Rejects // l.h.

12

A week later, there was another death. It wasn't at night though. It was in the girls bathroom.

"I was in the bathroom just a few minutes ago," Carmen said shakily. I grab her hand.

"You could have been that poor girl, Carmen. I don't want to let you out my sight, I really don't," I gabbled. She smiled a small smile.

"You're cute when you're overprotective,"

"I'm not cute, I'm punk rock,"

"Oh god, don't you start," She laughs. Ashton, Calum, Michael, Emily and Dani come over to us, and sit next to us under the tree.

"I know who got murdered in the bathroom," Dani says.

"Who?" Asks Ashton.

"It was Lorri Sanders. She was only thirteen,"

"Thirteen?" I ask, horrified. A thirteen year old girl didn't deserve to die. No one here deserved to die. I thought about Laura.

She didn't deserve it either.

"I'm... Im starting to get kinda scared," Dani says.

"Me too," Emily agrees, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear, hands shaking slightly.

"As long as we all say together, we'll be OK. Don't go anywhere alone," Carmen said, looking at all of us.

"I wonder who's the murderer," Michael says, his eyes darting around the field, as if trying to spot them.

"Do... Do you think it's a student?"

"It must be, a person can't sneak into the school and stay here a whole week. I think it's one of the students," Carmen says slowly.

"I just hope none of us get targeted," Dani says, smiling weakly.

"We... We can't have the Laura situation all over again," Calum says quietly. We all go silent for a moment, before Carmen breaks it.

"That's right. We can't have the Laura situation again," She repeats, nodding shakily.

I remember that day so well. When the intruder broke into the school, when Carmen told me she liked me... When we went outside to find Emily and Dani sobbing, saying they'd witnessed their best friend's death. That was one of the only times I'd seen Carmen cry.

***

"We're just going to the canteen, they're selling pizza. You two coming?" Asked Calum. Carmen looked at me. I shook my head.

"We'll stay," She said.

"Use protection!" Michael chimed as the three boys and the two girls headed out. I put my hand on my forehead in annoyance and embarrassment.

"Will do!" She called out jokingly. She rolled her eyes at me.

"I don't know why we're friends with them, to be honest," She laughed, sitting down next to me and leaning her head on my chest. I gently stroked her black hair.

Suddenly, she freezes.

"What?"

"Don't... Move..." she breathes, staring straight ahead in horror. I look up. On the wall, is a great, big...

Spider.

"Carmen, Carmen!" I panic, forgetting what she said about not moving. I tip her off me and jump up off the bed.

"Fucking hell, Luke!" She yells. The spider crawls along the floor towards us. Carmen squeals, jumping onto the bed.

"Kill it!" I yell.

"You kill it!"

"I'm not touching it!" I scream, jumping into next to her. Just then, the door opens, and it's Michael, Ashton and Calum.

They look at us in confusion, and then Michael happens to glance down. He screams and bolts to the other side of the room.

"Someone fucking kill it!" He screams. Ashton and Calum start panicking and run up onto their beds, standing up, as far away from the spider as possible.

"Throw something at it!" Carmen yells.

"Stamp on it!"

"I'm not having dead spider on my shoe, thanks!"

"What will we do?" Wails Ashton.

Just then, the door opens, and Dani is standing there, obviously wondering what all the noise was. She looks down at that we're all staring at in horror.

"You guys are such wimps," She laughs. She takes a cup off Michael's bedside table (earning a "hey!" From him) and puts it over the huge spider. She then takes some paper and slips it under, opens the window, and throws the spider out.

She then turns to face us all, and bursts out laughing.

"The look on your faces was hilarious. Hell, I wish I'd got that on video," She snorts.

"Hey, it was big, ok?" Ashton protests, cautiously stepping down.

"I'm not going to be able to sleep in this room for two weeks," Michael groans. "And I can't believe you used my special cup to get rid of the spider, Dan. You may as well burn it now!"

"I should be earning a thank you, I just saved your asses from the dreaded spider," She huffs jokingly.

"I'll thank you when you buy me a new cup. And a new room," Michael pouts. The continue to bicker, while Carmen looks at me and smiles, and mutters jokingly.

"We could have dealt with it alone,"