The class bell rang before I got back to Mr. Clove’s classroom, and the other students had cleared out quickly. I packed up my stuff and moved toward the cafeteria. It wasn’t a cafeteria that had quite kept up with Brandy’s population, but the school still wasn’t so small that we needed to build a new one yet. As such, lunch was on a staggered schedule, and mine was now. I found the usual table.

“What kind of psychopath starts us on a new book the day before a break?” Austin was asking. Same class as us, but later in the day. He was skimming the reading, last-minute.

“Believe it or not, the curriculum wasn’t designed around seven snow days in March,” Pat said.

“It was on the syllabus,” I pointed out, taking a seat.

“Hey, what’d you do?” Pat asked.

“Nothing,” I said.

“Called to the principal’s for nothing, huh?” Austin muttered.

“It wasn’t the principal,” Pat said. “Extraordinaire is here.”

“Bullshit.”

“I think she left,” I said.

Austin slammed his book shut. “You met Extraordinaire?”

“It really wasn’t- My paranoid parents put out an APB over a curfew thing.”

“Curfew?” Pat scoffed.

“Oh yeah, do you have the notes for that trig test?” I asked.

“You have got to be kidding me.”

“Go on, Pat. What are friends for, huh?” Austin turned back to his book.

“How come it’s never you two sharing your notes, then?”

Clara settled into a seat next to me.

“So, what’s the occasion?” she asked.

“Huh?”

“You look totally different!”

“What are you talking about?” Pat looked me over. “Actually, come to think of it, where’s your scarf?”

“Is everyone going to ask me that?”

“Hey, guys,” Jade said. She pushed the boys out of her way and sat between them.

“Ah, Jade. Now there’s a familiar face!” Clara reached over Austin’s book to tap the cracked lens on Jade’s glasses.

“Ek.” Jade swatted Clara’s hand away. “Cut it out. Besides, I’m getting new ones over the break.”

Clara pouted. “Aw, really?”

“Well, I’ve had them for two years.”

“Are you gonna break the new ones?” Austin asked.

“Fuck off.” Jade turned to me. “So, what’d they want from you?”

“I guess I got reported missing,” I said.

“You what?” Pat balked.

“I thought you went home,” Jade said.

“Wow.”

“I said I’d bring you, not babysit you.”

“You two went to a party the day before a break?” Clara asked, unimpressed.

“The best hosts are out of town next week,” Jade defended herself.

Clara rolled her eyes. “Did you at least study for that test first?”

“Yeah’bsolutely,” Jade said.

“Um.” I glanced at Pat.

“Crystal….”

I ignored Clara, smiling at Pat as he pulled a notebook out of his bag with a sigh.

“Wait, so where did you go?” Jade asked.

I blinked. “Home.”

“You walked that far?”

“It was actually a pretty peaceful night out,” I said. Which was true, as far as I could remember. The walk from the river to my house was great. A bit cold, but-

“Wasn’t it fuckin’ freezing last night?” Jade asked.

“Hey,” a teacher who happened to be walking past our table snapped.

Jade ducked, turning pink.

Austin closed his book again, though it looked like he’d gotten through the right number of pages already. “Hang on, so you did or didn’t meet Extraordinaire? Can we clear that up?”

“Okay, technically, yes.”

“What kind of technically?”

“Oh, you know,” I shrugged. “‘Stay in school, kid. Look both ways before crossing the street.’ That sort of thing.”

“Well, she’d know,” Pat said.

Jade elbowed him. “Too soon!”

“Wha- She got better! Like, immediately.”

“She still died, though. You shouldn’t joke about how someone died within, like.” Jade tilted her head. “What, five years?”

“Any sooner than that would offend them, definitely,” I chimed in.

Jade grunted in annoyance.

“Right, well. Extraordinaire shows up, I get called to the office, that’s not staying secret,” I said. “What should I tell my parents, before they find out on Facebook?”

“Wasn’t it their fault?” Pat asked.

“A superhero is probably more than they bargained for,” I said. I stifled a laugh at the double meaning.

“Well, just say you met her, then,” Clara said. “If it wasn’t a big deal, it wasn’t a big deal.”

“Can we trade mornings, if you’re going to be so ungrateful about it?” Jade asked.

“She’ll be in town for a bit,” I said. “You didn’t miss your chance to say hi, or whatever.”

“What? Where?”

“Um. I didn’t ask.”

“Oh, come on!”

I almost pulled my phone out of my pocket, but it occurred to me that showing off Extraordinaire’s business card might give away too much. I had no idea what criteria she had for handing the things out, after all.

“Look, it’s not going to be that hard to track down one of the most famous people ever while she’s here,” I said.

“Especially without school eating up the whole day,” Clara added.

“We could’ve used the insider info to beat the crowds there, though,” Austin complained.

“Sorry,” I lied. “I was a bit preoccupied, given the circumstances.”

“You should always have a plan for following up on a chance meeting with a celebrity,” Austin said.

“I think that’s called stalking,” Pat cut in.

I flipped open the notebook, scanning for the test notes I needed to review.

“They do say not to meet your heroes,” Clara mused.

I shook my head. “I’m still processing it, to be honest. I can talk you guys through the details when it feels real.”

“Fair enough.”

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