When Bad Gets Worse

Chapter 1

"Jayce Melbourne?" Mr. Hauser, a 10th grade biology teacher with gray hair and glasses that spend more time halfway down his nose rather than their correct positioning is currently in the middle of calling attendance and pauses for a moment, awaiting a response. "Has anyone seen Jayce today?"

"No, Mr. Hauser," responds Madelyn Greene, one of the top students in the class. During the 2 weeks of this school year, she's become something of a teachers' pet. She uses her study period to tutor classmates and would stay behind frequently to assist teachers.

Mr. Hauser stared at his computer screen and muttered to himself briefly before resuming in a more audible voice and starting the days lesson.

The class continued the day as usual. An hour later, the only sound in the room was the squeaking of a dry erase marker, scribbling on the whiteboard. The student chosen to describe the differences between a prokaryotic cell and a eukaryotic cell was Madelyn. Just as she was placing the finishing touches on her response, an unusual event took place in Mr. Hauser's 2nd period biology class.

Click! The door creaked ajar and as a boy walked in the room, the silence was maintained, but all eyes were fixed on the figure that entered their classroom. The boy had dirty blonde hair and was dressed in the typical school uniform: a white polo shirt with dark khaki pants that were fitted at the ankles. He had bandages wrapped around his forehead and his backpack, which looked like it didn't have much in it, slung over his shoulder. Madelyn stares at the boy with some recognition. While racking her brain on where she's seen this unknown yet familiar face, the marker slips from her grasp and hits the tile with a resounding, Clack! Observing this, the boy walks in front of the fallen marker and snatches it from the floor. He then stands up, eases Madelyn's hand open and gently clutches her hand that contains the marker in his own. "I may be late, but I'm still a gentleman," he commented with a smile.

With his book bag slumped over one shoulder, he strolls to Mr. Hauser's desk and hands him his schedule as if it were the first day of school and he were only 10 minutes late.

The old man scrutinized the paper that was handed to him, and while adjusting his glasses he talks softly to the boy for a moment before pointing to the second to last desk on the far-right side of the classroom.

"You can go ahead and be seated over there, next to Madelyn. Since your late and missed a good portion of class, she can get you up to speed with everyone else,"

As Madelyn takes her seat next to Jayce, she's feeling increasingly uneasy. This boy, Jayce, is starting to remind her of an incident that she stumbled upon on the first day of school. "But it couldn't be, could it?" She argues within her mind. "Psst!" Jayce interrupts, trying to get her attention. When she faces him, he continues to say with a grim look, "We need to talk about what you saw."

"I guess it could." Madelyn mutters to herself as a conclusion to her inner conversation.

2 weeks ago,
August 22, 20xx
2:43pm

Jayce was walking home from, what could conceivably be his first day of school (yeah, right) when he heard the crunch of leaves that suggest someone behind him. His eyes narrowed slightly. He noticed he was being followed since a while ago, so he walked casually and made a few turns just to be sure.

For security reasons, he turned to the opposite direction of his residence, toward the neighborhood park. "It would just make things more complicated if someone I know saw what's going to happen," he reasoned.

When he arrived at the park, like most parks, this one had to advertise themselves with a giant ostentatious billboard at the entrance 'Welcome to Sherman Park.' Jayce sighed at the realization that only the front looks this presentable. If they were to go inside, you would most likely see litter strung along the grass, kids fighting and doing drugs; Activities that would surely disappoint their parents.