“What?”
I held his stare.
“You’ll want to answer.”
He frowned then, just slightly, like he couldn’t decide whether I was bluffing or broken.
And right then, before he could speak again, the cafeteria intercom crackled to life.
Act III: The Call From the Front Office
Everybody in that room heard the static before the voice.
It was one of those old school speakers that always made announcements sound smaller than they were. Most students barely noticed them unless a club meeting or a lost ID was involved.
This time, the voice belonged to the principal.
And it was tight.
“Alex Kane,” he said. “Report to the main office immediately. Alex Kane, come to the main office now.”
No one moved at first.
Not Alex.
Not me.
Not anyone.
He gave a short laugh and looked around as if the timing itself had decided to flatter him.
“Probably my dad,” he said loudly. “He’s meeting with the board today.”
One of his friends smirked in relief. The other gave a little shrug, like the universe had stepped in to save the scene.
Alex leaned closer to me one last time.
“You’re still cleaning that up before you leave.”
Then he turned and started walking toward the cafeteria doors.
He made it maybe six steps.
That was when the first phone buzzed.
Then another.
Then three more.
In under ten seconds, the silence in the room changed shape. It stopped being fear and turned into confusion.
Students were pulling their phones from hoodie pockets and jacket sleeves. Heads dropped. Faces shifted. Whispers started in quick, disconnected bursts.
“Oh my God.”
“No way.”
“Is that real?”
“Wait—Alex.”
He turned back.
“What?”
No one answered him directly.
They were all looking at their screens.
So was I.
The local news alert filled mine in one block of cold text.
State investigators and federal financial crime units had executed search warrants connected to the Kane Educational Foundation. Public records tied the inquiry to scholarship fraud, embezzlement, and witness intimidation involving several district-linked accounts.
For a second, I couldn’t breathe.
