn’t submitted their test please hand them over.”

 Why do I feel anxious? Just waiting for him is making my chest uncomfortable.

“Dude, are you coming?” Chris questions packing his bag, to which I shake my head.

“Okay then? See you at lunch.”

 I don’t respond worried I’ll lose sight of Vaim. The boy finally stands submitting his exam, and I quickly do the same shoving my pencils in my backpack and getting up. He goes to Mr. Buddoh to submit his work and I follow behind watching as he then turns to get his backpack like the other students. I turn to mimic after submitting my exam.

“Jayden, stay a moment.” I freeze in my tracks and look at my teacher.

“What? Why?” My head whips towards Vaim who is leaving the classroom with other students. Great.

“You took a while to finish this time.”

I hold back a groan and turn my attention to Mr. Buddoh. “Yeah sorry, it was hard this time.” 

“Uhuh. I’m not gonna ask why you are lying, or why you were staring at Vaim and stalled on submitting your exam.”

“What, I wasn’t staring.”

The man raises his hand, “I said I wouldn’t even ask. I do want to ask though, are you willing to tutor some students for me?”

“Uuh,” I fail to make words and stumble upon what does come out, “I don’t know Mr. Buddoh. I’m really busy with football.” 

“You take what, fifteen minutes to do my homework instead of the hour? Lend me that free time. In return, I’ll give you service hours and credit. I was told you haven’t completed the time you need to graduate.”

I look back towards the door, “Okay, fine. But I really gotta go Mr. B.”

“Thank you, Jayden. You are dismissed. Oh, and here’s a late pass for second period.”

I nod with a thank you and run out hoping I can find Vaim in the crowd of students. I jolt, and everyone starts running at the sound of the last bell. Double Great.