distinction.â
âThis level of rigidity doesnât suit you, Montgomery.â
âItâs a mystery club, not a crappy TV club, Thomas.â
âTake that back right now or I will wal ââ
And Naoki just knocked on the door. And we both sat up in our chairs, like, âUh, hello?â
Naoki stepped into the room, like some curious alien descending from its ship onto the crusty desert sand, her body draped in what looked like a silver parachute, her hair, which was black then, tied up in blue ribbons. And I think she said, âDid you say this is a Mystery Club?â
âYah,â I said.
âGood.â She walked in and sat down. âIâm here for the mystery.â
Like, at no point did Naoki think she was going to see a club that would involve reading whodunits.
Itâs like she knew she was walking into a different kind of mystery. And that was why she walked in.
Naoki believes that nothing is random. Like, technically thereâs actually this thing called probability, which is a math thing that tells you what the possibility is of something happening, like rolling a die and getting a two. Naokiâs basic theory is, yeah, sure, thereâs math, but on top of it, thereâs this un-math. In Naokiâs un-math, everything happens not because of math but because of stronger, often inexplicable forces pulling things this way and that.
Which is kind of interesting because Naokiâs also really good at math.
It was kind of perfect, I thought, that I would find something like the Eye of Know now, when I knew someone like Naoki. Someone who would actually (a) think that something like the Eye of Know was possible and (b) think it was cool.
After we finished our yogurt, we watched a video about cats that can smell cancer, which is also on my list of mysterious things.
â
Extra-sensory powers of pets
Around us, crickets chirped. The wind chimes Naokiâs dad made out of clay clinked and clanked.
There was a rap on the patio door, and Naokiâs tiny mother, who I swear is, like, three feet tall and looks a little bit like that fashion designer in that movie from Pixar, tapped her watch. Dinner.
âI better motor,â I sighed, rolling out of my bean bag.
âOkay, well.â Naoki stood. At her feet was a figure eight drawn out in little stones. Which I hadnât even noticed she was doing. At the door, she smiled a big smile. âHey. I just want to say, Iâm glad you are my friend, Montgomery. Iâll see you tomorrow.â
I felt my smile pull at my face, which was clearly kind of an unfamiliar shape for my face to make. âThanks! Me too!â
How is it Naoki is just so nice? I wondered. It seemed so easy for her. Even when people treated her like some sort of ditz at school. It was like she just didnât care. Like it wasnât important.
I could have taken the bus home, but it was so nice I decided to walk. Itâs twenty minutes if I walk fast. Plus I wanted to add some stuff to my app before I forgot, and I canât type and ride the bus, because it makes me nauseous.
â
Random vs. non-random things or coincidences
â
The Eye of Know and how it works and whether it lets you see through time
I licked my lips. They still tasted like coconut.
â
Why homemade fro-yo is better than Yoggyâs
I cut through the park and ran up the slide and down the slide and just felt kind of amazing. Which was amazing considering what a crap day it was. Which I tried not to think about.
By the time I got back, the house was totally quiet. Like, still.
Soccer practice , I thought.
The only light on in the whole house was the one over the dining room table. It glowed like a beacon.
I turned the corner.
The box, placed in the center of the table, was brown and scuffed, like some kind of ancient package rescued from a war effort, scratched and torn at the edges. It was about as big as a shoe box cut in half.
Brian Haig
Bonnie Bliss
Alexandra Ivy, Laura Wright
VickiLewis Thompson
Carsten Stroud
Mike Handcock
Clare O'Donohue
Kim Wright
Marybeth Whalen
Lacey Baldwin Smith