"Come on man, lemme see it."

"Cut it out Drew, I'm not stripping for you." Lincoln argued, thumping his friend's hand away. I was on my way out of Mr. Hampton's class when I spotted the duo. Their conversation could be heard over the buzz of people as they rushed off to lunch.

"I'm not asking you to strip. Just lift it up a bit."

"Dude, there's other people around."

Andrew huffed out in annoyance. "Yeah, because no one has seen a belly button before." He paused for a moment before trailing off in an unusual direction. "Yours is an innie, right? Outties freak me the fuck out."

"You're weird as Hell." Lincoln accused while shaking his head. "Stop trying to undress me!"

"People are staring." I informed the two as I approached the wall of lockers.

Lincoln rose a scarred brow prior to sending his friend a pointed look. "Really? I wonder why."

"For fuck sake Link. I just want to see it."

Andrew was never going to give up. Sending a knowing expression to Lincoln I said, "Just show the kid." Deep down I knew I was only siding with Andrew because I wanted to see as well. I hadn't seen the damage Silva inflicted onto him since Saturday night and I was silently praying for the mark to have magically disappeared.

"It's got gauze on it." Lincoln argued while preparing to raise the thin material covering his torso.

Andrew continued to pester. "Peel it back."

With an exasperated shake of his head Lincoln did as Andrew asked. Gathering the black clothe he revealed the suppose-to-be white bandage. A sickly yellow fluid had seeped through to the other side.

The dressing was taped down and stuck to the skin in an uncomfortable looking way. Gingerly, Lincoln picked at a corner, edging the adhesive off. Andrew and I inched closer to get a better look. I fought my initial reaction to suck in a breath. If possible it appeared worse than two days prior. The cut was now clean, however, the skin was discoloured - purples and blues staining the healing surface. The sight of the pinched skin had my face twisting in distaste. No matter how neat the stitching may have been I was not a fan of anything needle related. There was no doubt that this specific patch of flesh would never appear like it used to.

"Ah, fuck man. He got you good." Andrew stated, seeming almost excited by the mark above Lincoln's hip.

"You don't say..." Lincoln replied, sarcasm dripping from his lips.

Andrew grinned back sheepishly. "On a positive note that's going to be all you need to attract the ladies. Couple it with one of Mr. Hampton's bear stories and you're set for life."

"What are we gawking at?" Ella appeared, nudging into me to catch a glimpse of the knife wound.

Instantaneously, Lincoln flattened the bandage to it's prior position. "Nothing."

Harper's deliberate gaze swept over Lincoln's abdomen, even with the stretch of loose fabric covering it.

"Ouch, how did you manage that?" Ella questioned, showcasing her inquisitive personality.

"Dog bite." The lie flew out of Lincoln's mouth fluidly.

"It looks like it hurts." My blonde friend responded. Her naturally flirtatious undertone shone through. Her nails skimmed Lincoln's arm in concern. At this point of knowing Ella I was immune to her natural way of being. If she were any other girl a bubbling jealousy would have began corroding my body from the inside out. But this was Ella we were talking about and I knew she meant nothing by it. Andrew, on the other hand, obviously didn't.

"I got bit once too." Andrew interjected abruptly.

Four pairs of eyes concentrated on the curly head of hair.

"Yeah," Andrew pushed on nodding. Both of his hands rested on his hips, his chest puffing out the slightest amount. "Gotta scar from it and everything."

"You've never mentioned this to me before." Lincoln scrutinized his best friend, guilefully stepping out of Ella's reach.

"Didn't wanna make a big deal out of it, you know? Didn't wanna worry you man." Andrew claimed yanking his best friend closer only to whack him on the back with unnecessary force.

"How did it happen?" I wondered, curious to know how Andrew managed to piss off a domestic pet.

As if retelling the horrors of war Andrew gazed off into the distance. Securely, his arm stayed around Lincoln's shoulder, clenching him closer. "This was pre-jeep days. I was heading to the bus stop, minding my own business, when a girl and her dog passed me on the sidewalk." Andrew kept his voice somber causing my levels of concern to rise. "I just stopped for a second to compliment her exquisite taste in shorts when the savage attacked me."

"So, basically, you got bit for perving." Lincoln translated with ease. "Can't say it wasn't justified."

"I'll have you know that no matter the circumstances I was attacked that day." Andrew stated, pushing Lincoln into the wall of metal containers next to him.

"What breed was it then?" Ella pondered, tilting her head.

In response he swallowed thickly, pausing for a pregnant moment.

"Yeah, what breed was it?" Lincoln pressed, calling his friend's bluff.

"A ..." Andrew trailed off, rubbing at the back of his neck while he watched herds of fellow students rush by us.

"A what?"

"Chihuahua." Andrew mumbled a little louder.

An uproar of laughter commenced from our little pocket in the corridor.

Lincoln coughed through his laughter, "I can see why you didn't want to make a big deal about it now."

"I still got a scar out of it, okay!" Unexpectedly Andrew threw his leg up into the air. Out of pure reflex Ella caught his shoe, only to have Andrew yank up his pant leg and flash us all with his ankle. "Look!"

Ella screeched at the overbearing jungle of hair before thrusting the lower limb towards the floor. "Have you ever heard of waxing?" She screeched.

Andrew flashed her a baffled expression, "I'm not getting rid of my leg hair, woman!"

As a new argument commenced between Andrew and Ella I tried to pull myself together. Tears were pooling at the corner of my eyes due to all the laughter. Harper snickered from next to me, shaking her head at the display in front of us.

"Stop being such a baby! It doesn't even hurt."

"Whether it hurts or not I'm a man! And men have hairy legs."

"Oh God," Harper voiced from beside me, "can we head up to our lockers now?"

With a brief nod of my head Harper and I started down the hallway, towards the nearest stairwell. We hadn't gone too far before another figure appeared to my left.

"Don't leave me alone with those two." Lincoln pleaded, nudging me with his elbow.

With a wide spread grin I responded, "I wouldn't wish that upon my worst enemies."

The three of us continued our journey up the nearest stairwell. Ella and Andrew's bickering slowly died out and instead we were left we the usual sounds of quiet on the upper floor. Most of the student body had made their way out to lunch by this point, only a few stray teenagers and teachers lingered about.

As per usual my locker greeted me with a groan, creaking open in protest. Removing the contents of my backpack I prepared for my next class only to leave it hanging inside my locker. Ella always made fun of me from assembling supplies for class ahead of time but I considered it being productive. Reaching up I grabbed hold of my sketchbook from the top shelf. As I pulled out the stack of pages an empty bag of chips came fluttering down like a butterfly without the use of its wings.

"Another one?" Bending down I picked up the litter in disbelief. "Where the hell are these coming from?"

Harper leaned around her locker door. "More Doritos?"

"I don't understand how." I complained while crumpling up the foil bag in my hands. "Someone's been using my locker as their own personal garbage bin." Carefully I stepped up into my locker, balancing on the edge to get a better look of the upper compartment.

"Are you freaking kidding me?" I voiced in annoyance, my hand darting deeper into my locker only to pull out a fist full of trash. "Okay, I'll admit, I'm not the neatest person in the world but this is ridiculous. I don't even eat Doritos!"

Lincoln gazed down at the wrappers balled up in my clenched hand. "I know someone who does."

It was at that moment Ella and Andrew came barging through the new wing. Still bickering I might add.

"Drew." Lincoln called out, grasping his friend's attention.

Andrew broke off conversation mid sentence to glance in our direction. His gaze flickered from Lincoln, to me, and right down to what I held in my hand. "Yes?"

At his guilty expression I narrowed my eyes. "Happen to know how these got into my locker? Hm, Andrew Bryan?"

"Now, now, no need to full name me Cal my pal!" Andrew insisted staying where he was, beside a confused looking Ella. "You're sounding like my mother when she's about to give me shit."

"I am about to give you shit! How did you even get the combination to my locker?"

"Office, duh." Andrew strode forward, taking the empty chip bags from me.

"Why would you need my locker combination? There's garbage bins all over this school."

"I didn't go through all that trouble just to plant trash in your locker. It was just so convenient. The bins are all so far from here."

"There's one just outside the new wing!"

Andrew flashed me a sheepish smile. "Minor detail."

Full on glaring I gave Andrew a look of warning. "And why did you need to get into my locker in the first place?"

Both Andrew and Lincoln cast their eyes elsewhere and the image of a falling rat materialized in my mind. "You were the one who shoved the dead rat in my locker, weren't you?"

"Maybe."

Scoffing I fought back the urge to roll my eyes at the new found information. "I figured Lincoln needed a helping hand torturing me."

"I wouldn't call it torture..." Lincoln explained, "more like deterring."

"What else did you expect?" Andrew questioned, throwing his arm around his friend. "We're partners in crime, like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."

"They were the same person." Lincoln reminded him, mumbling loud enough for us all to hear.

"Minor detail."

Rolling my eyes while fighting back a traitorous smile I spun around to face my locker. Those two were going to be the death of me.

"Guys," Ella interrupted, "looky, we have visitors."

Peering in the direction she was looking at I watched as two uniformed officers marched down the upper hall and towards the bathrooms.

"It's probably some punks getting high in the washrooms again." Lincoln explained. We all knew that had happened on multiple occasions in our high school careers.

Figuring he was right I turned back to the task at hand and grabbed whatever I would need for lunch. Light conversation continued from behind me as I threw on my spring jacket and shut my locker.

"Where are we headed for lunch?" I questioned doing up the zipper.

Harper opened her mouth but before anything could come out Ella shouted, "Timmies!" whilst jogging towards the heavy doors separating the two hallways. In response the red head waved her hand and I took that as a silent agreement.

"Alright," I laughed shaking my head at her antics, "Lincoln, Andrew, wanna come?"

This time Ella interrupted Lincoln as he was about to response.

"Guys." She called, face pressed against the glass. "Since when has Dominic Silva been stupid enough to light a joint in the boys washroom?"

At the sound of his name all four of us joined her at the double doors. With furrowed brows I observed as Silva was escorted towards us, cuffs on and everything. One officer was positioned on either side of him guiding him by each arm. Before they made it to the doors the trio turned the corner.

But the exchange Silva's eyes made with Lincoln's were not something that could be missed.

Without questioning anything further Lincoln yanked open the door and we all scurried after him. While marching down the stairs and through the foyer the presence of the law soon attracted bundles of attention. The five of us were soon joined by other curious students as we made our way out of the school.

I came to a halt next to Lincoln. We watched on from our spot next to the front field. Dominic Silva, still cuffed, was ushered into the police cruiser. Us, along with the rest of the students who stood around, silently stared until the car hummed to life. Silva delivered one last meaningful glance to Lincoln. His eyes looking tired, his soul appearing numb. That was the last we saw of Dominic Silva before they exited the school's parking lot.

"What was that all about?" Ella spoke in hushed whispers from next to me.

"Whatever it was, he went quietly." Andrew stated with his arms crossed, continuing to stalk the vehicle with his eyes.

"Maybe that's because he turned himself in." Harper suggested, getting me to turn my head in her direction.

"For what?"

Harper offered me a knowing expression. An expression that told me she knew something fishy was going on. And she knew I wasn't telling her what.

"Yeah," Andrew droned on, lost in his own thoughts, "but why?"

That was a very good question. From what Lincoln told me Silva's father seemed like a dictator of a man, someone who ruled with an iron fisted, and promised Silva a one-way ticket to reform school if there was ever another mix up. Expecting his father's wrath, why would Silva willingly turn himself into the police?

Since the show was over a number of teenagers began piling back inside. Everyone was heading back to their daily schedules with new gossip to whisper about.

Lincoln had been awfully silent for the last few minutes we were outside. He stood casually beside me, his head facing the side of the school. Following his gaze I spotted what he was focusing on. At the far end of the school stood two male figures. One of them was Felix. His thick build and round head recognizable, even from this distance. The shorter man beside him however, I had no idea who that was.

But Lincoln did.

"Can we head to Timmies now? I wanna listen in, see if anyone else knows what the hell just happened. This is no doubt going to be the gossip of the year!" Ella grew excited at the prospect of being one of the first people to know all the details.

As she rushed us along Felix and his companion moved to leave the school's property, just like the cop car had a few moments prior.

"Come on! I've never been so excited for lunch in my life."

"I anticipate caffeine is the last thing you need right now." Harper attempted reasoning with Ella as she bounced along.

"Your negativity is the last thing I need right now." Ella countered dragging Harper back inside the building. "Come on Cali, let's go!"

Letting go of my curiosity I nudged Lincoln with my shoulder. "Peppermint tea? On me."

As I expected he shook his head, a small smile gracing his features. "No, it's my turn. You bought last time."

"It's okay Cal, if he doesn't let you pay for him you can always pay for me." Andrew popped in-between the both of his winking.

With a shake of my head I followed the path in the direction Ella and Harper disappeared. "The only thing I'll be buying in regards to you is a new lock."

Andrew moaned from behind me. "That doesn't benefit me at all!"

"I know. That's the point."