Blood on the Sand

Chapter 2: Headaches

The next day rolled around, the sun pushing the air of the night over to the other side of the Earth. Mia woke with a start, the mattress beneath her replicating her movements as her nightmare had caused her body to quiver and her hands to shake. The images that filled her mind created a dreadful sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, however, she found peace in the room as she looked to her best friend with her two adorable huskies rolled up comfortably by their feet. She was reassured that she wasn't alone.

Briar began to stir as she gazed at her friend through her long eyelashes. What she saw was a frightened girl who had been deprived of an innocent youth. This girl hugged her knees to her chest, her hair covering her face like a long, blonde waterfall. Briar scrambled up to attention, her arms snaking around Mia as she noticed a single tear roll down her cheek.

"It's ok," she comforted, feeling her heart in physical pain after watching her best friend filled with such fear, "you're not alone in this. All of us saw what happened, we just have to rely on each other to get through this, ok?"

This was all that Mia needed to feel reassured, to fully understand that she wasn't the only one to see what she had seen. She desperately wanted the images to rid themselves from her mind, but after all, who could take away the memory of a dead body?

***

Callum was still hungover when he rose up from his original sleeping position on the bed. He clicked his knuckles together and stretched out any cramps before making his way downstairs. His Mother was still asleep. Typical, he thought to himself as he poured himself a glass of water. Callum's Mother was always either drunk or deep in hibernation- both never looking as pretty as others may think.

He winces as the sound of a text vibrates around the room, the sudden noise waking Callum out of his zombie-like slumber. He places the glass of water he had previously prepared down in frustration, squinting his eyes almost shut as he is blinded by the piercing white light of his phone. He smiles fondly as he sees his background picture- him and his four other friends sitting cosily in a tent during a festival in Manchester- but the smile disappears as he sees what has been written in the text.

The message was from Briar, reading; Mia had another one of those nightmares again. Not sure how long she'll be able to keep quiet before she breaks. She's still pretty shook up.

Callum understood- of course he did. He had seen just what Mia had seen that day, and he had heard the ear-piercing scream she let out when everything happened amidst a blur or occurrences. He understood her pain, her nightmares, as he would get them too. Horrific images couldn't help but crawl their way into his head, taking him apart from the inside until he awoke in a filthy pool of his own sweat.

Running his fingers through his short, dark brown hair, he lifted his phone into his hands and wrote back; Send her my love. Tell her she's not alone. Everything will be over soon x. And pressed send.

Callum then ruffled around in a draw to find something, anything, for the splitting headache that had caused a high-pitched buzzing in his left ear. He eventually found a tablet, but as he was about to throw it into his mouth, the door to the kitchen opened. He whipped around to be greeted by his poor excuse of a mother.

The bags under her eyes were exceptionally large, her hair greasy and piled up onto her head in what was meant to be a bun. She moped around the house like some inhuman creature, covered in nothing but her underwear and dressing gown. She was such an awful sight, but judging by the look that his mother was reflecting, it was obvious that Callum didn't look any better than his mother.

"You're up," Callum speaks out, breaking the icy silence that had almost covered the walls of the room in frost. His mother does nothing but stare, her eyes bloodshot red after the infinite amounts of alcohol that she had recently consumed.

"Would you like anything?" He questions. His mother keeps her eyes on her son, creating a tension in the room that sent a chill of nerves run down Callum's spine. She never spoke a word as she brushed passed Callum, grabbed his glass of water and the tablets that had been abandoned on the kitchen counter and plodded back to her room in what would've been one swift moment if it weren't for the vodka. Callum was left gawping after her, frustration and tiredness pumping through his bloodstream as he watched after her.

He turned back around to the now empty counter and lifted his phone once again, firing a quick message over to the group chat of the friends he had always been so fond of.

The message read; SOS, meaning they were to meet at a certain place to talk. He was hopeful that they could make it to speak about what the hell had happened the other night.

AN

Heyo! It's Leah who wrote this one, I really hope you like it. Please drop a vote and comment what you think and keep debating whether it was a murder or suicide that has happened!

Thanks! Xx