***
He was still smiling when he arrived at school
the next day. Sitting at one of the long tables
in the library for study hall, he chuckled to
himself as he thought about Trevor’s terrible
set list.
Most of the students in study hall took a
table to themselves. Ashley Lopez was sitting
at the table closest to Parker’s. Near the end of
the period, she got up and left her books sitting
at the table.
Devon Jones noticed immediately. The
moment Ashley was out of sight, Devon
popped up from his chair and strolled over to
her spot. Parker wondered what he was up to.
He watched in shock as Devon casually
reached into one of Ashley’s folders. Devon
pulled out a worksheet, folded it into quarters,
and stuffed it into his back pocket. The act was
so bold and casual that Parker couldn’t believe
what he was seeing. He’d suspected that Devon
cheated in most of his classes, but actually
stealing another student’s work was messed up
on a whole other level. Devon walked back to
53
