Chapters (95)
- Front Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Contents
- Video #1
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Video #2
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sixty
- Sixty-One
- Sixty-Two
- Sixty-Three
- Sixty-Four
- Sixty-Five
- Video #3
- Sixty-Six
- Sixty-Seven
- Sixty-Eight
- Sixty-Nine
- Seventy
- Seventy-One
- Seventy-Two
- Seventy-Three
- Seventy-Four
- Seventy-Five
- Seventy-Six
- Seventy-Seven
- Seventy-Eight
- Seventy-Nine
- Eighty
- Eighty-One
- Eighty-Two
- Eighty-Three
- The Final Video
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Back Cover
My mind swirls. Those eyes study me again. A thousand eyes pushing against my back. Basher’s face is blank again. No nod. No thumbs-up. Maybe he’s thinking none of this would have happened if he and Chloe were still together. Berning turns away from the window. His eyes look like a shark’s. Cold. Distant.
The worst crosses my mind—why is any announcement being made at all? Everyone knows Chloe is missing. What could Dr. Jackson have to say that hasn’t been said?
Have they found her? Is she dead? Is that it?
“Tonight, we are going to gather as a community in a show of support for Chloe’s family and friends. At seven o’clock, we will assemble on the football field for a candlelight vigil. This vigil has been organized by the student government committee and is the students’ way of honoring Chloe. We in the administration support and applaud that effort. Everyone in the community is invited to attend. Please spread the word to your family and friends. It is vital in times of tragedy that we remember our ties to each other. Information about the candlelight vigil will be posted on the school’s website and social media outlets. Remember, unity is strength. Thank you, Garrett Morgan Bobcats.”
The PA clicks off. The room is still.
I wait for someone to say something, to acknowledge what’s going on.
Berning steps forward and says, “Okay, about this x coordinate. It’s a tricky one, and you guys just aren’t getting it no matter how many times I try to explain it…”
Eight
The morning drags. The hands on the clocks in every classroom move like they’re in slow motion. People still stare at me. Others look away. Like there’s a target on my back.
Something changes after the principal’s announcement. Voices in the hallway are more hushed. Classroom chatter is more muted. Everything feels muffled. Even though the sun shines brightly outside, it feels like one of those long, rainy days that never end.
It’s a relief when I finally make it to lunch, to our usual table, the one where we’ve been sitting since we started high school. My friend group changed that year. Soccer was a big part of my life growing up, and when I came to Garrett Morgan and made the team, I started hanging out with the other soccer players. My grade school friends faded away.
For a couple of reasons, I’m not on the team anymore. I twisted my knee pretty bad during practice sophomore year and missed most of the season. And Mom was first diagnosed the summer before that, and her illness pretty much took over our lives.
That’s also when I first took a creative writing class and joined Ex Libris, the creative writing club. That interested me more than soccer.
And Ex Libris changed my life because that’s where I met Chloe.