Page 66 of You Had Me at Hello World
“Lots of people would kill to get their hands on Adderall. At my school, kids use it to study. There’s an entire black market. Goes for ten bucks a pop.”
Oh. “I didn’t know you took that,” I say. “Do you have ADHD?”
“Not as far as I know. Keppra—which is for my seizures—makes me really tired. So my doc prescribes Adderall for focus and energy.”
I nod. I’m not trying to be nosy about his medical situation. But it’s kind of weird that we’re so close and yet he never told me this.
I don’t know. It’s not like we’re girlfriend-boyfriend. Maybe we’re just hooking up. Maybe that’s how he thinks of us.
“I’ll help you look,” I offer, stepping inside. The sooner we handle this, the sooner we can get back to the grind.
Twenty minutes and a way messier room later, we conclude that Khoi has too many mysteriously orphaned socks (“They’re being eaten by the washing machines, I swear!”), thereis a previously unknown microbial ecosystem flourishing in the boys’ trash can, and the medication is not here.
“Who else knows about your Adderall?” I ask.
“Obi?” Khoi wrinkles his nose. “I couldn’t hide it from him.”
“I don’t think he would steal your meds, though.”
“We don’t keep our door locked. It really could’ve been anyone.”
So he was giving “please rob me” energy. I decide against doing a whole TED Talk about not getting your stuff stolen. Instead, we find Obi to ask if he knows anything.
Khoi’s roommate is slumped over in his usual spot on the first floor of the Stratton Student Center, and when I tap him on the shoulder, he wakes with a jolt.
“Hmmmph?” He looks at us blearily. “Oh, it’s you two. My favorite and second-favorite Alpha Fellow. What’s up?”
“Wait, which one of us is first-favorite?” Khoi asks.
I cut in because I’m not sure I want to know. “Obi, can you help us with something?”
After we explain the situation, he shakes his head. “I’ve been here since seven a.m.”
“Do you have any guesses as to who might’ve taken it?”
He shrugs. “No clue.”
“Okay… Did you tell anyone else about Khoi’s meds? You’re the only person at camp who knew about them.”
“Oh!” He brightens up. “At dinner Lucas and some of hisminions were talking about how they wanted Adderall so they could pull more all-nighters. And I cracked a joke about how they could buy it off you.”
“Obi.”Khoi buries his face in his hands.
“Don’t worry, bro. I don’t think they actually thought you were a drug dealer.”
“That’s not thepoint!I didn’t want them to know I take Adderall!”
“Sorry, I didn’t know it was meant to be incognito!”
“You didn’t knowwhat medications he takeswas supposed to stay private?” I ask.
Khoi groans. “These guys already hate me. They call me a grifter. Now they think I’m cheating my way to the top by abusing drugs. If I’m going to be known as a drug addict, I want to at least be doing acooldrug, like ecstasy!”
“Ecstasy isn’t even cool anymore,” Obi says. “These days, it’s all about ketamine.”
I touch Khoi’s back. “Forget them. If they stole your meds, we have to do something.”
“You’re right.” He squares his shoulders. “I’ll go to Brenda. No, Courtney.”
