And Just A Touch of Death

Part X

7:44 am

Winter was running late. Again.

She had barely slept at all last night, her thoughts running a mile a minute.

Was Robin okay?

Would she see him tomorrow at school?

What was it that would potentially end his life?

She did not succumb to sleep until the early hours of the morning and promptly slept through her alarm, which she did set, for the record.

Now, she dashed down the hallway towards her homeroom, her backpack smacking against her upper thighs as she went.

She was only a hallway away when the late bell rang. Immediately, Winter cam to a halt.

Shit. Looks like a week of after school detention was in her near future.

Winter didn't bother to rush to homeroom; she was already late, might as well take her time.

When she finally rounded the corner, she saw everyone in her homeroom exiting the classroom, Mr. Campbell ushering them out. Winter's presence caught her teacher's eye.

"Miss Maddox." He acknowledge her, and his voice was strangely strained and gentle; the kind of voice doctor's use when they deliver bad news. He didn't scold her for being late, or even write a reminder to mark her as tardy. He simply turned his head and lead his students down the hall.

Suddenly, the doors to all the other classrooms started opening too, and students by the dozens piled into the hallway, casually chattering away, despite how early in the morning it was. The teachers were directing traffic down the opposite way Winter had come, towards the school gymnasium.

A mop of bright red hair caught her eye, and she slipped her way through the crowd until she was walking next to her best friend. Micah looked over at her with a worried look.

"What's going on?" Winter asked.

Micah shrugged. "Don't know. The principal just told everyone to report to the gym."

A weight the size of the Titanic dropped into the pit of Winter's stomach. "Did he say what for?"

Micah looked down at his hands. "No." There was a beat of silence, until Micah gazed upwards at Winter, brow furrowed. "Do you think it may have something to do with..."

Winter took a strangled breath. "I-I don't know. I haven't seen him today."

They didn't speak anymore about it. Everyone was directed towards the large gym; the bleachers had been pulled out. The whole school slowly piled in, the sound of shoes on the plastic seats and the mumble of aimless chatter bouncing off the concrete walls.

Winter's head was on a swivel as every student took their seats on the bleachers. Robin Sterling was no where in sight.

Finally, the entire school was seated. The principle- Dr. Olson- stood in front of the mass of students, his arms crossed over his chest. He had a somber look on his face.

"Alright everyone, can I please have your attention?" He said loudly. It took a few moments and a couple shushes from the teachers before the room was silent.

Winter's right leg bounced up and down. Her palms were sweaty and she could feel her heart ramming into her rib cage with every heart beat.

Something was wrong.

Something was very wrong.

"Thank you." Dr. Olson said once everyone had quieted down. There were a few moments of silence as the man bowed his head, his lips pushed into a thin line.

Every student in the gym immediately picked up on his somber posture and expression. Slowly, everyone around Winter was realizing something bad had happened.

Dr. Olson took a shaky breath and lifted his gaze. "I want you all to hear this from me, from the school, first, before you read it on the news. You all deserve to know what has happened without the biases of the media."

Silence.

Anticipation.

It was as if their principal couldn't get the words out.

Until, finally:

"Robin Sterling committed suicide last night."