It All Started in Detention

Chapter Ninteen

The best headlines are made of partial truths; lies. Davey knew the method to grabbing a readers attention was to feed their something their brain wants. A robbery, a murder, a crooked politician—anything to get their imagination going and to keep them reading for the full story.

But this was insane.

"Davey Jacobs, cheer captain and vice president of the student council", Sarah read aloud, allowing Davey the freedom to pace, "said to have punched Mason Rivers on the football field two Fridays ago."

"Who the fuck told?!" Davey rubbed the skin of his hair arms, brows furrowed in worry. He barely heard Sarah's sigh of worry. "It couldn't- No one on cheer would've told, they're sworn to secrecy. I don't think anyone else knows. Did Katherine-"

"Katherine...wouldn't do that", Sarah managed, and Davey whispered an apology. He knows she cares very deeply about Katherine, as her girlfriend and just in general, so assuming she'd do something like this, especially for her own gain, hurt Sarah just as much as Davey meant for it to hurt Katherine. "It wasn't any of her siblings either. I already texted Edith and she knows nothing about it."

Davey groaned, spitting out his frustration like hot breath. Time felt like plastic or fondant, as if he was a cartoon character in a show displaying the various downsides of high school. "I don't see why this is such a big deal, Davey."

"Because that shit goes on the internet!" Davey stared wide eyed, fear and anger flashing in his pupils like broken lights. Sarah stepped back in surprise at the volume of his voice, which combatted his usual sweet nature. She'd only heard him yell a handful of times in their time as siblings, and every time surprised her more than the last. "It's there forever, Sar.

"If I get into a college, they will do a background check, or someone can send to the board a high school news article about how I physically harmed a student. You know what happens then? I get kicked out of school, I become a bum, and I end up back here, at home, knowing that I couldn't make anything of myself." Davey sighed.

He placed his hands in his hair, running his fingers through them much like his mother did when he was younger. It never felt like his mother's comfort, never doing much to soothe his headaches and anxiety—when he did it, it felt more like Tylenol than Xanax—but giving him enough of a chance to calm down, if that was possible.

He felt a buzz in his pocket, pulling out his phone with urgency. The screen flashed with a message from a group chat with twenty-one people: Meet in the gym during sixth period tmr. Let me know if you can't make it.

Davey pulled at his hair, phone still in hand, and rushed out angrily, "Oh, of course, we have the fucking basketball game tomorrow!"

"Okay, chill out", Sarah demanded, and Davey forced out a sigh. She placed her hands onto his shoulders, staring him directly into his eyes. "There's no point in freaking out over this. We've always had a bit of luck, right? Remember when we spent two days doing a science project that should've taken two months? And that was during finals week."

Davey chuckled at the memory, remembering how stressed out he and Sarah were that night, him barely in his pajamas and her hair barely in a bun, as they threw pencils and ideas at each other. They managed to get data and a hypothesis in one night and help each other study the next, despite the constant whining and endless amount of coffee and Redbull cans. Davey always found it ironic how their study was on the negative effects of caffeine on the body as he watched Sarah chug two cans of caffeinated Coca Cola in the span of forty-five minutes.

"You're right", Davey admitted, breathing out the first of the finishing of his anxiety. He looked back at Sarah, her brown eyes staring with determination and knowledge Davey could barely think to process, and putting his life and faith in her hands. "We've got this. If anyone says anything, I'll just-"