Junior Year Box Set

The video switched to a more positive note. There was a clip from my music video as I ran. Then it showed me hit a home run, followed by a long pass for a touchdown. We switched to winter sports, showing me on a snowboard as I cut through virgin snow, and racing on a snowmobile. The next-to-last scene was of the four stooges, the young wolves, as I drove them off. The final scene was of me as Stryker from my upcoming movie. I hadn’t seen it with all the CGI added. It was damned cool as I looked out over a burning town with both of my guns drawn. It was so frickin’ cold there was steam coming off of my head, and there was smoke coming out of the barrels of the guns.

“Was that really you? That wasn’t a stunt double?” Ms. Lowden asked.

“I saw him fall out of the sky,” Zoe said.

Of course, they showed me dry-heaving. Needless to say, we didn’t get much math done today.

◊◊◊

By lunchtime, the Lincoln High Gossip Network was in full swing. I’d forgotten to order lunch for my college test prep class, so I was in the lunch line. Alan was stuck to me like glue. Some days I missed Jeff like crazy. When Alan was like this, I was afraid I’d punch him. Then the lunchroom suddenly became quiet. I turned around to see why and saw Billy, our local police officer, was behind me.

“Can you come with me?” he asked.

“What did you do now?” Alan asked.

I ignored him and left with Billy. I didn’t want to feed the masses any more gossip than was necessary, so I figured it would be better to talk to Billy in the hall. When I stepped out of the lunchroom, there was a detective standing in the hallway, waiting for us. I assumed he was a detective because he was older and in a well-worn suit.

“Thanks, Billy, I can take it from here,” the detective said. “David, I’d like for you to come to the station and we have a talk.”

“How can I help you?” I asked.

“You tell me,” the detective said.

Cute. If he had something on me, he wouldn’t be so pleasant or playing any games. I decided to jerk his chain a little bit.

“I can’t just leave the campus. We have to go to the office to sign me out,” I said, and started in that direction.

“I don’t think that’s necessary,” the detective said.

“Am I under arrest?” I asked.

“No.”

“Then I’m not getting into more trouble just to help you somehow.”

I loved our school secretaries. They made him show them ID and sign me out. I now knew he was Detective Christopher Kitchens. While he did that, I sent a text to my mom and dad to let them know I was being taken to the police station for questioning.

When we arrived at the police station, I said ‘hi’ to everyone there. They all knew me because they worked security at the games. The detective put me into an interrogation room and left me to stew. I knew the drill from the last time I’d gotten into trouble. They had made me sweat for a half hour and then started the interrogation. Since I wasn’t arrested this time, they hadn’t taken my cell phone. I called my mom.

“Where are you?” she asked.

“In an interrogation room.”

“We’re almost there. I’ve called Tom and put him on standby in case we need him,” she said. “Okay, we’re here.”

I soon heard my mom’s loud voice through the wall. The door opened, and the detective’s face was red.

“Give me your phone,” he ordered.

I quickly shut it down. My new phone was hack-proof. I had no intention of giving it up and having them try to find something to pin on me. I wasn’t really sure they could take it from me, but at this point I wanted to cooperate so this whole mess would go away. The longer it went on, the more damage it might do to my career.

I handed him my phone, and a moment later my mom and dad joined me.

“What’s this all about?” Mom asked.

I think the detective saw his plans to scare me and ask me some questions without anyone else in the room go out the window. He momentarily showed a sign of irritation, but quickly covered it up.

“I was hoping David could help me clear up a matter, so I brought him down to answer some questions.”

“Does he need an attorney?” Mom asked.

“No, but if he has something to hide, he might want to get one,” Detective Kitchens said. “You don’t have anything to hide, do you, David?”

“Of course I do,” I said, and the expression on the detective’s face was worth it. “I’m a teenager!”

Mom gave me a look that told me to stop messing around. I put on my best ‘little angel’ face.

“Right,” Detective Kitchens said, and I was glad I wasn’t alone in the room with him. “Well, then, let me ask you some questions.”

Dad’s phone buzzed. He looked at it and excused himself.

“Do you know Pam Bell?”

“Yes,” I answered.

“What is the nature of your relationship?”

“We’re friends.”

“How good of friends are you?”

“I don’t understand the question.”

“Have you had sexual relations with Pam Bell?”

“Yes.”

“Pam claims to be pregnant. Is it your child?”

“I would have to talk to Pam to be sure.”

“She claims it’s yours.”

“If Pam says the baby’s mine, then I’d have to agree.”