“Why would she switch schools in the middle of her senior year? And out of the blue like that? It just plain doesn’t make sense!” Mazus slammed their milk carton onto the table.

The lunchroom was bustling, with students’ chatter filling the air. There was nothing out of the ordinary, save for the normal high school events. Pregnancy scares, unethical teaching practices, test troubles; all the normal, totally not suspicious, high school events. The fact that one girl left or disappeared did not make any waves.

“You need to calm down Mazus… I get that you are upset and everything, but she is already gone off to somewhere new. You’re acting like she got kidnapped or something,” Flax hesitantly spoke.

Mazus’ eyes shot up, “kidnapped! Could she have been kidnapped?”

 “you-,” Flax could only sigh, glancing at the curious onlookers, “sit down already, if she was really missing, don’t you think the police would’ve came asking?”

 Mazus slumped into the lunch table seat. “It’s just weird, I guess. Her gardening club too. It’s as if everything just disappeared overnight,” they mused.

Flax responded with an awkward smile as he patted Mazus’ back. “Sorry, I know you really liked her,” he coughed as he continued, “but how about we take your mind off of it. You want to come over to my house later today?”

Mazus hesitated, “I think I’ll pass. I have to do something later”.

“Oh cool, cool, for your parents again?” Flax commented.

Mazus softly hummed in approval.

Later that day, the school bell echoed the closure of the day. Mazus gathered their belongings and set out toward the library. School hours permitted students to remain in the library and extracurricular rooms until 5 p.m. That would buy them enough time.

Walking into the room, Mazus was blinded by the image of the hanging sun through the large, towering windows. Mazus lightly covered their eyes as they clunked their bag onto the illuminated desks. A wave of unease overcame their body. Finally residing in their own solitude, the built-up tension was unveiled.

Mazus clumsily threw themself onto the open chair, tapping the cold surface of the table. They began to mutter, “oh god, what am I supposed to do?”

Freesia Lupin: Magnolia High School senior, founder of the gardening club, last seen one week ago. According to Freesia’s homeroom teacher, Mr. Bouvardia, she had simply moved schools. While some found it odd that she had not previously mentioned her plan to move, it was understandable, as Freesia did not have many close friends to begin with. Although she had unmatched beauty and a stunning character, she was never particularly drawn to any one group or person, seeming to prefer drifting along unfettered. This unique characteristic, contrasting against her sunny disposition, caused Mazus to develop somewhat of a crush.

Even understanding that their crush made them a bit biased, they could still see that the situation was wrong. Of the six total gardening club members, two were in the hospital, one was on an extended family vacation, one was in juvenile detention, and two have moved schools. The odd thing was that no one could get ahold of any of the six or their parents. It was as if they had all vanished into thin air. Yet despite the inconsistencies, the teachers, forms, and records were enough to corroborate the stories. With a lack of evidence to suggest any foul play, the rumors regarding the disappearance of the gardening club quickly lost momentum.

With a shuddering breath full of stale library air, Mazus made up their mind. If they wanted to get to the bottom of this, they would have to investigate the gardening club’s room. With a swing of their hand, they grabbed their bag and marched out the library door.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

As Mazus filed through the hallways, they took note to avoid any other straggling students. Although they had no clue as to what they might find behind the club’s door, an overwhelming tension urged them to be cautious. An orange glow filled the hallways as the sun cast ominous, elongated shadows on the wall. Cursing the deafening echo of every step, Mazus found the hallways to be painfully long.

Turning the last corner, Mazus was greeted with the sight of several suited men funneling out of the deserted club room. With wide eyes, Mazus quickly jumped back behind the cover of the wall. They grasped their hands to cover their mouth, despite having no sound to utter. Be it instinct or intuition, something desperately told Mazus that these men were dangerous. Perhaps, if they were found, Mazus would end up “moving schools” the same way as Freesia and the other gardening club members.

Mazus stood frozen, in fear that any movement might alert the men of their location. Fortunately, luck was on Mazus’ side as the connected hallway fell into silence. The men in suits must have departed using the other side of the hallway. Despite the only sound being Mazus’ frantic heart, they did not dare to move a muscle.

Finally gathering courage, they peel their back from the safety of the wall. Mazus then rolls their head toward the edge of the wall, ignoring their shaking fingers. With a quick jerk of the head, they get a picture of the scene: thankfully, empty. As though the previous men were but a mirage, the hallway was restored to its normal state.

With slow, hesitant steps, Mazus made their way down the hallway. Acting as skittish as a mouse, every passing door was subject to examination. They were as cautious as possible, save for dodging and crouching past windows. Despite their turtle-like speed, they eventually reached the gardening club storage room. As proof of the former men’s activities, the door was left slightly ajar.

Mazus pushed forward a trembling hand, finally landing on the golden knob. They grasped the handle firmly while bowing their head to the crack in the door. As Mazus delicately pushes the door open, they are once again delightfully greeted by the sight of emptiness. No suspicious men, no missing classmates, nothing.

The confidence of the short journey swells Mazus’ heart. With the appearance of the suited men as an admission of guilt, Mazus no longer has any doubts about the wrongness of the situation. They decisively open the door to continue their search.

From the first look, nothing in the room is out of place. It contains everything that a gardening club naturally would: pots, soil, tools, and a miscellaneous collection of seeds. The room was not particularly organized, but it was clear to say that the room was well used and loved. On the surface of the back table, several rows of seedlings had been planted. In comparison to the tidy and used equipment, the seeds were showing signs of neglect, obviously due to the disappearance of their main caretakers.

In addition to the gardening tool and seedlings, the room also contained a wall of books. Keeping with the theme of the club, the books were all related to gardening or plant care. Mazus took a step forward, eager to find a clue or message, anything that could answer their questions. They scanned the bookshelf for anything special: Vegetable Farmer’s Guide, Plant Nutrition for Dummies, Gardening Projects for Kids. None of the books were special in any way, except for one.

It was an old, yellowing book. Surrounded by faded pink peonies, the title simply read: Flower Magic. When Mazus opened up the book, the expected text was gone. In fact, the entire middle of the pages was gutted. In its place was a dainty, light-brown box tied shut with a purple ribbon.

Grasping the box, Mazus spared little attention to the remaining book and tossed it to the nearby desk. The box had the rough texture of cardboard, despite its smooth appearance. Likely owing to its age, Mazus only needed a light pull on the ribbon to undo the knot.

Mazus pondered, ‘just what item would make someone go through such lengths to hide? A key? A message?’ With growing anticipation, they popped off the lid of the box.

Within the cardboard box, a singular round seed rested.

“huh?” Mazus was perplexed.

In order to get a better look, Mazus poured the single seed onto their left palm. The seed was black, and almost resembled a coffee bean in shape. It did not have any defining features and was unmistakably a normal, plain seed.

It was at this moment that the totally normal seed began to sink into Mazus’ palm. Mazus froze. Despite the growing indent on their hand, Mazus did not feel a thing. The slight chill of the seed remained constant, even as it dove under the surface of their skin. The seed acted fast, and before Mazus could even make a move, the seed was gone.

In the dim gardening club room, Mazus was alone. A disappearing club, a disappearing crush, and finally, a disappearing seed. As Mazus stared at their empty hand, they were too stunned to move.

Mazus released a shuddering breath, bewildered, “What the hell did I just get myself into?”