My Missing Piece

Part Three

As the days until spring break decreased, the amount of stress increased for Coraline and her group of friends. They were struggling with writing a script that didn't sound horribly cheesy but wasn't completely out there either. While they were inspired by their own experience with standing up against Evan, no one was completely sure on how to portray it in a way that wasn't a mirror image of what had actually happened. Everyone had designated roles for filming, once they actually got to that point; Coraline would be the camera girl, Ash would do the editing in class, and editing outside of class would be handled by Eleanor. Meanwhile, Jason and Eleanor were the stars of the mini film with some of their other friends. It was a pretty solid plan. Except they didn't have a script.

Coraline threw her pen harshly onto the table, startling the others sitting near her. Frustrated tears welled in her eyes, her cheeks were a bright pink, and she was breathing shakily at best. Alarmed by their friend's frustration, Eleanor rubbed her back soothingly while Jason whispered reassuring things to her. Both were somewhat surprised when Ash grasped Coraline's hand tightly, but didn't say anything. By the end of the block, Coraline was unnaturally quiet, but she had calmed down. She had an hollow, defeated feeling in the pit of her stomach. The others understood how she felt and let her keep to herself. They were battling their own headaches, anyways.

Relief flooded through Coraline when the shrill sound of the bell met her ears, signaling the end of the period. She swiftly swept her belongings into her bag and walked out of the classroom. She felt as if she was suffocating in there, and was happy to take a deep breath once in the hallway. Jason and Eleanor waved to her before heading off in the direction of the gyms. Still feeling weighed down by the stress of photography class, Coraline waved halfheartedly back. She held Ash's hand tightly until she reached her science class. They traded hugs before Ash went to geometry. Sighing, Coraline went into the lab and dropped into a seat at a table in the back.

A little while later, her pen was scratching roughly against her notebook paper as she took notes over her teacher's lecture. Someone raised their hand and asked a question over a theory unrelated to the unit once the teacher paused for a breath. Coraline completely tuned the rest of the class out and started to doze off. A neatly folded piece of paper was fluttered onto her notebook in front of her. She jerked back, startled, barely missing the note and getting a paper cut. Her eyes darted wildly around, trying to pinpoint who gave her the note, but saw nothing. She wearily unfolded the paper. Pretty, cursive words were printed in smooth black ink. Despite its first impression of beauty, Coraline knew the note was from a guy by the blocky appearance of the lettering. Frowning, she started to read the note. Fear tingled in her spine. It was politely written, but nothing about the context of the note was polite.

My dearest Coraline Price-

I hope you are having a pleasant day today. I hope you enjoy it as much as possible, and live life to it's fullest. If you have a few minutes after school, I would be pleased if you could attend your death at three fifteen this afternoon, after the conclusion of the academic day. It will take place in the courtyard in front of the school.

Best of wishes,

Alexander Haven

Ten minutes later, she received a similar note. Then another one a few minutes before the bell rang. The notes followed her to her third block. As soon as she pulled out her language arts notebook, yet another note floated down to the floor. When lunch rolled around, she had collected a total of ten notes. A couple were terrifying drawings in red ink, full of blood and depicting a hero killing a monster.
Coraline was thankful when she was released to lunch. She rapidly stood up and began her journey to her normal spot in her courtyard. She shoved her notebook and pencil pouch into her bag, not caring if it was organized or not. She was thankful when she saw her friends sitting by the trunk of the tree. Their conversation petered off as Coraline walked up. They frowned at her panicked expression.