ol bus rattled

. Bodies, bac

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en three rows back. He could hear t

d hear the

't just

lowered his sunglasse

l vision f

of the football team sat with

pped around his lungs

n girl was reading a book. A pa

cou

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ted student

was an invasion

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ept his elbows in,

wax and that underlying rot

. His hands were stea

ac

med onto hi

fist was already cle

s Cha

ck said, hands up. He was g

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Normal organs.

n said. "Jus

at Aden's legs. "Dude

e c

anding. Like, ac

r said I might have been misd

t's awesome, man! Serious. We can finally pla

den said.

ed to his

ept co

t least thirty percent of the studen

erently. Smoothe

his desk i

was writing on

the fall of Rome,"

esonance. A low hum that

head. He looked

rson turn

nd, translucent eyelid-flicke

one o

edge of his desk.

s filing her nails. She was the

buzzed aro

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g straight ahead.

ded on her

wat

aw unhinge

wi

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in a tenth

ne s

pt A

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turned in

ectly at Aden

e. It stretched her cheeks until t

a finger

h

drop of sweat sli

he could

bell

"We need to go," he

? It's tac

come w

boys' bathroom. He needed a pla