NB : I won't be able to post the chapter tomorrow so there it is! I hope you'll like it! Thanks for the reviews, it's always nice to have some! So don't hesitate to leave more comment if you like the story or if you have suggestions or ideas! Enjoy!

Claire's POV

Claire yawned. She had an hour free before lunch and should have passed it working on her essay for her literature class –that's why she had actually skipped math in the first place. But she was in the gym, watching guys playing basket-ball and pretending that she actually cared about it. Pretending that she cared about that Zach guy who was winking at her since the beginning of the game. Next to her were her friends. Friends. That word hurt. Claire hated calling them "friends" and most of all, she hated herself for not being able to stand up for the ones she actually really cared about. Her eyes followed Andy as he jumped to throw the ball right into the basket. He was the only one that she could meet regularly and they actually didn't talk anymore. They hadn't exchanged a single word since that detention. They talked easily to each other before that. Claire sighed. It looked like there was going to be a "before detention" and "an after detention". One month since the "after" part began and she still hated it. Specially when she could feel John's gaze on her. She was seeing John Bender much too often for her own good. They were supposed to share a lot of classes since the beginning of the year but since Bender had chosen to drop most of them, they never had really been in the same classroom. That was "before detention". Now, Bender seemed to have decided to become a good student and to actually attend those classes. So, basically, Claire Standish was seeing John Bender every day. And she did not hate that as much as she would have wanted to.

To be honest, she had expected him to be a lot more… unpleasant to her. But he hadn't said a word to her since the detention. He was still hanging out with his friends and smoking but the fact that he actually came back to class meant something. Claire just didn't know what.

Suddenly, she realized that her friends were talking to her and expecting an answer.

"Sorry" she said. "I wasn't paying attention. What did you say?"

They exchanged a concern look that Claire pretended she didn't see. Brianna, Corey, Tori and Sharon seemed all to believe that was no subject more important than boys. And to be honest, Claire had to admit that a month ago, she was all the same.

"We were talking about the prom" Brianna said. "You're probably going to get the crown."

Claire was supposed to feel thrilled about that. She did not. She felt more embarrassed than happy. She shrugged.

"Are you going with anyone?" Tori asked.

Claire hated it that the first person coming to her mind was John Bender. Unbelievable. Like she really wanted that guy to take her to prom. He would probably look great in a tux. No. No. No. She could not want to go with him. He would hate that.

"No."

She didn't dare to tell that she actually didn't really feel like going. They wouldn't understand.

"Do you know if Andy's going with someone?" Sharon asked.

This time, the first person she had been thinking of was Allison. She knew that something had happened between them during that detention. And since Andy was not talking to her anymore, she had no way to know how he felt about that –about Allison, not about prom. A month ago, he would have totally been interested in Sharon. But now, he seemed changed. Lots of girls seemed to be into him and he barely noticed them.

"Jerry said that he has a crush on that weird girl, you know?" Tori stepped in."The one always dressed all in black…"

The three others burst out of laughter.

"So ridiculous…" Corey commented like it was the funniest thing in the world.

And they started laughing again.

"Just shut up…" Claire mumbled.

Before she actually realized it, she had stood up.

"What…" Tori began.

"Shut up." Claire repeated, louder. "You don't know her. You dare to say that kind of stuff because what? Because you got some friends and feel the right to bother people who don't? Guess what? It's crap."

Her voice has become louder and she did not care. She was looking at her friends like she was seeing them for the first time and she hated what she was seeing.

"You don't know her either, Claire!" Sharon replied. "It's okay… She doesn't even know…"

Claire stood silently for a while, then took a breath and said:

"I am done with you. With all of you."

Then she walked to the exit. For the first time in a month, she felt relieved. She did what she had to. The hallway was empty. Claire could not help but think something was weird. She passed the math class she was supposed to be in and headed to the cafeteria. But before she could reach her destination, she heard them.

One.

Two.

Three.

Three gunshots.

Fear paralyzed her.