The Scrooge

Cameron hunkered behind a large wooden box that looked like it could have been used as a prop at one point, though it now had several markings that were definitely not school approved. Thankfully there were many similarly discarded props backstage, hiding Cameron from view. The stage curtain hid his friend, Blair, who was now peeking out to look at the theater kids who sat in the auditorium seats.

“They’re going to see you,” Cameron whispered. He checked the lid of the small box he’d brought with him. Still secure.

Blair shot a grin his way. “They’re too enamored by Mr. Kent.”

His friend had a point. The drama teacher stood leaning against the stage as he spoke to the students, and he had the undivided attention of everyone there. Cameron had been told by female friends that Mr. Kent was the youngest and best-looking teacher at school, and Cameron wondered if it was by coincidence that most of the teenagers sitting in the auditorium at that moment were girls. In fact, there were only three boys, one of which was Blair’s younger brother, Gabe.

“And you’re sure they will be rehearsing on the stage today?” Cameron asked.

Blair gave a quick nod. “Positive. The Thespian Society has a state competition coming up next week. That’s why they’re here on a Saturday.”

Cameron snickered. His friend always made sure to emphasize the proper name for the after-school drama club. “Lucky for us.”

Speaking of being at school on a Saturday…Cameron glanced at his phone. Shoot. This was taking longer than he’d thought it would. He and Blair needed to be at the other end of the school in ten minutes for their swim meet. Coach would kill them if they were late again. Thankfully, the whole play was only like twenty minutes long. Or so Blair had told him.

Why was Mr. Kent still talking?

A faint scratching noise came from the box Cameron had brought with him. “Just a few more minutes, little guys,” he whispered, stroking the lid. He’d cut holes in the top so they could breathe, and he saw a small pink nose and a couple of stray whiskers poking through.

Cameron held up his phone for Blair to see. His friend waved him off with a look that said Yeah, yeah. I know.

“All right, let’s take it from the scene where our Pied Piper shows the mayor what he…or she, in this case…can do,” Mr. Kent said, pushing away from the stage.

Finally.

Blair stepped back so he was completely hidden by the stage curtain, and Cameron flattened himself on the ground and peeked through a crack in the wooden box he was hiding behind. The timing had to be perfect.

“Do we know what props we’ll use for the rats?” a girl asked.

Amanda Barrett.

She was beautiful, bold, and rich. Everything Cameron needed to stay away from. He didn’t think that would be a problem after today.

Amanda had stuck a funny triangular hat on her head and wore a tunic. She must be the Pied Piper.

Mr. Kent said, “Because we’re traveling across state for the competition, we’re limited in what props we can take. We’re going to need to settle for sound effects and some imagination.”

“Oh, great, the scurrying of hundreds of rats in surround sound,” she said, grimacing. “Exactly what I was hoping for.”

Mr. Kent chuckled. “Glad I could help out.” He scanned the stage, as if making sure everything was in place. “All right, everyone looks good. Amanda, let’s start with your line.”

Amanda stood center stage and faced Blair’s brother. “Mayor, you underestimate my abilities,” she said. “I will have your town cleared of rats by sunrise tomorrow morning.”

Gabe scoffed. “I will pay you double what I promised if you can manage that.”

Amanda stuck her hand out and waited. Gabe hesitated before shaking her hand. He seemed suddenly uneasy about the promise he had just made.

“It is settled,” Amanda said, her voice ringing across the auditorium. “Now please leave me be. I work best alone.”

Gabe didn’t move for another moment, like he’d rather stay and supervise the Pied Piper.

Cameron had to admit, Gabe was pretty good, considering he was only a sophomore. But the play needed to keep moving if Cameron and Blair were going to get to their swim meet on time.

The perfect alibi. There was no way they could be involved in what was about to happen if they were at their own competition.

Gabe turned with a dramatic swish of his overcoat, and the townspeople followed him…off stage.

Crap.

Thankfully, it was dark. Blair was well hidden; even though Cameron knew where Blair was, he was practically invisible.

Cameron, on the other hand…he shifted to his left as slowly as he could to put more space between him and the actors. That was when he heard the cue he’d been waiting for.

The Pied Piper’s music.

Moving to the other side of a piece of scenery—a storefront window, by the look of it—Cameron began to ease the lid off the box he’d brought with him. As he did, the mayor and the townspeople sneaked their way back onto the stage, as if to spy on the Pied Piper.

This was going to be more perfect than Cameron had anticipated. He was in just the right position near the back of the stage, with the whole cast directly in front of him. As soon as Gabe was in Cameron’s line of sight, he finished removing the lid and tipped the box. Six large rats raced out. Four of them headed straight toward Amanda, who was still playing a fake flute and doing a little jig across the stage. One of the rats ran to the left, where a few townspeople stood, and the last one ran to the right, where Gabe was hiding as he watched the piper.

It took a moment for anyone to realize these rats were not fake, but indeed real. Amanda even threw Mr. Kent a look that seemed to say Nice one. Until a rat brushed against her ankle and she screamed.

Amanda jumped from foot to foot, her jig now a method of self-preservation, and the rest of the cast seemed to think it was a pretty good idea, because they joined her, their screeches echoing off the walls of the empty auditorium.

Blair fell out of the curtain, laughing, and he joined Cameron at the back of the stage. “We better get out of here.”

Cameron hated to leave, and really wished he’d thought to film the whole thing. “All right,” he said, knowing his friend was right. They needed to get to the swim meet…it was their alibi, after all. He reluctantly pulled his gaze away from Gabe jumping from the stage.

Best senior prank ever.

* * * *

Cameron and Blair ran into the locker room, both bent over, simultaneously panting and laughing. They quickly changed into the tiny swimsuits they were forced to wear and slipped out the door to the pool.

As soon as they walked out, Cameron knew they were in trouble.

“Coach is looking for you,” Rodney said, his lips twisted up in a smirk. He was always watching for Cameron to mess up, and then making sure their coach knew about it. Cameron swore the guy was trying to steal his position as team captain.

Coach Kall hurried over and towered above them. “Couldn’t manage to get out of bed this morning?” he asked.

“Had some car trouble, sir,” Cameron said quickly, confident his coach would accept the excuse, no questions asked.

“You could have texted or called.”

Good point, but why was the coach grilling him? It wasn’t like this was his first time being late to a meet. “Won’t happen again, Coach.” Until at least next week.

Coach Kall lowered his voice. “I have half the school here, plus several recruiters who would like to see you swim for their universities. I need you to be focused this morning, and you’re not off to a good start.”

“Yes, sir,” Cameron said, dropping his gaze. Had he known the recruiters would be there, he would have postponed his and Blair’s little prank. Swimming was his ticket out of Lakeview. His coach had probably known about the recruiters but chosen not to tell Cameron, thinking it would psych him out.

Their coach harrumphed. “You missed the national anthem.” He gave them each one more disapproving glare before turning to Blair. “You’re in the next heat, so you better hurry over.”

That was all it took for Cameron and Blair to get off the hook. Just like Cameron had known they’d be. As he walked away, he made sure to shoot a grin Rodney’s way. His teammate didn’t seem pleased by the outcome.

Coach Kall acted tough, but he needed Cameron, considering he was the school’s star athlete. As Cameron’s gaze swept across the large room, he realized his coach hadn’t been exaggerating. The bleachers were full of students from their school, with a couple of rows reserved for the visiting high school students who had driven a couple of hours to be there.

No one in the drama club was there, of course. They were busy preparing for their own competition…and fighting rats. Cameron had to suppress a smile as he thought of their reactions. Amanda’s freak-out was classic…dancing in place while screaming, like that would do something to dissuade the rodents from cozying up.

Thirty minutes later, he had already swum once—he came in first, but no surprise there—and was getting in place for the butterfly stroke.

Cameron forced himself to block out everything and everyone except for him and the pool in front of him. He pictured himself cutting through the water, no resistance, leaving the competition behind.

Nothing mattered.

Not the recruiters.

Not Coach Kall.

And definitely not the rat he had just seen scurrying at the other end of the pool.

Cameron paused. The pressure must have been getting to him.

Except, when he looked again, it hadn’t disappeared, and instead scurried underneath a small boy and into the bleachers.

Oh no. This was beyond bad.

Maybe no one would notice.

That was when Cameron saw the second rat.

Seriously? Another one made its way here?

It didn’t matter. All he had to do was swim this last heat and wow the recruiters, then the rats could do whatever they wanted.

A scream erupted from the bleachers, and that was when Cameron knew all was lost. It looked as if the spectators were doing the wave as they jumped onto the bleacher seats. A girl kicked at one of the rats, though it was a poor attempt.

Oh gosh, that wasn’t just any girl. It was his girlfriend, Eliza. Her waist-length bleached hair was the giveaway. She went for the rat again, and this time her boot made contact. The rodent flew through the air…and landed in the pool.

Cameron groaned. At least no one knew he was responsible for the fiasco.

He turned, ready to walk away from his block…and froze.

In the open doorway stood Mr. Kent. And he held the box Cameron had stowed the rats in.

“Who would do something like that?” Amanda asked, throwing her tunic to the ground. She pulled her hair into a ponytail and tried to forget the way the rat’s whiskers had tickled against her ankles. Not only could she not forget, she still felt it. Her skin crawled as she thought about how huge those rats were. So much for being the Pied Piper. She wouldn’t have lasted a second if she had hundreds of rats following her.

Gabe shrugged, but he was acting awfully suspicious. Amanda doubted he had anything to do with the rats, considering the look of panic on his face when he’d jumped from the stage. He was a couple of years behind her in school, but he was a nice kid. And the principal’s son. Still…there was something he wasn’t saying.

“Out with it,” Amanda said, folding her arms.

With some hesitation, Gabe finally said, “I…might have an idea of who would enjoy pulling something like that.”

Amanda waited for him to reveal the identity of the person who would stoop to that level, but he remained quiet and quickly packed up the long overcoat he’d been wearing as mayor of Hamelin. He moved to leave, but Amanda threw an arm in front of him, blocking his way.

“Nope. Spill it.”

Gabe seemed the tentative type, but he boldly looked Amanda in the eyes. “I’m sorry, but I can’t.”

Realization dawned on her. “You’re protecting your brother.”

Panic kindled in Gabe’s eyes. “It’s not easy being the principal’s son,” he whispered.

“He’s on the swim team, right?”

Gabe offered a small nod.

Amanda slapped a hand on his back and said, “I promise I won’t tell your mom,” as she threw her bag over one shoulder. She cast a nervous glance behind her as she hurried out the stage exit, just in case a stray rat decided to jump out at her from behind one of the old sets stowed back there.

She wound her way through the halls toward the other end of the school, where the swim meet was taking place, but wasn’t sure what she expected to do when she got there. Confront Gabe’s older brother as he was about to jump in and do the breaststroke? Amanda knew of Blair, but she’d never talked to him.

Maybe she’d—

Amanda’s thoughts screeched to a halt. Walking through the double doors that led to the pool were Mr. Kent, Coach Kall, and Principal Howell, and they didn’t look happy.

They weren’t alone, however. Cameron Taylor was with them. He still wore his swim cap and his goggles, along with a towel, hung around his neck.

That wasn’t what had caught Amanda’s attention, though.

Cameron wore the tightest, smallest swimsuit she had ever seen. She knew swimmers needed the least resistance possible when competing, but she couldn’t help but wonder if he’d ordered an extra-small. The tiny swimsuit only served to accentuate the rest of his muscled body. Amanda’s gaze wandered to Cameron’s abs. How could it not, when they were right there, begging to be stared at? Holy cow, those were impressive. The type she’d love to reach out and—

She shook her head. Swimmers were not the kinds of guys she needed in her life. They were pompous and attention-seeking and…exactly the type of people who would release live rats in the auditorium.

It was Cameron. It had to be. Why else would he be escorted by all those people?

“Can I at least change into my clothes?” he was asking. He didn’t look so arrogant at the moment. He seemed nervous, like he was on his way to the guillotine.

Principal Howell glanced at her watch. “Fine. But be at my office in fifteen minutes.” She turned and walked away, though looking considerably less intimidating than she usually did in her high heels and business slacks. The jeans and sweatshirt she currently wore just didn’t hold the same fear factor.

“What are you looking at?”

Cameron’s voice startled Amanda, and when her gaze snapped toward him, she saw that Mr. Kent and Coach Kall had left, leaving Cameron standing alone in the hallway. He was watching her, expecting an answer.

“N-nothing,” Amanda said, her gaze now landing on anything that wasn’t Cameron and his tiny swimsuit. She crossed her arms and gave a small shrug, trying to act like his presence didn’t affect her. “I’ve just never seen someone have to be escorted by the principal and two teachers. You must have really messed up.”

“Are you sure that’s why you were staring?” he asked.

Amanda’s gaze flickered back to Cameron, and her breath caught. His bare chest was a lot closer than it had been a moment before. He wore a small smirk that told her he knew she had been checking him out.

“Yes,” she said, though the word barely squeaked out. He really needed to put those abs away.

“Because if I didn’t know better—”

Cameron was interrupted when Coach Kall poked his head around the doorframe and barked, “Stop flirting. You have thirty seconds to be changed and on your way to Principal Howell’s office.”

“Guess I have somewhere to be,” Cameron said with a grin. He turned, but paused and glanced back over his shoulder. “By the way, as cute as you look jumping around on stage, you may want to lose the rats for your little competition. After all, the Pied Piper has a reputation to keep.”

And then he walked away.