Chapter 18: In Every War,There Are Casualties
"...And envelope? What's so special about an envelope, that he would hide it in a secret compartment?" Daf asked.
"Well, obviously there's something in it," Kyle told her, then he glanced down at Nick "...there is something in it, right?"
"There appears to be, yes," Nick answered, holding the envelope up to the light and peering at it.
"Well, is it labeled?" Connie asked.
Nick turned the envelope over to look at the front. "It just says 'Mr. vernon', in pencil...it looks kinda faded," he said.
"I wonder how old it is?" Daf asked.
"I wonder why he keeps it here?" Kyle asked.
"I wonder why we haven't opened it yet, which seems like the simplest way to answer all our questions?" Connie asked.
"Have patience, little grasshopper," Nick muttered."There's no rush."
Just then, they heard a muffled grunt coming from outside, in the hallway.
" - There appears to be now!" said Kyle.
"Shh!" said Nick,standing up."Just stay here and keep quiet!"
With that, he tiptoed quietly over to the office door.
"But what if it's -"
"Daf, shut up!" Kyle muttered,through gritted teeth, putting his hand over her mouth.
Slipping the envelope inside his jacket, Nick slowly and quietly opened the door a little.
In that small, half inch of space, Nick could see Mr. Vernon holding his stomach and groaning, then he bent over and continued groaning, and then, still bent over, he turned around and hurried back in the bathroom.
When Nick heard the bathroom door shut, he opened the door wider and beckoned to the other three, waving them out into the hallway.
"Go, go!" he said, in a harsh whisper.
Kyle prodded Daf to go first, so, quickly, but not without hesitation, Daf hurried out of the office, and went across the hall and back into the library.
Kyle followed right behind her, and Connie followed him, but not without casting a sideways glance at Nick, as she passed him at the door.
After Connie shut the door to the library, Nick stepped out of the principal's office, and was about to close the door behind him...when he heard the bathroom door open.
"Harrison, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Vernon asked.
Freezing on the spot, Nick plastered an uneasy smile onto his face, and slowly turned to face his principal.
"heh heh...how ya doin'?" he said.
But Vernon just glared at him.
"I'm gonna ask you again, Harrison," said Vernon, walking toward him,"what the hell were you - "
But the end of his question was cut off by a deafening crash, and dust from a small amount of flying debris, as Sean Dawson fell through the ceiling and landed on the cold tile floor, just a few feet in front of them.
"...Ow," he muttered, his cheek practically flattened against the floor.
"WHAT THE HELL - ?"
"Awesome entrance, Sporty Spice! Very impressive!"
On the other side of the library door, Daf, Connie, and Kyle were all trying to overhear what was happening, with their ears pressed against the door.
"What was that?" Daf asked.
"D'you think Vernon hit him with something?" Kyle asked.
"I think I just heard Sean, did anyone else hear Sean?" Connie asked.
Back in the hallway, Nick went over to help Sean up off the floor.
"Aaaaaagh!" Sean whined, as Nick hauled him up with one hand on his forearm, and one on his shoulder.
"Well, would ya look at you," said Nick, who couldn't help but grin,"first ya get beat up by a girl, then ya get beat up by the ceiling, and finished off by the floor!"
"I think the floor actually beat me up more than the ceiling did," Sean remarked, wincing in pain "...ow, ow! Easy on the shoulder!"
"Dawson," Vernon began, walking over to the boys, stepping over the small amounts of debris,"what the hell were you doing in the ceiling?"
"Uh...checking for esphestus?" Sean offered, then he frowned and glanced at Nick."Wait, can esphestus grow in the ceiling?"
Nick frowned.
"I don't know, actually," he said.
"Enough!" Vernon shouted, so loud that the other three teenagers jumped back from the library door, startled.
"You two, get back in the library!" Vernon ordered, pointing to the library door.
Hearing this,Connie, Kyle, and Daf all rushed away from the door and scrambled back into their seats.
"But sir, he needs medical attention," Nick told the principal, referring to Sean.
"We'll get him an icepack, he'll be fine," said Vernon.
"Well, y'know, sir, I hate to bring this up, but...he could be able to sue you," Nick told him.
Sean's face brightened a little.
"He's gonna sue me?" Vernon asked "...all because he was stupid enough to try to crawl through the ceiling? Trying to find a way out, I bet, huh?" Vernon asked. turning to Sean. "And may I inquire as to how you were gonna do that from inside the ceiling?"
"Well, I had a feeling I was gonna fall through or something," Sean admitted, "I was just hoping that when I crashed through the ceiling, I would land somewhere near the front entrance."
Nick snorted."Amateur," he mumbled.
"What was that, Harrison?" Vernon snapped.
"Sir! Absolutely nothing, Sir!" Nick replied.
Their principal glared at the two of them.
"Alright, get back in there!" Vernon barked, gesturing behind them, to the library.
So the boys turned around and Nick opened the door for Sean, who was still holding his shoulder, and the two of them entered the library.
As they made their way back to their desks,Vernon called after them.
"You little pricks sit still for a while and we'll see if I can find an icepack," he said, then he seemed to reconsider this. "Or. y'know what...? Maybe we'll wait a little while before gettin' that ice pack. If you're stupid enough to pull a stunt like that, Mr. Dawson, you should be willing to handle the consequences."
With one last malicious smirk, Vernon slammed the door behind him, leaving the five teens alone, once again.
"That man is pure evil," Daf grumbled.
"Yup, we may be the only ones who know that the Devil really wears tweed," said Kyle.
"Well, Prada is so last season," Connie added.
"Can we concentrate less on his wardrobe and more on my pain, please?" Sean whined.
"Well, it's not our fault you were stupid enough to try to climb through an air duct, ya moron!" Daf snapped.
"Oh shut up, you stupid little - "
"WHOA! PEOPLE!" Nick spoke up, raising his hands to silence them."Bickering will not help the situation!"
Daf and Sean just turned away from each other, grumbling under their breath.
"How can the situation be helped, at all?" Connie asked. "You heard the the old man,Vernon's not gonna let him go to the hospital, so what other options do we have?"
"Well, to my knowledge, there is at least...one," Nick answered.
Kyle suddenly looked up at Nick,and his eyes widened.
"Ohhhh no...!" he said. "We...we can't do that man, that's just - !"
"But it'll work!" Nick insisted.
"But it's - "
" - It'll work!" Nick repeated, "now, who's got an icepack left over from their lunch?"
The other four took their lunch bags out and looked inside them, Daf finally held up a small, dark blue ice pack.
"OKey dokey, thank you," said Nick, as he took the ice pack from her."Now, who has something Sean can stuff in his mouth?"
"Stuff in his mouth?" Connie asked.
"Stuff in my mouth?" Sean repeated.
"Is there an echo in the room?" Nick asked, looking around. "Yes, we need something for you to stuff in your mouth...preferably, something edible."
With a sigh, Kyle pulled a small, wrapped salami from his lunch bag and handed it to Nick.
The other four stared at Kyle, puzzled.
"What?" he asked, looking around at them. "I told ya she was a bit nuts, didn't I?"
"Alright, Kyle, Sean come with me," said Nick, walking to the front of the room.
"Wait, where are you going?" Connie asked.
Nick smirked.
"Don't worry, sweetheart, I'm not leavin'...ya don't have to miss me," he told her.
Connie just rolled her eyes, and Nick, Sean, and Kyle walked to the wall just to the right of the library door.
"OK, Kyle, unwrap the salami..." Nick began.
"Oh, ew," Connie muttered.
"What?" Daf asked "...oh, ew! I just got that!"
"Get your mind outta the friggin' gutter, ya pervs!" said Nick, then he turned back to Kyle, who had just finished taking the plastic off of the salami.
"Ok, Seanny - boy, take the salami..."
"I don't see how this is gonna help me..." said Sean.
Nick quirked an eyebrow.
"Ya wanna be in pain for the rest of the day, or ya wanna trust me with this?" he asked.
Sean frowned, and looked past Nick, at Kyle.
"Was that a trick question?" he asked him.
"Take the salami, Sean," Nick ordered, before Kyle could reply.
So Sean, reluctantly, took the salami, and Nick handed Kyle the icepack.
"OK, now, have you ever seen any of the Lethal Weapon movies?" he asked Sean.
"Ah, boy..." Kyle muttered.
"Uh, yeah..." Sean replied, looking uneasy.
"I don't think I can watch this," Daf whined, putting her hand over her eyes.
"Fine, then keep your eyes closed and I'll tell ya if he survives," Connie told her.
"You're all heart, Bender..."
"Pay attention to the medic, Sean, otherwise you're gonna be throbbing for the rest of the day," Connie told him.
Nick and Kyle looked at each other and tried to contain their laughter.
"Wait...that came out wrong...!" said Connie.
"I'll say..." Daf muttered.
"Ok, anyway, back to the matter at hand - " Nick began.
Kyle chuckled.
"...Hand...!"
"KYLE!"
"Right, sorry! Continue!" said Kyle.
"Alrighty then," said Nick. "Now Sean, you remmeber in Lethal Weapon 2 and Lethal Weapon 3, how, when Mel Gibson popped out hi shoulder, he had to kinda...set it back in?"
Sean's eyes widened.
"OHHHH NO! No no no no no no no - !"
"Dude, it's the only way...!" Nick insisted.
Sean looked over at Kyle, and Kyle nodded.
So, with a whimper, Sean put his left hand on the wall, the small movement causing his shoulder to ache even more.
"Alright, now Kyle, be ready with the ice pack..." Nick instructed, walking around the Sean's other side, putting a hand gently on his shoulder.
"What're they gonna do?" Daf asked.
"Close your eyes, and cover your ears," Connie told her.
"What? Why -?"
"Just do it!"
"Alright, now Sean, put the salami in your mouth...good now, on the count of three,we're gonna turn your arm to the right, hard, OK...? Now, one, two...THREE - !"
"YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWOWOWOWOW...!"
Yes, poor Sean.
Oh, and those of you who haven't seen the Lethal Weapon movies, I recommend them.
And in the next chapter (which should be up within the next week, I promise!) we'll find out what's in that envelope...
LOVE YA!!!
- Ace's Buddy