The last few days before school started were filled with excited anticipation for Cami and anxious dread for me. Everything new and different was fun for her and torture for me. But having a friend who was so excited helped me feel better.
“You’re not going to leave me, right Cami?”
“Gosh, you sound like a little kid. Come on, it’s high school, we should be handle it by ourselves.”
“Well, maybe you can, but I’m not sure. Could you just say ‘yes’? It would make me feel so much better.”
Cami sighed. “Alright, if it would make you stop stressing over it; yes, I’ll stay by you during the first day. Do you need me to hold your hand?”
Her sarcasm was a layer nastier than I was used to, but I wasn’t about to call her on it, in case she changed her mind about sticking with her. So I decided to laugh it off.
“No, I don’t think you’ll have to, although I might need someone to tie my shoes.”
***
The first day of high school came and went without serious incident. Cami stayed true to her promise and stuck by me. My clothes did not fall off, I did not say something stupid when I introduced myself in each class, and I got my locker open, no problem. Our new high school, Southland High, was much more prison-like than Sir. John A. Junior High had been. Most of the classrooms didn’t have windows, and the maze of hallways scared me. I was quite sure that I would get lost in the labyrinth someday, a fear which Cami laughed off.
However, day two at Southland held teenage trauma which neither Cami or I could laugh off.
The day had started well enough. The bus picked me up on schedule, after I had spent an hour primping in preparation. Cami was waiting for me on the bench outside the school, so we could go in together. We walked to our homeroom together, and then split ways for our second period.
That’s when all the trouble started. I was on my way to the art classroom for my one art elective, Drawing. I knew that it was in Quad B, Hallway 2, Classroom 6. I started off in what I thought to be the direction of Quad B. I had obviously asked the wrong upper-classman for directions, because I soon found myself in the gym area. There were no students in the hallway, and I was starting to pick up on my misstep, when the bell rang.
“Noooo!” That was the worst sound in the world, because it meant that I would be late for the first day of a new class. Who knew what the teacher would do, probably make an example of me, and the only student stupid enough to be late on the first day. I turned in a circle, ready to run at top speed to the classroom, but I realized I had no idea with way to run.
Just as I was beginning to feel panic slipping in, I heard a noise coming from behind one of the doors in the hallway. I walked closer and read Janitorial Closet #5 written on a small plastic sign on the door. I considered the options – the sound could be coming from some person who got trapped in the closet accidentally. In that case, if I opened the door, I would be greatly thanked and likely pardoned for being late to class. Another option was that it was a couple making out, in which case opening the door would lead to all-around embarrassment and likely a little yelling. Not a nice option. A final choice was even worse. Perhaps it was a large rodent, or even worse, a snake that had come in through the ventilation. In that case, if I opened the door I didn’t even want to consider what would happen.
In a split-second decision, I decided to be brave and adventurous for once and just open the door. My many years of reading Choose Your Own Adventures had taught me well: the cautious route was usually the most boring and led to the quickest end. But as I reached for the handle, another rustling sound came out and I jumped back. “Never mind.” I thought to herself, “at least the cautious choice gets you home in one piece, if I open that door I’ll probably be attacked by wild animals.” And with that I ran off to find my classroom.
I recounted the whole story to Cami over lunch. We generally got a bad hand in our schedules; we had almost nothing the same. Fortunately we shared the two most important periods: homeroom and lunch. We also had the best lunch time, the one right at 12. So we’d always meet at the same table, in the back of the cafeteria near the pop machines. Then we’d spend most of our lunch telling each other of our morning experiences and gossiping about classmates.
When Cami heard that I had just left without seeing what was behind the door, she nearly flipped out. Then she knocked over her flimsy plastic chair in her hurry to stand up. “Well, come on. We have only 10 minutes to go find that closet and figure out what is inside. You chicken?”
That kind of jeering rarely worked on me. I was entirely too rational to be goaded into something because of my pride. Still, I had been thinking about that closet all morning, and I would feel better about my safety at school if I knew what was behind that door. If Cami was brave enough to check, I could at least be brave enough to show her the door. So we quickly dropped off our trays.
I figured the easiest way to find the place I had been when I had gotten lost, would be to aim in the same direction, and intentionally get lost again. Once again we headed towards Quad B. The flaws in our plan would only become apparent later.
“Okay, Bryce, I’m pretty sure we’re lost. Are we there yet?”
“Cami, chill, okay? I told you I don’t know where it is, we have to just keep walking until something looks familiar or we hear a sound.”
“Yes, but that could be years from now.”
“Oh, be patient. And stop being so melodramatic.”
“Melodramatic?! You’re the one who thought that a rustling sound in a janitorial closet constituted a threat to your safety.”
I was about to think of a clever comeback when I was stopped by the sound of something falling. I grabbed Cami’s arm. “What was that?!”
“You are such a scaredy-cat. It’s nothing. It’s coming from over there. Oh, didn’t you say it was a janitorial closet?”
“Yes.”
“Well, does this one look familiar? Maybe it’s the same thing making sounds.”
“You check.” I took a few steps back. My heart was racing and I shot a quick glance to both ends of the hall to plan my escape. Irrational fear or not, my body was in fight or flight mode.
“Here goes!” Cami sounded awfully cheerful. I hoped it was just a show, and that she was just trying to cover her inner fear. But I suspected she really just was not afraid at all, and was enjoying herself.
She turned the handle and the door swung in. The lights were out, but the sounds had gotten louder. “Hello?” She called out, feeling around for a light beside the door frame. She found the switch and flipped it on. The fluorescent bulb flashed for a moment then glowed in blue intensity. Her eyes adjusted slowly to the light. All I could see was her short frame in the doorway, and the bare bulb hanging above her head.
“Cami!” I whispered tersely. “What is it!?”
“It looks like a…? Yikes, I don’t know, it’s hiding under that shelve. Maybe a rat?”
“Eeew. I’m going to leave then.”
“No, wait. If that’s a rat then it’s awfully big one.”
“Exactly. I’m not waiting around to see how big janitorial closet rats can grow. I’m walking away…”
“Bryce, get back here. I think it’s a kitten.”
With that she had my full attention. “Oh, no. A little kitten stuck in there! That is so sad. Can you pick it up?”
“Yup, here it is. Oh, it’s so cute! It looks healthy and well-fed – it can’t have been stuck in here long.”
“Oh, I want to hold it” I called to Cami, suddenly brave. “Sooo cuute!”
“HEH! What are you doing?”
We had been so busy gushing over the kitten, we hadn’t even noticed the sound of approaching footsteps.
“Put Muffin down!”
We both turned to look at the source of the rather nasty voice.
“BRADLEY!” Cami and I shouted in unison. The sound of our high pitched squeals was enough to spook the kitten, and so Muffin clawed her way out of Cami’s hands. We both screamed as she fell to the ground, but of course she landed on her feet, a little dazed, a raced back under the shelve.
“What did you do?” Bradley had not changed his accusatory tone. “How did you find her?”
Cami seemed to see this as another opportunity to make inroads in her ‘relationship’ real or imaginary, with Bradley. “Well, we hear the noise and we thought it might be an animal who was trapped or hurt. We were just looking out for the well-being of animals.
Bradley’s scowl softened. “Well, alright then. But you have to swear that you’re not going to tell anyone.”
“Tell anyone what?” I piped in. “That your cat lives in the janitorial closet?”
“No, Muffin doesn’t live here all the time, only while I’m at school. It’s not that long, and I leave her litterbox and some food and water. She’s fine. She’s not bothering anyone. But if the school found out I know they wouldn’t let me keep her here. So you have to promise.”
“Sure Bradley” Cami smiled coyly, “I promise. Bryce does too.” Then she gave me a sharp elbow jab, pointing out that I should give verbal consent.
“Okay.” I muttered. “I won’t tell anybody. But I just don’t think it’s a very good place for a cat to live, even if it’s just during the day. Why don’t you leave her at home?”
“I have my reasons, and I don’t need to explain them to ninth graders like you.” I could feel Cami stiffen at Bradley’s words. I felt like I should step in to smooth things over.
“Well, Bradley, now that we know maybe we can help you. We could take turns checking in on Muffin, give her more water, play with her so she doesn’t get lonely.”
Cami picked up on my drift, “Yah, you don’t want to have to worry about her all by yourself do you? We could do a great job, and I know we could be very sneaky.”
Bradley was kneeling on the floor with his head next to the shelf, trying to coax Muffin out. “Why should I trust you? You dropped Muffin and now she’s traumatized.”
“Oh, whatever. She’s just overwhelmed by your big head blocking the hole. If you stood up, she’d come out.” One thing I admired about Cami is how she could bounce back. Someone could say or do something hurtful, she could accept that hurt and move on. The fact that Bradley had dismissed us as just ninth-graders had obviously shocked her, but she had shortly after regained her composition and control of the situation. Bradley had taken her command and stood up, and as predicted, Muffin came padding out.
“That is one cute kitten. Why did you name her Muffin?”
“’Cause it’s cute.” Bradley made sure Muffin was inside the closet, then he turned off the light and shut the door. “So you two really want to help?”
“Yup.” Cami said. “Anything you need.”
“Well, I do have problems checking in on her in the afternoons, because I have all my classes over in Quad D and I can’t make it here and back in between classes. I tried yesterday and I was five minutes late for economics. I guess if you wanted to look in on her then, it’d be okay.”
Bradley was playing it cool, but I knew he must have really wanted our help or else he would have just dismissed us as a liability. Cami didn’t give him a chance to reconsider his decision.
“Sure, we’ll do it every day. And if you want to know how she’s doing or anything you could always call me and we could go out on the weekend. To talk about Muffin, of course.”
I was shooting Cami friendly looks of “you’re sounding desperate” but surprisingly Bradley either disagreed with my assessment or was just utterly polite.
“Sure, I’ll do that” he said sweetly to Cami, with no hint of sarcasm.
The bell rang as Cami was composing her reply.
“Oh no! Late for the second time today !” I moaned to myself as I ran off down the hall again.
***
And so, our school days were filled with another joy, daily afternoon trips to visit Muffin. It was entirely therapeutic for us both. Bradley had not yet come through on his promise to call Cami and set up a date to talk, but she still had high hopes. She had attended her first meeting of the Shakespeare troupe, and had strategically sat the row behind Bradley. After the meeting, she had made a point of casually bumping into him and trying to discuss school, Shakespeare and cats as if she was a grade 11 student. I heard all her stories, and still didn’t believe she was fooling anyone, least of all Bradley. Still, I admired her gumption and persistence.
The third week of school came and went without any major highs or lows. Cami and I settled into routine. We still sat next to each other in homeroom and at lunch, but she had made a place in one of the gaggle of girls that seemed to wander the halls in packs. She assured me that it wouldn’t change our friendship, although I was somewhat suspicious when she cut her hair to look like theirs. “What?!” She had defended herself. “It has nothing to do with them, it’s just the latest style.”
“Whatever.” I tried not to judge. I had made a few new friends of my own, although by few I do really mean few. Two, to be precise. Freddy was a computer geek who liked to tell math jokes that I never, ever understood. He was a sweetheart though – which I found out when I missed a class, and he had considerately picked up the handouts and taken notes for me. My other new friend was Ya-Ting, a second-generation immigrant from China, who was at least two times smarter than me in any and every subject. She was the kind of friend it was very helpful to have when it came time to study for something. She was also very polite and very reserved, which suited my personality perfectly. After spending all summer with the dominant, in-your-face, type-A Cami personality; it was a refreshing change to talk to Ya-Ting, and feel like an equal who was often right and was usually the one called on to make decisions. Of course, nothing would change the bond that Cami and I had, but Freddy and Ya-Ting made my other classes more fun, and provided a foil to Cami’s occasional brashness.
One day, the three of us were sitting outside on the grass, waiting for our P.E. teacher to show up. Mr. Johnson was a notoriously late teacher. No one really knew why he would so often be 5 or 10 minutes late, although many a student had made wild and inappropriate guesses. Ya-Ting, Freddy, and I passed the time by engaging in just such a conversation.
“So, what do you think Mr. Johnson does when he’s late? Do you think he’s smoking pot in his office?” Freddy asked us mischievously.
“No, Freddy! There’s no way that a teacher could smoke in the offices – they are too close together. The other teachers would pick up on it. No, I think that he is addicted to an online role playing fantasy game, and he can drag himself away from the magical world where he is Merlin, the all-powerful warlock, who fights the dragons and saves the beautiful damsel in distress.”
“I think it’s much simpler than that” Ya-Ting added quietly. “I think his office is all the way over in Quad B, and if he has to go back to his office between classes it would be impossible for him to return here in time for the next class.”
“Ya-Ting, you are way too realistic. Sure, that story makes sense, but where’s the drama, the excitement?” Freddy always had a way of trying to twist anything and make it exciting. Boredom would be next to death for Freddy, and he was always searching for ways to stave it off. “Besides, a far-away office doesn’t explain why he’s just so…weird. Pot does!”
“You two make me laugh.” I told them. They did, although it was usually the contrast between their two points of view that really got to me. They were stereotypical opposites. “Surely you have better mysteries to spend your precious mental energy solving?”
Freddy pretended to ponder this for a moment. “No, I think our P.E. teacher is one of the greatest mysteries in the world. But if there was to be a second-greatest, I think it would be that conundrum in grade 11.”
My ears perked up. I never really talked to Ya-Ting and Freddy about Cami and her relationship issues, so they had no idea about Bradley. It couldn’t be…
“You mean that boy named Bradley?” Ya-Ting politely supplied.
Amidst my shock, Freddy jumped right on it. “YES! That’s his name – Bradley. There’s some great, dark secret he is hiding, I just know it.”
Ya-Ting laughed. “Well, I can save you the brain power, I know Bradley’s deep, dark secret.”
“You do?” Freddy and I yelped in unison, Freddy out of curiosity and me out of surprise.
“Yes, I do. I found out a few weeks ago that Bradley brings his little cat to school everyday and hides it in a janitorial closet. He stops in to feed it and play with it, and then takes it home in his backpack everyday. No one really knows why, of course, but everyone seems to know not to tell the teachers.”
“Huh.” Freddy seemed duly unimpressed. Not much of a mystery there. I, on the other hand was fascinated. So everyone knew about Bradley’s cat, that was news to me. And yet no one knew why. Of course, there could be a perfectly logical explanation, but in the hours I had devoted to thinking about this issue in the past, the most common conclusions I came to were all most sensational.
“Maybe we should investigate.” I suggested coyly. Doesn’t it just sound like a Choose Your Own Adventure Book? We can call it The Mystery of the Hidden Cat.”
“You are cuckoo about those books, you know you’re the only one obsessed with them?!”
I felt like telling Freddy about Cami’s and my adventures, but I knew he wouldn’t understand, and somehow it felt a bit like betraying Cami. Still, I had to defend my reading habits. “Well, it’s not like they are the only books I read, I’m quite a fan of Shakespeare, too.”
Freddy rolled his eyes, but Ya-Ting nodded politely. “That’s impressive.” She said, without any real emotion to give away what she truly thought.
I continued on, nodding acceptance of Ya-Ting’s deference and choosing to ignore the scorn from Freddy. “I enjoy all sorts of literature, and I find no shame in the fact that I occasionally enjoy having my own adventure and choosing my own path. There’s nothing wrong with that, especially since we have very little other choices for available adventures at this point in your life.”
“Speak for yourself.” Freddy laughed heartily. “I have an adventure everyday. It’s called I Survive High School. If I survive, maybe I’ll write a novel of my experiences someday.”
“You should, Freddy, I’d buy it.” Ya-Ting smiled sweetly at him, and I secretly wondered if she really felt as platonic towards him as she insisted she did. That would be an issue to grill her on later. But for now I felt the need to get the conversation back on track.
“Wait just a second, Freddy, you’re trying to change the subject. I was suggesting we partake of some investigating and detective work. You in or you out? What about you, Ya-Ting, ready to discover the true story that lies behind the mystery of Bradley’s cat?”
My excellent promotional skills did not have the expected rousing effect. Still, Ya-Ting and Freddy both gave me half-hearted nods. Whatever. That was enough for me.
“Alright then! Tomorrow we will start making our game plan. We’ll be the three musketeers on the search of the truth.”
And with that, we left our comfy place under the shady oak, and stumbled into the bright sunshine, ready for P.E. class to publicly humiliate us all.
***
For some reason, after that day life seemed to get extremely chaotic. There was never enough time to get everything done. I found myself pulled in all different directions, but my family, Cami, Ya-Ting and Freddy, even Muffin. Any time I had to just sit and read was quickly absorbed. Between homework and maintaining relationships, I never really had time to make up a plan to find out why Bradley kept Muffin at school. And the more time past, the less and less I cared.
About Us: We're just two friends, off to choose our own adventures!Carole Nickle
Name: Carole
Current Home: Various Locales, You have to choose a country, so..., South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands
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