• Prologue:
    Anxiety

    Did they have any clue that I killed Aaron? Why would they send investigators here? Did i leave something of mine behind?

    Chapter 3:

    I put headphones on as I walk through the front entrance of the school. One of the teachers that patrols the hallways sees me, tells me to take them off. Same bullshit as usual. It's surreal really, every thing's normal until the corpse is found.

    I head through the hallway towards my locker. Put in the combination. Take out my hoodie, put it on to cover up the holes in my shirt from Aaron's cleats. The holes would probably go unnoticed at this school though. For some reason all the emo kids buy torn up clothes from hot topic.

    It's been about 20 minutes since i fled the school. I had trouble finding my way out of the woods. Now I just have to wait for somebody to find Aaron's body.

    I walk into the commons area, and almost on cue, there's a scream from the bathroom near the cafeteria.

    A teacher rushes to where the scream came from. I hear her scream too. Pretty soon, half the school is circled around the bathroom entrance. Some are asking what happened, others making up rumors. The people up front who know the truth are in shock. Some are covering their mouths. A couple have thrown up. One girl (I think she had been dating Aaron) actually faints.

    Even when he's dead, Aaron's still popular.
    *********************************

    At home in the living room, on the computer. Watching a video on you-tube. School's been been closed indefinitely until the police have gathered all the evidence.

    Dads at work and Mom's upstairs watching TV in her room. Thing shave been strained with my parents, and they've started sleeping in separate rooms. Hopefully they'll work things out, but if they don't, oh well. That's how it always is these days.

    There's a knock at the door, I get up and go open it. There's 2 guys in suits at the door, one of them is wearing sunglasses, he looks like one of those guys from CSI.

    "Darren Vorkus?" asks the guy in front.

    "That's me." I tell him blandly, I wonder how he knows my name. "What can i do for you?"

    "I'm detective Birons, and this is detective Curgol." he tells me pointing to the guy in sunglasses behind him. "We're here to talk with you about the...incident at your school a few days ago."

    "You mean Aaron turning up dead in the bathroom?" I ask him. He gives me a surprised look. He didn't think I'd be so blunt. Most people like to beat around the bush when it comes to death.

    "That's right," says Curgol from behind. I can tell he's the more straightforward one of this pair. "We're from the investigation team and we would like to speak with you and your parents."

    My heart starts to race. Do they know? Did i forget something at the scene?

    "I'll go get my mom," I tell the officers, forcing my pulse down.

    I close the door and head up the stairs.

    There's no way they know. I didn't have anything in my pockets when I was in the bathroom, and i have my ring and pendant on me, so I know I didn't leave anything behind. there were tons of hair and skin cells in there too. I doubt the school ever cleaned in there. There's no way they know, i have to calm down.

    I knock on my mom's door. Tell her somebody at the door who needs to see her. We come back down the stairs, open the door, let the investigators in.

    They sit down and Birons ask me how well I knew Aaron.

    "I didn't know him that well," I tell the inspectors. "He used to mess with me a lot, but that's about the only side of him that I knew. I know a few of his friends' names."

    "We already spoke to some of his friends, as well as the student who found his body," Curgol informs me. "And they all said that you hated him."

    "Of course I did, he was a total a*****e to me," I tell them truthfully. "But I didn't kill him."

    "And how would you know that was what we were going to ask you?" Says Curgol. His tone tells me he thinks that he's got me.

    "A student ends up dead in a school bathroom, a student that I hated. Less than a week later, 2 investigators turn up at my front door and say that they know I hated him. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what you're here for."

    "Don't be so disrespectful Darren!" My mom orders me. She probably thinks I did it too. Even my parents are a little put off by me. They don't understand how i could have turned out so different from the others when they raised me like every other dumb a** in this hick town.

    "It's all right Miss," Curgol tells her. "I like his type, straight to the point." Curgol tilts his head and stairs at me over his sunglasses. He's kept them on this entire time, probably to look intimidating. I find it funny.

    "Exactly," I tell him. "so how about we get to the point then? Do you have anything other than a motive to prove I did it?" I ask bluntly. It's obvious that they were hoping for a slip up on my part.

    "Actually we do," answers Curgol, still trying to stare me down. "We have video evidence of you attacking him."

    "Bullshit," I tell the investigator. "I already told you I didn't do it. Plus there aren't any cameras in my school."

    "Well you got me there," he says, frustrated with his plan going to s**t.

    Birons puts a hand on Curgol's shoulder and gives him a warning look.

    Birons says that they've got no more business here and they both stand to leave. My mom walks them to the door, says goodbye, offers to help with the investigation however she can. That's mom, always offering to help, no matter how useless she would be.
    *********************************

    2 Weeks later, back at school.

    Everyone keeping their distance from me. Even the teachers are being civil. This must have been what it was like for the outcasts after the Columbine massacre. They don't want to piss off any of the people they usually torture, for fear of getting lit up like a Christmas tree.
    ******************************

    1 week later, it's almost like people have forgotten about Aaron. Teachers are back to acting like their superior, kids are messing with outcasts, basically the same crap as before.

    Walking to history class upstairs. I'm halfway up the stairs when I hear somebody yell; "Stop it!" I hop up the remaining steps and look down the hall way.

    Rico, a kid from my algebra class is poking at some girl. After a second I recognize the girl, it's Tina, the girl with OCD that sits in front of me in English. The reason she's yelling at him is because she has this problem with people touching her. It makes her freak out, and Rico knows it.

    The bell for class to start rings and Rico finally relents. He heads to class, laughing his head off.

    I walk towards Tina, who's still freaked out. It looks like she might have a panic attack.

    "What an a*****e," I say.

    Tina looks up, she seems to be calming down some. Now she's less frantic and more pissed off.

    "I hate him! I wish he would just die!"

    And That's when it hits me, Aaron's death got everyone to act kind. The sight of a corpse got high school students to treat everyone like humans beings. It didn't last, but it helped.

    Maybe all they need is another murder.