The Disappearance of Chloe Marsh
You know you should probably kill it, but you can't bring yourself to do it. You watch it crawl through the window and relief washes over you. You huff and lean against the wall. You do feel a little foolish for being afraid of a spider... even if it was big enough to eat a small bird.
You hear the bathroom door open. You're hidden behind the line of stalls, still thinking about the spider. However, your train of thought is broken when you hear a distressed sigh. Someone's moving, walking back and forth, mumbling.
You peek over and see a girl.
"Okay... okay...." she mutters to herself.
You recognize her. Long, dark blonde hair falling in waves down her back, dressed in a red letterman jacket and jean shorts... that's Audrey LaCroix.
You've never spoken to hear, but you've definitely heard of her. She comes from the wealthiest family in Blackwater, and the attitude to go with it. You've only heard bad things; she's rude to teachers and other authority figures, she's been arrested more than once, she can buy herself out of anything, she never goes to class yet she passes with flying colors...
...But, looking at her now, she seems small and helpless. She's breathing heavily, shaking her hands out and talking to herself.
"It's okay...." she says, "...it's fine... you own this place... if I wanted to, I could tear it apart..." She leans over the sink, resting her elbows, taking deep breaths.
What could possibly have her so stressed?
Just then, her phone rings. She jumps in surprise before whipping it out.
"What?" she says in a shaky voice.
You can't hear who she's talking to.
"Yeah... I know... I hear you... I... y-yeah..." Audrey wipes at her forehead. "I know... I did... I... n-no, I didn't-"
Whoever she's talking to is now yelling at her. She has the phone pulled away from her ear and is cringing. You can see her reflection in the mirror she stands in front of. Her face scrunches up in anger.
"Listen to me! I get it, okay! I'll fix this.... Yeah.. Just... stop. It's over. Chloe's...."Audrey goes silent, listening. Then, she says, "Okay....okay... bye..."
She hangs up.
...Wait... Chloe?
Audrey leans back over the sink. Silence fills the bathroom. You remain still. You don't want her to know you're here.
She sighs, lifting her head. She stares at the writing on the wall.
"...Chloe..."
The way she says it... it's like an apology.
Then, she's gone. Audrey rushes out of the bathroom, and you're left alone again. It takes you a second to move, but when you do it's like you're in a daze. What was that about? She mentioned Chloe in that phone call... and the way she said her name...
You frown. Could she... possibly know something?
You leave the bathroom and head outside. It's warm outside, and a few students hang around. You feel your phone vibrate in your pocket. You pull it out and the screen reads WARREN.
"Hello?" you answer.
"Hey!" Warren's voice rings through. "Where are you?"
"Still at school."
"Sweet. I need that thumb drive back. The one I let you borrow, remember? That cool?" he asks.
"Yeah, of course."
"Awesome. I'll meet you in front."
You say your goodbyes and hang up. Warren Prescott, along with Rachel, is one of the few people here in Blackwater that has been decent towards you. You and Warren have Biology and Gym together in the morning and have gotten to know each other very well. Honestly, you consider Warren to be your best friend here at Blackwater.
You reach into your pocket and pull out the thumb drive. Warren let you borrow it so you could watch some movies he pirated. Well, looks like you'll have to wait for him here. Looking around the front of the school, you spot a few familiar faces.
Logan Robertson is sitting under a tree, enjoying the shade. He's in your math class and runs with the same clique as Audrey LaCroix. Maybe he could tell you something about her...
Evan James is sitting at one of the benches. He looks pretty bad, and you can hear the occasional, "Stupid... stupid...." and "This is junk...." You see that he's looking through a notebook. Evan's quiet and minds his business, but he seems okay. Maybe you could say hi.
Who should you talk to?
You hear the bathroom door open. You're hidden behind the line of stalls, still thinking about the spider. However, your train of thought is broken when you hear a distressed sigh. Someone's moving, walking back and forth, mumbling.
You peek over and see a girl.
"Okay... okay...." she mutters to herself.
You recognize her. Long, dark blonde hair falling in waves down her back, dressed in a red letterman jacket and jean shorts... that's Audrey LaCroix.
You've never spoken to hear, but you've definitely heard of her. She comes from the wealthiest family in Blackwater, and the attitude to go with it. You've only heard bad things; she's rude to teachers and other authority figures, she's been arrested more than once, she can buy herself out of anything, she never goes to class yet she passes with flying colors...
...But, looking at her now, she seems small and helpless. She's breathing heavily, shaking her hands out and talking to herself.
"It's okay...." she says, "...it's fine... you own this place... if I wanted to, I could tear it apart..." She leans over the sink, resting her elbows, taking deep breaths.
What could possibly have her so stressed?
Just then, her phone rings. She jumps in surprise before whipping it out.
"What?" she says in a shaky voice.
You can't hear who she's talking to.
"Yeah... I know... I hear you... I... y-yeah..." Audrey wipes at her forehead. "I know... I did... I... n-no, I didn't-"
Whoever she's talking to is now yelling at her. She has the phone pulled away from her ear and is cringing. You can see her reflection in the mirror she stands in front of. Her face scrunches up in anger.
"Listen to me! I get it, okay! I'll fix this.... Yeah.. Just... stop. It's over. Chloe's...."Audrey goes silent, listening. Then, she says, "Okay....okay... bye..."
She hangs up.
...Wait... Chloe?
Audrey leans back over the sink. Silence fills the bathroom. You remain still. You don't want her to know you're here.
She sighs, lifting her head. She stares at the writing on the wall.
"...Chloe..."
The way she says it... it's like an apology.
Then, she's gone. Audrey rushes out of the bathroom, and you're left alone again. It takes you a second to move, but when you do it's like you're in a daze. What was that about? She mentioned Chloe in that phone call... and the way she said her name...
You frown. Could she... possibly know something?
You leave the bathroom and head outside. It's warm outside, and a few students hang around. You feel your phone vibrate in your pocket. You pull it out and the screen reads WARREN.
"Hello?" you answer.
"Hey!" Warren's voice rings through. "Where are you?"
"Still at school."
"Sweet. I need that thumb drive back. The one I let you borrow, remember? That cool?" he asks.
"Yeah, of course."
"Awesome. I'll meet you in front."
You say your goodbyes and hang up. Warren Prescott, along with Rachel, is one of the few people here in Blackwater that has been decent towards you. You and Warren have Biology and Gym together in the morning and have gotten to know each other very well. Honestly, you consider Warren to be your best friend here at Blackwater.
You reach into your pocket and pull out the thumb drive. Warren let you borrow it so you could watch some movies he pirated. Well, looks like you'll have to wait for him here. Looking around the front of the school, you spot a few familiar faces.
Logan Robertson is sitting under a tree, enjoying the shade. He's in your math class and runs with the same clique as Audrey LaCroix. Maybe he could tell you something about her...
Evan James is sitting at one of the benches. He looks pretty bad, and you can hear the occasional, "Stupid... stupid...." and "This is junk...." You see that he's looking through a notebook. Evan's quiet and minds his business, but he seems okay. Maybe you could say hi.
Who should you talk to?