"Someone please tell me what the hell is happening around here?" Gina demanded, her eyes lowered into snake-like slits.
When no one seated around the cafeteria table answered her, she snapped, "Well?"
They sat like stone statues – no one even breathed.
While Nicole kept admiring her recently-polished nails, Chloe was busy drumming her long, slender fingers atop the table, watching as Nathan nervously shook his legs.
Erin, as if on her own isolated island, sat apart from the others, barely able to keep her eyes open – it had been a miserable night.
Gina, usually soft-spoken and quiet, was now brimming with fury.
"I don't understand why this is happening to me!" she squealed in anger, her petite hands clenched into fists. "Why me?"
Chloe, rolling her eyes, hissed, "You just never know when to shut your friggin' mouth, huh, Gina?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" Gina retorted, her lips pursed.
"It means," Chloe hissed, jumping from her seat, "that we're all a little stressed out, okay? My boyfriend's missing, too, Gina – what's worse, they found his blood in the locker room. So yeah, don't blame me if I'm a bit of a bitch today!"
Gina simply rolled her eyes and muttered, "Oh, don't give me that – you're a bitch every day…"
"Can you idiots just sit down and shut up?" Nicole snapped, rubbing her temples. "God, you're giving me a migraine… And for the record, last night wasn't too fun for me either, as if any of you even care about me anymore…"
When Nathan tried to lean in to comfort her, she tensed and moved away, insulted.
"We all need to stay calm," Nathan pointed out, attempting to be the voice of reason amongst the four young women. "We need to get organized – make a plan. Stick together."
"Thanks for the pep talk, Coach, but I think I'll be heading off," Gina said with a fake smile, rising from her chair.
"Did I not just say that we should stick together…?" Nathan sigh, turning to face Gina as she exited the cafeteria.
"Well, unlike you other idiots, I don't have to stay afterschool for detention. Plus, I don't have any classes for the rest of the day – why should I just stay here and rot? I've got a Pedi scheduled for 2:30, anyway."
Upon noticing the disapproving glances from her classmates, she grumbled, "I'll bet you Mark will appreciate my painted toenails when he gets back…"
With that, she disappeared out the door and into the hallway, leaving the other four just sitting there, stunned.
"Damn," Chloe breathed, chuckling slightly. "That girl is even more conceited than me!"
Suddenly, she paused and turned to face Nicole.
"By the way," she began, "whatever happened to your friends, Miranda and Kevin?"
xxx
Mr. Norwood sighed tiredly as he examined the area around Gwen's locker for any signs of a body.
Impossible.
Nothing.
What would he say when the police arrived…?
xxx
Gwen pressed herself against the wall of the hallway, slowly inching along down the corridor, afraid to even breathe.
She was a survivor, after all – she had withstood years of countless insults and physical beatings from peers who felt that they were better than her.
But then again, name-calling did not compare to being struck down with a machete -
Her world was now nothing but a cat-and-mouse game, and she was quickly falling into last place…
xxx
Hmmm… This place is too quiet for 2:00 in the afternoon… Gina mused as she strolled down the hallway, her stiletto heels echoing like firecrackers atop the cold, hard floors.
Clearmont High students with social lives of any sort always left school in the early afternoon on Mondays – nobody had classes after 1:30.
Yet the school had taken on a strange new aura since the previous night – everything was dead.
Literally.
As quiet as a graveyard.
Weird…
Leave it to Mark to just fall off the face of the earth… she thought, sour. He probably just jumped in his car last night and tore down the Interstate to God knows where.
It was hard being popular – she always needed to keep her boyfriend on a tight lease, ensuring that he never got the chance to scamper away.
Great job, Gina, you let him loose… Now you'll be lucky to see him ever again.
Knowing Mark, he certainly left town.
But why…?
None of it made any sense…
A sudden shiver ran down Gina's spine, snapping her to attention.
What felt like the crisp autumn wind blew all around her, but when she looked up at the hallway windows, she saw that each of them were closed and bolted.
Yet a chilling, tingling sensation had overcome Gina's entire body, jolting her out of her inner thoughts and leaving her standing in the middle of the hall, shivering.
She suddenly felt the urge to cry out for help, but she kept her jaw clenched shut, amazed that she was nearly frightened to death of a little breeze.
Hold yourself together, Dammitt – this is ridiculous.
Taking a deep breath, she quickened her pace down the hall, turning corners and following the arrows painted onto the pale-yellow brick walls until she found herself standing in front of the main office, the cream-colored shades drawn, allowing no light to seep out into the hallway.
Reaching for the handle, Gina was shocked to discover that the door was locked.
"Oh my God," she breathed, frustrated.
Releasing the handle, Gina was tempted to knock on the door, but quickly decided against it.
Whatever.
She'd just sneak out.
Sighing, Gina spun on her heel, and trudged back the way she came, eager to leave the school, which seemed to be getting colder and colder with each passing second.
I should have worn my jacket…
As she passed a storage closet on her way down to the parking lot, the young women froze in place, the hairs on the back of her neck standing in a sign of red-alert danger.
That damn chill – what the hell is happening around here?
Grinding her teeth, she turned and shouted "Who the hell is following me?" just as the closet door flew open with a gust of wind, and a dark shadow reached out and lunged for Gina, grabbing her by her arm.
Screaming, Gina didn't even have time to react before the shadow pulled her into the closet, slamming the door shut behind her.