We entered the school, walking through the crowded halls filled with the clatter of locker doors and the clamor of conversations.
"That was hella sick," Jacob finally said, looking at me like I was a deity or something.
I shrugged. "It's nothing special."
We got to our lockers, which were very close to each other. Jacob gave me a concerned look. "But will you be okay? You know who Bob's father is, right? That dude's, like, mega loaded and a lawyer."
"Chill, don't worry about me," I said, opening my locker.
Inside, I saw a few crumpled $1 bills and a pile of books. As I rifled through them, I realized most of them were for the subjects I had today.
'I guess I brought the wrong books...' I thought.
.Jacob glanced over. "Anyway, since when could you throw down like that?"
"I watched a movie," I answered.
"Yeah, right, like that's enough to be the next karate kid," he said with a smirk, picking up his bag. "Whatever, dude. I'm bailing. Catch ya later."
There was no reason to overexplain; there was no way time travel would be the first thing going thorugh his mind as the explanation for my sudden change.
Jacob was already out of sight in the passing throngs of kids before I realized that I had absolutely no clue which classroom I was supposed to go to.
I walked up to a board with schedules on it.
As I was looking for my schedule, I saw Sydney walking through the corner of my eye, accompanied by her friend, Britney, who was a cute blonde. I think I had a bit of a crush on her back in the day.
"Jack!" Sydney called out, and I turned around to see her eyes full of suspicion.
"What's the deal with you?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
"What do you mean?" I asked calmly.
"I heard you threw down with Bob Finch and totally laid him out. Is that for real?" She asked, her tone incredulous.
"Yes," I said absentmindedly.
"What do you mean, 'yes'? Dude's in the hospital. They say he's all messed up. His nose is jacked... Are you telling me you did that? Are you fucking kidding me?"
"He did that to himself," I replied.
She looked at me for a moment, her face a mix of confusion and maybe a bit of fear. "What do you mean? Bob's a beast... How did you even..."
"Alright, Sydney; I need to go to class, we will talk later," I said, glancing back at the board.
Britney giggled and tugged on Sydney's shoulder. "Let's get going, Sydney," she said, pulling her by the thin material of her shirt.
I was supposed to be in room 211 for history class with Mrs. Sacker. I barely remembered where 211 was, but it wasn't hard to find.
I stood at the open door and saw Mrs. Sacker standing at the board, preparing for class. I hoped she didn't know about the morning event, or this would get awkward.
I walked in. "Good morning."
Mrs. Sacker stopped and stared at me. "Good morning..."
Some of my classmates turned in their seats and looked at me, goggle-eyed. There was an empty seat by the wall, where Jacob was already sitting. This was where I would sit through almost all of high school. I made my way over and slid into it.
Mrs. Sacker closed the door behind her and began the lesson. She turned around and started writing down dates on the board.
As soon as her back was turned, Julie Carter, the typical elite girl, a foxy slim brunette who sat in front of me, turned around and whispered, "Did you seriously beat up Bob Finch?"
I sighed. It looks like I'll be making a trip to the Principal's office sooner than later.
Before I could respond, Jacob leaned in eagerly. "Hell yeah, he did!" somehow he was able to shout in a whisper, oozing pride. "Bob was talking trash, so Jack had to shut him down."
In that moment, Ashley Cooper, the girl sitting next to Julie with dark skin and blonde braids, turned around as well. "It's Friday. You guys gotta come to Adrian's party," she said, excitement in her voice. "It's gonna be off the chain."
I hesitated, about to decline, but Jacob jumped in. "For sure, we'll be there," he said confidently.
Ashley grinned. "Rad, see you guys there then."
Mrs. Sacker paused mid-sentence, turned around abruptly, and loudly said, "Miss Cooper! Would you like a detention later? I need you to pay attention and participate in the class discussion."
Ashley straightened up in her seat, "I'm sorry, Mrs. Sacker." she mumbled,
"Miss Cooper, can you tell me what event in American history between 1900 and 1920 led to a significant change in society's perception of women's roles?" Mrs. Sacker asked.
It was quiet in class for a while.
I decided to assist.
"It was the Women's Suffrage Movement," I spoke up. "It led to the passage of the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote in 1920."
I noticed everyone turned to look at me, slack-jawed. Even Mrs. Sacker seemed surprised.
"I asked this question to test if Miss Cooper was listening to class, but I guess at least someone is interested in American history," Mrs. Sacker said with a hint of amusement. "Correct, Jack... And Ashley, stay focused and keep your voice down."
"Yes, Mrs. Sacker." Ashley replied.
As Mrs. Sacker resumed the lesson, Jacob leaned over to me.
"How did you know that, dude?"
"Didn't we just learn about it?" I replied quietly.
"What? When?" he asked in shock.
...
The rest of the class went smoothly, but even after I left, I could feel the stares on me. Of course, when someone who usually stayed quiet and only spoke up on rare occasions with shallow things to say suddenly became more confident and mature, everyone would take notice.
The next class was Algebra, and before I even entered the classroom, I heard rumors that there was a final exam today.
I cursed myself for not asking Jacob sooner; at least I could have had some time to glance at the questions.
But as it turned out, I wouldn't even get the chance to finish the exam.