One Night

Chapter 3

I kept thinking of all the things that could go wrong on this dreaded night. We could get arrested. My mom could find out. I could embarrass myself even more than usual. The list kept getting longer and my stomach was getting queasier with each minute that passed.

"Mac, I say this because I love you. You look like the child of death that he threw up after eating too much candy."

"Gee thanks Nalia. That was the vibe I was channeling when I picked out my outfit this morning," I grumbled as I continued to fidget with the charm bracelet I got for my birthday a few years ago.

"Come on Mac. This is going to be fun!" Jay cheerfully said as he slung an arm over my shoulder. "At cinco o'clock-"

"Which is in a couple of minutes," Nalia interjected.

"-we'll be having the time of our lives finding the seven clues of the Sevenger and working our way towards high school glory and fame. Can't you feel the excitement?"

They both looked at me with excitement, but all I could do was clutch my stomach in fear. This was way out of my comfort zone and they knew it. Even if we did win, which was a slim chance, I wasn't sure I wanted to be known around the school or even go to Senior Prom. My mom probably wouldn't even let me go either.

"Oh! We just got the text!" Nalia exclaimed slightly jumping, before unlocking her phone.

"What's it say? What's the first clue?" Jay eagerly asked, hovering over Nalia's shoulder to get a glance at her phone. He kept jumping between his feet making it look more like he had to use the bathroom rather than read Nalia's text.

"Clue #1: Take a selfie of the whole team with Sammie the Shark," Nalia read aloud.

"Easy!" Jay shouted, looking both left and right before starting to sprint towards the left.

Nalia and I exchanged looks before we heard Jay's second shout.

"Follow me! I know where he's at."

Without a second more of thought, we began sprinting after Jay.

Apparently, everyone had the same thought as him because the hallway was crowded before we even made it to the mascot's dressing room. People were pushing and shoving, trying to make their way to the front in pursuit of a picture. It was mayhem to say the least and it had only just begun.

"Well what do we do now?" Nalia sighed, picking at her black nail polish. She did that whenever she was thinking through a problem. One of the many quirks that made her, her.

"Maybe-" Jay began only to be interrupted by someone at the front of the swarming pack of wild juniors.

"He's not here! They must have hid him somewhere!"

A collective groan rippled through the crowd as everyone turned around to leave the crowded hallway. However, for me, it was the best news of the night. The knots in my stomach began to unravel and for once, I thought I had a chance at bailing from the scavenger hunt.

"I need a second to think," Jay sighed once the hallway was cleared out.

"Well I need to use the bathroom. All this excitement is making me go," Nalia declared, walking straight for the boy's locker room.

"You do know that's the boy's locker room right?" I amusedly asked, glancing between her and the huge sign hanging on the door.

Nalia, ever the brave, just waved it off, stating, "I'll only be a minute."

"I gotta grab something from my locker anyway," Jay said, following her inside.

Not wanting to be left in the hallway by myself with all the crazy juniors, I quickly followed behind Jay. I tried to keep my eyes to myself just incase there were more than just the three of us in here.