A Murder Of Crows {4}

I walked the path the next morning, hands in my pockets. The sky overhead was gray, threatening rain later on. A chilly breeze ruffled my hair.

I spotted Jamison standing on the path with two other people, talking with them. He noticed me and said something to his friends before coming over to walk alongside me.

"Thanks for the notes," he said.

"Yea, sure," I said.

Another breeze kicked in and Jamison pushed his hair away from his eyes. "You're pretty quiet, huh?"

"Not particularly," I said. "I just don't have anything to say to you."

"I guess we are strangers," he said.

"No guessing about it," I said.

"I'm just trying to get to know people in my new rotation. I figure getting friendly with the guy who takes good notes is never a bad thing." He gave a lighthearted smile, but I wasn't going to let that sucker me in.

"You don't have to be my friend. Just tell me you need notes and I'll send them. That's all the communication you need from me," I said.

"Friends never hurt," he said with a shrug.

Well, wasn't that a lie if I'd ever heard one.

"Not interested," I said.

I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. His uniform was neat and wrinkle-free. The pin that announced he was a Crow was standing out on his chest, a golden shine that matched the buttons on his dark blazer. A constant reminder that he wasn't like the other students. That I couldn't trust him.

"Can I ask about the sunglasses?" he said, nodding towards my face. "I thought they weren't allowed in classrooms."

"They're prescription, and my eyes are sensitive to the light. I have permission to wear them in class," I said.

"Ah, that sucks," he said, looking up at the gray sky. "Cor, right?"

I nodded, wondering when he'd give up this pointless conversation. It was going nowhere.

"Cor!"

Val ran up to me, and I couldn't tell if I was relieved to have an excuse to get away from Jamison, or annoyed to deal with Val this early in the morning.

"I got so busy last night with homework I never even left my dorm," she said. She noticed Jamison and feigned surprise. "Do you have a friend, Jpeg?"

"Classmate," I said. "He just needed some notes from me. Let's go, Val."

"I'll see you in class, Cor," Jamison said.

"See me, yea," I said, hoping he got the point that he could look at me all he wanted but that wouldn't make me talk to him.

As we walked away from him, Val laughed a little. She tucked her hair behind her ear and grinned up at me.

"You must be really annoyed if you're picking me over him," she said.

"Well, you aren't trying to pin criminal activity on me," I said. "You just drag me into it."

"Does Kieran know about your new friend?" she asked.

"Nah, Jamison just started bothering me yesterday after class. Claimed he just wanted notes, so I guess he thinks I'm completely stupid," I said.

"His Crow buddy Cole is bugging me, too. Interesting kid, though. I want to talk to you guys during lunch about this, though. I have an idea," Val said.

I sighed. "I really hate when you say that."

She clapped me on the shoulder as we reached the academic building. "See you at lunch, Cor!"

I shook my head and went into my first period classroom, dropping into my seat. Val's ideas were never good ideas. She hadn't even told us her idea yet and I was already exhausted by it.

Jamison entered the classroom but didn't bother me, at least. The day dragged along, full of lectures and worksheets. It was enough to get my mind off of the anxiety of Val's idea, so I guess that was a good thing.

By the time lunch rolled around, I didn't feel as stressed about it. I had a hunch about what she was going to say, but you just never knew when it came to Val.

I grabbed a tray and sat down at our usual table. Only Kieran was there, scrolling through his phone. He didn't bother looking up at me, and I was just fine with that.

Mia sat down a minute later, scowling. "Where is Valeria? She said she had something to talk to us about."

"She'll show up dramatically late and drag it out just for effect," Kieran said without looking up from his phone. "You should be used to this by now."

"Used to it doesn't mean I enjoy it," Mia said, crossing her arms.

It was a few more minutes before Val sat down at the table with us. Kieran finally put his phone away, looking over at her.

"Get on with it," he said.

"I was busy talking with my new friend," she said.

Kieran narrowed his eyes. "You don't mean..."

"Cole!" she said cheerfully. "Interesting little guy."

"Count me out. I'm not part of this plan," I said, my thoughts confirmed.

Mia looked between the two of us. "Oh, and what's that plan, exactly?"

"Jpeg is saying no before he's even heard the plan," Val said, slinging her arm across the back of my chair and leaning towards me.

"I can take an educated guess," I said.

"So, my plan is that we give the Crows exactly what they want," Val said, eyes bright. "Cole is trying to cozy up to me, and Jamison is cozying up to Cor."

"And you weren't going to say anything?" Kieran said, that cold gaze of his now trained on me.

"He asked me for notes and tried to talk to me this morning. I didn't think I needed to write you a detailed report complete with sources and proper formatting," I said.

Val dropped her arm from my chair and leaned towards Kieran now. "Look, it can play into our favor. Cor and I pretend to fall for their little act. We play their game, but we play it our way. We let them befriend us, we even let them hang around our whole happy little group here. And you know what? They don't find anything suspicious. We'll probably even bore them. You and Mia don't really have personalities."

"I have a fist that would love to meet your face right now," Mia offered.

Val ignored that. "Kier, think about it. We let them have their way so they leave us alone faster. If they're right in the middle of our lives and they still can't find a scrap of evidence against us, they'll have no choice but to move on."

"I don't want Jamison or Cole around us," Kieran said, expression darkening.

"What you want doesn't matter. This is what we need to get them off our backs," Val insisted.

"She has a point," Mia said, though she didn't look pleased to be agreeing with Val. "If we resist their efforts, they'll just keep at it longer. Might as well open up and let them dig around hopelessly. If we're careful, it'll be a waste of their time and they'll have to move on to other suspects. Maybe we can even plant a few new suspects in their minds."

"Don't I get a say in this? I don't want Jamison following me around," I said.

"Why not? He's kind of cute," Val said.

Kieran looked torn. He knew Mia and Val were right, but he also didn't want Jamison and Cole dragged into our group.

"We make sure everything is hidden first," Kieran said at last. "And you keep those damn Crows away from me."

"No promises on that," Val said. "Cor and I will clean up on our end tonight, and you and Mia can clean up on your end."

I slumped back in my chair, knowing it was no use. Val was insistent, which meant she'd force me into this idea one way or another.

"I'm clean on my end," I said instead.

"We'll check each other's work," Val said. "Better safe than sorry. Oh, and Kieran? Better keep your work phone hidden while they're around."

Kieran had a phone given to him by the Doctor to be contacted for jobs. I knew he was incredibly careful about where he put the phone and where he used it, but Val was right. If anyone glimpsed it, they'd know it was the kind of phone meant to be tossed if cops came sniffing around.

I was just glad Kieran was the one who had to deal with the Doctor. I had no desire to carry around a phone so a drug dealer could have me on speed dial.

"Do I look stupid to you?" Kieran said.

"Is this a trick question?" Val said.

Kieran pulled his phone back out, his own way of announcing this conversation was over. Val shrugged and turned to face me.

"You're so lucky. Look at all the friends you get to make!" Val said.

"Lucky me," I said dryly.

"Don't just start giving him friendship bracelets. Let it be gradual and as natural as possible so he doesn't get too suspicious. Surely they'll figure out we're playing their game, but we have to let them think they're winning," Val said. "They're take any in they can get to our group, even if they know we're well aware of their intentions. It's all about how we play this off now."

"Play this off by sacrificing me to Jamison," I grumbled.

"I think it'll be good for you to be more social!" she said.

"So what exactly are we supposed to talk about if they start hanging out with all of us? Our one common thing is the Doctor, and he's not exactly a casual topic to bring up," I said.

"Talk about school or the weather or what you watched on TV," Val said. "You're a smart boy. You'll figure something out. We all will."

Logically, I knew Val had the right approach. But I wanted nothing to do with the people sitting around me right now, and I certainly wanted nothing to do with the Crows.

Still, I didn't get to make many decisions in my life, apparently. I'd just have to roll with it until everything blew over.

I ate my lunch as the others discussed the issue a little more. When lunch was over, I went back to class and tried not to sneak glances at Jamison. He'd approach me again, I had no doubt about that. I'd have to find some way to play it off and let things happen at a natural pace so he didn't catch on too fast.

Sure enough, at the end of classes, Jamison watched me leave before getting up. I kept my pace easy-going so he could catch up to me on the path to the dorms.

As I moved further from the crowd of students, Jamison approached me. He smiled as I looked over at him.

"More notes?" I said, raising an eyebrow.

He shook his head. "No, not notes. I'm trying to catch up on a few worksheets from before I was in these classes. I was hoping I could borrow your textbook for second period? I'll give it back to you tomorrow, I promise."

"You could've asked someone else. I see you talking to students in class," I said.

"I could've, but I'm assuming someone so organized with his notes probably makes notes in his textbook, too. I was hoping for a little boost to make the work go quicker," he said.

"That's what you'll find," I said. "Surprised the president is looking for an easy way out."

He shrugged a little, giving me that smile of his. "I'm a busy man lately. Any extra time I can get myself is appreciated."

"Might as well come to my dorm," I said. That was probably part of his plan, anyway. Any excuse he could get to snoop around our rooms.

Jamison followed me, thankfully silent as we walked. I led him into my dorm and up to my room, unlocking the door.

He looked at the unfinished puzzle on the floor as I tossed my bag on the bed. He gestured to it curiously.

"What? It's a puzzle," I said.

"Is that what you do in your free time?" he asked.

"Hardly. Just an occasional hobby," I said, kneeling down in front of my desk and digging around the drawers for the textbook he needed.

I found it and stood up, turning around and holding it out to him. But he was looking around my room, a frown on his face.

"What?" I said.

He noticed me holding the textbook out and took it from me. "It's just...kind of empty in here. No posters or anything? Most students get homesick so they make their rooms as homey as possible."

I looked at my blank walls. The only thing on my desk was my school supplies and my computer. But what was the point of having stuff all over my room to decorate? I'd just have to take it down at the end of the year anyways.

"I'm just here for school. I don't need it to feel like home," I said.

Jamison opened his mouth, then closed it. He looked around my room one more time before shifting and putting the textbook in his bag.

"Thanks for this. I'll give it back tomorrow," he said.

"Keep it as long as you want. As long as I have it when I need to do assignments, I don't care," I said, opening the door and hoping he'd take the hint.

"I'll still try to get it back to you by tomorrow," Jamison said, thankfully stepping through the door and out into the hallway. "Have a good night, Cor."

"Sure," I said, shutting the door. The click of the lock was audible, definitely to Jamison and hopefully to Val, wherever the hell she was.

I sat down at my desk, pulling out my homework and piling it on the desk. But instead of getting started on it, I turned on my computer and typed for a bit.

I could easily get into the school records and look at Jamison's information. But would that even make a difference? It would just tell me stuff that wouldn't help the current situation. Besides, getting information on people was Val's specialty.

With a sigh, I turned my monitor off and instead focused on my homework. Val and her stupid plan of befriending these guys. I wasn't sure who hated this plan more; me or Kieran.

It couldn't be helped, though. It was a game we needed to play, and I'd roll with it until they moved on. As long as we kept ourselves and our activities a secret, everything would be fine.

Still, why the hell, why on earth, why the fuck did it have to be me that had to befriend Jamison?

Working for a dangerous drug lord? Sure, easy enough. Part of a violent group of kids that beat others involved in shady business? Yea, sign me up. Hang out with Jamison Heitor? Just fucking kill me now.

I sighed again and picked up my pen. Nothing to be done, so I might as well quit complaining and do what I had to.