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Bobbylost. Then Bobby walks down the corridor towards the double doors and, before pushing them open, gives Wayne the finger.
    For the longest time Wayne just stands there while the rest of the students turn combination locks and put on coats and throw books into knapsacks and tear off into what’s left of the day like finally freed prisoners. That’s when he notices Corey Parrot, six lockers down, fiddling with his lock that never wants to open.
    Wayne watches for a while, then says, “Want me to try?”
    Without so much as a glance, Corey shakes his head. Tries the combination again. Nothing.
    â€œIt’s twice around clockwise then—”
    â€œBuzz off,” Corey says. He tries again. Still won’t open.
    The hall’s deserted now, so Wayne walks down to where Corey is, but Corey sticks out his palm as if to say, Stay where you are, so Wayne does.
    â€œSuppose I know how to open my own lock.” Corey turns the dial slowly, pauses, then yanks. Nothing. He curses.
    â€œLet me,” Wayne says.
    â€œNo!” Corey looks up and down the corridor, then back at Wayne. “Didn’t I tell you to buzz off?”
    Wayne doesn’t say anything.
    Again Corey scans the hallway, then takes a stepin Wayne’s direction. “And stop calling my house.” He’s whispering now. “Can’t you take a hint?”
    Wayne stays quiet.
    â€œI don’t want to be a jerk, but you leave me no choice— What? Stop staring at me like that—like you don’t know what’s what. Pete said if I hung out with you he’d rip out my braces, okay ? Make me hump the snow too, and my dad’s foreman so what do you think he’d say?”
    Silence.
    â€œYou’d do the same thing, Wayne … if you were me.” Corey pauses, then points at his own mouth. “Plus I’m getting these off soon and Monica said I might not be too bad looking and she’d consider being my girlfriend, so you see the position I’m in. Why should we both suffer?”
    Somewhere a phone rings.
    Corey’s finally able to open his lock. “See, told you I knew how.”
    Wayne walks back to his own locker and gathers his things and Corey says,
    â€œI’m sorry but I can’t change it, can I?”
    Wayne gets into his jacket. Grabs his toque and is about to put it on but remembers what Marjorie said, so he stuffs it in his pocket instead.
    â€œIf he ever lets up on you,” Corey says, “we can be friends again. Okay?”
    â€œOkay.”
    Corey’s receding footsteps and the doors being pushed open and then slamming shut and the silence afterwards like spreading pain.
    Wayne closes his locker and walks down the hall and is just about to leave when suddenly he hears clicking shoes and a voice that’s Mr. Rollie’s saying, “One moment, Mr. Pumphrey! One moment!”
    Wayne turns around and waits for his drama teacher to catch up.
    â€œSo glad I caught you,” Mr. Rollie says, putting his hands on his hips like he’s out of breath. He takes a moment and then says, “Guess you saw the cast list, huh?”
    Wayne nods.
    â€œI’m sorry.”
    â€œIt’s all right. You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown was a bad choice.”
    â€œNo, it wasn’t. It’s more that you look so young. And you’re quite a bit smaller than everyone else. I needed blocky actors who could look like miners.”
    â€œLike Paul Stool?”
    â€œMm-hm. And Shane Brody and Jason Buckle.”
    â€œWhat about Les? He’s not blocky.”
    â€œNo, but he is the best actor in the school. Although Miss Pope might give him a run for it. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an audition so authentic.” Then, “Do you know her?”
    â€œShe lives up the street from me, but not really.”
    â€œWell, with her and Les I think we have a real shot at making the provincials in St.