Quarantine: The Loners by Lex Thomas Page B

a bundle of black clothes for the tall girl on guard duty at the Sluts’ doorway.
    “Go ’head,” she said.
    Before David could enter, a herd of eight blonde Varsity linebackers trudged out of the room. David spun his back to them. He whipped his black hood over his head. He hoped his body blocked their view of Will. They sounded drunk. He could almost feel a hand about to thud down onto his shoulder, but then their footsteps faded.
    He opened his eyes. Will was looking at him with a face like he’d just sniffed rotten milk. David dared a look over his shoulder. Varsity was gone. Why were they here? Did they not go first today? They always demanded to trade first. That was why David had spent so much time washing clothes earlier, to avoid them. But this was a jarring reminder that no matter how many precautions he took, he was never truly safe.
    Will shook his head and walked ahead of David into the Sluts’ trading post.
    Inside was an expanse of red hair. You could tell what fla-vor of Kool-Aid the girls used, cherry here, fruit punch there, a faded pink that probably was strawberry but needed a redye. Two Sluts slap-boxed just inside the entrance. Nearly all of them wore tight black pants, and there wasn’t a sleeve left attached in the whole room. The Sluts were not a rich gang, they had no special item or service, but they traded almost everything. If you wanted it, they probably had it, which was great for anyone who didn’t want to, or couldn’t, get their supplies from Varsity. The Sluts were the only gang with an open-door policy. As long as you were female and you were willing to fight tooth and nail on the quad, you could have a place in the Sluts.
    David spotted their founder, Violet Kelly, behind a trading table nearby. She went by the name Violent now. Violent wore football shoulder pads with pencils sticking up out of them like porcupine quills and a necklace made of sharpened cafeteria cutlery. Violent had the reddest hair in school, and her eyes were vibrant green. She had shaved off her white eyebrows and replaced them with fake ones made of carefully cut pieces of black electrical tape.
    David approached her. She was counting out condoms for a Geek girl, who traded them for a three-pack of fresh athletic socks.
    “Got your order,” he said.
    Violent looked up at David, her face pinched in aggravation.
    “What?”
    “Delivering your stuff.”
    “Oh. These better be spotless, Jacob.”
    “It’s David, but yes, don’t worry . . . they’re clean.” She stayed suspicious as another Slut collected the laundry.
    David could never tell if he really had remained a stranger to Violent week after week, or if she just wanted him to think so.
    “Didn’t I call you ‘Ragman’ last time? I like that. That’s your name, Ragman.”
    “You could call me David,” he said. Violent didn’t laugh. He pushed on. “So, we’re looking for the usual, a week’s food, whatever you got. We have six Geek show tickets and these items for trade. Will lifted his sack of loot from the drop onto the table. Violent looked through Will’s items and fixed him with a direct look that made him blush. Violent’s demeanor cheered a bit.
    “Kathy, bring me five days’ worth, on the light side.” A Slut girl brought over a small collection of canned fruit, canned tuna, refried beans, dry soup, and two bottles of tomato juice. As David stuffed those items in his bag, Violent stared at Will with increased interest.
    “What’s your name?”
    Will met her stare with a look of defiance.
    “I’m Will.”
    “That’s not a lot of food for a week, Will. And there’s two of you.”
    “What about it?”
    “Ooh, he’s got a little fight in him,” Violent said to the other girls. “I’ll tell you what about it. I could help you. I have a lot of food, I got everything. Maybe you should come visit me some night. I’ll make it worth your while.”
    David stopped putting the food away. He watched Will stand there, frozen