Tuesday, April 30 – Evening / St. Ivy High
The Room and the Note
Class 1-A was empty again.
The desk creaked as Jay leaned forward, elbows resting on the cool wood. The folded paper in the drawer sat still. Unread. Unsent. Not even sealed.
He tapped the edge once.
Twice.
Then slowly shut the drawer, stood up, and looked around the room.
The board still had faded chalk notes from someone's afternoon meeting.
The windows were half-open, letting in a breeze that tugged at the leftover posters taped on the back wall.
He grabbed his bag.
But instead of leaving—he walked straight toward the old supply shelf.
AV Club Mischief
He returned to the AV room around 5:15 PM.
Still empty. Still waiting.
Jay flipped a few switches. The faint hum of dormant machinery kicked to life.
In the far corner sat a dusty stack of event flyers. Most of them useless.
One of them, however, had a blank backside.
He tore three off. Folded them neatly. Slipped them into his bag.
Then looked up at the intercom.
Just for a second.
Then walked away without touching it.
Not yet.
A Message to No One
In the hallway near the stairwell, Jay stopped and leaned against the wall.
He pulled out his phone. Opened the class group chat.
Scrolled through a dozen unread messages from Sofia and Noah arguing about staplers and club room etiquette.
Typed a message.
Deleted it.
Typed again.
Deleted again.
Eventually, he just texted Tyler:
"Still alive?"
Tyler replied two minutes later:
TYLER: Barely
TYLER: I got hit in the leg by my own teammate and Iris yelled "justice has been served"
Jay chuckled, thumbs hovering.
JAY: You guys doing anything after practice?
TYLER: nah. Everyone's dead.
TYLER: why?
JAY: Just thinking
TYLER: uh oh
JAY: rude.
The Idea
He left school slowly.
Not in a rush. No one waiting for him.
Just passed through the gates with one hand in his pocket, the other holding onto a folded sheet of paper.
The one from earlier.
He stopped at the edge of the sidewalk. Looked back at the school.
Still. Familiar.
But this time, it didn't feel like he was just watching it happen without him.
It felt like maybe… he could nudge it.
Just a little.
That Night
Jay sat at his desk at home with his laptop open.
Not for homework. Not for reading.
He was looking at a template. A very specific one.
✧ SCHOOL CLUB APPLICATION FORM ✧
[Temporary / Seasonal Use Only]
He didn't type a name right away.
Just stared at the blank space at the top.
Eventually, he wrote:
"The Club of Absolutely Nothing"
He paused. Then added:
"Objective: To not do anything, but in the company of those doing too much."
"Members: Undecided. Recruitment style: mysterious."
He hit print.
Then leaned back and smiled.
The Copy Room
Wednesday morning.
Jay arrived early. Earlier than Sofia. Earlier than Emma.
The copy room was technically locked.
But Jay had a paperclip, five minutes to spare, and very little shame.
Three copies of the fake club form. Stamped. Folded. Placed in envelopes marked:
Class 1-A – Bulletin Board
Faculty Lounge – In-Tray
Student Council Dropbox
Each one anonymous.
Each one perfectly legitimate.
On paper, anyway.
Just before class started, Jay sat down in his usual seat.
Sofia was already ranting about someone mislabelling folders.
Emma arrived carrying two binders and zero patience.
Noah showed up with breakfast in one hand and sleep in the other.
Amaya passed by quietly, leaving a fresh pastry beside Jay's notebook with a short smile.
No one knew.
No one saw.
But Jay leaned back in his chair, looked out the window—
—and smirked.