A Child's Reality (BBRae AU)

XIV

XIV
You're Not Ready
~~~

Kai leaves the bathroom and looks around the halls. The janitor's closet next to him is wide open, so before he makes his way back outside, he grabs a do not enter sign and places it on the bathroom door. He knows that there's no way that the school is completely empty only a half an hour after school ended.

He walks calmly to the other side of the school towards the gym. Better to avoid confrontation. They could be still waiting for him at the front.

I hope they didn't take her backpack...

Nobody's there when he opens the door, but he keeps looking around just in case. Scanning the wall and the trees adjacent to the school, he searches for her backpack while trying to remember what it looks like. All he remembers is that it's black.

Was there anything else on it? Like...her name? Or maybe pins? He asks himself. Nothing notable comes to mind. Damn, couldn't she have a more distinguishable backpack?

Either way, he manages to find it lying on the gravel behind a car. Strangely nowhere near where Raven was being attacked.

They must've moved it. Why? We're they trying to hide it from me?

He picks it up and rummages through it, searching every pocket for her car keys. At one point he just says, "Screw it." and started shaking the backpack to listen for the keys.

I don't hear anything. God, don't tell me they took them.

"Looking for these, Twig?" Michael emerges from the trees and stands atop of the hill, taunting Kai as he jingles Raven's car keys with his finger.

"Where are the other two?" Kai asks monotonously. "They get bored following you all day?"

"Tch, nah. I made them go home. I wanted to talk to you solo. One on one."

He probably sent them out to look for her.

"Why'd you move the backpack? It wasn't anywhere near here."

He shrugs his shoulders. "We were gonna take it, but we went through it and there wasn't anything useful in there. Other than these that is." He lifts up the keys.

Kai groans. "Dude, gimme the keys. I don't have time for this."

"Where is she?"

"None of your damn business."

"Tell me where she is and I'll give you the keys."

"Michael, that defeats the purpose of me getting the keys. And besides, you'll probably just take off with them if I tell you."

"How does it defeat the purpose?"

Kai puts his hand on his face and drags it down, pulling his features around almost like rubber.

"The keys are so I can drive Raven away from you. If I tell you where she is, then I won't be able to get to her before you do because you're quicker than I am. Make sense?" He explains patronizingly.