Chapter 5:

"How can I be of service to you?" asked the office secretary. I managed a fake, but convincing smile. Nudge says I'm good at these.

"I have a prescription I take daily at school, and my friend informed me that I'm supposed to register it with the nurse. Do you know if that's correct?" Hopefully, I won't get caught for the second time. Last time, the principle called mom and I got detention for a day. Four boring hours. But I did it so I wouldn't risk Nudge getting into trouble, and I wanted to see the files myself.

"Oh, yes," the secretary said solemnly. "All drugs need to be registered. Nurse's office is back through there, third door on the left, across from student records." She gestured into the hallway behind her. "If the nurse isn't there, you can take a seat on the cot inside her office. She should be back any minute." This is going to be easy.

I headed down the hall but stopped several times to check over my shoulder. No one. The front office phone rang, but it sounded a world apart from the dim corridor in which I stood.

I came to a stop at the third door on the left. I sucked in a breath and knocked, but it was obvious from the darkened window that the room was empty. I pushed on the door. It moved with reluctance, creaking open on a compact room with scuffed white tiles. I stood in the entrance a moment. A quick glance across the hall revealed a door with a window marked STUDENT RECORDS. It too was dark.

I focused my attention on a nagging thought at the back of my mind. Fang claimed that he hadn't gone to school last year. I was pretty sure he was lying, but if he wasn't, would he even have a student record?

He'd have a home address at the very least, I reasoned. And an immunization card, and last semester's grades. Still. Possible suspension seemed like a large price to pay for a peek at Fang's immunization card.

I leaned one shoulder against the wall and checked my watch. Nudge had told me to wait for her signal.

She said it would be obvious.

Great.

The phone in the front office rang again, and the secretary picked up.

Chewing my lip, I stole a second glimpse at the door labeled STUDENT RECORDS. There was a good chance it was locked. Student files were probably considered high security. It didn't matter what kind of diversion Nudge created; if the door was locked, I wasn't getting in.

I leaned my back against the wall. A minute ticked down. I needed to get in and Nudge needs to hurry. What if Nudge was right? Fang was stalking me?

If the door was unlocked and the files were alphabetized, I would have no trouble locating Fang's quickly. Add another few seconds to skim his file for red flags, and I could probably be in and out of the room in under a minute. Which was so brief it might not feel like I'd entered at all.

Things had grown unusually quiet out in the front office. Suddenly NUdge rounded the corner. She edged down the wall toward me, walking in a crouch, dragging her hands along the wall, stealing surreptitious glances over her shoulder. It was the kind of walk spies adopted in old movies. She was taking the spy thing seriously.

"Everything is under control," she whispered. I smiled at her and nodded.

"Ten-four…what happened to the secretary?" I whispered.

"She had to leave the office for a minute."

"Had to?"

"I called in a bomb threat from the pay phone outside," Nudge said. "The secretary dialed the police, then ran off to find the principal."

I laughed a bit loudly but shut up. I gave her thumbs up and air high-fived.

She tapped her wrist. "Clock's ticking. We don't want to be in here when the cops arrive."

I nodded. I agreed and beckoned her over.

Nudge and I sized up the door to student records.

"Move over," I said, giving her my hip.

I drew my sleeve down over my fist and drilled it into the window. Nothing happened.

"That was just for practice," I said. I drew back for another punch and she grabbed her arm.

"It might be unlocked." She turned the knob and the door swung open.

"That wasn't near as much fun," I said.

"You go in," Nudge instructed. "I'm going to keep surveillance. If all goes well, we'll rendezvous in an hour. Meet me at the Mexican restaurant on the corner of Drake and Beech." She crouch walked back down the hall. I nodded. I went inside and silently closed the door behind me.

I hurried forward, dragging my finger along the faces of the cabinets. I found the drawer marked car–cuv. With one tug the drawer rattled open. The tabs on the files were labeled by hand, and I wondered if Coldwater High was the last school in the country not computerized.

My eyes brushed over the name "Walker."

I wrenched the file from the crammed drawer. I held it in my hands a moment, trying to convince myself there was nothing too wrong with what I was about to do. So what if there was private information inside? As Fang's biology partner, I had a right to know these things. Not illegal. Fang could answer the illegal question right now. I smiled.

Outside, voices filled the hall.

I fumbled the file open and immediately flinched. It didn't make any sense.

The voices advanced.

I shoved the file randomly inside the drawer and gave it a push, sending it rattling back into the cabinet.

As I turned, I froze. On the other side of the window, the principal stopped midstride, his gaze latching onto me.

Whatever he'd been saying to the group, which probably consisted of every major player on the school's faculty, trailed off. "Excuse me a moment," I heard him say. The group continued hustling forward. He did not.

He opened the door. "This area is off -limits to students, Maximum. What'd I tell you if I caught you here again?"

I tried on a helpless face. "I'm so sorry. I'm trying to find the nurse's office. The secretary said third door on the right, but I think I miscounted... " I threw my hands up. "I'm lost."

Before he could respond, I tugged at the zipper on my backpack. "I'm supposed to register these. Iron pills," I explained. "I'm anemic."

He studied me for a moment, his brow creasing. I thought I could see him weighing his options: stick around and deal with me, or deal with a bomb threat. He jerked his chin out the door. "I need you to exit the building immediately." I did as was told. I let out a sigh of relief of not getting in trouble.

An hour later, I slid into the corner booth at the Mexican restaurant on the corner of Drake and Beech. The Borderline. Nudge suddenly flopped on the seat opposite of mine, the waiter standing by our table.

"A sprite, please," Nudge and I said at the same time. We laughed and so did the waiter. He left with a smile and nod.

"Be right back," she said, sliding out of the booth. "That time of the month. After that, I want to get the scoop." I nodded and smiled at her.

While waiting for her, I found myself concentrating on the busboy some tables away. He was hard at work scrubbing a rag over the top of a table. There was something strangely familiar about the way he moved, about the way his shirt fell over the arch of his well- defined back. Almost as if he suspected he was being watched, he straightened and turned, his eyes fixing on mine at the exact same moment I figured out what was so familiar about this particular busboy.

Fang.

I couldn't believe it. I thought about slapping my forehead when I remembered he'd told me he worked at the Borderline.

"Dios mio, porque?" I said to the ceiling. (A/n: It means "why god?")Yeah I speak Spanish. My mom is Hispanic and has taught me. I pinched the bridge of my nose and sighed.

Wiping his hands on his apron, he walked over, apparently enjoying my discomfort as I looked around for some way to escape, finding I had nowhere to go but deeper into the booth.

"Well, well," he said. "Five days a week isn't enough of me? Had to give me an evening, too?"

"I apologize for the unfortunate coincidence," I snapped, remembering earlier's conversation. I hate you, I thought. As if he read my thoughts he smiled.

He slid into Nudge's seat. When he laid his arms down, they were so long, they crossed into my half of the table. He reached for my water glass, twirling it in his hands.

"Seats are taken," I said. He didn't respond.

"Shouldn't you be working instead of fraternizing with customers?" I choked.

He smiled. "What are you doing Sunday night?"

"Ha ha. Get out of here," I said.

I snorted and responded, when he didn't budge. "You're asking me out?"

"You're getting cocky. I like that, love."

"I don't care what you like. I'm not going out with you. Not on a date. Not alone. I don't date guys. Especially idiots like you." I wanted to kick myself for experiencing a hot thrill upon speculating what a night alone with Fang might entail. Most likely, he hadn't even meant it. Most likely, he was baiting me for reasons known only to him. "Hang on, did you just call me 'Love'?" I asked.

He grinned. "It stays. Love."

He leaned across the table, raised his hand to my face, and brushed his thumb along my cheekbone. I pulled away, too late.

"What the hell it wrong with you?" I hissed. He just shrugged. I rolled my eyes and slumped my shoulders.

"Like hell I'd go out with you," I scoffed.

"Too bad. There's a party on the coast. I thought we could go." He actually sounded sincere.

I could not figure him out. At all. The earlier hot thrill still lingered in my blood, and I pulled out a long loose string on my jacket, trying to cool my feelings. Time alone with Fang would be intriguing, and dangerous. I wasn't sure how exactly, but I was trusting my instincts on this one.

"If this party is something you'd be interested in, I can almost guarantee I won't be."

There, I thought. Case closed.

And then, without any warning whatsoever, I said, "Why are you asking me anyway?"

Up until this very moment, I'd been telling myself I didn't care what Fang thought of me. But right now, I knew it was a lie. Even though it would probably come back to haunt me, I was curious enough about Fang to go almost anywhere with him.

"I want to get you alone," Fang said. Just like that, my defenses shot back up.

"Listen, Fang, I don't want to be rude, but—"

"Sure you do."

"Well, you started it!" Lovely. Very mature. "I can't go to the party. End of story."

"Because you can't go out on a school night, or because you're scared of being alone with me?"

"Both." The confession just slipped out. Like I said, he makes me feel different.

"Are you scared of all guys…or just me?"

"I don't have to answer that," I shot back.

"I make you uneasy?" His mouth held a neutral line, but I detected a speculative smile trapped behind it.

Yes, actually, he had that effect on me. He also had the tendency to wipe all logical thought from my mind.

"I'm sorry," I said. "What were we talking about?"

"You."

"Me?"

"Your personal life."

I laughed, unsure what other response to give. "If this is about me…and the opposite sex…Nudge already gave me this speech. I don't need to hear it twice."

"And what did wise old Nudge say?"

I was playing with my hands, and slid them out of sight. "I can't imagine why you're so interested." I mumbled the last part.

He softly shook his head. "Interested? We're talking about you. I'm fascinated. You're…different" He smiled, and it was a fantastic smile. The effect was a ratcheted pulse— my ratcheted pulse. I looked up and met his eyes. I smiled at him and looked down, my hair making a curtain for both of us.

"I think you should get back to work," I said.

"For what it's worth, I like the idea that there's not a guy at school who matches up to your expectations."

"I forgot you're the authority on my so called expectations," I scoffed.

He studied me in a way that had me feeling transparent. "You're not cagey, Max. Not shy, at all, either. You just need a very good reason to go out of your way to get to know someone."

"I don't want to talk about me anymore."

"You think you've got everyone all figured out."

"Not true," I said. "For example, well, for instance, I don't know much about…you." I bit my lips when I said that. It just came out.

"You're just not…ready to know me," he muttered. I scowled at him. I blinked and almost regretted what I would say next.

"I looked in your student file."

My words hung in the air a moment before Fang's eyes aligned with mine. "I'm pretty sure that's illegal," he said calmly.

"I don't give a crap. Your file was empty. Nothing. Not even an immunization record." Amusement shone in his eyes. He didn't look surprised. He just leaned back in his seat.

"And you're telling me this…?" he raised his eyebrows.

"I'm telling you this because I want you to know that I know something about you isn't right. You haven't fooled everybody. I'm going to find out what you're up to. I'm going to expose you," I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Really? Well I'm looking forward to that," he said. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nudge making her way toward us.

"Leave. Nudge's coming."

Fang just studied me. No emotion showing in his obsidian eyes.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I challenged.

He tipped forward, preparing to stand. "Because you're nothing like what I expected."

"Neither are you," I shot back. It's true. I thought he'd just be another boy to add to my Kick that person's ass list. But no, I was wrong. "You're more of an idiot and more retarded than I thought."