"I had so much fun, girls, and Whitney, thanks for driving," Emma said as Whitney pulled up outside her house. All the lights were still out, which meant her parents were still at work. She had such a good time spending the day with the girls.
It was the perfect day despite what happened with Reina. In fact, after Claire decided it would be a great idea to go bowling, Emma didn't win, but she definitely had fun learning how to play because she had never been before. Claire was pretty good, but Whitney was almost as bad as she was. They were able to laugh about it together.
Niki ended up being the best bowler and winning somehow, even in her heels and a short dress. The workers even gave her a tiny plastic trophy for bowling a perfect game. Emma made sure to take a lot of pictures and send them to Kandy.
She let Emma know she was so jealous she couldn't have joined, but Emma reassured her that they could all definitely do this again when she came back. Whitney turned in her seat, sending her a smile. "It's cool, girl, but you have to promise when college starts, you'll come to me and Claire's dorm and help us decorate."
Emma found out while at the mall Claire and Whitney were going to start college together next year. Lucky for them, they both got accepted to the same college nearby, University of Miller Creek, so they decided to be roommates. Whitney was going for English Studies, and Claire was going for computer technology. They would be close enough to still be working at The Underground, and of course, they gave her a free invite to come by whenever. Niki said she was never the college type.
She didn't like the books, tests, and studying, so she never went. She's been working at The Underground since she graduated from high school. With them, Emma felt like she would now have a different viewpoint on whether she wanted to go to college or not when she graduated. Of course, she would love to go to a college close by and go for American History or something like that. But her family was sure she was going to go to some fancy college far away.
"It's a deal. I have all your numbers in my phone, so just text me," she said, looking at Whitney as Claire turned in her seat, looked back at her, smiling, nodding her head.
Emma smiled while opening the car door. "See ya later, Emma," Niki said while Emma waved at all of them before climbing out of the car with her bags and her pocketbook. Whitney beeped the horn, backing out of the parking spot as Emma made her way up to her door. She looked back at the car, seeing Claire waving at her from the front seat as the car drove down the road.
She opened her home door, pushing it open. The house was empty and quiet, just like she guessed. Her parents weren't home. She saw some mail on the ground. It must have come earlier through the mail slot when she wasn't home. She walked into the living room, sitting down on the couch, flipping through the mail.
There was an early Christmas card from her grandparents with a gift card attached with her name on it, which made a smile make its way on her face. Her grandparents lived pretty far away, but at least they never forgot her birthday. They always sent her a $20 gift card to get whatever she wanted with. Along with that, there were a few random sales papers, junk mail, and a white envelope.
She set the other mail on the table and looked at the envelope more closely. She turned it over in her hands. It had nothing on the outside—no address or stamp—just her name written in cursive on the front, in the middle, in red pen. Her eyebrows scrunched together. Suddenly, a chill ran down her body, making her feel like someone was watching her. Swallowing hard, she was debating on opening the letter or not. Suddenly making up her mind, she opened it.
Inside was an old, gray newspaper clipping. She stood from the couch, looking at it more closely. Towards the bottom, in black Sharpie, it read, "She was the first." Emma whispered aloud. Her eyes moved up to the article's headline:
FEMALE TEENAGER BODY FOUND DEAD IN WOODED AREA
Her shaky hand covered her mouth as she continued to read the story:
At 9 PM, the body of 14-year-old Tammy Little was found in a wooded area near the Kit River. Two days after her disappearance, police found her body at the base of the river with blunt force trauma to the head. However, after the autopsy was completed, the cause of death was drowning. Her family and friends assured us that Tammy was a good swimmer and are currently grieving the loss of their daughter and friend. At the moment, the case is listed as murder. For the time being, they have no leads or eyewitnesses on who the culprit may have been. If anyone has any info, please call....
"Oh my God," she whispered, dropping the letter to the ground, suddenly not feeling safe. She ran over to the front door, making sure it was locked tightly, looking through the front window blinds. Not seeing a soul outside but feeling eyes on her, she quickly closed the blinds before walking back to the couch, looking over at the letter still on the ground. She wrapped her arms around herself. It felt like the darkness around her was swallowing her whole. She wasn't just scared, more like terrified. She didn't want to be alone.
She picked up her pocketbook, rummaging through it before pulling out her phone. Finding the contact she was looking for, she clicked the screen before putting it to her ear. It only rang once before the person on the other end answered, "Hello?"
YOU ARE READING
It Started With Hello
Romance***** Emma Pear knew she wasn't the most popular girl in high school. Her nose was usually buried in a textbook, and her grades were as spotless as her reputation for always following the rules. "Nerd" was a label she'd long since embraced. Her pare...
