I hung out with her for a while because I didn’t really feel like going back to school yet. It was only 11:00. I had a feeling when I showed up there, tarred and furred, I was either going to get crucified or be treated like a rock star. One or the other, and I wasn’t in that much of a rush to find out.

China rested her head on my shoulder as she smoked cigarettes and laughed about how she didn’t feel guilty at all about Dirk Wallace, and how hilarious it would be if he went to the police station and told them to APB on Fresno and Tahiti.

Do you think he’ll go to the police?

Oh, stop worrying about it, man. You didn’t do anything.

She must have shown me the ticket five times.

The school for maps is going to be so cool, right, Sara?

Sure, I said. Penticton’s a small town in a valley of vineyards and apple trees. I don’t know if they have a school for maps there. Is there such a school at all? There has to be. With all my heart, I really, really hope there is.

ANOTHER STUPID STONER SONG

IN the Mount Drug breezeway, I smoked cigarettes with some Grade Eight stoner-girls-in-training. You look cool, one girl said. Her braces spangled in the sun. Yeah, man, where’d you get that coat? I could have bragged, but I’d already decided to put the last twenty-four hours out of my mind. I couldn’t go back to science class and study capillary action in geraniums if I was thinking about China on her knees and me kissing that man on his lips. I wanted to be a student for just a couple of hours, until I calmed down. My nerves were shot.

Unluckily for me, science class was canned. A pep rally in the auditorium to hype the crowd for the Rams’ upcoming battle against the Oak Bay Oysters. Actually, that’s not what they’re called. Sorry but I forget the name of the enemy football team.

So I went into the gym, trying not to fall because the floor was waxy and my high heels were pretty high. I pulled dirty strands of matted hair down over my bloodshot eyes.

Meanwhile, Tiffany Chamberlain was straddling Vanessa Clark as the cheerleaders attempted a human triangle of purple and blue. One, two, three, four. Who do we adore? The Rams! The Rams! The Rams!

All I feel like telling you right now is that there was an “incident” at the back of the bleachers.

You can find the details in my file. I don’t really feel like getting into it now.

After the “incident” I got called into the office and given a talk about my unseemly appearance and how I should consider anger management. My file was annotated.

No answer at Father’s home. Mother’s whereabouts unknown.