It was another night of overtime at Free BV Radio. Someone knocked on the doors and introduced themselves. "Miss Alice, this is Kato. The mailman arrived late today, but here is your mail."

"Thank you!" The redhead retrieved her mail and closed the door behind her before sorting through the envelopes. Another envelope with my work address written by hand. At least I finally replaced my paper knife. Inside the envelope was a folded piece of paper, with was a message written using letter cutouts from magazines.

"Your past will always catch up to you. Some things cannot be forgotten. You shouldn't forget either."

"Seriously?!" The radio host immediately grabbed her phone and called Ace, who surprisingly picked up. "Were you getting tired of me removing your comments online that you decided to send a threatening letter to my workplace?!"

The other end was silent for a moment until Ace asked, "Did you really think you're worth my time creating a hard copy complaint?"

If Ace didn't send this, then who did?

"By the way, I met up with your friend the other day."

"What? You spoke with—"

"Actually, I'm not sure if he's technically your 'friend', considering that you never even visited Mira once, and that he said he's investigating because of a close relative."

How did Shun know to ask Ace for details? "What did you tell Shun?"

"Why do you want to know? Afraid that I told him some incriminating details?"

"I have nothing to hide, and you're making things—"

"By the way, Keith still insists on transferring Mira to Bayview City Hospital. If anything happens to her, you're the first person I'll ask."

Ace hung up first, and Alice quickly called Shun's number. "Something just happened. I'm at work and got a ransom-styled letter. Based on the context, it's like not from a fan. More like a hater."

"That's new... I'm kind of busy right now, but take a picture of the note, then tell the security staff and your coworkers. I'll look at it tomorrow."

"Also, what did Ace tell you when you met up with him?"

Shun took a long pause before formulating his answer. "I asked him if he knew anything about Lync and the locker room murders."

"You knew I was removing his comments, so you met up with him."

"I don't care about what happened between you and Ace. I still think my mom was right in her evaluation about Lync."

"Ace is upset and worried about Mira, but I told him that saying means about me won't help her recover any faster."

"I know."

Alice paused in surprise.

"Just focus on your work," was the last thing Shun said before hanging up.

The redhead let her phone fall out of her hand onto her desk. I seriously thought things were getting better, but...why I can't I establish good relations with anyone?

Once she finished her work, Alice locked the office and took the elevator to the first floor. Crossing the street was Hydron, who greeted first. "Alice! Why are you here so late?"

"I had overtime. Now I'm waiting for my aunt to pick me up. But what are you doing here? Isn't the hospital in the other direction?"

"I had to park faraway this morning because of road construction. Anyway, how have you been? You went back to work rather quickly."

"I'd rather not talk about it. I'm glad I wasn't physically hurt, but I almost died."

"Nothing can be worse than what happened in the locker room, right?"

Alice nodded and zipped up her jacket. "By the way, I went to downtown Wardington a few days ago and saw Ace."

"Isn't he Mira's friend? How's he holding up?"

"He doesn't want anything to do with me. Probably upset that I'm still alive, yet Mira's health hasn't changed at all. Ace and Keith are still watching over her very closely."

"That's no reason to get mad you...unless you never paid Mira a visit."

"Actually, I never did...because I couldn't get myself together. But Hydron, how come you're perfectly fine with Taylor gone and every time you see me? You're almost the complete opposite of Ace."

The physician assistant student rubbed his forehead and stared into the sky. "Maybe it's because Taylor's gone forever, and nothing can change that. Every time I see you, I think of Taylor and the good times that we all had in college. I know you don't want to see me because of the past and present, which I understand. But your fear doesn't need to be permanent either. As for Ace, Mira could still have a chance. Some things aren't up to us to decide."

Maybe that's why I screamed when I heard Shun's name at the welcoming party...but I got over that. Why can't I get over other things? "Thank you, Hydron. Also, how's Katie doing?"

"She's recovering. Her next rotation will be at a community pharmacy, so I won't see her anytime soon. What happened to her isn't your fault at all, Alice."

"But people haven't stopped talking about the obsessed fan yet. Speaking of obsessed," Alice took the suspicious letter out of her purse. "I can't believe someone would be so immature as to write this message."

"Did you tell security or anyone about it? You should handle this like how you all handled each of the obsessed fan's packages."

"Not yet. This came in the work mail a while ago. Will people even believe me if I told them that more suspicious things happen after the obsessed fan case is closed? I thought Ace might've did it, but he denies sending this." A car drove up and flashed its headlights twice. "That's my aunt. Bye Hydron!"

"Good night!" The PA student watched the vehicle drive off and sighed. What you really need right now is trust, protection, and support...which never seems to happen very smoothly.

-x-x-x-x-x-

"I'll see you guys tomorrow." Shun waved goodbye to his classmates before leaving campus courtyard and stepping foot on the sidewalk.

Across the street was Alice, who quickly texted him when their eyes met. "I really need to talk to you."

How many times have I been through this already? "Want to walk with me around campus?" he shouted.

The redhead nodded and hit the crosswalk button. After crossing the street, she asked, "I'm not bothering you, am I?"

"No, I just finished class. Why so flustered?"

Instead, Alice changed the subject. "Sometimes I miss being at school."

Shun glanced at the radio host from the corner of his eyes. "I thought you'd be more interested in your work."

"During school, you have all your friends around you. You didn't have to worry about working full-time, paying bills, or doing everything on your own. I think the best part was having close friends around to multiply joys and divide sorrows. Peer mentoring for younger students was just as fun."

"Were they really that close to you?"

The redhead stopped walking and faced her friend with wide eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You already know I spoke with Ace. I also spoke with Lync again before my break ended. I still have too many unanswered questions."

"You don't believe me, don't you?"

"I want to, but do you realize how much you benefited from everything? Past and present? You already knew Lync from the camping trip, where he helped you with your ankle injury. You knew he liked you because you were the only one that was nice to him, so you used him to get to where you are today."

"What are you talking about? I didn't know Lync very well back then, be it on campus or during that overnight trip. What good would it do me if my friends were all gone?"

"But there has to be a reason why Ace is so upset."

"Am I that type of person that he keeps describing me as? He eventually gave in to Keith to let Mira transfer, right? How come Ace is so mad about everything, while Hydron is so calm and understanding?"

"Because Taylor's not coming back, but Mira might still have a chance. You suffered through the most pain and agony, but still survived perfectly in one piece. That's hard to believe."

"Just because I'm physically healed doesn't mean I'm mentally—"

"Survivor's guilt isn't the answer to everything, Alice. It doesn't work that way."

"If this is the truth that you want to believe, then fine. Continue on with your downward spiral." Alice sighed and took a few steps away from Shun before adding, "I don't think your mother's death was an accident."

"Are you saying that you killed her?"

"Even though I didn't want to see her, she still helped me pass my psychiatric evaluation and get through the rest of college. She knew I didn't want to stay in school any longer, but still created a very condensed schedule for me so I'd complete every requirement in time."

"Why didn't you transfer schools? You barely finished sophomore year. You had options."

"But you don't know what feels like to be the only survivor. Wherever I would go, people talked about me behind my back for as long as the incident is still fresh. I had no other close friends to reach out to. Do you think going to somewhere new will help?" While struggling to hold her tears in, she shoved the raven-haired student forcefully, much to his surprise. "Do you realize all the damage you caused by opening up my old wounds in hope of solving your mom's unfinished work?"

"Then why were you so scared of her? She really cared about your wellbeing. You weren't just another routine patient to her."

"She also oversaw Lync, after all. How was I supposed to know if she would truly be bipartisan and unbiased? I was so paranoid about everything...from the nonstop gossip to the possibility that Lync might break out and try to kill me a second time. How was this even safe? I wanted to forget everything once I graduated and began working, but I still get nightmares about that incident and the events leading up to it. I don't understand anything anymore!"

This is the most vulnerable I've seen of Alice since I first met her. Did I go too far? But certain feelings and emotions can't be faked...right? After rubbing the moderate pain off his shoulders, Shun pulled the radio host in for a hug and whispered, "I'll trust you as long as you tell me everything. No more secrets."

"Shun, it's not that simple..."

"Then simplify it for me."

Little did they know that someone was watching them from afar...with fists clenched in fury.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Ace was sitting in the waiting area of a doctor's clinic at in Bayview City Hospital when Hydron walked by with cups of coffee. "Ace Grit? Is that you?"

The mint-haired boy looked up and waved his hand weakly. "Hydron...long time no see. How are you doing?"

"I'm graduating in May once I'm done with rotations. May I sit next to you?"

"Go ahead." Then Hydron offered Ace a cup of coffee. "I don't need it."

"Just take it. I'm on break and have time to get more. What brings you here? I thought you still lived in Wardington. Did you graduate yet?"

"Of course I graduated. I'm here because Keith insists on transferring Mira from Wardington Central Hospital to here. I'm not Mira's direct family, so I had no say in this. Keith's talking to some primary care doctors right now. I'm just waiting."

"So Keith won't even let you sit in and listen with the doctors?"

Ace leaned back in his seat and crossed his legs. "I didn't want to listen. I'm only here just to check the place out." After a few sips of coffee, he asked, "After so many years...how are you already over it?"

"You mean Taylor?" Hydron sighed and set down his coffee. "Because she's gone and never coming back, but Mira is a big bag of uncertainty. Have some patience. But why are you having Mira transferred to begin with?"

"New treatment plan. I stopped asking for details and let Keith deal with everything." Ace tossed his empty cup away and buried his face in his hands. "I just want Mira to wake up already..."

"I had no idea that this hospital is doing something investigational. Definitely not part of my physician assistant curriculum."

"Either way, knowing that you'll be here makes me feel a lot safer about Alice."

"What does Alice have to do with anything? You saw her again recently too?"

"She lives in Bayview now. I just don't like her. She gives me a weird feeling."

"That's not valid reason to just dislike someone. After all, she lost four close friends and endured all sorts of trauma." Hydron tossed his cup away too and stretched his arms. "Break's over. See you around."

"Thanks, Hydron."

-x-x-x-x-x-

What if it wasn't an accident? And that there's more to the story than just—

"FOUND IT!"

Shun fell back into his chair after Dan found and slammed a pile of files onto the table. "Dan, you scared me! Where did you even come from?"

"Billy and I were digging through the police archives room behind you. I thought you knew about what happened to your mom."

"My grandfather spoke with the police and barely told me anything."

"Well, here's the police report in chronological order." The brunet opened the first file and read aloud. "It was nighttime and raining heavily. Your mom was making a call. The traffic sensors and lights were acting weird. Your mom drove forward at a green light, but a car in the opposite direction inappropriately turned left and hit your mom's car. Then it became a hit-and-run."

"But why was Mom in that area to begin with?"

Dan blinked. "What do you mean?"

"She didn't tell me why she was here. This road isn't part of her usual commute. What if she was being followed?"

"Shun, that sounds crazy and—"

"Or that someone asked her to meet up somewhere over there?"

The brunet sighed and flipped through other files. "Only one witness spoke up, and we still haven't identified or found that car that hit your mom."

"But what about call logs? She was on the phone, right?"

"The very last call was from a public telephone around where your mom was headed, but we found no prints. Before that, this other number called your mom before—"

The raven-haired student read at the string of numbers with wide eyes. "That's Alice's phone number."

"Oh...now you know. Alice called your mom, but your mom later received the call from the public telephone, so your mom hung up on Alice. That's all we got."

Why would Alice initiate the call if she were so adamant on avoiding my mom? "Be right back." Shun stepped outside and called the redhead. "I need you to be honest with me about something."

"What do you need?"

"Do you ever remember calling my mom for any reason?"

A long silence ensued before Alice replied, "I called her once because I wanted to change something about the proposed academic plan that she gave me. She said she was driving and had another incoming call and hung up on me. Why are you asking this?"

"Because..." He held his phone away from his face and breathed heavily. How can I be sure that Alice isn't directly related? And even if she's not, do I really need to tell her this? "...the night that you called her, she later got into her accident. I'm not saying that it's your fault, but—"

"This is exactly what I was trying to tell you the other day. You just wouldn't listen."

Shun gripped his phone more tightly as the silence droned on.

"You probably think that my sudden call is the reason why she got into an accident. Go ahead. I don't care anymore. I had nothing to do with this and had no idea about the accident until—"

"Alice...I'm not blaming you. At all."

"Then why are asking me about this?"

"Because I think the person who called my mom next might have something to do with this."

"You mean the person that she hung up on me to answer?" Alice sighed and began sniffling. "I was the one who initiated the call to her. I had something important to ask of her. If only I kept her on the phone longer so that she could ignore the other person..."

"Alice, we're not certain if—" Unfortunately, the redhead hung up before Shun could finish his sentence. Using a public telephone hides someone's identity to everyone but the recipient. That's not normal at all.

-x-x-x-x-x-

It came to the time of Shun and Lync's fourth meeting, but the raven-haired student was losing patience. "What do you want to tell me this time?"

"I killed the others because they hurt Alice. She didn't have to say it out loud. I knew I had to do it."

"But...why? What made you think the others were hurting her? She never felt threatened at all. I actually think you made her feel worse, especially since you also stabbed Alice herself. Maybe that's why she never visited—"

"That's a lie!" Lync screamed and pounded his fists on the table before a security held him back again. "Everyone could tell that she was miserable around the others. People talked all the time about how uncomfortable she is, but she's the only one that never noticed what kind of situation she was in."

"Who exactly is 'everyone'?"

"Literally everyone at school! Why don't you ask them instead?!"

At this point, Lync became extremely uncooperative to the point where Shun voluntarily cancelled the meeting. Lync's hiding something. If he claims that Alice didn't even know that she was friends with the wrong people, then she wouldn't have told him to get rid of the other girls. Who else has been watching this entire group this whole time?

As the raven-haired student followed a security guard outside, another security guard shouted, "Lync Volan, you'll have a new visitor in the next few days! Please get yourself together by then!"

Who else would visit Lync besides me? Joe's mom has no reason to come and would've told Joe about it. Shun shook his head and opened his text message inbox. What if Alice decided to pay a visit? But why now?