The Circle

by Cindy Cipriano

  Spanish Club is Muy Bueno!

  The Geology Club Rocks!

  Step right up and win a prize, thought Calum. A curly haired boy wearing oversized glasses handed him a brochure for the Chess Club as they walked into the Commons.

  The Commons was a miniature amphitheater with stadium seating and a carpeted stage. Blue plastic chairs had been connected to form long half-circles. Calum and his friends sat in three empty seats on the back row and waited for the assembly to begin.

  Calum pushed his light brown hair away from his eyes. He’d thought he was the only one who was nervous about starting middle school, but the sound of the silent auditorium told him otherwise. Although Calum knew everyone who was coming from Longwood Elementary School, he only knew a handful of kids who came from Broad River Elementary. He searched the crowd of faces until he spotted Arlen across the Commons. Calum waved, but he couldn’t get Arlen’s attention.

  A short man, almost as round as he was tall, walked to a tan podium on the stage. He reached up and bent the microphone until it touched his bushy gray mustache. His hair, where he still had it, was also gray.

  He looks like an otter, thought Calum.

  Hagen snickered.

  “Good morning. I’m Mr. Taylor, principal of Longwood Middle School. Welcome to your sixth-grade year.” The Otter adjusted his red-framed glasses. “This is my twentieth first day of school, and I know it will be the best one yet.” The Otter spoke for a few minutes, then nodding to Mr. Werner, he said, “Please join me in welcoming our new assistant principal, Mr. Rob Werner to LMS.”

  Laurel’s father stood and waved to the audience.

  Calum glanced at Laurel, who was shifting low in her seat. The Otter continued, “Mr. Werner comes to us from a small town in Virginia. He has several…”

  Calum didn’t know what Mr. Werner had several of because The Otter’s voice was deep and soothing and quickly lulled Calum into a daydream. He remembered what his dad had said to him the night before: “When you look back on your middle school years, you’ll realize how much fun it was. Besides, you’re lucky. You’re going to a really nice school.”

  What Calum had thought was, this really nice school was about to eat him alive.

  Loud applause drew him back. Mr. Taylor had finished his speech, and students were herded to the sixth-grade hall to find their homerooms. Soon hundreds of bodies jammed the hallway.

  A voice called over the crowd. “Ms. Itig.” It was The Otter. “Do you have a minute?”

  Calum turned to get a glimpse of his homeroom teacher. She looked friendly and had short brown hair that stuck out in spikes behind her ears. Ms. Itig didn’t wear glasses, at least not on her face. Instead, her glasses were on a long, beaded loop. She used them to read a card The Otter handed to her.

  “Look at all these kids,” Calum said gloomily. If Finley were here, this whole middle school thing would be a lot easier. He’d be going into the seventh grade. He’d look out for us.

  “We’ll get used to it,” said Hagen.

  They walked between rows of dull, green lockers. Each looked steely cold, and the last, number 6006, looked particularly dark and uncomfortable. Calum wondered how long he could be stuck in there before someone found him. He decided right then if that ever happened, he’d definitely use his talents to get out, no matter who saw him. As an afterthought, Calum hoped his talents would be reliable if he were in that situation. He wiped his sweaty palms on his shorts and continued down the hall, where long lines of anxious students snaked into classrooms.

  Calum checked his schedule for the hundredth time, confirming his homeroom class was indeed room 611. He also had science in the same classroom, right after homeroom. Calum, Hagen, and Laurel found their way there and entered in awkward silence.

  Calum was impressed by the variety of instruments, beakers, and other equipment in the room. He imagined himself at one of the lab tables, conducting a complicated experiment like a young Einstein. Looking around, he noticed a rectangular glass home for two mice. A sign on the terrarium explained their names were Lily and Lucky. A large snake skin hung on the wall near the whiteboard.

  “Over here, Cal,” called a voice.

  Calum turned to see Arlen waving them over to his table. He introduced Laurel to Arlen, who gave her a curious look before saying, “Hey.” Arlen nodded at Hagen, who responded by rolling his eyes.

  Ms. Itig entered the room a few minutes later and passed out a mountain of rainbow-colored paper. “Please be sure you and your parents read these forms. Have your parents sign where indicated, and return them to me.”

  “I hope we don’t have homework tonight,” said Hagen. “It’s gonna take forever just to get through all of this.” He haphazardly shoved the papers into his binder.

  Calum turned to Arlen and whispered, “The bus drops us off at Siopa Leabhar after school. Want to come with us?”

  “Us who?” asked Arlen.

  “Me, Hagen, and Laurel.”

  Arlen shrugged and reluctantly agreed.

  The bell rang and Ms. Itig dismissed homeroom.

  “Look for us at lunch,” said Calum as Arlen headed to his social studies class.

  Arlen nodded once before leaving the room.

  Moments later, Calum, Hagen, and Laurel were separated as students were given assigned seats in alphabetical order by last name.

  One seat was purposely left empty beside Calum for another student, “Who will be joining our class in a few days,” explained Ms. Itig. She glanced over the card The Otter had given to her before putting it on her already cluttered desk.

  “Our team meeting doesn’t start for a few minutes. Let’s try to get to know one another.” The room was silent except for her clunking shoes. “Here’s a grid with general questions. Go around the room and find people to initial the boxes. Ask as many people as you can, but don’t ask someone you already know. Now’s the time to make new friends.”

  Calum read the worksheet. The grid had statements like, “I have lived in four or more states,” “I like chocolate,” “I speak a foreign language,” and “I have at least one pet.” Calum looked around the room, no one moved.

  “Well, you’re going to have to get out of your seats if you want to meet anyone,” said Ms. Itig. She walked over to a red-haired boy who looked like he was about to throw up. “Let’s see,” she said, taking the sheet from his hands. “Yes, I can initial several of these boxes.” She leaned on his desk top and scribbled on the sheet. “Now that was easy enough. You guys give it a try.”

  Students rose slowly from their seats and moved aimlessly around the room. The red-haired boy came toward Calum. “Let’s switch,” he said, seeming eager to get someone’s initials, other than the teacher’s, on his paper.

  Calum initialed the boy’s grid.

  “I have more than one pet, too,” said the boy.

  Calum relaxed a little, and in the next several minutes he had initialed five other classmates’ grids.

  After their ice breaker, they took a tour of the school and had their first team meeting. Calum noticed Arlen sitting with Ms. Cagle’s class. Ms. Itig stood in front of the other teachers and spoke to Calum’s team.

  “My name is Ms. Itig,” she said. “You may call me ‘please Ms. Itig’ or ‘thank you Ms. Itig’. What I’m telling you right now goes for all of your teachers at Longwood Middle School. We have high expectations for your academic performance and behavior. It comes to this: if you follow the rules, we’ll get along fine. If you don’t, it will be a long year—for you. As for me, I’ll be here one hundred and seventy-nine more days either way. It doesn’t matter to me if you’re sitting in my room or the principal’s office, but if you meet our expectations then you’ll have the privilege of remaining in our classrooms.”

  Calum looked at Arlen, who looked back with an “I told you so” expression.

  “Stay in your seats,” continued Ms. Itig, “unless you raise your hand and are given permission to move about. Do not blurt out
or call out. Raise your hand, wait until you are recognized, and then you may speak. In other words, Camo Shirt”—this was directed to a boy wearing a camouflage T-shirt who had been talking while Ms. Itig laid down the law—“when I am speaking, no one else is.”

  During her speech, Ms. Itig made herself out to be someone with little tolerance for foolishness. But as Calum watched her more closely, he saw an entirely different person. The way her green eyes sparkled when she looked at the students, the way she brushed her hair from her face and how she glanced at the other teachers for support made her seem approachable and likeable.

  The meeting lasted another fifteen minutes as the rest of the teachers introduced themselves. Calum, who had skipped breakfast, was relieved when everyone was finally dismissed for lunch. A delicious smell traveled to his nose as he opened the cafeteria door. He was thrilled to learn there would be hand-tossed pizza every day in at least one of the three serving lines.

  Calum and Arlen joined Hagen and Laurel in the lunch line. “I gotta ask,” Arlen said in a whisper. “What’s the deal with Laurel?”

  “What do you mean?” asked Calum.

  “I mean, she’s a girl.”

  “So?”

  “So,” huffed Arlen, “that was okay in elementary school, but if she hangs around with you now, people are going to think she’s your girlfriend.”

  “Girlfriend?” Calum sputtered. “No way. She’s just a friend.” Laurel glanced back at Calum. She didn’t appear to have heard what he’d said.

  “A friend,” said Arlen. “That’s good to know.”

  Calum watched a sly grin sweep across Arlen’s face. He intended to find out what Arlen meant by that later when they all met up at Siopa Leabhar. But Arlen didn’t show that afternoon, and Calum didn’t find another opportunity to ask him.

  Chapter Six

  Riley

  The second week of school was half over when the empty chair beside Calum was at last filled by one Riley Sloan. Riley carried herself with an air of superiority and entitlement. Her name suited her because she seemed to thrive on getting everyone riled up. Her glossy red hair was bluntly cut and looked as if it had been dipped in wax. It hung in large chunks around her pale face.

  Riley had eerie blue eyes, which changed suddenly with the light and looked almost black, like a dark rock pool. Her perfectly manicured nails were painted a brownish black color, which made her bone-white hands look red and angry. Riley’s nose turned up slightly at the end as if she’d just smelled something rotten. Calum thought she was most likely smelling her own upper lip.

  Although the new kid in a closely knit community, Riley managed to find a follower in shy Brenna Collins. The two became fast friends, isolating themselves from the rest of the class. They took turns talking about and picking on other sixth-grade students, with one exception.

  Arlen.

  “He’s sooo cute. Don’t you think?” Riley asked Brenna one morning in science class.

  “He’s okay, I guess,” said Brenna. “But I like Hagen. Too bad he likes Laurel. Or maybe Calum likes her. I don’t know. It’s weird her best friends are boys, don’t you think?” Brenna flipped her mousy brown hair and rolled her insipid green eyes. “And did you notice that necklace? She wears it every single day.”

  “Shh. Calum’s listening,” said Riley. She quickly folded a strip of paper into a tight roll shaped like a small “v”. When Ms. Itig turned her back to the class, Riley loaded the v-dart onto a rubber band and shot it at Calum, striking him on his arm.

  Calum rubbed the point of impact and glared at Riley. For a moment he wished he could switch her schedule with John Phillip’s, who was slightly less annoying. But the moment passed quickly as he wondered if that wouldn’t be worse.

  On Friday, the football team had their first game. Historically, sixth graders were not permitted on athletic teams, but Arlen managed to get the team manager job. He bragged to Calum about this that morning in homeroom.

  “The team is awesome. The seventh and eighth-grade players rock. And since I’m the manager, I get a chance to get to know the coaches and learn all the plays. Neal’s on the team, too.”

  “Who?” asked Calum.

  “Neal. Remember? I told you about him. He was at the golf camp with me. Neal Sloan.”

  “Riley’s brother?” asked Calum, reluctantly putting two and two together.

  “Yep. Cool, huh?” asked Arlen. “And Neal’s gonna be the peer helper in our PE class.”

  If Calum held any doubt about Arlen’s new friend, it was eliminated the first day Neal worked as peer helper. Calum soon learned Neal was nothing more than a common bully. He had a knack for teasing the sixth graders whenever Coach Payne’s back was turned, and Calum was his favorite target. Neal never missed an opportunity to call attention to Calum whenever he dropped the ball, missed a catch, or tripped over his own feet, especially during kickball.

  “Everyone move up,” said Neal. It was Calum’s turn to kick. “That way you won’t have to run in so far. I doubt this kid can kick it past the pitcher’s mound.”

  Calum’s nerves got the better of him and when he kicked, the ball became lodged between his feet. He barely caught himself as the ball bounced up, hitting him on his thigh.

  “Way to go,” Neal sneered. “You just got yourself out. Watch it, I think he’s a spy for the other team,” he said to the next kicker. “I swear that boy is so uncoordinated, he couldn’t hit the ground if he fell down.”

  Riley joined her brother in making jokes about Calum’s athletic abilities, saying things like “He’s the best player on the other team,” or “Don’t stand too close to him, his skills will rub off.” This backfired on her though, when Coach Payne escorted her and Calum to social studies class one day after PE.

  Calum rocked back on his heels as he stood uncomfortably between his two teachers.

  “Ms. Cagle,” Coach Payne began, “Riley seems to be giving Calum a lot of attention. Have you seen anything like that in your class?”

  “No, but you know what that usually means,” said Ms. Cagle. Coach Payne gave her a meaningful look and chuckled.

  What? Ugh, no way. Calum blushed deep red and cast a glance at Riley. She looked more furious than embarrassed.

  Riley didn’t bother Calum again. And with Hagen’s help, Calum was soon able to shrug off Neal’s taunts too. But what hurt Calum more than Neal teasing him was Arlen’s indifference. While Arlen didn’t join in with Neal, he didn’t bother to put a stop to it either.

  As the days passed, Arlen moved away from Calum’s lunch table, choosing instead to sit by Robert Bunch, a bulky toad of a boy who sat with Riley and her gang.

  While Calum’s friendship with Arlen disintegrated, Calum, Hagen, and Laurel became even closer and they studied together most days after school at Siopa Leabhar. They grabbed smoothies at the café then trooped upstairs to work on homework before the influx of high schoolers arrived. With the three of them working together, their homework was easily completed, leaving them with plenty of time to hang out in the garden where Wrecks loved bouncing through the piles of autumn leaves.

  Calum thought they had no secrets between them. Well, except for one important thing. The Sidhe. Maybe it was time to change that. Calum looked at Hagen one afternoon, eyebrows raised in a hopeful expression. It was weird how Hagen seemed to read his mind, before shaking his head no.

  On Halloween, Ms. Itig sat at her desk to take attendance, when a loud thump made her pause. A few boys near Calum snickered, trying to suppress their laughter.

  “Okay, who threw it?” asked Ms. Itig, not looking up from her computer.

  One of the boys bellowed between snorts, “Ms. Itig, that shoebox was way up there.” He pointed to the tall cabinets near her desk. “It jumped off your shelf and landed in your trash can.” He finished the last part with a loud guffaw.

  Calum looked at Hagen, as if to ask if he’d caused it.

  Hagen’s denial was almost negated by his stifled snicker, b
ut Calum knew he wouldn’t use his talents in such a risky way.

  Ms. Itig responded to the boys’ laughter as if odd things always happened in her classroom. “Hmm. I wonder if it’s a mouse, or a ghost?”

  Calum tried to decide if she were serious. He could never tell with Ms. Itig. But everyone knows there’s no such thing as ghosts, he thought.

  Ms. Itig instructed students to retrieve their science journals. She wrote a topic for their journal entry on the board, one that surprised Calum, because it had nothing to do with science.

  Halloween is magical because…

  I wonder what she’s up to. Calum wrote a few sentences as Ms. Itig began her daily search for lab materials. For some reason, she had more and more trouble getting materials together as the year went on.

  “It was here just a second ago,” she mumbled.

  When several students closed their journals, indicating they had completed the assignment, Ms. Itig stepped up her search for the next few minutes before abandoning it all together. She asked if anyone wanted to read their journal entry aloud. Susie Turnbill raised her hand, eager to share, and Ms. Itig called on her first.

  “Halloween is magical because you get to be someone different.” Susie was small for her age, and had platinum blonde hair that hung in thick waves down her back. She wore old and oddly matched, ill-fitting clothes, and her skin had an unhealthy hue.

  Riley snorted loudly. “Yeah, maybe you’ll get to be someone who has a few dollars to buy some new clothes.”

  Susie’s best friend, Kirby Dare, cut her eyes at Riley. She slowly rose in Susie’s defense, but Ms. Itig intervened. She escorted Riley from the classroom. “You’ll be spending the rest of this class in Ms. Nelson’s room. Please write three paragraphs on why your comment was inappropriate.” Ms. Itig returned a few moments later. “I’m sorry Susie, please continue.”

  Susie was still pink in the face from Riley’s remark, but she managed to eke out the rest of her journal entry, describing her ideas about Halloween and magic. She ended by asking Ms. Itig, “Do you believe in magic?”