The Numbers on Our Arms

Chapter 5

The day was long, but there should be no fake Jokers anymore. Isen's article on Joker had come out and Zeke's insensitivity had confirmed that John was Joker.

Now Seraphina sat on her bed with her phone and a piece of paper in her hands.

Isen had finally come through.

She pulled her phone to her ear and let it ring.

"Hello?" the voice on the other side called.

"Hi. Am I speaking with Claire?"

"Uh, yes?"

"Hi Claire, my name is Seraphina. I'm calling because I'd like to ask you a few questions about-."

"Uhm, sorry, but I'm not interested in taking any surveys right now."

She clicked off.

Why? Why was this more difficult than it had to be?

She rang again.

"You really want those answers, huh-?"

"Excuse me, but I'm not a telemarketer."

"Oh?"

"I'm calling because I need your help. You had an old classmate named John, correct?"

"Look, I have no idea who you care and I don't know how you get my contact info, but I don't want anything to do with John anymore. Last I heard, he went to some snobby prep-school: Wellston."

Snobby?

"You can go ask the kids over there for help."

"I am a student from Wellston." She sighed. "John is my classmate."

"... Oh. Well damn... that's awkward?"

"I think you're the only one who can help anyway, so please hear me out. John and I had an argument a few days ago. He called me Claire and that's how I found out about you."

"Oh... T-that's why you called. Uh... Are you his girlfriend or something?"

"Wha-?"

"Oh oh, I see now! Don't worry! He's all yours, sis! I haven't spoken with him in years and I don't plan on it ever again, so-."

"No, you misunderstood." She sat up from where she leant up against her pillow. "Let me explain. Something in John's past has been haunting him and he's gotten extremely aggressive because of it. Whatever it is, I know, it's got to do with you and his experience at New Bostin."

"Aggressive? So he's causing trouble over there too now?"

"Yes."

"But isn't your school full of high-tiers? Aren't you all supposed to be super strong? Not a single one of you can stop him?"

"... No."

This girl, she's very blunt.

"Well, that sucks." Claire sighed. "You 'd think after getting expelled and taken in by authorities he'd have learned a lesson."

"Hm? John was taken in by the authorities?"

"Ah, I guess you wouldn't know something like that."

"What happened?"

"Well, long story short. I rallied a bunch of classmates against him. He beat us all half to death and the authorities had to step in to stop him."

"You were the one behind that?"

"I didn't want to fight him, but he left me with no choice. He was hurting people left and right and nothing anyone said was getting through to him. I needed to knock some sense into him."