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But the hallway was empty.

Mr. Halifax walked out of his classroom and stared at me.

I’d left a trail of wet vinegar footprints all over the floor and the ends of my hair were dripping.

“Miss Hunter, what happened?” His eyes dropped to my right hand.

I looked down to see my thong hanging from the tips of my fingers. Kill me. I balled it up in my fist and shoved it into my blazer pocket. It made a weird squishing noise because my pocket was filled with vinegar.

For a second all I could hear was the sound of the droplets falling from my hair hitting the floor. “It was a...toilet explosion,” I said. Ah! No! Why?!

“A toilet did that?”

“Yes. It backfired when I tried to flush. And I think someone had just cleaned it with vinegar. I need to go to the nurse.”

“Um, yes. I think that’s a good idea. Here. You’re probably going to need this.” He reached down and started to pull his sweater off.

Ah! “No thank you. I just need Soph’s help.”

But he continued to strip. Luckily he was wearing a button up collared shirt underneath. He handed it to me and then leaned back into his classroom. “Miss Hunter, a word, please.”

Sophie appeared a minute later. She took one look at me and gasped. “Scar, what happened?!”

I couldn’t say anything that just happened in front of Mr. Halifax. “Toilet explosion.”

“Oh my God are you okay?”

No!

“Miss Hunter, can you please escort the other Miss Hunter to the nurse?”

“Um...yes,” Sophie said. She stepped toward me and her nose scrunched up. “Good lord what is that smell?”

“Pee I think,” Mr. Halifax said.

I wanted to sink into the floor and die. But that wasn’t an option. So instead I grabbed Sophie’s hand and pulled her away from the door.

“Ew, please don’t get pee on me,” she said and pulled her hand out of mine.

I waited until we were down the hall from Mr. Halifax’s room. “It’s not pee. It’s something used to develop photos. The kiss thief struck again. And I tried to catch him, but I tripped and knocked over some tub of something.”

“Probably a stop bath.” She scrunched up her nose again. “And why didn’t you just talk to Leo instead of...” She gestured toward me. “Whatever the hell this is?”

“Because it wasn’t Leo!”

“What are you talking about? He confessed. And RJ saw him strike. It has to be Leo.”

“I don’t know what to tell you! But my kiss thief isn’t Leo, Soph. It can’t be. And I have no idea who it is.”

Chapter 22 – I Don’t Hook Up With Lying Convicts

Friday

“Maybe you didn’t see him run ahead of you or something,” Sophie said.

I grabbed more shampoo to scrub the vinegar out of my hair. “I don’t think so.”

“I can’t hear you.” Sophie was talking to me through the curtain in a women’s locker room shower. The nurse had given me some clothes from the lost and found and sent me to clean up. I was pretty sure she just didn’t want to smell me.