Ben sat there with Hutch and Evan. Even in the full sun the air now was like tearing paper. Not that anyone really cared with Brett’s expulsion so fresh, but Ben had explained away not showing up to go into town by saying his mother had gone to the hospital with a heart murmur and so he had needed to stay by the phone in case anything happened; luckily it had turned out to be nothing. Ben had also told them about drinking in the Chute and they seemed to afford him some respect for it, but still, here in the bare air, he had imposter’s skin. Every new minute, the administration could call him in to tell him he wouldn’t be asked back.

The PO late-morning was also the best place and time to watch ladies. In the Dish common room people could get in the way and girls were maybe close enough to hear. But here in front of the PO boys had a clear view and they could say quietly but clearly that Laura Schwarzman had a better ass than Julie Mason. Their friends might say they were wrong and blind and crazy, but they could still say it.

And so because everyone was there and watching, people nonchalantly planned to make an appearance. All of this made it a little risky for the three of them to be sitting there shivering on the chain fence, and without the other two, Ben never would have dared. It wasn’t the senior couches in the Dish, but it was a privileged spot.

The site for Ahmed’s swimming pool was now being cleared, and the hiss of chain saws was audible everywhere on campus. When they had found out about the pool Hutch and Evan had just shaken their heads and laughed in fury. Ben had seen Manley Price twice from afar on the walking paths and managed to avoid him both times. Squash should have made him feel powerful and rooted into the school, but every time he thought about it he wanted to move his thoughts to something else. He waved to Markson whenever he saw him, and had started carrying the little blue Companion in his backpack all the time. He liked seeing it there when he pulled out his notebooks.