School Break

The Plan

Kaz Brekker was a good student. That's at least what the teachers said about him. For the most part Kaz stayed out of trouble. Well, that's what they thought. Except the occasional mishap at party's and in the school bathroom, he was pretty ordinary. He got straight A's, honor roll student, and was never rude in class. Kaz thought about this on the way to consumer sciences. He wasn't like most kids in the school of coarse, he held his head high and if someone shoulder checked him they soon knew not to make that mistake twice.

Apparently Karl Dryden didn't learn that lesson. Karl walked over and put a hand on Kaz's shoulder, stopping him from walking. 

"Kaz, buddy, pal. I have a very promising job offer you might want to hear about." Karl smiled. He looked like a rat.

 Kaz looked at Karl and down at his hand which was still on Kaz's shoulder.
"I suggest you remove your hand and let me go to my class, or would you like everyone to know what you and Annabelle do in the gym shed after lunch on Tuesdays?"

 Karl paled a little bit, his grin disappearing. "I have no clue what your talking about." He took his hand off Kaz and brushed it against his pant leg. 

Kaz started to walk to class again, Karl jogged to keep up with him. "I have a job for you" Karl said again.

"I don't really care Karl. No scratch that, I don't care at all." Kaz walked a little faster, hoping Karl would get the hint and leave him alone. 

"How would you like three hundred dollars in your hands before the end of the week?" Karl stopped walking. Kaz turned to face him, he was interested now.

"And where is this three hundred dollars coming from?"

 Karl smiled his little rat smile. 

"Come to the table by that huge ash tree at lunch, you won't regret it" Karl saluted Kaz sloppily and walked into a classroom nearby. 

Kaz watched the lanky boy dissapear.
 What the actual hell was he talking about? Crazy bastard.
Kaz shook his head and headed into his next class, he couldn't focus the entire time. He kept mulling over the idea of three hundred dollars, what was it that Karl needed him to do? 


Kaz walked into the cafeteria, he glanced over at where Inej, Jesper, Wylan, Nina, and Matthias were sitting. Usually he'd walk over, make a comment about them being too loud and then eat his lunch in silence. He saw Jesper with fries up his nose, pretending he was a walrus. Inej laughed. Kaz wanted to be over there with them, but instead he was going to see what Karl was rambling on about earlier

Kaz tried to avoid the table with his friends, he didn't feel like explaining what happened with Karl without anymore information. He saw Karl and another kid sitting under the ash tree which was on the outskirts of the courtyard. 

Kaz sat his tray down with a loud clang. The other boy Karl was sitting with looked up at him, he had golden blonde hair and hazel eyes. Kaz could already tell that this kid was going to be very popular with the group of teenage girls a couple tables away. 

"Kaz Brekker, I would assume you're Nikolai."

 The boy smiled a little. "Yes, lovely to meet you Kaz"

 
a charmer, great.

Kaz nodded and turned to Karl, "I'd start talking about the money soon if you don't want your dirty business spewed throughout the school." Kaz took a bite of mashed potatoes. 

Karl laughed nervously, "always a joker Kaz"

Kaz noticed how Karl glanced at Nikolai.

"Well, we need something but its a little out of our reach." Karl started to tap his fingers together.  Kaz noticed a sweat bead forming on Karl's forehead.

"Come on Karl, say it with your chest. I don't have all day." Kaz looked him in the eyes, which made Karl even more nervous.

"We need to retrieve a few things from Rollins office, and since everybody knows that you've been able to pull of impossible stunts like this. Well, your the best man for the job." Karl wiped his forehead with his sleeve.

 Kaz looked at him and almost laughed, a smile tugged at his mouth. "You're as stupid as you are anxious. What makes you think I could break into the principles office? And exactly which 'impossible stunts' are you talking about?"

Karl looked taken aback, apparently he wasn't used to be called stupid.
 Better get used to it if he asks anyone else to do this. Kaz thought to himself.

 
"Well we all know it was you who stole the mascot costume last year, and hung up the Rollin's sucks banner in the teachers lounge" Karl looked like he was going to puke.

"Those are completely different from breaking and entering and theft."

 
Kaz wasn't going to lie, he wasn't totally against doing it. He mostly just liked making Karl uncomfortable.  

"What if we sweeten the deal?" Nikolai chimed in, "four hundred."

 Kaz raised his eyebrows, "that's quite a lot of money. What in that office could be worth that much?" Kaz didn't miss the shared look between Karl and Nikolai.

"Something very important to me." Nikolai looked serious. 

Kaz thought for a second, it was very tempting. Not just the aspect of money, but that he would be able to say that he broke into the principles office after hours and took something from right under his nose.

Kaz slowly nodded, "tell me more about what I'm taking." 

Nikolai and Karl smiled, "alright so there's a file of a girl from a different school in Rollin's office right now. All you have to do is get it out to us" Nikolai looked proud of himself.

 Kaz didn't know why this boy would ever be proud of himself.

"And why exactly do you need this file?" Kaz pushed some peas around his plate.

"That's on a need to know basis." Karl chimed in, he sounded a bit more confident.

"I don't like that Karl Dryden." Kaz glowered. 

Nikolai smiled smoothly. "It's just a friend of mine from my old school, we're trying to help her transfer over here." 

"Then why do you need the file?" Kaz pushed, he was going to get his answer.

"Let's just say she doesn't have the best grades, yes?" Nikolai smiled again. 

"It's a public school, they let anyone in." Nikolai's story wasn't adding up, he was hiding something. and by the way he was wringing his hands it was something big.

"Just get the file out and you'll get your money." Nikolai's smile disappeared. 

Kaz held out his hand, "the deal is a deal." it was a common trade saying, his uncle taught him all the language of business from a young age.
Nicolai grasped Kaz's hand, his gripe strong and firm.

"The deal is a deal."