Nao Summers hates drama, but life becomes full of it when he's paired with the school delinquent on a film project. He's also in dire need of a way to break up with his girlfriend who wants to have lots of sex, while Nao would prefer to die. To crow...
Jenny sat in front of us, face cradled in the palms of her hands, eyes dancing from Axel and back to myself every now and then. She seemed to be enjoying the way we looked at her.
"I know, but I figured you heard something somewhere," I said, hugging the camera bag closer to my chest.
Jenny seemed to like Axel well enough. She hadn't protested when he asked her to come with us, and she answered my questions willingly enough. The problem was that she didn't know much at all.
"Have I overheard a few conversations? Sure," she said. "But it's mostly locker room stuff, you know? Girls gossiping while they change. Everyone's just repeating stuff they've heard from others." She considered me through hooded eyes. "How do I even know it's true at this point?"
"The rat," Axel said, speaking up for the first time since we sat down. His eyes were a cold steel front. Jenny looked at him and blinked slowly, almost like a mellow cat.
"Touché."
"So? Remember any specifics?" I backtracked until I hit the edge of a table, seating myself on its edge. My gut told me Jenny knew something. It felt like she was playing with us — why, I had no idea — and wouldn't stop until she profited somehow.
"Hmm." She was humming a low, torturous tone now. "I might remember something... But see, I'd planned on visiting the adviser again today, but our teacher has been a bit of a pain."
"I'll take care of it," Axel said.
They stared at each other for a long time, and all I could do was watch, confusion swirling in my stomach. What were they talking about now? I thought I'd paid attention pretty well — for me, anyway — but I was totally lost on the topic of conversation now.
"You should ask Mia," Jenny said at last, mouth curling into a playful smile. "She's responsible for most of the rumors that circulate around here. Good luck."
With that, she left, bounding down the hallway while humming another one of her tunes. Axel sat down on the table next to me, nodding to himself.
"What was that about?" I muttered, not thinking about the way his shoulder touched mine, nope.
"She's dating the school adviser," he said. "I have to go cover for her, give me a minute."
Axel disappeared back into his classroom, leaving a trail of his scent lingering in the air. Jenny's voice still echoed in my mind, a perpetual reminder of the mystery we were trying to unravel. We were nearing the midpoint of November now, and the project was approaching its most vital phase. There wasn't much time to ponder over rats and mysteries, but I was learning that leaving things for later tended to be a bad idea.
The return of Axel brought me back to the present. He ran a hand through his hair, leaving it ruffled and messy as he settled next to me on the table.
"Mia," he said simply.
"Who's she?"
His mouth tugged into a bitter smile. "She's the type of girl that's better experienced than explained."
"That's an odd thing to say."
"You'll see."
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