"I'm here to dilute the situation." Stephani announced as I open the door that morning.

"What?" I asked, still partially asleep.

"To dilute it. You know, defuse the tension."

"What are you even talking about?" I yawned. "By the way, happy birthday."

"Thanks. Can I see Neil?"

I laughed and opened the door. "Neil, my friend is here to..." But I trailed off. He wasn't there.

"Neil?" I asked the empty room. "Where are you?"

"He's not here?"

"Yeah. That's really funny." I scanned the room again, like I had just missed him the first time. "Weird funny, not funny funny." I clarified.

"I get it." Stephani said, and we went together to the dining hall.  She stayed until the end of first period, when she left to go visit Xoi, who still wasn't talking to me.  

Second period, when the teacher was in the middle of a lecture, he was interrupted.  Adam threw open the door with a bang and stumbled into the room.  He must have been feeling even worse than yesterday, because he hadn't even bothered to get dressed and was wearing a long white bathrobe with gold embroidery.  He walked over to my desk, dropped a beeper thing (it beeps when the master beeper thing tells it to), and walked out.  

The teacher went back to lecturing like nothing had even happened.  

Neil arrived back at Lakewood at lunchtime, wearing a blue silk, Chinese style shirt and an expression that made me want to comfort him out of his misery.    

"He's insane."  Neil was mumbling.  

"Who's insane?" I asked as I sat down next to him.  

"My father."  He gestured to his shirt.  "I was kidnapped and taken halfway to China before I could bribe the pilot to take me back."  

"Kidnapped?  Taken to China?"

Neil sighed, nodding.  "My father thinks that he's a Shaolin monk."  He buried his head in his hands. 

"Poor Neil."  I said sympathetically.  "My friend came this morning, but you weren't there.  I had no idea that you had been kidnapped.  Rich people are really weird."

Neil laughed.  "You've only scraped the surface, little Ethan."

"Hey, don't you start calling me that too!"

Neil put a hand on my head, using it slightly to help him stand up.  "I'm going to get food."  He said and left.