The tree creaked and to my horror, it fell right towards us.

My leg was wounded; I'd never make it out in time.

It was over.

I shut my eyes and clenched my teeth.

Fwhack!

I heard a grunt and when I opened my eyes, I saw Jim standing over me. He was holding the tree up with both hands. His face was red from the effort and his legs began to buckle.

"Go. It's coming." he whispered.

I shuddered and crawled. I used another tree for support and stood up. My leg throbbed as I began limping away.

I didn't get very far before I heard a crash.

"JIM!"

Four hours earlier

Laughter echoed as students bustled through the halls. I made my way downstairs and bumped into a kid as I approached the stairwell.

My eyes met those of a boy the size of a panda. He flashed gave me a look. If he sat on me or something, I feared I wouldn't make it.

I apologized with my head lowered.

I pushed through the crowd but I couldn't help but notice that something felt wrong. There was this tug in my heart. It felt like it was sinking. Despite being surrounded by all these people, I felt like an outsider.

On the first floor, there was a girl leaning towards a guy as they proceeded to make out. Some of the guys were tossing a football while the deans scolded them. People were in groups chatting in languages I couldn't understand. I felt distant from even those who were speaking English. I didn't have many friends-I really only had one.

There was one dean that was particularly strange; she would eye me as if I had three heads. In fact, she was doing it right now. She would sniff me out and give me detention even if I was late by a tenth of a second. I could be two floors below her and she would track me down. I really wouldn't be surprised if the woman had some sort of radar. I think her name was Ms. Frit. She was slim and she wore plastic old lady glasses even though she was probably still in her thirties. I passed by and she grabbed my wrist-clenched my wrist. Her nails were surprisingly sharp and surprisingly painful.

"Is something wrong?" I managed.

"We-" she was interrupted before she could finish.

"Hey, wait up!" a familiar voice called out.

When I turned, I saw a tall, muscular guy. He had light green eyes and curly blonde hair. "What's up?" he asked as he looked down at Ms. Frit's nails. I felt a wave of relief wash over me.

"Is Jeremiah in trouble?" he asked.

Ms. Frit forced a smile. "No, dear. I just wanted to tell him to have a nice vacation."

Something told me she was lying. Ms. Frit let go of my wrist and I walked towards the exit with Jim. My wrist was tomato red where she had grabbed me. I rubbed it uncomfortably until we were off school property.

"Dude, thanks for the save," I said.

He laughed. "Don't mention it."

Jim had always been the upperclassmen who was soft on the others. I mean, we were both seniors in high school but Jim had facial hair before any of us and his biceps were the size of rocks. He had been held back a few times but he didn't seem bothered by it. Jim always found his way towards me and he was always relieved to see I was well.

"Sometimes, I feel like she's always picking on me. There are delinquents that are like a half hour late to school and yet she finds me when I'm a minute after the bell. And what a grip! My arm still stings. Is that woman even human?" I ranted.

"She isn't," he replied coolly.

"Are you coming over?"

He nodded. "There's something important I need to discuss with your mother."

With my mom? I thought he was joking but his expression was serious.

We said nothing for the remainder of the walk.

Once we got upstairs, I yelled out, telling my mom that Jim was along with me. I saw her swiftly remove some letters from the dining table and I frowned when I realized what they were: overdue bills. We were pretty poor so it was commonplace for things like this to happen. My mother was a single parent and she worked long hours trying to pay our expenses. The last time we shopped for clothes was about six months ago.

Her name was Margaret Tantz and she was one of the most resilient people I knew. My father was estranged from the family when I was very young and she was forced to take care of me alone. After going to college, she found herself buried in debt. We moved into a smaller apartment and her side of the family would always berate her for being with my father in the first place. My mother grew to become irascible and strict. I wasn't allowed to leave the house unless I was with her-which was kind of silly considering I was seventeen. My mother was really over-protective and she would flinch when I would talk to her about teachers that had been rough with me-namely Ms. Frit.

I usually obeyed my mother but there was this one time I stayed late to get some Calculus tutoring without telling her about it. She literally drove to my school and interrogated the security guard. She was absolutely furious. I'm sure she left flames in the main lobby of my school. She yanked me out by the ear and gave me a long lecture.

I don't know why she gets so worked up about me being alone.

She approached us and I looked into her tired eyes. She had more bags under her eyes than did a grocery store checkout lane. She hugged me and greeted Jim. While she did, I noticed they shared a grave expression for a moment. It almost seemed like she nodded ever so slightly.

Maybe I was just imagining things. I didn't think too much of it then but I wish I had payed more attention.

"Well, I'm glad you're both here. How was your last day before the break?" she asked.

I talked about Ms. Frit grilling me for no reason and Jim talked about sports. She pursed her lips and looked at him.

I went to the bathroom because I didn't dare go in school. The janitor probably had to wear a hazmat suit each time he walked in.

When I got back, something seemed different. Before I could figure out what it was, Jim said, "If you don't mind, me and Jeremiah are going to get going now."

She nodded and gestured towards a small suitcase. "I've packed all your things. Jeremiah, i'm sending you with Jim to a summer camp. Everything has been arranged."

Did I miss something?

"I don't-" I stammered.

"I'm sorry this was so sudden-it's just," she bit her lip and looked at Jim. "It's really important that you go with him."

She looked like she was about to cry and she hugged me tightly.

I was too stunned to react. Why was she acting like this?

"I-don't understand...I'll still see you again, right?" I asked.

She didn't respond. She only hugged me tighter. She held my face and said, "Take care of yourself. Pay attention. Visit me-if you can."

I was super confused. I wouldn't be surprised if some guys jumped out from behind our sofa and told me it was all a big prank. I looked but nothing happened. She would never let me out-even with a friend.

My mother turned to Jim and whispered something in his ear.

I stood there, motionless. I wish I had said goodbye to her then and there.

Jim grabbed my suitcase and pulled me towards the door. I looked again at my mom: her face was scrunched up like a child who just stubbed her toe.

Me and Jim hurried downstairs and down the sidewalk. Jim was walking rather briskly and every once in a while, I had to walk faster to catch up to him.

"Jim," I puffed. "Why was my mom acting so weird?"

He walked faster.

I hurried behind him. Didn't he hear me?

Our walk came to an end when Jim slowed down abruptly. I almost crashed into him and asked him what the big idea was but I realized he was looking for something.

He was eyeing the cars parked ahead of us and he muttered something to himself. Then, a smile grew on his lips.

I looked ahead and saw a red, 90's Ford Fiesta. He fished for something in his pocket.

I approached the passenger's seat but Jim kept walking. Apparently, that wasn't the plan.

His car keys glistened and he crossed over onto the road and walked up to the car in front of the old Ford.

My jaw dropped.

Standing before us was a gleaming red, Jaguar F type.

Jim put my suitcase in the trunk. "Hop in."

"You're kidding."

"What? Did you think I drove a pickup truck?" he joked.

I opened the door and the scent of leather and citrus blast air freshener infiltrated my nostrils. I sat down and noticed the round, jet black dashboard. I put on my seat belt and marveled. I had never been in a car this expensive. How did Jim even have one of these?

He inserted the keys and turned. The car beeped and I almost jumped when the engine roared to life.

I guess that's why they call it a Jaguar.

He revved up the engine and pulled out of his parking spot. Pretty soon, we were on the highway with Fallout Boy blaring. He was talking about how his friend suggested he get a Mercedes but I wasn't really listening.

I was too busy thinking about what had happened. I thought I would spend my summer with my mom but in a moment's notice, I was on the road, in a sports car, heading towards some sketchy summer camp.

"Jim, I like Mercedes as much as the next guy but where is this camp? How long are we going to stay there?" I asked.

Jim exhaled. He opened his mouth to say something but a gurgling noise interrupted him.

It was my stomach. I hadn't eaten since breakfast.

He took an exit and drove into a McDonald's parking lot. The engine hummed and went silent once Jim turned the keys.

I realized I didn't have any money and I pointed it out bashfully but Jim waved it off. The air smelled of ice cream and fried food. It was strangely satisfying. Jim, however, was sniffing every couple of seconds. Something told me he wasn't enjoying the same scent. I couldn't really concentrate because I was so hungry.

We sat down and I thanked him. I wolfed down my food but Jim was still. His head was slightly tilted and he seemed like he was uncomfortable.

"Dude, dig in," I said.

He nodded but he still had this concerned look on his face.

I was halfway through my sandwich when he stood up. His chair scraped the ground and he said "Get in the car."

"But I didn't-"

He yanked my arm and dragged me across the room. We left our half eaten meal on the table. Before we exited, I turned to look back at my smores but I saw something that scared my appetite away.

I spotted a thin woman with grandma glasses.

I was moving quickly, surely it could have been someone else.

My gut disagreed.

Jim and I got into the car and pulled out of the parking lot. He got onto the highway and drove without saying a word. No Fallout Boy, no talk of cars.

He was stealing glances at the rear-view mirror and I couldn't tell why. Our car was the only one on this side of the highway. He sped up and I felt really uneasy all of a sudden.

Why was he in such a rush?

It began to get dark as our car raced down the lane. We were going so fast that the slightest bump gave us some air time.

It happened again.

"That's my pet Jaguar, " Jim finally said.