She was already turning back toward the kitchen. “You called me over for that? Get them yourself. What do you think I am, your servant?”

But her presence had done its job. The shadow was gone, and he was safely able to dash into his bedroom, where he changed out of his pajamas and into his clothes.

Although he usually rode his bike or his mom dropped him off at school, his dad took him today, and Nick had the feeling that his parents had planned that in order to have his father give him a lecture. Sure enough, before they pulled to a stop across the street from Montgomery High, his dad said, “We’re not going to have any more of that this year, are we?”

“What?” he asked innocently.

“Nick…”

“I’ll be good. I promise. I’m turning over a new leaf.”

“Being sarcastic isn’t—”

His fingers were on the door handle, but he didn’t pull it yet. “I’m not being sarcastic. Okay, I am. Sort of. But I’m really not. I actually did do some thinking while I was out, and I realized that if I’m going to get any scholarships—which, let’s face it, is the only way I’m going to a decent college—I’m going to need to…”

“Straighten up and fly right?”

“Yeah.” Nick laughed. “I’m also going to need good grades and teacher recommendations. If that’s going to happen, I need to start toeing the party line.”

His dad nodded. “Lecture over. I’m impressed. Have a good day.”

Nick opened the car door.

“How are you going to get home? Want me to pick you up?”

“I’ll call you,” Nick said.

He waved goodbye as he dashed through a break in the drop-off traffic.

Inside, he met up with Victor. Their lockers were in the same row, and his friend was just taking out his textbook for first period when Nick walked up.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

He’d seen several kids from his classes on his way in, but, as he’d anticipated, none of them had asked about his suspension. He doubted if most of them had even noticed. So it was somewhat gratifying when Sue Romsberg stepped up to her locker between them, and Victor said loudly, “So what’d you do while you were suspended?”

“Robbed a bank, raped a kitten. The usual.”

Sue wrinkled her nose in disgust, quickly grabbed a book out of her locker and hurried away.

Victor laughed. “That’ll get them talking.”

The first bell rang, and the pace of movement in the hallway sped up as students began rushing to get to class on time.

“Douche at twelve o’clock,” Victor muttered, head lowered.

Nick looked up to see Mr. Whittaker walking down the hallway toward them. The principal offered Nick an insincere smile as he passed. “Glad to have you back, Nicholas.”

Glad to have me back? Nick thought. I wasn’t on vacation. You suspended me. But he nodded, offered his own insincere smile and hurried off to his homeroom, where Mrs. Nelson shot him an unreadable look. Was she trying to tell him that she had won their little skirmish? Was she attempting to let him know she was not happy he was back? It was impossible to tell, and Nick looked away from her, glancing out the window, thinking that yesterday at this time he had been lounging around on the couch watching TV.