Feel free to pick out all the things wrong with it. I won’t take offense.
There I was in class, having just received another C- on the last exam. Thank God, I thought to myself. I was worried all night that I had done too well on this exam, and had allowed myself to be the next target to my peers. Fortunately, I had just hit that sweet spot and was still able to blend in with the rest of the numbskulls at the school.
Of course, receiving one A here and there on exams did not immediately put you in danger. However, to me, it is always better to play it safe. Consistently receiving lower grades on the weekly exams meant that no one would come for you next. For the most desperate of students though, one A would be enough for them to end your life. Take Abe, for example. He was always getting great grades for years and years. But one week, he had received the best grade in the class one too many times. I can still see his face when the teacher announced very loudly to the class that he did the best. He immediately sat up straight and was clearly very proud of his work. He would flaunt to us and let everyone in school know that he was much more intelligent than the rest of us. We all knew what was going to come next. and sure enough, Abe did not come to class the next day, or even the day after that. His body was found in a dumpster by his house. It was a clean kill at least, and Abe did not suffer at the time of his death. What the police found was a single bullet hole right between his eyes, which was most definitely fired from point blank range. Of course, since his murder was carried out by the government themselves, the police don’t really investigate. They only go to make it appear like they are here to protect us, but we all know that is a lie. They are here to control us. Now you understand why even receiving more than one A can be so dangerous. I will continue to strive for my very mediocre, life saving grades, as I do not want to become the next target.
No one quite knew how this came to be. I remember asking my parents about it when I was young, but I don’t even think they knew the answer themselves. They just explained to me that it had been his way even since their grandparents were children. Why would a government want its people to just be average? I knew I was capable of accomplishing great feats.
Once a student had entered the 7th grade, the weekly exams would start. Obviously, receiving even one A on the weekly exam can lead to bad things happening, as you now know with the story of Abe. Abe may have it coming his way, though. He knew what the cost was of achieving greatness, but he didn’t care. He still bolstered about his A grades as if that was somehow a good thing.
Peter was a little different. Like Abe, he too received high marks in all of his classes. However, he was not nearly as intelligent as Abe.. We were pretty close at the time. I remember talking to him about it one afternoon a lunch.
“Peter, you can’t continue this anymore. I don’ need to tell you why, either”
“I’m trying the best I can, man. I don’t read, do homework, nothing. I randomly guess on the multiple choice questions. You see I’m always the first one done.”
“Well, that’s not good enough,” I said.
“I really don’t’ know what you want me to. I should not be doing this good.”
His last sentence really struck home with me. I did really like Peter, but he was not the sharpest tool in the shed. Neither one of us could explain how he kept receiving these high marks. Peter lived in the shelter down the road from the school. He lost both of his parents when he was a child and did no have an other family to fall back on. He was on his own in life.
Peter had finally received one too A’s for his own good. There was nothing that we could do. At school, we received our latest exam results. I looked down at my paper and saw the big red A. I felt my skin get cold and looked up at our teacher, Mr. Harrison. We quickly made eye contact before he looked away. I turned to Peter. Tears were falling from the left side of his face. He wiped them away and then shook his head at me. He held up his paper. Another red A was staring at me.
“Peter, would you mind walking with me to my office for a minute. We need to discuss your future,” said Mr. Harrison.
Peter, along with the rest of the class knew what this meant. Peter reluctantly stood up and did something that I have never seen before or after.
“I have a plan that will lower my grade by a full leer grade by the time of the next exam,” said Peter.
A deathly silence came over the entire class after his comment. Students who were called to the office, or the “coffin” as we called it, never spoke back to he teacher like Peter did. They would always put their head down and jus do as instructed. No one fought back. I couldn’t help but feel proud of Peer now. He might not have been that smart, but he had the willpower to not just lay down. This was the kind of energy I was attracted to. My A didn’t seem as bad now.
I wasn’t sure what his plan was, but it sparked my interest. Maybe Peter knew something that I didn’t. Or he could just be trying to buy more time. I couldn’t be sure either way. Mr. Harrison on the other hand, who was an older man that had been teaching at the school for a very long time, seem unfazed by his comment.
He replied, “Peter, you need to come to my office right now. You know it will not take very long.” Peter put his head down and took a deep breath. I thought he might have something to say but nothing came out. He then followed Mr. Harrison out of the classroom and they walked the short distance to the office. The class remained silent even after the two had left. Within a few minutes, the loud gunshot rang through clear for all to hear. One of the girls in class had jumped at the sound, and then immediately started to sob quietly to herself. Another classmate went over to her and tried to calm her down, before coming to his senses and returning back to his seat. We were all on our own here. The didn’t like it when we tried to help one another. Having any friends could be dangerous. It drew unwanted attention to you.
Every student in that classroom was either silent or crying very softly. Everyone that is, except for Jack. Jack sat at the front of the class, smirking ever so slightly. Even though Jack sat at the front of the class, he was by no means the teachers pet. Jack was the only student in the entire school who received an A after A on every test he took. However, Jack did not look like your stereotypical nerd. He did not wear glasses, or wore a button shirt that was tucked in, or even owned any notebooks. Instead, Jack wore a sleeveless t shirt that exposed his biceps that were the size of small watermelons. He had on the gold chain that he wore every day, along with his backwards hat that sat on his head. His jeans sagged off of his waist, which was in clear violation of the dress code, but no one would dare say anything to him. Not even Mr. Harrison.
No one is quite sure were Jack even came from, but he had always been in the same class as me for as long as I can remember. I do know that he has always been the top student in the class, and that only a few people have ever made him a target. However, their attempts on his life would always fall short, no matter what anyone tried. It was thought that he was an impossible target who may never leave his top tier status. We were in twelfth grade however, which meant that this was going to be our last year at school before leaving to head off to college. Once there, it was said that we would no longer have to worry about IQ points and who had the most and who had the least. All we needed to do was to make it through one more year.
Twelfth grade is always the toughest to get through. The toughest exams are at this stage in school, and even a single F on an exam can mean the end. Because of this, students are more on edge and more willing to do anything to ensure a good grade. Or at least, for a mediocre grade. I could not have been doing any better at this point in my schooling. In fact, I felt like I had one of the best careers that anyone could possibly have. You see, I am intelligent enough to not have to go stealing IQ points from other students. I am also not too intelligent and have to worry about being the target of other students. And since there is no form of studying allowed, all I have to do is simply walk in on the day of the exam and take it. Up to this point, I have been receiving that perfect middle grade.
I knew that my luckiness may one day end, and I feared it would be during this twelfth grade year. Still, even after the first few tests, I have not missed a beat. Many other students have not been as lucky, being either too smart for their own good or not smart enough. I tried mostly to keep my head down though and not worry to much about how other people were doing. The only goal that mattered to me was finishing the school year and leaving once and for all.
The road to graduation did not remain as smooth as the rest of my schooling had been. The teachers had warned us how the rest of the exams we were about to take were much more difficult than the rest, and that some of us would have to work a little harder than before in order to pass. I thought nothing of this at first, thinking it was just a ploy to see more bloodshed for their own amusement. The next exam came, and I took it in the exact same manner I had taken all my exams for the past twelve years. That morning, I had my usual two eggs with toast and bacon. I had slept for exactly 8.5 hours the night before. The bus came at the same time it always does, and it picked me up at the end of my driveway. After arriving at school, I walked into Mr. Harrison’s classroom and sat down in the back right corner of the room. The test was passed out, and I completed it using the full time offered.
The next day, we received our test scores. As Mr. Harrison began giving the tests back to us, I could see the expressions on the student’s faces in front of me. The pain in their faces looked like they had just been stabbed in the stomach. I could begin to feel some of their pain as I started thinking of my own test score. Could the whole class have really failed? I quickly glanced over at Jack to see if his expression matched the other students. His expression could not have been more different. He had this eerie calmness about him; his smirk was still visible.
Mr. Harrison finally came over and placed my test upside down on the desk so I couldn’t see the score. He stood at my desk just a half a second to long to make me feel slightly awkward. I looked up to him and our eyes met. What he said next tied my stomach in knots and made my heart jump. “Great job Lance, you tied for the best score in the class.” He then turned around and started walking out toward the front of the class as if he told me that everyday. I couldn’t believe what I had just heard. I quickly tuned the test over and looked at the front page. The “100%, A+” stared back at me in red lettering. I looked up from my test and saw eleven pairs of eyes staring at me before quickly darting away. They all knew what I had received on my test.
I didn’t understand how this was possible. I had done everything the exact same way and had not taken any IQ points from other students, yet somehow here I was tied for the best score in class, even though the exams were harder. I onced again looked over at Jack to try and get a sense for what he was thinking. He was the only student not looking at me when I had received my score. I knew he was the student who I had tied with, I mean, he had to be the student. But Jack did not turnaround for the rest of the class. After the class ended and everyone else had left, I walked up to the desk of Mr. Harrison.
I began to think of how I was going to explain to him how this must be a mistake of some kind. That there was no way I had the best score in the class. That maybe he could recheck my score again. Before I even said a word, he looked up from his papers and said “The score is correct, Lance. I checked it multiple times.” I tried to spit out some sort of rebuttal. “But — it doesn’t make sense because…” “Stop right there,” replied Mr. Harrison. “The score is final. There will be no changes made. You may leave now. Congratulations once again on the score.” I walked out of the classroom in a hurry. While walking down the hallway to leave and go home for the day, I couldn’t help but feel all the eyes staring me down as I tried to make my escape. I kept my head down to avoid any kind of unwanted attention. The only thing I was relieved about was the fact that it was Friday, and we would have the next two days off.
I did not leave the house Saturday or Sunday. I replayed the day of the test over and over in mind, trying to figure how I did so well. I couldn’t understand what I had done differently on that test. I then started to think about what happens if I get another A? I would definitely become a target at that point, especially since it appeared as though the rest of the class had failed that exam. Perhaps even that one A would put me at the top of the list for some of the students. No one would even think of going after Jack, and since everyone else had failed, that meant I was the only target. But maybe I was getting ahead of myself. After all, it was the only A I received in my entire schooling career. Would that really be enough to make me target number one? I couldn’t be sure either way, and that was what I feared the most.
The following Monday, two more students were missing from class. Jack, to no surprise, was still seated at the front of the class. The only good thing about that class was that there was no exam that day, something that I couldn’t be happier about. During lunch that day, I sat alone at a table in the corner, as I have every day for years. Except today, I could sense Jack eyeing me down from across the room. I dared not to look up at him out of fear for my safety. That didn’t stop him from staring though. I could sense his frustration that I didn’t make eye contact with him. I was trying to keep an eye on him in the most subtle way that I could.
After Jack had received his tray of food, he did not take a right and sit down at the table he normally does. Instead, he took a left, heading in the direction of my table. I could feel the color rushing to my face, but I kept eating and pretended like I hadn’t noticed. Jack continued to walk toward me, passing empty table after empty table. I was praying that he would eventually just sit down at one of those many available spots, but he continued toward me. Eventually, he placed his tray down right in front of me with a loud thud. He then took his seat right in front of me. I had never spoken to Jack before. I am not even sure I had ever heard him speak before. But when he finally opened his mouth, he said something that I was not prepared for at all.
“Listen, Lance. I just wanted to give you a heads up that some of the other students are not happy with your grade on the last exam. In fact, they asked me if I would help them kill you.” He said this in the most nonchalant manner that you ever heard. Looking at him now, I could now see that he had a rather large scar near his left eye. He also had very dark brown eyes, bordering on almost being black. He was still wearing his usual muscle shirt with a chain and backwards hat, but he no longer seemed as intimidating now. I had no idea what to even say to this. I said with a low, almost inaudible voice, “Thank you.” I waited a few seconds for him to leave or to say something else, but he didn’t for a long time.
Finally, he said “I really admire you Lance. I’ve heard how you have consistently been getting average grades on all the exams. Never getting too low or to high of a grade. I am done with always getting A’s on the exams. I am tired of people always being afraid of me wherever I go. I just want to be more like you and blend in with the rest of the crowd. I will never be able to do that at this point though.” He looked at me waiting for some kind of response. A response that I didn’t even have yet. Now, I could see the sadness in his almost black eyes. They no longer seemed as though they belonged to a killer. They seemed more like they belonged to someone who has been calling for help for years, only to be ignored.
I replied to Jack, “I am sorry. If there was something I could do to help I would. I am not sure what you want from me.” To this response, Jack only looked at me dead in the eyes. I then realized what it was that he needed me to do.
When Jack spoke next, he detailed the plan he had in mind. It was the most brilliant plan I had ever heard. You see, Jack no longer wanted to live in this world. He no longer wanted to keep all his IQ points that he had accumulated over the years. All he wanted to do was give his points to someone else, so that they may graduate and finally be free from such a murderous world. Jack explained how if I killed him, no one would dear come after me. I would be known as the man who was able to kill Jack, the most feared student for the past twelve years. I would also have all of his IQ points, and thus would continue to pass all the exams easily.
“But Jack, I passed the last exam with the best grade in class! I don’t even need the points to succeed in the classroom,” I said. Jack, in all his wisdom, only had to say, “No, you really failed like the rest of the class. I told Harrison to give you that grade or I would come after his family next. He really bought that one. Probably because I would have actually done it. The point is, I can’t keep threatening teachers like that, or they will come for me for sure. Therefore, you need the points to continue to pass the exams.”
Now it all made sense. Jack was no doubt going to be killed by the school very shortly. No one, not even Jack, can cheat the system like that and get away with it. I could now understand why he wanted me to end his life. If the school killed him, he would have his points wasted. This was actually quite the altruistic act of Jack. I agreed to his terms.
We met late the next night, in an alleyway behind his house. He brought a pistol, and showed me how to actually fire it. I was shaking as soon as I held the thing in my hand. I thought about all the lives this piece of machinery had taken before. I thought to myself how this would be the final life.
Jack sat down and closed his eyes. He told me to shoot whenever I was ready. I took a deep breath, and lifted the gun to his head. I pulled the trigger. I found it surprising how loud the bang was. I looked at his lifeless body. Soon after, my head began to feel an immense pain. It felt as though there was a great pressure that couldn’t be relieved. At last, the pain stopped. I walked away from Jack and headed home. I thought of how no one would dare give me any kind of looks now. I also thought of how the exams would be so easy now. I could see a better life ahead of me in the future. Still, in someway, I felt quite the same.
