"No! Please, don't... Help me! Someone please help!" She cried out the top of her lungs -running down the hallway towards her brother's room.
There was no one there but she already knew. In one swift movement, she felt a rope tightening around her neck forcing her to ground. She scampered around, trying to free herself.
Breathing became impossible and dead she was.
---
The morning sun peeked through the curtains of Timothy Graham's bedroom.
"Timothy!" His mother, Tiffany called from downstairs.
"Rise and shine lover boy, it's senior ditch day!" Jessica announced and jumped onto his bed.
"I'm awake!" he said irritated.
"Cranky as hell!" She rolled her eyes, "have you seen the picture up on East High Weekly? I made cover!"
"Wow!" Timothy rolled his eyes, turned to his side and seeked for his phone on his bedside cabinet.
Jessica was now standing in front of the mirror, combing her bangs even though they weren't out of place.
"She hasn't posted anything yet. She's a total ghost on us."
"I was not..." Timothy tried to argue.
"Did you forget I've known you since the third grade, since before you and your mom split from Hemshore!? I know you're into her, I don't know why the hell but yeah." She shrugged her shoulders and adjusted her cheer uniform as it slid up.
"Aren't you friends?"
"Not by choice, no." Jessica's voice sounded bitter and Timothy quickly caught on.
He rouse from his bed and moved to his closet, "You've been friends since I returned...about how long? Over five years and I've never seen you talk about your friendship this way."
"Friends don't throw themselves at their friends' boyfriends."
"Poppy and Chuck?"
Jessica waved her index finger through the air, "oh nah...Chuck knows where it's sweet and juicy. I guess Mike and Poppy got into it again and she was like all over Chuck, touching on him. Urgh!"
Timothy chuckled, "Call her out on it."
"You know what Timothy, sometimes I feel like you've been abducted by aliens who raised you all this time. You've been here since sophomore year but clearly you haven't been paying any attention. Too busy up in Poppy's fake blog."
"There's nothing fake about her blog. She tackles real issues. It's not about shoes and girl drama. It's the realest thing Poppy Marshall has ever done. I think you're just jealous."
"This is why you don't have friends. Keep on defending the backstabbing bitch and you'll have none."
Timothy chuckled, "I have no friends by choice. You should be lucky you're standing here. Seriously Jess, if you feel like they're not the crowd you wanna hang around, you could always come sit by me."
"I can't... Look, Poppy is nothing I can't handle. It's almost graduation, I'll be rid of them soon enough. Ditching them isn't as easy as you may think."
"Is there something you're not telling me, Jess?" He said as he watched her intently.
"Things are really different from what they see from our appearance. Poppy isn't as innocent as you may think. She's an evil human being, Timothy. The best thing you've done so far was not get caught up with the it-crowd."
"What do you mean by that?"
"There's a reason why Poppy Marshall and Starlet Corelli became arch nemesis'. I can assure you it's not as simple as pure teenage girl hatred. Poppy is not who you think she is."
"She's your friend..."
"Have you not been listening to a single word I said!? Just because we're always together, doesn't mean we're actual friends. Popularity comes at a price and Poppy ensures that price tag. You get it."
"You make her sound like some twisted kind of mean girl. That's not the Poppy I know."
"That's because, my dear friend, you don't know Poppy Marshall at all. Now, if I was to tell you everything it is I know of her, you'll probably mysteriously disappear my friend."
Jessica stared at Timothy intently, challenging his gaze. There was something inside her eyes Timothy hadn't seen in all the years they'd been friends. Ever since his return sophomore year, he'd notice a change in his bestfriend. She was far more feminine than he remembered -even discovered a love for cheerleading to the extent of making captain. Above her new personality and athletic achievement, Jessica had grown to become less communicative -always swearing and talking specifically dark matters. Like death was something that fascinated her.
"I don't understand you rich girls..." He threw his clothes on his bed and sat down, watching Jessica as she paraded in front of him. "I have news, finally...remember that girl Ashley Greeley that went missing. You asked me to look into that tracker necklace, find out where she is."
"That was so long ago Timothy, it doesn't really matter anymore. The cops are sure she ran away, she had a miserable life. "
"She was last in Borrisville. About a mile out from my granddad's place. You remember that time we went out there and we got lost and came across a deserted cabin. I went out there yesterday...that place was trashed, Jess and the worst thing of all...I think she might've been there."
Jessica froze, slowly exhaled and turned around. Timothy noticed the tears well up in her eyes, "Did the necklace lead you there?"
"Yes..." He said sympathetically, "Jess, does this have anything to do with your friends?"
"No, Timothy, it doesn't. Ashley was my friend too, she knew me like no one else. Not even you. I wouldn't stay quiet if they had anything to done with this."
"So they are capable of kidnap...murder even?"
"I didn't say that Timothy! If you know what's good for you, best learn to not talk about things like that. It could get you into a shitload of trouble."
"You did say you know things about Poppy and if I was to know, I'd probably disappear. When you found out about my secret side job, you were determined to find your friend. You're reacting differently, like it never mattered to begin with. I'm sorry Jess but I don't trust you right now. I think you already know what happened to Ashley Greeley -and on top of that, I think you don't hate Poppy solely for flirting with Chuck."
"Timothy you don't know what you're talking. Can you put on the daily Timothy for me when we're alone? I like him around, he knows not to ask questions and snoop around places his nose does not belong." Jessica walked up to Timothy, standing as close to him as possible, "I'm not going around telling people you're some kind of PI with actual contacts. Just stay away from the it-crowd, I'm saying this as a dear caring friend. Now, stop being stupid and lets go, don't wanna arrive when everything's over."
Jessica stepped away and moved to the door, "Just let it go, Timothy..." She sighed and disappeared into the hall.
The girls weren't that bad but after what Jess had said earlier, he was starting to believe that they really had something to do with Ashley Greeley's disappearance.
Timothy scanned over the crowded bodies in search of Poppy -because of his new found information, he wanted to get her alone and lightly touch on the subject.
"Haven't seen her today. Mel was supposed to pick her up but she apparently wanted to make a big entrance, by herself." Kelli appeared next to him.
He was shocked to her suddenly speaking to him. Kelli was Poppy's bestfriend -the quiet kind that only minded her friends -a closet nerd. Everyone who'd been familiar with them knew that Timothy occasionally only spoke to every member of Poppy's circle except Kelli. Their encounters were more mysterious, always maintaining eye contact whenever they were in the same room -the chemistry between them as heavy and intense as wondering whether she and her friends was capable of murder.
"That's our girl." Timothy said awkwardly, knowing that Kelli too was under the impression that he liked Poppy and not her.
"I have to go." Before Timothy could manage anything else, a disappointed Kelli was already pushing her way through the crowded bodies.
"Wow! Jumping from bestfriend to bestfriend. I don't think Kelli will break girl code, ever." Jessica appeared beside him giving him a smirk.
"You should thank me for being your friend... best one at it otherwise these girls would've thought you're socially...uh...awkward." She laughed teasingly.
"After this morning, I'm not sure if I'll be pursuing any of your friends."
"What was that?" Farah's hazel eyes stared up at him.
Somehow the girls of the it-crowd had found a way to include him into their day. First Kelli than Farah, Timothy concluded they must have something planned for him. He did, after all, take the basketball team to yet another championship and perhaps they were planning on doing something explicit like they did Mike when his football team landed that trophy.
The glory and recognition was something he wasn't interested in, especially now since he was so close to knowing what exactly happened to Ashley and why Poppy hadn't show up yet.
---
