Chapter Nine
--Evan--
Evan took the stairs and left the hotel through the side door, so the receptionist wouldn't see him--if she recognized him from the previous day as the young man who had identified himself as a nineteen and unemployed, and then spotted him on the school bus to Siojaton High, she would no doubt be suspicious.
He wanted to minimize any unnecessary contact with the locals--he never knew where and which identity he'd need to use. Now that he'd be entering the Siojaton High student community as a junior, he would need to keep his school life and the rest of his activities very separate.
An early departure allowed him to walk to the bus stop at his leisure--the bus was scheduled to pass by in ten minutes. He had studied the map through the evening of the previous day, and was confident in his ability to navigate the area.
Evan's wristwatch told him that he still had three minutes when he finally arrived at the bus stop. Another student was there; a young girl, likely a freshman. He stood a few feet from her, along the sidewalk.
They stood in silence for a minute or so before he entertained a greeting. After all, he might as well take the opportunity to get to know a fellow student.
"Hello," he said. "My name's Evan; I'm new to the city."
Her head turned to him as he said this, and she nodded, bowed shortly, before voicing a brief response. "Welcome." She then resumed her silence.
Evan frowned. She didn't seem particularly social; he decided to follow her example and simply look steadily at nothing in silence.
No sooner had he proceed to do so, than the bus turned around the corner at the top of the street. He shifted slightly as it edged its way down to the corner before coming to a full stop, the folding panel swinging open routinely.
The girl immediately strode over and hopped up the step of the bus, and he followed two steps behind her.
--Ienji--
Fifteen minutes's bike-ride distance away, along the border of the south side, another school bus picked up Ienji.
He was a fairly well-liked kid at school--not one of the most popular in the entire eleventh grade, of course, but he had friends in every social circle. He did have a few friends who were closer to him than the rest, but most times he would get along with most everyone.
Ienji took a seat fairly near the back, next to a sophomore named Jared, who scooted in to accomodate the new arrival; they were fairly close friends.
"Eh, Ien," he said, "I tried to reach you several times last night; where were you?"
Ienji started; he suddenly recalled hearing the phone ring several times the night before, but through the strange haze he hadn't seen fit to respond.
"Oh, I was.... out," he supplied. "There were some things I had to do.... yes." He glanced at the other's face to see if the explanation had held or not.
He was greeted by a good-natured quip. "What, you had to hide the body?" Jared laughed. "It's fine. There were just a few odd things I wanted to discuss with you, but I'm all right. Maybe later."
For a few seconds, there was a sudden awkwardness that came out of nowhere. They sat in silence for a moment before Ienji replied. "Did you get a haircut or something? You seem different."
Jared shook his head, and grinned. "No; maybe you just noticed that I took the time to straighten it out this morning." He was lean, with messy dark hair, and a slight quality to his face, almost European.
But Ienji had thought that there was more to it than that; he shook his head absentmindedly. "It wasn't that; hmm. Never mind. What classes do we have today? I don't know if I packed the appropriate materials."
As one of the most academically gifted students in the school, Jared was always very 'together', and scheduled his time for maximum efficiency, despite seeming (for all appearances) a misfit.
"There's history classes--you have world history, I have Japanese history--followed by our chemistry class, free period, algebra, and lastly writing class," he recited from memory. "I would call it a standard day."
Ienji considered this for a moment. "I'm set, then," he determined. He added, "I don't know how you can manage all of this, on the morning after the weekend."
Jared shrugged; this was not an uncommon discussed subject. "It is no problem." As he said this, the bus pulled up in front of the school, the panel swung open once again, and kids began filing out.
The two sat up in unison and made their way up to the front of the bus, and then out onto the parking lot, through the double-doors and into the hall of the school.
--Evan--
Evan took the stairs and left the hotel through the side door, so the receptionist wouldn't see him--if she recognized him from the previous day as the young man who had identified himself as a nineteen and unemployed, and then spotted him on the school bus to Siojaton High, she would no doubt be suspicious.
He wanted to minimize any unnecessary contact with the locals--he never knew where and which identity he'd need to use. Now that he'd be entering the Siojaton High student community as a junior, he would need to keep his school life and the rest of his activities very separate.
An early departure allowed him to walk to the bus stop at his leisure--the bus was scheduled to pass by in ten minutes. He had studied the map through the evening of the previous day, and was confident in his ability to navigate the area.
Evan's wristwatch told him that he still had three minutes when he finally arrived at the bus stop. Another student was there; a young girl, likely a freshman. He stood a few feet from her, along the sidewalk.
They stood in silence for a minute or so before he entertained a greeting. After all, he might as well take the opportunity to get to know a fellow student.
"Hello," he said. "My name's Evan; I'm new to the city."
Her head turned to him as he said this, and she nodded, bowed shortly, before voicing a brief response. "Welcome." She then resumed her silence.
Evan frowned. She didn't seem particularly social; he decided to follow her example and simply look steadily at nothing in silence.
No sooner had he proceed to do so, than the bus turned around the corner at the top of the street. He shifted slightly as it edged its way down to the corner before coming to a full stop, the folding panel swinging open routinely.
The girl immediately strode over and hopped up the step of the bus, and he followed two steps behind her.
--Ienji--
Fifteen minutes's bike-ride distance away, along the border of the south side, another school bus picked up Ienji.
He was a fairly well-liked kid at school--not one of the most popular in the entire eleventh grade, of course, but he had friends in every social circle. He did have a few friends who were closer to him than the rest, but most times he would get along with most everyone.
Ienji took a seat fairly near the back, next to a sophomore named Jared, who scooted in to accomodate the new arrival; they were fairly close friends.
"Eh, Ien," he said, "I tried to reach you several times last night; where were you?"
Ienji started; he suddenly recalled hearing the phone ring several times the night before, but through the strange haze he hadn't seen fit to respond.
"Oh, I was.... out," he supplied. "There were some things I had to do.... yes." He glanced at the other's face to see if the explanation had held or not.
He was greeted by a good-natured quip. "What, you had to hide the body?" Jared laughed. "It's fine. There were just a few odd things I wanted to discuss with you, but I'm all right. Maybe later."
For a few seconds, there was a sudden awkwardness that came out of nowhere. They sat in silence for a moment before Ienji replied. "Did you get a haircut or something? You seem different."
Jared shook his head, and grinned. "No; maybe you just noticed that I took the time to straighten it out this morning." He was lean, with messy dark hair, and a slight quality to his face, almost European.
But Ienji had thought that there was more to it than that; he shook his head absentmindedly. "It wasn't that; hmm. Never mind. What classes do we have today? I don't know if I packed the appropriate materials."
As one of the most academically gifted students in the school, Jared was always very 'together', and scheduled his time for maximum efficiency, despite seeming (for all appearances) a misfit.
"There's history classes--you have world history, I have Japanese history--followed by our chemistry class, free period, algebra, and lastly writing class," he recited from memory. "I would call it a standard day."
Ienji considered this for a moment. "I'm set, then," he determined. He added, "I don't know how you can manage all of this, on the morning after the weekend."
Jared shrugged; this was not an uncommon discussed subject. "It is no problem." As he said this, the bus pulled up in front of the school, the panel swung open once again, and kids began filing out.
The two sat up in unison and made their way up to the front of the bus, and then out onto the parking lot, through the double-doors and into the hall of the school.