A prime number is divisible only by itself and by one. If I were a prime number, I'd want to be a five. Five is also a Catalan number, which is another sequence of numbers that can be used to solve certain counting problems. Being a Catalan number is perfect, because I like the idea of being part of a solution, but also because that's my surname.

When I looked up ‘five' on the net, I learned it was also the first safe prime, the third Sophie Germain prime, and the third Mersenne prime exponent. If I said that out loud at school most people would call me a nerd or try to trip me up or something. But I like the way numbers can have secret superpowers.

If I were a five, I'd be shaped like a pentagon, with sharp, perfect edges and rules that can't be changed. A solid two-pronged base, with a pointy roof that reached for the sky. There'd be magic in my walls, safety in my angles.

I wish I were a five. I wish I wasn't the weirdest sixteen year-old guy in the universe.