death || rsl

17

"What did you do on the weekend? Leif said you weren't feeling well after the show. I thought I'd hear something from you. Cold Soul was amazing. We even met the band, well, except for the singer, Ross. He had left early or something. Never mind, it was amazing!" Miranda clung onto my arm while she talked nonstop.

I scanned the hallway, looking for Ross through the crowd.

"Who are you looking for?"

There was a touch of interest in Miranda's voice. Ross wasn't in the hallway, but that didn't stop Kendra from flirting with Ethan. That seemed rather strange.

"Have you seen Ross this morning?" I asked Miranda, praying she hadn't read anything else in my question. All she did was frown.

"Ross as in Ross Lynch, Cold Soul's lead singer?" I nodded.

"Yes, Ross." I repeated. Miranda's confused expression made the alarm in my head ring.

"Um, are you taking those painkillers again, Maddie? Why would Cold Soul's lead singer be here?"

That's when I knew something was wrong. Terribly wrong. I took a deep breath, trying not to panic.

"Good morning." Leif said as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

Miranda looked at him with a worried smile.

"Good morning, Leif. It's so sweet that you go for her books in the moment you get here. Would you mind giving Wyatt some advice?"

"No way." He chuckled and softly squeezed my shoulders, normally his company helped me when I was on the edge of panicking. But right now, the only thing I needed was to know where Ross was and why Miranda didn't seem to know what I was talking about.

I looked at Leif. "Have you seen Ross?" Miranda's same confused expression reflected on his face.

"Who?" He asked, as confused as Miranda.

"She asked me the same thing. I'm starting to think she must've taken some painkillers again this morning. Are you still hurt? Does your mom know? Because girl, you really are drugged if you think Ross Lynch is at our school."

Miranda and Leif looked at me as if this was a reason why they should worry. I looked at Kendra, who was still very close to Ethan.

"Is Kendra dating Ethan now?" I asked as calm as I could, trying not to show I was starting to panic.

Leif frowned. "They've been dating for months now. Are you okay, Maddie?"

I forced a smile and nodded.

"Oh, um, I forgot. No, I'm fine. I just need to go to the bathroom before first period." I got on my tiptoes and quickly kissed Leif before I left them.

I needed to escape so I could think. Ross had left and nobody seemed to remember him.

Thankfully, the bathroom was empty. I left my books over the wet sink and sat on the floor, hugging my legs. My heart was beating so fast I was afraid it'd stop working. Someone got in and I immediately stood up. I needed privacy if I was going to have a nervous crisis. But just two steps later, I realised that the bathroom door never opened. A black haired girl had walked through the wall. I turned, took a step closer to her, and then she realised I was there.