He really could not remember much about the visit with the nurse. She was nice enough, and caring. Of course he could not tell her about the besieged citizens of Number Land and all of the rotten letters of Stick Figure World that picked on them. He did his best to pretend that he was just tired, had not eaten enough for breakfast. The nice lady had taken his blood pressure, and his temperature, and had given him a granola bar and orange juice, and sent him on his way with a nice big hug. He walked down the hall wondering why Mom couldn’t be more like that, why she had to spend all of her time picking on Dad, and why Dad did nothing but watch TV. The Number People, not even Mighty Zero or Mister Eight Cane, had no advice for him.

The day was looking up though. The nurse had given him a library pass. He loved the library. He would also be able to use this time to do extra credit work for Mister Gleason’s science class. Tamar, after killing a stink bug at the dinner table, on Saturday night when they actually had dinner together, and getting smacked by Mom, had become interested in invasive species. He had completed his work on stink bugs, the Norway Rat, the razorback hogs of the Southern United States, the Great Lake Eels, and dingos, those wild Australian dogs. He was now poised to take on the most successful invasive species, the humble rabbit. Tamar just liked the idea that a wimpy little creature like that could overrun entire continents, without being nasty and grimy, and living in sewers and dumpsters like some homeless person, like the debased Norway Rat.

He was already outlining his section on rabbits, trying to remember the genus and species, when the orange juice hit him and he just had to pee. By coincidence it was between Third Period and Lunch when he pushed through the crowd into the restroom and got hit by a wall of mess. The boys inside were laughing at Smelly Kelly, the gigantic kid with stomach problems who had just destroyed the bathroom. Tamar did not want to enter, did not want to smell what was driving all of these disgusted kids from the restroom, but that orange juice really had him needing to go, so in he went.

When he pushed the door open a wall of funk hit him, as did a sudden fear. Daryl, Mali and Druze Simpson, brother and cousins of Alex Simpson, were all there, teasing Smelly Kelley while he washed his hands. When Tamar stepped in they became quiet, then looked at each other, then looked at Tamar, and then rushed him. Before he knew it he was being shoved into the stall that Smelly Kelly had fumigated so sickeningly. His book-bag hit the floor behind him as he was shoved to his knees and his head was being pushed toward the swirling feces-flecked toilet water.

Then he heard a thud and a hand left his head. Soon he heard a grunt and a crash and a hand that was holding his neck pulled away limply. Then both of the other hands fell away and he turned to see Simon Diesel throwing Mali Simpson into a sink. All three of the Simpson Brothers—well, two of them were just cousins—lay stretched out or curled up on the floor. Smelly Kelly was gone. Only Simon, the big bearded, white stoner, who did his drugs in this bathroom, was there. Simon talked with a slow hollow quality, “I’m gettin’ well in here you lowlifes. Go beat this nerd up somewhere else. I don’t need any Five-O up in here.”

Daryl then back-talked the 15-year-old 7th grader, “Listen Man Beard, when my Uncle Otis finds out about this shit your ass is gonna be beat!”

Simon then went insane, screamed, and kicked Daryl in the throat with his steel-toe boots. While Daryl seemed to be choking and bleeding from his mouth at the same time, Simon picked him up by the ankles and began pile-driving his head into the floor. After some more screaming and pounding, and some gross snapping sounds, Daryl’s head hung limply on a real squishy looking neck, and Officer Searles was coming through the door drawing his gun. Mali and Druze were both pointing at Simon, screaming that he was crazy and drugged up.

When Simon saw Officer Searles draw his gun he dropped Daryl, screamed insanely, and turned and sprinted for the bathroom window. The sound of Simon diving through the window was really frightening, and sounded like that time Dad had wrecked the Kia against the light pole out front of the house. Officer Searles ran to the window and looked out and down as he holstered his weapon. “Damn kids, damn drugs!”

Mali and Druze then started pointing at Tamar. “You got our cousin kilt!” said Druze.

Mali snarled, “Yo ass is gonna wish you dead when we done wit you chump. We commin’ wit da crew—teacher’s pet muthafuca!”

Tamar grabbed his book-bag and ran, and ran; and ran around corners, and downstairs, and out through the metal detector, and past the police car, and kept running, and running…