The killer On The Phone

Andre had agreed to go along with Emma to her secret place without telling anything to anyone but she couldn't stop thinking about Cathy. Several thoughts distracted Emma today. She kept wondering why Cathy wanted to meet with them. This wasn't the girl she knew. The Cathy she knew was quite bold. She wasn't someone who would get afraid of anyone and hide. Cathy could have called the police but she preferred to message Emma. This made Emma a bit suspicious too. At one point she wondered if this really was Cathy or just someone messing up with her. 

Later she realized their secret place was not known to anyone else. Cathy, Julia and Emma used to often be away from the adults, for a short while, to play in their secret place. Emma highly doubted if someone would kidnap Cathy and ask about it from her. What gave her goosebumps was the thought of going back to that secret place. It has been years since they had done that. Besides, it wasn't in the town. Their secret place was deep in the woods and this was where most of the corpses were found.

'What if Cathy had gone there and the killer found her? What if this is a trap?'  thought Emma as she sat, looking at the board in front of her.

These thoughts distracted her from what was being taught in her class. She even thought of calling the police but then later decided to just do what Cathy said. If Cathy was kidnapped, then bringing the police would put her in more danger. 

Emma was so engrossed in her thoughts she gave no response to even those who bullied her in class. Her favourite teacher Mrs Ellen, a short woman with a plump face too asked Emma after the zoology class to stay back.

"Emma, I know you weren't listening to what I spoke in class. Is everything alright?" Asked Mrs Ellen, politely.

"Everything is fine, Mrs Ellen," said Emma, softly.

"Without Julia and Cathy, you must be feeling very lonely. I can understand how you feel but remember one thing, Emma. They would have wanted you to be happy but dear you must not deviate from your goals. Staying in past would make you unhappy. This in turn will also distract you. You are a brilliant student and your parents are proud of you but I feel that soon you will go down." said Mrs Ellen, holding Emma's hands.

"I am sorry but I will try my best to do better," said Emma

"Remember Emma, life goes on and you need to move on. After all, after high school, everyone goes on separate paths. Some don't even turn and look back. This would have happened to you and your friends too. Those who have ambition are the only ones who achieve success and I want my favourite student to do well." said Mrs Ellen, smiling at Emma.

"I guess I need some time but I am sure that I will manage everything."

"Okay, take care Emma but next time I want your attention in class," said Mrs Ellen, patting on Emma's right shoulder.

Emma nodded her head before she turned and walked quietly outside the class.

'What is making Cathy hide?' thought Emma as she walked down the corridor.

As she walked past an empty classroom, she heard a voice.

"What about Cathy?"

Emma stopped and stood closer to the door.

"Silly girl stepped in the wrong place at the wrong time, but we need to deal with her now."

'This voice seems familiar. Looks like the person is on the cellphone.'

"Find her as soon as possible and kill her before she tells anyone anything."

Emma gasped. She couldn't believe what she just heard. Someone in the school wanted Cathy dead.

"I think someone is here, hold on," said the person as he walked towards the door of the classroom.

Emma quickly ran inside another empty classroom opposite to her and hid below the teacher's desk. The door opened slowly and someone peeped inside. Emma managed to keep her mouth shut but she couldn't stop her heart, which was pounding in fear. Her mouth suddenly became dry and her palms were full of sweat.

"Was probably just hearing things" said the person before closing the door.

'That sounded like a guy. Is he the killer?'

Emma slowly got up and opened the door. She was relieved to see that no one was there. She walked out after looking around and making sure that no one was outside.

Emma felt scared now. She walked slowly with sweaty palms and her heart still beating fast. She was sure that there was a killer in the school. She knew that the killer was a boy but she did not know who it was. All she heard was his voice. She could not see his face.

'What's going on here? Who the hell is this guy? Why did he want Cathy dead?'

As she continued to walk, she stumbled over the janitor's water bucket and fell. A group of bullies laughed as they walked by.

"Oh look, it's the clumsy freak," said Amanda.

Amanda was a tall, slim girl with black hair. She was a rich spoilt brat who enjoyed bullying people. She had her friend circle of mean girls. Their only job was to gossip and make fun of others.

Amanda walked closer to Emma and poured the remaining water over her head. Several students who surrounded them laughed. Tears began to roll down Emma's cheek but she quickly wiped it away.

"Oh look, the clumsy freak is crying," said Amanda.

Emma felt someone with cold hands, trying to lift her from behind. She turned and saw Stephen.

"We meet again," he said smiling.

"Hey handsome, who are you?" asked Amanda in a flirty voice.

"You should be helping her instead of bullying."

"Are you new here?"

Stephen however ignored her.

"You okay now? "he asked Emma

"I am fine, thanks," said Emma.

Embarrassed by what had just happened to her, she turned and ran away. She went inside the washroom and looked at herself in the mirror.

'Why couldn't people behave normally with me?'

Although she was wet completely from up to down, she couldn't do anything about it. She didn't have any spare clothes with her. She went to the girl's washroom beside the gym to see if any juniors had any extra clothes or at least a hairdryer.