The Thing About Flip Flops

Prologue

Jack's P.O.V. - Five Years Ago

It's the first day of the second semester of seventh grade, and I wish we were still on Christmas vacation.

As I flop into my usual desk, everyone around me is chatting and hugging their friends who they haven't seen since before winter break. I shove my backpack under my desk, mentally cursing that we can't have lockers until middle school.

My camo-print backpack is almost completely empty, except for my snack, but I bet that by the end of the day I'll have books and papers and stuff to bring home.

"Listen up, class! We've got a couple of new friends joining us today!" Miss Rachel chirps loudly.

My whole class, who has been in the middle of catching up with the friends we haven't seen in a few weeks, reluctantly turns to look at the front of the classroom.

It takes a couple seconds for all our voices to die down, but once they do I see that there are two kids standing near the doorway of the classroom.

Miss Rachel is kind of annoying, to be honest. She always talks to us like we're babies. Her dress is bright neon green today and it hurts my eyes a little bit.

But I guess she's nice most of the time.

Anyway, without the big smile leaving her face, she brings the two kids to the front of the class. "Would you two like to introduce yourselves?" She says.

I look over at the two kids with mild curiosity. One is a boy, and he must be my age (twelve) if he's in this class. He is wearing a Batman shirt so of course I decide we will definitely be best friends.

I always want to be Batman when my friends and I play superheroes, because he is cool and rich and has an awesome car. But I'm getting sidetracked. Anyway, the boy has reddish-blond hair and his big grin makes him seem like he can't wait to get to know everyone.

My eyes shift to the girl standing a bit behind him. She looks pretty tall for our age, maybe a couple inches taller than me. She's wearing a blue dress, which is my favorite colour and also the colour I painted my room. Despite the white headband attempting to push back her strawberry blond waves, it dangles in front of her face, hiding it from sight. She seems frozen as she stares at the class from where she is standing in front of everyone.

I don't really pay much attention to them introducing themselves, because I'm trying to stab my pencil into my eraser.

But I do catch that the boy's name is Henry. I don't hear what the girl said her name is though.

I wondered if the two of them are related, because they look alike.

But that wouldn't make sense, right? They would be in different grades...

Or maybe they're twins! That would be so cool. There's a pair of twins in the other seventh grade class, Tommy and Tyler. Except Tyler's a jerk. Hopefully these two twins aren't jerks.

But before I can raise my hand to ask if they're twins, or better yet just yell it out, Miss Rachel tells us it's silent reading time.

I jump up from my desk and practically teleport to the beanbags. There are only two, so everyone always wants them. Otherwise, if you don't get a beanbag, you have to sit at your desk or on the floor.

I flop onto the red one, sticking my tongue out at my friend Jamal. He crosses his arms but doesn't try to push me off this time.

I grab a book on the shelf near me, about the boats of World War II. I love boats.