On August 31, Miranda attends high school at the middle school campus. The students are divided up, and the high school students are sent to the music room, where they must use desks designed for seven-year-olds, and wait for what feels like hours before Mrs. Sanchez, Miranda’s old school principal, finally arrives with bad news. Due to the low number of high school students who have enrolled and the limited resources available, the middle school will not be able to facilitate them after all. Instead, the students are informed that they will either have to attend the other school or to be homeschooled. Though Miranda wants to leave, she enjoys the chance to sit with other students her own age. The students talk about how bad things are, and how dangerous the times have become. There is a rumor that a student, Michelle Schmidt, has gone missing. With this news, students begin leaving in fright. Miranda eventually leaves as well, fed up with all the talk of death. When Miranda goes to pick up her textbooks for homeschooling, she decides to pick up books for Jonny too. As she is leaving, she notices that the school supplies have been left unattended and steals as much as she can.