"Yes!" He shouted, "I win!"
Jackson and I were playing 'Rock, Paper, Scissors' over the last cookie in the 3-pack that his mom had sneaked into his lunch box for his birthday.
"You cheated!" I smiled, "But I'll let it slide today, Birthday Boy."
I laughed as he bit into the cookie with his eyes bulged in the way he does when he wants to make me laugh. Again, I notice how perfectly his dark brown hair highlights his matching eyes, and how great he looks with his lip sneaking up when he smiles. And how lucky I am that he's my best friend. Well, lately I've been feeling a little closer than best friend but I don't think he feels the same way.
Just then, in that perfect moment, Gordon, the biggest bully in the school, decides to come over and ruin it, like he always does. Jack stops laughing when he notices Gordon coming over, and stands up. Like perfect boy he is, he walks over and meets him halfway across the lunchroom. This takes a lot longer than it should have because of all of the crowded tables and the lunch boxes that are strewn about as kids start to finish up lunch. Lucky us, we're eighth graders, so we get extended lunch. Jack stops Gordon in his tracks by blocking the way to our table. Meanwhile, I'm sitting there, still as a rock. Gordon shoves him aside while Jack pushes to get in his way. Luckily, Freddy, Gordon's sidekick, wasn't here because he likes to be a little more physical. He's probably skipping school..., I thought, again.
Just then, out of the corner of my eye, I see two boys literally appear out of the shadows. One of them immediately sits down like he's about to pass out while the other stands there for a minute. The one boy seems to recover very quickly, which I find strange. The boy with strikingly vivid, sea-green eyes, who looks about 16, leads the other boy, who looks about 12 and depressed, maybe, or just plain sad, towards me. Nobody else sees them, or if they do, they take no notice of them. Must be my AD/HD acting up again for me to notice them. Jack and Gordon are still tousling in the middle of the cafeteria. Now, a small crowd of seventh and eighth grades are watching and encouraging them to punch and kick each other, but Jack won't do that unless Gordon starts it and Gordon won't start it for fear of being suspended.
I turn to direct my attention back to the two Mystery Boys and discover that they are actually right behind me.
"Come with us."
I notice the boy with green eyes get out, was that a pen? He handled it menacingly, like he could actually hurt or kill someone with it, so I follow them. I am very confused about everything and they just take me to the emergency exit.
"The alarm is going to go off." I warn them, not because I am scared, but because they seem genuinely concerned about my safety, although I know that sounds ridiculous.
"I know." The older boy says. "I'm causing a diversion."
We reached the door and the younger boy shoved it open without a second thought. My thoughts race back to Jack and Gordon, still in the cafeteria. Whatever, I think, they'll figure it out. I see a cream-white van parked outside in the school and the only word on it that I can make out is 'strawberries.' I sit down facing the two boys because I don't yet fully trust them.
Suddenly, a glowing, green symbol appears above my head, shrouding everything in a veil of green. I don't have time to ask what it is before the older boy mumbles, "Hermes." Then he said louder to me, "Hi, I'm Percy and we have a lot to talk about."