sᴄᴀᴠᴇɴɢᴇʀ ʜᴜɴᴛ

Ever since I heard of Evan Kirks, I had tried to get hold of him for the entire day, but to no avail. He had been great with his camouflaging skills, easily blending with the crowd. He needed to be fixed and I needed something to get over my guilt.

I finally managed to track him down just before the lunch break had started because he was going in the opposite direction.

"H-Hey!" I managed to croak out. He halted but did not turn back. Instead, he kept walking towards the lockers.

"Hey, Evan!" I had to pull this off. This finally made the guy to halt into stop, and he turned around. The upper half of his face was covered by his hoodie. I had this sudden urge to pull it off his head to get a cold look at his face. But I could not.

"Are you talking to me?" I was startled to hear his deep, yet clear voice. For a moment, I just blankly stared at where his eyes could be. I cleared my throat.

"Your name is Evan. So, I guess..." I trailed off.

"What is it?" He stood where he was. Taking in a deep breath, I took one step closer to him. I was glad that he did not take a step back.

"I need your help," I blurted out. Since his face was covered under his hoodie, I did not catch any reaction. Instead, he tilted his head upwards.

"My help?" I could tell that he was astonished, "Why?"

"I will explain it to you," I gulped, "If you agree to meet me in the playground after school."

"Can't you say it here?" I nibbled my lower lip as I realized that he was getting annoyed.

"Please Evan," I pleaded, "I know that it's weird and sounds out of the blue. But I mean it."

I was glad that he nodded. Without a word, he turned around and left. I was dumbfounded for a moment, with the feeling of déjà vu hitting me. That's when my suspicions were cleared. This was what a depressed, suicidal person would do. The lesser the attention, the better.

I walked back to the canteen to find Sally and her boyfriend, Dave sitting on the usual bench.

"Hey, buddy!" Dave smiled as he waved his fist. We did the fist bump ritual before sitting down opposite the two of them. The place beside me was empty. This was where Mick used to sit. When he ate, he used to put his left arm around me, while eating. No matter how much I protested or tried or swat it away, he would not remove his hand. I sighed.

"How are you doing, buddy?" I looked to find Dave staring at me with solemn eyes.

"Better, I guess," I shrugged.

"But I think that I heard bitterness in your voice," Sally spoke up, staring at me with a frown. I sighed again before looking around for a familiar black hoodie. I shook my head gently. How could he come over and occupy the place that once belonged to Mick?

The rest of the lunch period, afternoon classes, I spent it brainstorming ideas of keeping Evan occupied. That was, if he agreed. As soon as the final bell was off, I made my way towards the playground. I sat down on one of the unoccupied swings and looked at my wrist watch.

I could only hope that he would show up.

I would wait for another five minutes, I told myself which I had been telling myself for the umpteenth time. Closing my eyes, I scratched the area above my eyebrows in frustration. I knew that patience was the key. But I felt helpless, knowing that someone was being suicidal.

Few moments later, I heard footsteps behind me. I turned my head and saw Evan walk towards me with his familiar hoodie on. I stood up from the swing. To my surprise, he pulled down his hoodie, revealing a head full of crisp brown hair. He was shorter than I by a few inches and with a lean built. His face looked quite pale, making the dark circles under his eyes look prominent. I found myself hard not to frown.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" He asked, clearing his throat.

"Yeah, right," I nodded, glancing at my feet, "It may look silly but I really need you to do this."

"And what makes you think that I would listen to you?" He asked, catching me off guard. I looked up at him with my lips parted.

"Look, man," He began, "You don't owe me anything. I don't owe you anything. I don't understand what the charade is all about."

I nibbled my lower lip nervously. He had a point. I looked up at him.

"What if I say..." I gulped, "If I say that I need your help to get over some guilt I have." He squinted at me critically.

"Why me?" He asked.

"There is a reason," I replied, facing the ground again, "You remind me of someone, who I had lost in a tragic way." And because you look suicidal.

I looked up at him. He was scowling with his lips slightly parted.

"Are you talking about the guy on the notice board?" He asked, catching me off guard again. I looked up at him to see that he was staring at me with complicated eyes.

"He was my best friend," I nodded. And the one that I loved, but was afraid to tell.

"What do you want me to do?" He asked. I looked up at him expectantly.

"Um," I rubbed the nape of my neck, "This might sound stupid. But I want you... to..."

He squinted at me sceptically. Well, that was what I could end after brainstorming. It sounded stupid to me as well, but that was the only thing I had got.

"I want you to pick five of your favourite pictures from your family album and send it to me," I bit down on my tongue as soon as they left my mouth. I carefully lifted my eyes to gauge his reaction. Evan's eyes had narrowed into two slits.

"Are you a creep or something?" was all I got back from him.

"It's scavenger hunt," I told him as I kept my eyes on the ground, "Isn't it better than finding five blue objects in your home, right?"

Evan sighed and I looked up. He was looking across the playground. My shoulders slumped down in defeat. I knew that I could not give up but I felt helpless.

"You can do it or choose to leave," I told him as I turned back, hauling the bag on my back.

"Wait," He called out as I had taken a few steps across the playground.

"You need to give me your number if I... we are doing this," He called. I stopped and blinked for a moment before turning around on my heels. He took one step forward and stopped. Unknowingly, I found myself walking towards him. He extended his palm towards me.

I fished out the phone from my pocket and unlocked it before handing it to him. He began keying in the number.

"And one more thing," He said without looking up, "I don't know your name yet."

My jaw dropped as I felt my ears grow warm. Few seconds later, his phone buzzed in his pocket.

He handed me the phone and stared at me as if I was a boy of seven. I extended my hand towards him.

"Ray. Ray Maverick," I told him.

"Evan Kirks," He nodded and shook my hand. I began to wonder if my palms were sweaty.

"Thanks, Evan."

"Whatever, Maverick," He smirked as he turned around and left, leaving me dumbfounded.