One Reason

~Chapter Eight~

School felt different today. Yes, people are dying all around me but today felt even off. I still think about the text last night. This unknown, the killer, took pictures of Tori and me through our windows. Threatening to show the whole school.

I could not tell Tori about this. The thought of someone stalking not just me but my of my friends made me sick. Now they have these pictures of us.

"Are you going to finish writing the last slide or do you want me to?" Tori leans over towards me, looking at my computer placed in front of me.

"Oh sorry. I can do it," I begin to type. "Have you talked to Hannah today?"

"We talked on the phone for a bit before school. She still isn't herself." Tori says looking down, her sad face wasn't her usual self.

"After school we should head over and keep her company-" Tori immediately interrupts me.

"I can't. I have to help my mom with her bakery. She's low on workers." With no hesitation, Tori begins to work, typing on her computer.

"Oh okay. I'll go myself." I shrug off Tori's response.

"You should ask her. You don't want to just go to not be wanted. She needs time to process." I nod to Tori.

"Yeah-" I get cut off by multiple text tones going off coming from different phones. I turn to look around to see student checking their phones.

"Oh Tori, please take it off!" A immature boy yells from the back of the class as his friends laugh. Tori turns around looking at the guys.

"What are you talking about?" Tori says seeming pissed. Both our phones ring in sync. I reach down looking at the text, seeing the same picture of Tori last night. I quickly glance up at the clock.

10:45am

"What the hell? Oh my god." Tori's voice turns into a panic. Her eyes began to fill with tears. She quickly stands up, rushing herself out of the room.

"Tori!" I shout at her as I follow her out.

This is my fault.

I catch up to Tori as she is stopped at the side of the hallway. Crying into her hands. Her body slides down the lockers, sitting onto the ground. I knee down next to her, wrapping her in my arms.

"Who would do this?" Tori spoke up in between her sobs.

"I think I might know." I subtly say trying to comfort Tori.

"What do you mean?"

I sigh, pulling it my phone. I sit down next to Tori handing her my phones me open to the text messages. Tori wipes her eyes, reading the texts.

"They had a picture of you too?" I nod to her.

"They told me to pick. I didn't. Now this happened. God, I'm sorry. This is my fault." I close my eyes, placing my head into my sweaty palms.

"This isn't your fault. You were blackmailed." Tori sniffs, wiping more of her salty tears away.

-

Everywhere I looked was Tori. The half naked picture of Tori. All laughs were for Tori. I felt so bad. I knew I was to be blamed. I could of done something or said something but I kept it to myself like a scared little puppy.

Lunch time finally rolled around. Lunch was going to be awful. All the students were gathered into one area. All the students have seen the picture of Tori. A place where everyone knows every inch of her body now.

Tori and I sat at original table in the corner. Laughs and glares were aimed at us, more Tori. Dustin and Lance finally came to lunch, there faces dropped when they saw Tori. The sad Tori.

"Who ever did this, I am going to kill that creepy ass stalker!" Lance looks around the room, seeing all the stares at Tori. Lance climbs up onto the table. "You hear me!? I will kill who ever did this!"

Dustin pulls down Lance just as rude remarks were yelled back.

"We all know you liked that picture!"

"You could be the guilty one! No one can trust you!"

"Tori! We would all love to get a more revealing picture!"

Dustin keeps ahold of Lance as his temper starts to arise.

"Lance. Just stop. I am fine." Tori says taking a bite out of her sandwich.

"You are not fine. We all know that." Lance turns to her and sits in front of her, grabbing both hands with her open hand.

"You are right, but I can't show it." Tori forces a fake smile up at him before looking back down.

She's hurting over something I could of stopped.

-

Once the last period bell rang, Tori was already off school property. She told us she will be fine, but I doubt that. Tori is just an innocent one. It takes days for her to recover from something so small but something this big could take weeks.

I pull out my phone quickly calling Hannah. I listen the sound of the rings. She finally answers after a couple seconds.

"Hey Hannah. I was going to come over and help catch you up, if that's okay?" I spoke into the phone, making my way out to the student parking.

"Hey Michelle. I am kind of busy at the moment. How about tomorrow morning? Actually, tomorrow night. Yeah tomorrow night."

"Oh okay. Yeah, tomorrow night. Works for me." I speak with a cheerful tone, Hannah's voice being sort of perky.

"Okay bye Michelle," with that the line hung up.

Her mood seems to be improved from yesterday. She really wanted to get off the phone with me.

-

After my driver home, I pull my truck into the driveway to get a text. I reach down into my bag grabbing out my phone. My heart drops seeing who it's from, unknown,

'Would you be more mad knowing I was stalking your friends or that they lied straight to your face?'

Lied to me? I look around outside my car to see if anyone one was watching before I texted back,

'What are you talking about?'

A split second later a video pops up under my text. I hesitate to click it. Last time I clicked a video unknown sent me, Louis was being killed.

I click the video showing a view from a surveillance camera outside Hannah's house aimed to look into the living room of the house. Suddenly Hannah and Tori come into frame, Hannah pushing Tori onto the couch. Hannah quickly climbing atop her. Their lips come to contact with one another as they start to take off each other clothes.

My eyes grow wide as I drop my phone onto the car floor.