The school was dark and quiet. It was so strange to them, they had
never been here without hundreds before, so this was kinda freaky for them
all. They made their way to the cafeteria to make sure there was indeed
food here. TJ nervously approached the door leading to the kitchen and food
storage. Earlier he had been so sure of himself, but now he was having some
doubts. What if he was wrong? 'Well, only one way to find out.' He
approached the door, and opened it.
"Whompin Bobula!"
"There's no food there, I knew it!" exclaimed Gus, panicking. "What will we do?! Where will we-"SMACK.
"Get a hold of yourself jarhead, even if there's no food here, we can still—"
"Guys, guys, guys, relax, would ya, there's plenty of food for all of us...it looks like there's even more than I thought."
"Well, that's a relief, let's chow down." Said Vince, tummy rumbling.
"Yeah, I'm starving."
"Easy Mikey, you too Vince, this stuff has gotta last us at least three months, we need to ration it out carefully."
Mikey let out an exasperated sigh. "But TJ, I'm hungry now, and so is everyone else."
"Yeah Teej, let us at least have a little food."
"Okay, okay, but don't go crazy, just a little bit."
The five of them jumped on the food, and ate whatever they could find. TJ sighed, 'Well, I am pretty hungry, might as well...' and jumped in with the rest.
"Hey, what the hang is this?"
"What did you find Spin?" Asked Vince.
"It's this package Vince, it's been opened already, and some of the stuff inside has been eaten."
"AHH, coyotes are in this school, we gotta get out, I knew this was a bad idea!"
"Chill Mikey" Said TJ, amused at his friend. 'Silly ole big guy.' "The school was locked, remember, only someone with a key could get in. I don't think coyotes can open locks big guy."
"Oh, yeah...I forgot."
"But who is it?"
Two eyes watched them from the ceiling vent. They were nervous, twitching. The individual they belonged to was very angry.
"They think they can just barge into my home and eat my food, they'd better think again, if they know what's good for them." He crawled through the vents, back to the office, where he picked up Principal Prickly's old driver. 'This will do nicely.' He wrote a note on it, and climbed back into the vents.
The gang walked through the school, trying to decide on where to sleep.
"How about the teachers lounge?" Suggested Mikey, walking hunched over, eyes darting from object to object. They were all very wary. They knew someone was in here, and watching them. He could be watching them at this very moment, and that was a very scary feeling.
"Good idea Mikey, let's go check it out." TJ practically whispered. They kept their voices down instinctively, not wanting to let whoever was out there to know too much.
"But TJ, remember when we snuck into the lounge before? It was nasty, with nothing but a ratty couch and a broken coffee maker."
"True, but there's nowhere better to sleep."
"What about Principal Prickly's office" volunteered Gretchen.
"Nah" replied TJ, "It's too small, and we'd all end up fighting over who got to sleep in the chair."
They acquiesced. Walking slowly and cautiously to the teacher's lounge, Mikey couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was about to happen. Then he heard a faint scurry from behind, like a dog running. He turned around to see what was behind him, and saw--- nothing. 'I can't let this get to me' he thought, turning around. Then—POW.
"OUCH, my nose, something just hit me in the nose."
They all turned around in an instant, and saw Mikey laying on the ground, blood trickling from his nose, the screen in the vent above open. They rushed to him.
"Mikey, are you okay?"
"What hit you?"
"Who hit you?"
"Did you see?"
"I dunno, I turned around to see behind me, and it just hit me. Ow, it really hurts."
"Let me see." Gretchen moved to his head, and examined the wound closely. "Mikey, it appears you have a broken nose."
"Great, just great." Replied a sullen Mikey, or at least sullen for Mikey.
Vince then noticed the club in the hallway a few feet from Mikey.
"Hey guys, this must have been what hit him."
"Yes" Gretchen said "The perpetrator opened the screen, and swung the club at Mikey, hitting him square in the face."
"Why Mikey?"
"Because Gus, Mikey is the tallest, and therefore the easiest to hit. He was a target of opportunity, not singled out for any particular reason. Hey look, there's a note attached."
"What does it say?"
LEAVE NOW, NEVER RETURN, THIS IS MY PLACE, IF YOU STAY, I WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE A LIVING HELL.
"Wait a minute, this is Prickly's club."
"How do you know Vince?" Said a perplexed Spinelli. "A lot of the other teachers golfed, it might not be his."
"Cause when I golfed with him, when we beat his brother, he had is clubs engraved with the date on the shaft. Here look."
They did, and sure enough, there it was—4/12/98.
"So whoever it is that is stalking us has keys to the school, and Prickly's office, it could only be one person- Menlo."
"I say we go make that dweeb's face stop my fist from going into his brain."
"Agreed."
Menlo was sitting smug in his chair, convinced Detwieler and co. would be out of his hair. Then he heard a rattling on his door. 'Fools' he thought 'how do they expect to get past a locked door'? Then he heard a clicking, and the door swung open. 'Dammit, I forgot Spinelli could pick locks'.
"Alright, you little dweeb, what's the big idea?"
"Yeah, the schools big enough for all of us." Said Vince.
"Oh yeah" Menlo retorted "not quite, seven mouths are more than one, now I what you to leave."
"Menlo" Spinelli said in a strangely calm voice "You're forgetting there are six of us, and each one of us could take you. If you don't want to live with us, it's you that's gonna be leaving."
They grabbed him, and began to carry him to the door. Now he realized how much trouble he was in. He couldn't survive out there.
"Wait, don't throw me out, I can help you."
"How?"
"There are rooms in this school you never knew about, I can show you- they're comfortable, I have all the keys stashed away, I'll give them to you, please don't throw me out, please!"
Even Spinelli felt pity at his begging, so they dropped him.
"Alright Menlo" Said TJ, shooting daggers at Menlo "Show us everything."
"Whompin Bobula!"
"There's no food there, I knew it!" exclaimed Gus, panicking. "What will we do?! Where will we-"SMACK.
"Get a hold of yourself jarhead, even if there's no food here, we can still—"
"Guys, guys, guys, relax, would ya, there's plenty of food for all of us...it looks like there's even more than I thought."
"Well, that's a relief, let's chow down." Said Vince, tummy rumbling.
"Yeah, I'm starving."
"Easy Mikey, you too Vince, this stuff has gotta last us at least three months, we need to ration it out carefully."
Mikey let out an exasperated sigh. "But TJ, I'm hungry now, and so is everyone else."
"Yeah Teej, let us at least have a little food."
"Okay, okay, but don't go crazy, just a little bit."
The five of them jumped on the food, and ate whatever they could find. TJ sighed, 'Well, I am pretty hungry, might as well...' and jumped in with the rest.
"Hey, what the hang is this?"
"What did you find Spin?" Asked Vince.
"It's this package Vince, it's been opened already, and some of the stuff inside has been eaten."
"AHH, coyotes are in this school, we gotta get out, I knew this was a bad idea!"
"Chill Mikey" Said TJ, amused at his friend. 'Silly ole big guy.' "The school was locked, remember, only someone with a key could get in. I don't think coyotes can open locks big guy."
"Oh, yeah...I forgot."
"But who is it?"
Two eyes watched them from the ceiling vent. They were nervous, twitching. The individual they belonged to was very angry.
"They think they can just barge into my home and eat my food, they'd better think again, if they know what's good for them." He crawled through the vents, back to the office, where he picked up Principal Prickly's old driver. 'This will do nicely.' He wrote a note on it, and climbed back into the vents.
The gang walked through the school, trying to decide on where to sleep.
"How about the teachers lounge?" Suggested Mikey, walking hunched over, eyes darting from object to object. They were all very wary. They knew someone was in here, and watching them. He could be watching them at this very moment, and that was a very scary feeling.
"Good idea Mikey, let's go check it out." TJ practically whispered. They kept their voices down instinctively, not wanting to let whoever was out there to know too much.
"But TJ, remember when we snuck into the lounge before? It was nasty, with nothing but a ratty couch and a broken coffee maker."
"True, but there's nowhere better to sleep."
"What about Principal Prickly's office" volunteered Gretchen.
"Nah" replied TJ, "It's too small, and we'd all end up fighting over who got to sleep in the chair."
They acquiesced. Walking slowly and cautiously to the teacher's lounge, Mikey couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was about to happen. Then he heard a faint scurry from behind, like a dog running. He turned around to see what was behind him, and saw--- nothing. 'I can't let this get to me' he thought, turning around. Then—POW.
"OUCH, my nose, something just hit me in the nose."
They all turned around in an instant, and saw Mikey laying on the ground, blood trickling from his nose, the screen in the vent above open. They rushed to him.
"Mikey, are you okay?"
"What hit you?"
"Who hit you?"
"Did you see?"
"I dunno, I turned around to see behind me, and it just hit me. Ow, it really hurts."
"Let me see." Gretchen moved to his head, and examined the wound closely. "Mikey, it appears you have a broken nose."
"Great, just great." Replied a sullen Mikey, or at least sullen for Mikey.
Vince then noticed the club in the hallway a few feet from Mikey.
"Hey guys, this must have been what hit him."
"Yes" Gretchen said "The perpetrator opened the screen, and swung the club at Mikey, hitting him square in the face."
"Why Mikey?"
"Because Gus, Mikey is the tallest, and therefore the easiest to hit. He was a target of opportunity, not singled out for any particular reason. Hey look, there's a note attached."
"What does it say?"
LEAVE NOW, NEVER RETURN, THIS IS MY PLACE, IF YOU STAY, I WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE A LIVING HELL.
"Wait a minute, this is Prickly's club."
"How do you know Vince?" Said a perplexed Spinelli. "A lot of the other teachers golfed, it might not be his."
"Cause when I golfed with him, when we beat his brother, he had is clubs engraved with the date on the shaft. Here look."
They did, and sure enough, there it was—4/12/98.
"So whoever it is that is stalking us has keys to the school, and Prickly's office, it could only be one person- Menlo."
"I say we go make that dweeb's face stop my fist from going into his brain."
"Agreed."
Menlo was sitting smug in his chair, convinced Detwieler and co. would be out of his hair. Then he heard a rattling on his door. 'Fools' he thought 'how do they expect to get past a locked door'? Then he heard a clicking, and the door swung open. 'Dammit, I forgot Spinelli could pick locks'.
"Alright, you little dweeb, what's the big idea?"
"Yeah, the schools big enough for all of us." Said Vince.
"Oh yeah" Menlo retorted "not quite, seven mouths are more than one, now I what you to leave."
"Menlo" Spinelli said in a strangely calm voice "You're forgetting there are six of us, and each one of us could take you. If you don't want to live with us, it's you that's gonna be leaving."
They grabbed him, and began to carry him to the door. Now he realized how much trouble he was in. He couldn't survive out there.
"Wait, don't throw me out, I can help you."
"How?"
"There are rooms in this school you never knew about, I can show you- they're comfortable, I have all the keys stashed away, I'll give them to you, please don't throw me out, please!"
Even Spinelli felt pity at his begging, so they dropped him.
"Alright Menlo" Said TJ, shooting daggers at Menlo "Show us everything."