My name is Jake.
That's it. Jake. Jake to you, Jake to my friends. Just Jake.
Well, that's not entirely true. My friends know my full name. They know what places I'm really referencing, what city we really live in. The schools, our homes, the restaurants. But, I can trust them. They've been with me since Day 1. I can't trust you. Because, you see, you might be one of them. You might try to kill me. Or, worse, enslave me.
So, yeah. Just Jake, to you. And when I say where all this shit took place, and the names of the people involved, understand that those are all fake. Made-up. The ones you find on a map, or online, are the same ones I found and stole the names of. You won't find us. Or our families.
I used to be normal. I went to school, did homework. Hung out with my best friend, Marco. Competed with my brother, Tom. Went to school with my cousins, Rachel and Jordan. Ignored Tobias, like the geek he was. I used to steal looks at Cassie's ass whenever she'd walked by. Normal, stupid, high school stuff.
The key phrase there is, used to be. Now, I'm the de facto leader of a team of insurgents, and, I'm told, Earth's only hope for survival. I've been fighting in a secret war for years, now, against an alien invasion straight out of a made-for-TV horror movie. But these aren't like what you'd picture when you think of aliens attacking Earth. They're not giant, CGI-looking mongoloids traipsing through the ruins of Los Angeles firing ray guns at everyone.
Though, to be fair, they do make use of giant, CGI-looking mongoloids. And ray guns. But, that's their thing. They use them. You see, like all hidden alien invaders, these guys use mind control.
I'm sorry. I sound like a crazy person.
Anyway.
I'm logging this so people will know the truth. Maybe, one day, our stories will get out, and humanity will know what really happened, when this war finally ends. Maybe my family will see it. Maybe then, they'll know what really happened to Tom, and Jordan. Maybe, hopefully, Rachel and I will be able to tell them in-person, and they won't hear it from a recording. It's a nice thought, at least.
So. Let's start from the beginning. Oddly enough, this all began with a basketball game.
The game. It was the north state championship match. My team, the Greenhill Spartans, went up against the Lockheed Hurricanes. And we didn't do so well. We lost, in fact. We lost because three of our team came down with the flu, and to keep five players on the court, Coach Harkness had to make do with Tobias.
Tobias the Terrible. We called him that because he was terrible. No hand-eye coordination. Couldn't catch a ball or make a shot if you paid him to. Or threatened him, something Coach did a lot. Tobias kept his spot on the team by being tall and lanky, big enough to block shots from the more ludicrously sized players. This was the sole reason Coach let him stay, and normally, Tobias only hit the court so he could wave his arms around and jump in front of people like a fool. Expecting Tobias to score points was like expecting snow in the Sahara.
So, we lost. Badly. Tempers were high. That's a good excuse for why Tom, Marco, and I spent ten minutes drowning Tobias, right? Sure. Like I said. High school stuff.
Anyway, we gave Tobias his just, swirlie deserts, changed, and went back out into the parking lot to link up with everyone. My family was there. My mom, the District Attorney. Dad, a doctor. My uncle Paul, single dad and local cop. They were all grouped together with other parents and their own friends, talking and gossiping. We, the triumphant troublemakers, went around to the rest of the team to gloat.
"Did he cry?"
"Like a baby,"
And, as usual, it was all fun and games and fist bumps until Rachel and Jordan found out. I felt a hand grab my shoulder and turn me around, and found both of my cousins glaring at me. Worse, Cassie, Rachel's best friend, was standing just behind her, arms crossed and frowning.
I liked Cassie. Not, you know, liked Cassie, but we got along pretty well
"You guys are the worst." Rachel told me. Jordan nodded in agreement. Rachel and Jordan were cut from the same mold. They could almost be mistaken for twins, but Jordan was about half an inch shorter than Rachel. This gave her an edge over Rachel on the city gymnastics team, something that continually irked Rachel. Both had blonde hair, blue eyes, and thought they could boss Tom and I around.
Marco was a short, dark-haired Latino kid who likes to think he's smart. Sometimes, I wonder. Like when he said, "He earned it, Rachel."
"How?" Jordan demanded. She was a year younger than the rest of us, but just as intense as her sister. "What did he do?"
"Sucked." Tom said.
"Horse nads." Marco added.
"He cost us the game, guys." I said.
"And you think that makes what you did okay, Jake?" Cassie asked me. Unlike Rachel and Jordan, Cassie tried to settle arguments in non-confrontational ways. Cassie was black, and wore her hair short most of the time. Her family had a farm the next county over, so most of the time, she came to school in boots covered in chicken poop.
I looked at Marco. Marco looked at Tom. Tom looked at me. I nodded. "Yeah, kinda."
Rachel threw up her hands. "Unbelievable."
"Excuse me."
A small, middle-aged woman approached us. She wore a small, black cap and carried a leather purse. The woman peered through her glasses at us and said, "I'm sorry to bother you, but, are you friends of Tobias?"
"No," Tom told her.
"Oh. Okay." The woman turned to leave. "I'll leave you all alone, then."
"Wait," Jordan said. The woman turned back around. "Why do you ask?"
The woman pointed at me. "I saw your team uniforms, so I made an assumption. I apologize."
"There's no need for that," said Cassie. "Are you looking for Tobias?"
"Yes. I'm his grandmother," the woman replied. "I've been waiting for some time for him to come outside so I can take him home, but I haven't seen him yet. If you see him," she continued, "could you tell him I'm waiting in the car?"
"Absolutely!" Rachel said. "We'll go find him right now."
"We will?" Marco said.
"Yep," Jordan told him, "we will."
"Thank you all so much." Tobias' grandmother gave us all a small smile in appreciation. She pointed across the parking lot. "I'm parked right under that lamp post."
"We won't forget," Cassie said to her. The woman beamed, then headed out towards her car.
"Okay," Rachel said to all of us. "Let's do it."
"Good luck," Tom told us.
"Wait, you're not coming?"
"No, Jordan, I'm not." Tom started walking away. "You'll find him whimpering in the locker room."
"And if we don't?"
"Then it's still not my problem, Rachel."
"I'm with Tom," Marco said. "See you guys around."
Cassie looked at me. "And you, Jake?"
Her dark eyes watched mine as they registered her questioning gaze, and Rachel and Jordan's silent glares. Marco smirked as I looked to him. Tom quietly watched me as I looked back at Cassie. "No. I'll help you guys find him. Let's look inside."
Tom rolled his eyes and made his exit. Marco moved to follow him, but I grabbed him by his jersey and pulled him back. "You're coming, too."
Marco slapped my hand away. "Why?"
"Because I have to go." I told him
"Because it's the right thing to do," Cassie said.
"Because this is your fault, and Jake's." Jordan added.
"Because I'll beat your ass in front of God and everybody if you don't." Rachel threatened.
Marco jerked his thumb at Rachel. "Daenerys wins."
"Wait, what did you call me?"
"It's a compliment, I promise."
"Oh." Rachel smiled savagely. "Neat."
"I dunno," Cassie said. "I think she's more Arya Stark."
"No, that's Jordan."
"Wait, what?"
"Guys?" I said. "Focus, please."
"I am Daenerys Stormborn, of -"
"Rachel?" Cassie said. "Shush."
We went back into the auditorium and made our way to the guy's locker rooms. Rachel grinned. "Forbidden territory." Jordan and Marco snorted. Cassie rolled her eyes and went inside. I followed her.
"Tobias?"
No answer. Marco shoved past us and went to check the toilets. He returned quickly. "He's not here."
Cassie looked down at the floor. "There's water everywhere. Look." She pointed. "There's a trail to the lockers."
Rachel and Jordan joined us. "Tobias must've changed out of his wet clothes," I said.
Marco snorted. "Wouldn't you?"
"So, he dried off," Rachel said, "changed, and then left. But didn't head back outside? Why?"
We all sort of shrugged. "Embarrassment?" Jordan guessed.
"Humiliation." Cassie corrected. She gave me a disapproving look. I looked away.
Rachel nodded at a door on the far wall. "Where does that go to?"
"Fire escape." Marco and I both said. Marco pointed at the sign by the door.
"Could he have left that way?" I asked him.
Marco shrugged. "Maybe. It's supposed to trigger an alarm if it's opened, but it doesn't."
Rachel gave him a look. "How do you know?"
"I opened it."
"Of course you did."
"So maybe he went out the back way, and his grandmother just missed him." I smiled. "He went around, out of sight. I bet he already found her, and now he's halfway home. Mission accomplished."
Cassie went to the door and opened it. Sure enough, no alarm sounded. She poked her head outside, then looked back at us. "Footprints."
Marco groaned. Rachel silenced him with a glare. "Where do they go?" she asked Cassie.
"Not out to the parking lot," Cassie replied. "Towards Death Town."
Now I groaned. Death Town was the school nickname for the abandoned construction site behind the school. Way back in the day, someone had tried to put a shopping mall, but ran out of funding halfway through and left what they'd already built to rot. It was a massive site almost twice the size of the school. Every so often, someone would make a big stink trying to get it all torn down, but nothing ever came of their efforts.
Nowadays, the only people that wanted anything to do with it were the local junkies, or bored kids looking for something to do. And apparently, Tobias. Marco shook his head. "Nope. Not going to Death Town."
"Yes," Rachel said, "you are going to Death Town."
"Marco," I said, "this is kind of our fault."
"Okay, yeah, we're dicks, I understand that," Marco said to me, "but my guilt and empathy stops short of tracking down Tobias in Death Town. If he wants to find solace with the crackheads, that's his business."
Cassie returned to the group. "So, what do we do."
"You guys do what you want," Rachel said. "I'm going after him." She paused only to give Marco the finger before heading out the door. It slammed shut behind her.
Cassie sighed.. "I should go with her."
"Why?"
"She might stab someone." Cassie followed Rachel.
I looked over at Jordan. "Could you go grab Uncle Paul? He could probably do this better than we could."
"Dad said he'd shoot us himself if he ever found out we were screwing around in Death Town." Jordan sighed. "Rachel will be grounded until she's forty." She left the locker room to go find her dad. Marco tried to follow her, but I pulled him back.
"Jake," Marco said, "Tom was right. This isn't our problem."
"Marco," I told him, "If you let Rachel run off and do something you were too scared to, she will never let you live it down."
Marco stopped to give that some thought. While he was thinking, I went after Rachel and Cassie. After a few moments, Marco joined me.
Years later, we would both wish we hadn't.
