Jaxon RadioHead

The Locked Locker

Jaxon settled into his desk, his new red spaceship pencil a beacon against the worn wooden surface. A friendly voice broke the silence, "Cool pencil!"

Taylor, a girl with bright blonde hair, leaned over. Jaxon smiled, a little surprised. He wasn't used to classmates being friendly. He replied, as cheerful as Taylor did. "Thanks, my mom gave it to me."

Taylor held up her own pencil, covered in cartoon unicorn. "This is mine, it's a unicorn. See?"

A new kind of warmth spread through Jaxon's chest. Maybe this year wouldn't be so bad after all.

Suddenly, a shadow loomed over him. Bobby, the school bully, snatched Jaxon's red spaceship pencil in his meaty fist. With a cruel crack, it snapped in two. 

Jaxon's smile falters. "Hey!" Jaxon scrambled to his feet, his voice laced with anger. "That was my mom's—"

Bobby's face twisted into a sneer. He mimicked Jaxon's words in a high-pitched voice and shouted, "My Dad said niggers can't read".

Fury boiled within Jaxon. He shoved Bobby back, a surge of defiance replacing his fear.

The classroom erupted into chaos. Cheers rose for Bobby as he shoved Jaxon into a cold locker, slamming the metal door shut. Inside the locker was little oxygen and minutes to Jaxon felt like hours. Taylor's voice, laced with panic, echoed through the room, "Leave him alone!"

The sound of the latch clicking shut sent a wave of claustrophobia crashing over Jaxon. He pounded on the locker, desperate. Through the haze of fear, he heard Taylor's voice again, this time directed at the doorway, "Mr. Marley! Bobby locked Jaxon in the locker!"

The classroom held its breath as the sound of Jaxon's frantic banging echoed through the room. Taylor's voice, laced with worry, cut through the tense silence, "Mr. Marley! Bobby locked Jaxon in the locker!"

Mr. Marley rushed towards the locker, his brow furrowed with concern. He fumbled with the latch, but it wouldn't budge. "Hold on, Jaxon, I'm gonna get you out!"

Jaxon's heavy breathing and muffled thumps were the only response. Mr. Marley grunted in frustration. "It's jammed. I need the janitor!"

The classroom door burst open, and the janitor entered, toolbox in hand. As Taylor called out to Jaxon in concern, the janitor quickly set to work.

Suddenly, from within the locker, a new voice echoed – a voice unlike any other student's. "Jaxon?". The banging stops. 

The class gasped. Taylor's eyes widened in confusion. "Jaxon, who are you talking to?" The teacher frantically shouts to the Janitor. "Hurry I think he's hallucinating".

Inside the locker, Jaxon spun around, his heart pounding against his ribs. Through the darkness, two glowing eyes emerged. "June?" he whispered, his voice tinged with disbelief.

The faint sound of another voice, youthful and melodic, drifted through the locker walls. The students exchanged bewildered glances. Mr. Marley and the janitor paused in their efforts, their faces etched with concern.

"Jaxon, are you okay?" Taylor called out again her voice panicky. 

Jaxon ignored her, his focus entirely on the figure within the locker. The darkness seemed to stretch on endlessly, far beyond the confines of the metal box.

"Want to go do something fun?" the voice whispered, filled with an otherworldly charm.

"Like what?" Jaxon asked hesitantly.

"Let's go to a theme park," the voice replied. "One with spaceships."

A thrill shot through Jaxon. A theme park with spaceships? It sounded incredible, a world away from the smothering darkness of the locker. From the darkness within the locker a pale hand takes hold of Jaxon's hand.

In the classroom, Mr. Marley and the janitor exchanged a worried look. The sounds coming from within the locker were unlike anything they had ever heard. Taylor bit her lip, fear creeping into her eyes.

The tension in the room was broken by the loud clang of the locker door swinging open. The janitor, wiping sweat from his brow, stepped back.

But inside the locker, there was no sign of Jaxon. The students gasped, their confusion turning to astonishment. 

The locker was completely empty.