CHAPTER 22: BREAKING AND ENTERING

Today was a cold and rainy Saturday, and not much was happening except everyone talking about the game and how yet again the Bullworth Bullhorns had to forfeit. At this point, I can say that my plan was really putting a wrench in the works. How it was going to end their sports program though, I do not know. That was going to be something that I had to figure out as the school does not know my intentions of doing such a thing.

I walked out of my dorm room with that thought in mind as I zipped up my jacket to step outside into the cold weather. But just as I was going to step through the double doors leading outside, I heard someone shout "Move" behind me. I quickly turned around and saw that it was John bursting his way through a group of kids who probably got in his way. He probably had to go on duty today. In fact, I wonder what his duty hours were.

"You did a good job last night", John says as he approached me. "Yeah", I begin to say. "A few Nerds and Bullies were knocked unconscious on the field, but I'm glad to say that we kicked their asses. I wonder though when we will be seeing a difference". "You will", John tells me. "I heard that Coach Sanders is shitting bricks right now because Headmaster Kowalski brought up the idea of canceling future games until you and your friends stop sabotaging the games, which I know you guys won't".

"Damn straight", I told him. "Good to know", he says. "Now if you excuse me, I have to go and deal with some idiot Preps and Greasers who thought that having a rumble in the cold rain was a good idea. I wonder where they get these brilliant ideas from anyway". And just like that, he was gone. Just as he went outside the double doors, an idea popped inside my head.

John made me go after Eric Young to get some file as some test. Ever since then, I questioned what his motives were and if Jake really did try to betray him. And above all that, why is John truly trying to help me? So many questions and no answers. From how it seems a while ago, John will probably be out of his room for the whole day, since he is head prefect.

If I wanted to get those answers, then now is the perfect time to do so now. The only problem is that I do not know which room is John's. Well luckily, I know someone who does. I wonder if Eric will be too busy to answer though. I guess I will find out.

I quickly raced down the hall, up the stairs, and straight to Eric's door. I knocked on the door and waited for him to come out. He did not reply, so I knocked again. After a few seconds of waiting, he finally cracked opened the door enough to stick his head out. "Greg", he greeted. "Can I come in for a moment?" I asked him.

He opened it wide, allowing me to walk into his room. "Did you get me my protection yet?" Eric asks. "No", I replied. "Then why are you here?" he questions. "I need to know which room John Maciel sleeps in", I told him. "There's something not quite right about him, and I got to find out what it is". "You are aware of what he might just do to you if he finds out that you went into his room?" he asks. "He's out dealing with some rumble between the Preps and Greasers", I said, "so it's a good opportunity as any without getting caught".

He opened his mouth, about to say the room number when he noticed that the song he was playing had stopped. "Hold on a second", he replies. He went to his DJ set-up, pressed a few buttons, and started speaking in the microphone hanging above his head.

"Damn, was that song great? Now he comes a great song that still gets my blood pumping, even though I have no girlfriend. Not even a romantic crush in this school. Here's Billy Ocean with Caribbean Queen".

He then pressed some other button, causing the song he named to play in the background while he turned his attention back towards me. "He's in room 208, right next door", he says. "Next door? Really? And you got caught?" I asked. "I don't know how I got caught", he tells me. I shook my head in disbelief, and then replied, "Well, I need someone to cause a distraction, so no one can notice me going into John's room. Hopefully, maybe I won't get caught when going in or coming out".

"Well, I'm busy with my station, so I can't help you there", he says. "No problem, I know someone else who will help me out", I told him, "and I expect you to help me out soon".

I walked out his room and passed a few more doors to Craig's room. I knocked on his door only to see him open it a second later. All he had on was a gray tank-top and some Star Wars boxers with the Tie-Fighters printed all over them. "I need you to cause a distraction", I told him. "Hello to you, too", he replies. "I need to break into John Maciel's room and find out what he is up to", I explained. "Can you please help me? I will repay you back somehow".

"I think I know what to do", he says. He reached his hand behind the door, and the sound of a click was made before he shut the door behind him. "Go", he says. "If anyone comes into the hallway, they will pay more attention to me than they would anyone sneaking into someone else's dorm". "But your door? You locked yourself out of your room?" Before he could say anything else, someone in the hallway noticed Craig and yelled, "HEY, GUYS. CRAIG'S LOCKED OUT OF HIS ROOM AGAIN".

I turned around and saw that it was one of the Greasers. He and a few more of his friends came out of a nearby room and rushed up to Craig. I quickly backed away from the scene and ran to John's door. I looked back towards Craig and saw that a few more students were surrounding him. With all their attention towards him, I turned back towards John's door and prayed that it was unlocked. I grabbed the door knob, twisted it lightly, and to my surprise it was unlocked. Had John not learned his lesson when Craig broke into his room? I slowly pushed the door open, sneaked in, and closed it quietly behind me.

I flipped on the light switch and turned around to examine John's room. There was nothing too special about it. It looked like any other room owned by an authority figure. That was going to make things difficult for me. If he is the organized kind of guy, that means that he has some things in arrangement of God-knows-what. Alphabetical, relevance, who knows?

I approached a book shelf in one of the corners and started looking for either a composition book or a notebook. Book after book, I could not find anything useful. Nothing about John's motives. I then went straight to his desk and started opening draws. Still nothing useful. All I found so far was referrals, both blank and filled. "You need a computer, John", I said to myself. That was when that idea dawned on me. His computer. He most likely has one. Who wouldn't in 2028?

I started looking all over the place for a laptop computer. After a minute or two of searching, I finally found it underneath his bed. I quickly plopped it on the bed, turned it on, and waited for it to boot up. Once it did boot up though, it asked for a password. Of course, I thought. Never mind the fact that he's head prefect and that he would bust your ass for going through his belongings, but he had the nerve to use a password for his own computer. As if anyone else would want to do the same thing that I'm doing right now.

I quickly turned it off and slid it back under his bed. If I could take the laptop to Craig and have him crack it open for me, then that would be great. However, he was busy right now getting humiliated by the other students. I was going to have to get back into the room at another time and get the laptop when it is safe to do so.

I went back to the door, flipped off the lights, and quickly opened the door slightly to see if anyone was coming or in the vicinity. Luckily, everyone was still harassing Craig down the hall, spitting on him, giving him wedgies. Damn, do I owe him big time?

I quickly and quietly slipped out of the door, closed it shut behind me, and went to Craig's aid. "Break it up, people. This is only funny the first few times", I said while slipping through the crowd and helped Craig out of the situation that I caused. "You can stay in my room till when the Janitor unlocks your door", I suggested. "Thanks", he says as we walked down the stairs and straight to my room.

When we entered my dorm room, I quickly shut the door behind me and locked it. What I must tell Craig must remain a secret between us. "You found anything while in his room?" he asks. "Nothing", I begin to speak. "I think if there's anything that he's hiding, it would be in his computer. The only problem is that I need a password to access his computer". "So, I got harassed and had a good pair of boxers ruined for nothing?" he asks. "I'm sorry", I told him.

He sat down on my bed and took a deep breath. "I will repay you eventually", I added. "Don't think that I have forgotten everything you did for me so far, and what you're doing for me right now". "You plan on hacking into his computer and find anything noteworthy on there?" he asks. "I would if I was a hacker", I said. "I may have something that could help. I'll have to find out who I loaned it last", he says.

"You have something?" I asked. "It's software that helps with hacking", he replies. "It helps with finding out what keys were pressed and what the password is whenever you have to enter a password". "Cool", I said. "How long till you get your hands on it?" "It'd be a while, but I get it straight to you as soon as I get my hands on it", he says.

Craig has some hacking software of sorts, I started thinking. I think I really owe him big time. I turned back towards the door and was about to walk out when Craig asks, "Aren't you forgetting something?" I turned back towards him and then remembered why he was in here.

I pulled out my cellphone and then handed it to him. "I hope you know someone who does know how to unlock doors", I said. "Well, it isn't the Janitor, that's for sure", he replies. He dialed a number into my phone and started talking to one of his friends.

I did what I never thought I could do. I snuck into John's dorm room and tried to look through his belongings. Had he known what I did, he probably would have busted me for trespassing despite our deal. Hell, he probably would have beaten me just for going into his room, or worst: kill me and dispose my body in the woods for no one to find. Nonetheless, I was going to have to do it again in the future. If John is hiding something, then he will most likely have it hidden in his computer. All I need is another golden opportunity to enter his room, but that won't be for a while.