1.

Present. Still Friday, 20:22

Maddie

"He-hey! Are you still there?" An insistent yet somewhat sweet voice called. The ponytailed chic on the screen wore a periwinkle blue co-ord; faux fur of the same color that hung dangerously low on her shoulders, and; diamonds and pearls as jewelry which covered the bare spots of her being, in a pulchritudinous manner.

Brushing hair away from my face, I weakly replied, "I'm here." The candlelight defined me just the way I wanted it to. Sick.

I closed my right hand in a fist and covered my mouth. With it, I coughed faintly (Ah huh, ah huh), before I began a search. The newly bought wool hankie was a companion to pull off my act as I wiped the non-existent droplets of phlegm.

Adela Hemingway jumped in by then. "She doesn't feel soy kyah," she told the others apologetically. Nodding in agreement, I fluttered my eye a lot like I was asking for their pity and understanding.

To my favor, the other members of The Elite exchanged worried glances. The Lahey twins which looked like teenage Jason Derulo and Beyoncé wished me well. "Issa shame you couldn't come," Lara Lahey said.

"I know." I sniffed and pretended to wipe tears. Then, I turned my lips down; another skill I've acquired a few years back. "But I suppose that all of you are happy without me."

The phone instantly barked denials.

Givens stretched her arm out and the crowd around her was highlighted even better. From Armani tuxedos with customized cufflinks to Dior gowns, it was easy to know what their financial status was. I enjoyed the company of these people, but I can't really guarantee that I loved them any more than I love the club. All of them had such innocent and warm smiles; if only it reached their eyes.

"You're sure?" They all agreed that they missed me. Liars. But it was an agreement all the same, and I was very much alright with that.

I excused my minions. The view became slightly blurry but even with the nuisance, the beauty of Devil's Boar was exceptional. It was a Brit-themed, two-story bar lavishly filled with luxurious material, that only served the rich and the famous personalities of Ademar, and Ademar alone.

Looking around, Chanel's chin occasionally met with her shoulders, and the ponytail swung from side to side. She is such an extra, I thought. She turned to me when she was sure that no one was suspicious. "Maddie, do you have a pen and paper?"

"I do, and you better start talking because I'm losing my patience."

"Well, luh-listen carefully, okay?" She, then, began relaying the information that she acquired. Sodomy of the guards from both the first and second floors; listed. Female students finishing their "session" with Mr. Walsh; listed. What can I say? Things just got nastier at night.

After she finished, Adela's face popped up again. "Good luck," she said. We, then, gave each other assurances that we weren't even sure of.

But before the call was ended, I reminded them, "I want all footage deleted immediately. Fail me and I will hunt you two down." Going easy on the things in my way was never on my agenda.

2.

Present. Still Friday, 21:02

Maddie

Light footsteps and heavy breathing were the only sounds on the third floor. Outside, the stars glinted evilly, as if they knew whatever mischief we were up to; trees of which surrounded the main building rustled harshly, and; the evening breeze was strong, ice-cold, and skin pricking. We were miraculously quiet then, or our voices were rather gentle.

Shivering, I paused and hugged Brett Johansson's varsity jacket on my frame even tighter. It did give some warmth and I was truly grateful. However, it wasn't the kind of heat that was comforting. It was weak and gloom and lifeless compared to a human's.

Our little friend Harvey Whitaker will disappear for the rest of Ademar tonight... hopefully forever. We're still lucky because his parents didn't file a missing report on him yet. Besides, almost everyone at school knew that they fought with and disowned him from time to time because he got caught

(robbing and money laundering)

up with the police. He used to stay out some nights too and shared Ethan's place. So the best everyone else could assume is that he finally left home.

Assume.

I am somehow devastated by his passing, really I am. Harvey was a friend of mine too - able to make me laugh and cry, able to have my back when I needed an ally - only with a fee. That's why I'll be more devastated if we get pinned for something we didn't do.

I mean, I'm trying to be reasonable here. We had futures ahead of us. Bright futures. Mine, personally, was so blinding that I'll probably need Bulgari Flora sunglasses to navigate through it!

I just can't risk that. No sir. Not even for a friend.

Getting him out of that tank was very dangerous. The danger escalated even higher because of the occasional passing by of students and teachers which caused us to hide, even though we were pretty much out of the line of sight. The paranoia level at that time was 8/10.

"Hell, make that 10."

"You said something?" Glu Willow asked, looking exhausted but intrigued. I couldn't blame his reaction though. At a point where you got involved in a murder, a word from your peers is suspicious.

I smiled a weary smile. "It's nothing. I was just thinking out loud."

"Okay."

I recalled Glu making me stand on the opening of the tank. Said I was once a cheerleader so the job should be easy for me. Anyway, it really should have been because Harvey was already floating. But I gave it up for fear that gravity might eventually win, making me fall twenty feet and break my neck or worse, into the tank with him and the breeding bacterias. And you just bet that I didn't want to swim the "ocean of his disgustingness," as Adela willingly enlightened me.

At that point, Brett was more than willing to rescue me. With proper protective gear, he reached for our bloated, blister-filled, rotting friend, and managed to get him out. He's got hands that could take you to heights, I tell you.

I uttered a sigh and saw that a puff of smoke appeared - then vanished abruptly - in the air.

Then a thump was magnified in the empty hallway.

Johansson and Willow had lost grip on the bag. The bodybag.

"What the fuck, you guys?" Ally Wright hissed. "You want us to get caught or something?"

She was with us because she insisted to be. Also, the rest of the club members aren't here. Chanel and Adela were still at the Devil's Boar, dealing with the other A-listers on my behalf. I suppose that they were having a good time but won't able to rule the crowd since those teens were power-hungry too. Ethan bailed out the minute we informed him, saying that something important came up, though I think that he's in his comfy bed, smoking a joint and playing Fortnite.

I ratified with the information I've acquired, "We're safe, alright? It's 9:12 and the guards a floor down are supposed to be out for their sodomy thing."

I was worried when the words came out.

A floor down and we're a floor above that. My source didn't say anything about where we were like she was sabotaging us. Damn you, Givens!

As expected but unwanted, a scrambling noise came from the other side of the building. It seemed very near. For a moment, all of us stood frozen, and the sound became nearer still.

That's when we moved. Away from the sound, of course.

"I thought this was going to be smooth, Maddie." There was no reproach in his voice; only concern. Johansson was answered with a chuckle from the redhead.

Door after door we tried to unlock, Glu, Ally, and I. We've used hairclips and absolutely anything that we thought passable to open a door. So far, no soap.

I became frightened all of a sudden. All the movies I've seen, all the books I've read... Didn't the characters who messed with this kind of thing got in trouble because they were so dumb that they touched everything? That's like inviting Death to your birthday party.

I shivered yet the fright somehow lessened. Luckily, we weren't dumb. Ha-ha, Latex glove, bitch!

A click was heard. The door I was working on was open after all. I never remembered thanking irresponsible people until now. "Inside, quick!"

Entering, I saw the huge threads of sweat on their foreheads despite the breeze. Like me, they were trying to mute their pants of fear and exhaustion. I knew that we had more important matters at hand but I just had to tease and show Ally that I was better, no matter what.

"Hey Ally, remember what a door is?" I whispered as she passed. She murdered me with her eyes. Or so it seemed that they all had.

The stillness alarmed me because it was very creepy. Imagine three people staring at you for nearly a minute while you're carrying a dead body. They remained that way and I soon realized that it wasn't me that they had their eyes onto.

I gulped.

"Something's behind me," I started defiantly, "isn't there?"