THE WESTBURY HIGH FILES

One /Avery

Before the assembly I needed to go to the bathroom. It didn't help that it was raining outside. It fit the mood of gloomy high school; bit of a cliché if anything.

            'Avery, did you bring the music?' Harry was at my elbow. I jumped a little as he appeared while I was placing folders in my locker.

            'The sheet music you left at my house?'

            'Yes, what other music would it be?' Harry paused, 'I need that CD back as well. The one with Miles Davis and Girl in Red.' I smiled. Harry may understand music beyond my comprehension, but he has never mastered the art of the playlist.

            'I have both of them for you.' I handed them over as he jittered up and down, 'feels a bit off today, doesn't it?'

            'I dunno Ave, I'm too pumped up on shitty canteen coffee to feel anything right now.'

'Might be an alien invasion and we just don't know it yet.'

'Maybe the zombie apocalypse has started and is slowly spreading unnoticed.'

'Maybe ghosts are taking over each person so they can feel alive again.'

'Maybe the bridge has finally been finished.'

'Maybe.' I grinned back at Harry. The gloomy day might not be so bad, I thought, pulling out my history papers, thinking of the river, thinking of the ghosts that may be hiding there. It was always one of those strange places that we would conspire about. Urban legends were our favourite pass time.

Harry was fighting a losing battle between his locker and his school supplies. 'Why in such a rush?' I said as he was drowned in an avalanche of months old worksheets, incomplete ones at that.

'I have band practice first period.' He said, dusting himself off, I cocked my head to the side.

'Yo Harry!' On cue, a piercing voice sliced through the hallway, growing more crowded by the second. 'Did you get my message? Practice second period.' The person in question was elbowing his way through the crowd, a mass of curly black hair floated above.

            'Damn it Samarth, when did you send it?'

            'About three minutes ago.'

            'Great. Perfect. Just what I needed.' Harry grumbled. Samarth shrugged.

            'Well, don't die.' I half-smiled.

            'I'm going to miss my English SAC; I can't afford to fail this.'

            'Don't you have band first period?' I questioned.

            'No ya don't, we've got an emergency assembly.' Samarth said, 'Practice is moved from first to second period, what I've been tryin' to tell ya!'

            'Huh?' Harry took a swig of water he'd somehow procured from his locker.

            'Assembly in the library for seniors first period. It was posted on compass dude, keep up.' Harry glanced at me, I nodded. 'You seriously need to keep connected mate, see ya.' Samarth disappeared into the crowd.

            'Emergency Assembly? Maybe the zombie apocalypse has started.' Harry said.

—

I still needed to use the bathroom. It was between having to hold a pee through a long and tedious assembly or doing the awkward walk as I shuffled in late as everyone has sat down. Harry had left me to pack away — fool around on — his guitar in the music room. I walked the maze of temporary (or so they say) portable classrooms to the bathrooms. Phone in hand so no one talks to me. There was a debate going on my Tumblr, I started it, not purposefully. Okay, maybe purposefully. The world needed to know why the Hooded Angel trilogy was bad. I scrolled reblogs briefly;