“Hey, Ashley, are you alright?” Tabitha asked, suddenly bringing Ashley’s train of thought back to reality.

“What? No, I’m fine. I’m just tired.” Ashley picked up her pencil and rolled it between her fingers before turning back to her friend. “What are we supposed to be doing right now?”

“I knew you’d been zoning out for a while. See the problems up on the board?” Tabitha gestured up to front of the room, where a couple of quadratic equations were projected up on a screen. “We’re supposed to be figuring them out by ourselves or in groups. Which is why I called out to you. Wanna work together?”

“Of course!” Ashley started copying the original equations into her notebook, before stopping to look at Tabitha once more. “What’s the quadratic formula again?

“Ashley, we’ve been working with the quadratic formula all week. We have a song for it to the tune of Pop goes the Weasel. You really need to memorize this before the next quiz.”

“I know, I know, but can you give me just a teensy little hint?” Ashley begged. The friends worked through their math, checking each other’s mistakes and comparing work. Somehow, they ended up finishing the problems before some of their classmates, leaving them with some free time to talk before the lesson continues.

“So, what have you been thinking about instead of paying attention?” Tabitha asked.

“Nothing, actually. I feel weird… I’m probably getting sick again.”

“Maybe you caught something running around yesterday in shorts. It is getting cold outside.”

“But it didn’t feel cold when we were fighting. Actually, now that you mention it, do you think it’s related to the fire thing? I wonder if Edwin was cold. We need to ask him about that at lunch.”

“You better not get sick, with the fate of the world resting on your shoulders. I don’t think Mateo would give you a day off.”

“Where is Mateo? I haven’t seen him since he ran off with Sarah yesterday. Doesn’t he usually hang around with you?”

“He didn’t show up today. Most mornings he’ll appear when I’m walking to school, and he’ll stick around in my bag for a little bit. I wonder what he’s up to?”

“If he doesn’t show up later, Edwin and I need to speak to you in private. Edwin’s brother told us some stuff and you should probably know about it.”

“Edwin has a brother?”

“Yeah, he’s in high school.”

“Why didn’t he ever tell us about him?”

“When has Edwin ever told us anything about his life? I swear, he’s a mystery. Did you know he likes to cook?”

“What?”

“He mentioned it when we were fighting yesterday. I think that’s the most I know about him.”

“Okay, everyone just about finished with these problems?” Mr. Davis interrupted the pair, returning attention back to the front of the classroom. “We’re going to start going over the answers. Are there any confident volunteers who want their work to be used as an example for this first problem?”

-----

Edwin met up with Tabitha and Ashley at lunch, and the trio set off for the library. Hopefully, the school newspaper would be set out in a stack at the returns desk, and they could see what Sarah had published in the current week’s edition. They reached the double-doors to the library, propped open by small chunks of wood. The librarian was missing from her seat behind the counter, but the newspapers were clearly visible. Each of them took a copy, and began skimming the pages.

The dangers of the newest rubber band bracelet fad…. New fundraiser starting for better equipment in the computer lab…. Why the new vending machines with only diet soda are worse than the original machines…. Ashley couldn’t find anything about their heroic escapades. She sighed with relief as she finished the final page, looking up to see Tabitha and Edwin had already finished reading.

“Looks like whatever Mateo did really worked.” Edwin said, placing his newspaper back on the pile.

“Or, Sarah’s just compiling information so she can write a super long article next week! I don’t trust her to drop this so quickly.” Tabitha huffed, returning her poorly folded newspaper to the stack with a thwack.

“Well, it looks like we’re safe for now.” Ashley added. “Let’s head back, I’m starving.” She led the group back to the staircase, when she noticed movement in the shadows of the stairwell. “Guys, I think I just saw a mouse.” Edwin and Tabitha stopped cold, and Ashley pointed to the corner. The three were silent, curious and a bit frightened to see if the animal was real.

“A mouse, really? I think I’d at least count as a rat in your book.” Mateo spoke up from behind the trio, causing them all to jump. “Follow me, we need to talk.” Mateo said as he walked back into the hallway.

“But what if someone sees you?” Edwin whispered.

“It’s clear for now, so hurry up!” Mateo barked. The trio accepted his orders, and he led them to a nearby supply room.

“Hey! We’re not supposed to go in here! And it’s locked!” Ashley whispered. The door handle began glowing and clicked itself open. Mateo looked up at Ashley, smugly, and walked in. When they had all gotten inside, the door shut itself.

Mateo had led them into one of the school’s books rooms, where extra textbooks were stored away in large piles on old bookcases. The furniture was pushed so close together that teachers could barely navigate the cluttered room. Mateo found himself a stool to jump up on, giving him a bit more vertical authority over the kids. “Yesterday, I spoke with your classmate, Sarah. Nice kid. She was quite determined to write a story about you two. I couldn’t get her to change her mind, but she did agree to postpone the article she was working on. In exchange, you two will be interviewed by her this afternoon.”

“You told her what?!” Ashley shouted.

“Quiet down. You wouldn’t want one of your precious teachers to find you in here, would you?” Mateo scoffed. Ashley flushed red and looked to the floor. “She’ll be meeting you behind the school at 2:45. Don’t be late.”

“Do we really have no say in this?” Edwin asked.

“That girl drove a hard bargain. I assure you, this is all in your best interest.” Mateo looked over the three, and nodded to himself. “Well, I won’t keep you any longer. Farewell!” He jumped up and burst into a flash of light, disappearing.

Ashley turned back to the door, grabbing the handle tightly to vent her anger with Mateo. She shoved the handle down, only to have it not move an inch. Wiggling it, she quickly realized the door was still locked.