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Chapter 3

Author: Perfect Timing
How was that possible?

Why would Zachary kill himself?

My right hand shook uncontrollably.

In the dream, I used that hand to push him out the window.

"Is it true?" I asked our teacher.

Panic swept through me. I could barely hear my own voice.

Everyone turned to look at me.

Zachary was my best friend, after all.

And we'd fallen out over his exam results just yesterday.

"Do you think Zachary felt so guilty about taking first place from Julian that he killed himself?"

"What do you mean, ‘taking first place from Julian'? Julian's never come first."

"But two students who placed first have jumped to their deaths. That's creepy..."

Their whispers filled me with guilt.

Had Zachary jumped because I refused to answer his messages?

While I stood there in a daze, Daniel found me.

"Julian, was Zachary a close friend of yours?"

I nodded.

He held up Zachary's phone.

"He sent you a lot of messages last night. Why didn't you answer any of them?"

I told him the truth, then asked, "Officer Lewis, did Zachary kill himself because of me?"

Daniel studied me with suspicion.

"He didn't kill himself. Before he went to bed, he wrote in his diary that he planned to apologize to you in person today. Why would he take his own life that night?"

"Then who killed him?"

Daniel looked at me again.

Once he seemed satisfied that my grief and guilt were real, he said, "The investigation is still underway. All I can tell you is that the same person killed Zachary and Zara."

"The killer's target is clear: whoever comes first in your class."

His expression grew unreadable again.

"I should warn you. As things stand, you're the suspect with the strongest motive in both murders."

My heart lurched, then beat even faster...

He was right; even without those two strange dreams, I would have suspected myself too.

Whenever the top student died, I stood to gain the most as the student in second place.

But I'd checked the security footage.

On the nights Zara and Zachary were killed, I never left my bedroom.

I couldn't have committed either murder.

Still, I couldn't explain why I'd dreamed about them.

When school ended, I saw Zachary's mother.

For the past few days, she kept coming to the school gates, just as she had when she used to pick Zachary up.

But he would never come out again.

She rushed toward me as soon as she saw me.

"Julian, have you seen my Zachary?"

She seemed to have lost her grip on reality...

My eyes burned, but I couldn't find a word to say.

Then another woman charged over.

"Julian Nash! You killed my daughter. I know you did..."

Zara's mother slapped me across the face.

"My daughter never had a problem with anyone! You were the only one competing with her. Did you kill her so you could come first?"

Zachary's mother seized on her words. She grabbed my clothes and shouted at me.

"Yes! Zachary came home and said he'd taken first place from you. He said you hated him for it! You killed him! I know you did!"

"It wasn't me! I swear it wasn't!"

Tears spilled down my face as I tried desperately to explain. But the scenes from my dreams kept forcing their way back into my mind.

At last, the school guards arrived and pulled the two women away...

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  • The Secret Behind the Top Student's Death   Chapter 9

    "But that night, when the corrected results put you in first place, I realized something. If you became the top student, you'd turn into the next Zara, another person who ‘hogged first place.'""You'd become like your father and force your own children to come first. The cycle would never end.""So I had to kill you before you became that person."Lydia fell silent.For a long time, no one in the ward spoke.Daniel broke the silence. "Lydia Sutton, we sympathize with what you went through. But you murdered two students. Take her away."Two officers stepped forward and led Lydia toward the door.At the doorway, she turned to Dad."Sir, please don't let your son suffer the way my daughter did. He isn't a tool for achieving your dreams. He's your son."Dad didn't answer. He only held me tighter.As the officers led Lydia away, she broke free and ran toward the window at the end of the hall."Stay back!" She leaned halfway out. The concrete ground lay six floors below.Daniel motioned ev

  • The Secret Behind the Top Student's Death   Chapter 8

    The ward fell silent.Dad held my hand tightly. Daniel motioned for the officer taking notes to get ready."Fifteen years ago, I had a daughter named Holly Sutton," Lydia began, her voice distant."Holly was bright from an early age. She always came first in her class. I was strict with her. I made her study late every night, and if she came second, I wouldn't let her eat. ""I thought I was helping her. I thought she needed to get into the best college to have the best future.""She never argued with me. She always smiled and said, ‘Don't worry, Mom. I'll come first.'"Lydia's eyes reddened."When Holly was in ninth grade, a boy transferred into her class. He was an excellent student. He outscored her on his first monthly exam and took first place. ""Holly came home and cried all night. I called her useless. I told her she didn't deserve to be my daughter.""The next day, Holly didn't go to school. I searched for her for three days. I finally found her on the school roof." Lydia's

  • The Secret Behind the Top Student's Death   Chapter 7

    The second problem was the lock-picking kits and rubber gloves in my backpack. How did they get there?I'd never bought any of them.If another personality really prepared them, he must have gotten them from somewhere.Who would give those things to a high school student?The third problem was what the other me said as he choked me: "How could you come first?" If he was a part of me obsessed with taking first place, shouldn't he have been happy when I finally did? Why would he try to kill me?Those questions ran through my mind all day, but I didn't dare tell anyone. I was a "mental patient" now. No one would believe me.On the third night, things changed.Late that night, as I drifted toward sleep, I heard someone quietly push open the ward door.Light from the hallway cast a tall, thin shadow across the floor. The person crept in and went straight to my bed.My heart clenched, but I stayed still and pretended to be asleep.The figure stood beside the bed for a few seconds. Then I

  • The Secret Behind the Top Student's Death   Chapter 6

    Dad looked at Daniel. Daniel nodded."Julian, Dr. Wells's preliminary assessment suggests you may have dissociative identity disorder, often called multiple personality disorder," Daniel said as he sat beside me."The pressure you've been under may have caused you to develop another personality."That personality is obsessed with coming first. He believes the only way you can take first place is to ‘take down' whoever holds it.""So when Zara came first, that personality killed her. When Zachary came first, he killed him too. And when the corrected results put you in first place last night, the person he tried to kill was you."My mind went blank."You're saying I killed them?" My voice shook. "That's impossible. Those were dreams! I don't remember killing anyone...""That can happen with dissociative identity disorder. The different personalities don't necessarily share memories. What you remember as ‘dreams' may be fragments your usual self picked up while the other personality com

  • The Secret Behind the Top Student's Death   Chapter 5

    In the moonlight, I finally saw the face of the person trying to kill me.It was identical to mine.The same eyes and brows. The same nose. The same lips.But there was no fear in his eyes, only a cold, almost crazed determination.The hand around my throat was my hand.The voice that asked, "How could you come first?" was my voice.I tried to scream, but his grip was too tight. All I could manage was a hoarse gasp.Just as I thought I was about to suffocate, the room lights came on with a click.The harsh white light made me shut my eyes. Then I heard hurried footsteps.Dad's voice cut through the darkness. "Julian! What are you doing?"The grip on my throat vanished.I collapsed to the floor and gulped down air. Dad rushed over and held me, his whole body shaking."Why were you choking yourself? Have you lost your mind?"Choking myself?My eyes flew open.Daniel and two other officers stood in the room with Dad and me.The lights were on, and the curtains were open. Moonlight mingle

  • The Secret Behind the Top Student's Death   Chapter 4

    After the scene outside the school, my classmates all began looking at me with suspicion.Maybe they thought I was the killer too.Everyone was on edge, but the college entrance exam wouldn't stop because two students had died.The third practice exam came around amid the fear and rumors.Once again, I disappointed Dad.I didn't place first. I didn't even place second.When our homeroom teacher announced the top student, everyone turned to my deskmate.Jade Jacobs looked terrified."The last two students who came first are dead! Am I going to get killed tonight?"I'm telling you now, I would never kill myself. Never!"She looked at me fearfully as she spoke.It was as though she'd already decided I was the one killing the top students.I said nothing.Even if I killed her, I still wouldn't move into first place.The others urged Jade to call the police, and she finally did.Daniel took the threat seriously and led the officers assigned to protect her.Meanwhile, Dad gave me the scoldin

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