Hello.

I'm feeling sick, so this is a short chapter. I also jammed a few of my fingers, so typing hurts.

Please read on!

…

Accidental

"Matthew? Hey. Hey! Are you okay?"

He'd met her in the seventh grade. She had just transferred over from across the country; he couldn't remember exactly where anymore. After she'd gotten there, it seemed like he had always known her. She was one of those people who just wriggled into your life and took it over.

They'd met by crashing into each other. He'd been rounding a corner just as she had; neither of them looking where they were going and they'd collided. He remembered all of his books had flown out of his arms and landed on his face. She'd been immediately up and apologizing before he could react.

"Sorry!" she'd exclaimed, picking up the stuff off his face. "I wasn't looking where I was going!"

"It's alright," he'd assured her, sitting up to look at her. "I'm used to it by now. I tend to be relatively careless."

She'd been as beautiful as she'd ever been, or be. They were friends only through seventh and eighth grade, and had started dating the summer before high school. It may seem stupid or hasty, but he could imagine spending his whole life with her, lying by the lake with sunshine bathing her face in its warm light. He hadn't thought about his future before or since. It had a habit of not working out for him. After all, he couldn't even see her anymore.

"Nurse, he won't respond to anything. I even slapped him and he didn't react."

It had been January. January 5, of freshman year to be specific. New Years had been one of the best ever. Hector had thrown a party, which he regretted afterwards, looking around at the wreckage his house had become. Matthew had just sniggered and left him to clean up the mess. For a while after she'd left, he'd blamed himself, believing it was karma coming back to get him. Ridiculous he knew later, but it felt better with someone to blame, even if it was himself.

Her body had been discovered in a hotel room. She'd gotten a letter saying her family was coming to visit her, and in her enthusiasm, she hadn't even checked if it was true. She'd just gotten to the hotel they were supposedly staying at as quickly as her bike could take her.

She loved her family more than anything, more than even him. Her mother, father, big brother, and little sister. He didn't love her as much as they did either. They hadn't handled her leaving well. Last time he'd heard, her brother was in treatment for depression, her parents' marriage was fraying, and her sister had withdrawn from the world. At least he was doing better than them.

"What do you mean, you don't know what's wrong? You're a nurse!"

A week later, the police officially declared it a murder. Poison, they said. There had been a note telling her that they were out at the moment, and to help herself before they got back. They'd already eaten apparently. Everything in the refrigerator had been poisoned.

He had no idea how all those rumors against Jaffar Aneath and Legault Hurricane had begun swirling. All he knew is that it had given him someone to blame besides himself. And he jumped at the chance.

"Is there nothing you can do? Anything at all?"

There was no evidence against them at all. They were near perfect students, they had alibis, they were relatively pleasant, but he hated them anyway. He wanted revenge, and they were the closest people he knew of that were remotely suspicious.

The whole relationship had begun accidently. It ended without either of their consent too. It had come to a close by forces beyond their reach.

And he wasn't okay without closure.

"Hey, Matthew? I'm taking you home now, okay? Wake up, won't you?"

…

Matthew's not taking the coming of Legault and Jaffar very well is he? And who was that person interrupting his thoughts? Hmmm… I'll have to think about that one.

As always, review and goodbye!