Friday, May 7, 2021 | Gravesfield, Connecticut

Camila Noceda had had a relatively light day so far, working as the head of Happy Pets Clinic. Rudy, a feisty Jack Russell terrier, had to get 27 porcupine quills removed from his snout, while Theodore, an energetic Cocker Spaniel mix, needed a steroid injection for allergies, and that was much easier said than done. The rest of the day had been uneventful, however. Camila had just slumped down at her chair in the break room when her phone began to ring.

Digging her phone out of her purse, she instantly recognized the number, belonging to the front office of Gravesfield High School. Quickly tapping the Accept Call button, Camila brought the phone up to her ear.

"Hello, this is Camila Noceda."

"Hi Dr. Noceda. Your daughter Luz has been sent to Principal Hal's office for her disruptive behavior in her English class. Since this is past her second offense, we're required to contact you and have you appear with her while appropriate disciplinary action is taken."

"Thank you for letting me know. I'll be on my way shortly. Have a good day."

"Likewise, Dr. Noceda."

Camila ended the call and then let out a long sigh. She loved Luz and her creativity, she really did, but it sometimes got out of hand. Luz would get so engrossed in her latest art project or book report that she would forget to think about how others might react.

Taking a look at the schedule for the rest of the day, there wasn't much left to do, and nothing that Camila 100% needed to be there for, so she decided to take the rest of the day off to be with Luz.

Packing up her belongings, Camila realized she needed to let the rest of the staff know that she would be leaving early. Luckily, Carmen and Dianne were the only other people working this shift, so that would be pretty easy.

"Hey Carmen!"

"Yeah, Dr. N?"

"I need to go right now. Do you think you can cover the rest of my patients?"

"Totally. I'm finishing up with Cassie right now, so I won't have much more after that."

"Awesome. Thank you, Carmen. Can you let Dianne know I'll be gone, as well?"

"Yup. No worries, Dr. N."

"Great. Thanks, again."


As Camila pulled into the parking lot of Gravesfield High School, she steeled herself as she opened the doors to the building that had been the source of many nightmares. After checking in with the front desk and being given a small name-tag declaring her a visitor, she made her way over to the office of Principal Hal.

Closing the office door, Camila saw her daughter with a forlorn look on her face, and Principal Hal with a disgruntled look on his.

"Hi, mom," Luz said quietly.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice, Dr. Noceda," Hal said.

Camila took a seat next to her daughter before turning to face the principal.

"So what exactly is it that I was called here for? I know that Luz was 'disruptive' in class, but that's it. Would you care to enlighten me on the situation?"

"Well for starters, your daughter brought a live snake to class and used it as a prop in her book report."

Camila's eyes shot over to make contact with Luz's.

"You brought Reggie with you to school? Luz, what have I told you, you have to keep Reggie at home and in his terrarium!"

"Sorry, mamá."

"I know, mija, but you also have to be a responsible pet owner. Reggie could have hurt one of the other students, or even been hurt himself. Do you understand that?"

"Yes mamá. Look, he's fine. He was never in danger." Luz then pulled Reggie out from her backpack, and the snake coiled himself around his owner's left arm.

"That's good and all, but you still have to be careful, okay?"

"Okay, mom."

Principal Hal then drew the attention back onto him by opening one of the drawers to the side of his desk. The loud SKRRRRT was grating to everyone's ears. Hal then pulled out a small pamphlet and placed it on his desk.

Luz and Camila both moved up closer to get a better look at the flyer. "Reality Check Summer Camp" was printed at the top in a garish font, and a picture of a boy being trapped inside a box made it even worse. The obviously fake smile on the kid's face, along with the tagline of "Think inside the box!" didn't help much either.

"In light of Luz's recent incidents, I believe that this camp would be of great benefit to her, and it would also give her the chance to make friends with other children her own age. This is an optional activity, though. If you do take up the offer, it would last the entire summer break."

The two Nocedas looked over the pamphlet as it proclaimed how Reality Check Summer Camp would teach campers about the "Wonders of Public Radio" and "Doing Your Taxes: The Fun Way!" The document looked like it hadn't been updated in decades, with the "The Sharing Initiative © 2001" at the bottom of the last page being a dead giveaway.

"I'll let you two talk this over amongst yourselves. If you could get back with a decision by next Monday, then we could start the signup process then. There is no rush, however. Signing up only takes a few –" Hal was cut off by Reggie uncoiling himself from Luz's arm and striking at the man.

"REGGIE, NO!" Luz yelled, as she quickly pulled her pet off the shocked principal. She hastily slipped Reggie into her backpack and zipped it mostly shut, leaving a small gap at the top. Reggie still needed to breath, of course. Luz wasn't a monster.

"I am so sorry, Principal Hal," Luz stammered out. She noticed the vitiligo markings on her hands start to grow a little larger. That was probably just a trick of the light or stress messing with her brain.

"You should be. That thing nearly killed me," Hal then composed himself before continuing, "Alright, Noceda. I was originally going to give you the choice of going to Reality Check Camp, but now you have forced my hand. You'll be attending, whether you like it or not. Consider this extended academic action. Now, please go with your mother and leave this school before I have a resource officer escort you out."