Whispers of the Dead

VI

Two things happened the next day at school. First, Amethyst thoroughly fucked up her math test since she hadn't studied. Second, when she sat down during lunch, her friends were all on their phones, facial expressions varying from disgust to shock to sadness. She saw Payton and Eliza sharing a concerned look and Hayden dragging a hand through their short black curls and dropping their phone when she sat down and asked: "What's wrong?"

Three phone screens turned in her direction, Austin said: "A new update," and Hannah shouted: "That fucking asshole!"

As always, it almost physically hurt to lie to her friends and pretending not to know, but it was part of the treaty of her and Hope. She scanned the page swiftly, almost hearing the hateful words in her head. She chucked in a breath, pretending to be shocked.

"What the fuck?" she said. "Is it true? Do they know who was the victim?"

Charity sighed.

"It's always true. And no, no one knows. If it's only one girl."

Amethyst looked around the circle of stunned faces, genuinely speechless. And relieved, that Katie wasn't exposed.

"This is bad," she then said.

"Can't be worse," Payton commented softly. The whole table fell silent again. She felt like she needed to change the subject, but she couldn't come up with anything. So they all ate in silence, each one of them swallowed in disgust and anger. Amethyst looked at Hope, a few tables over, talking with some guy, and saw her smiling. Widely. The boy, too, had his phone in his hand and shook his head at is. Hope's smile turned pitiful, and she nodded. She said something, and at the shape of her mouth, Amy could make out the word 'horrible'. She struggled to avert her gaze, and surprised herself by saying: 'How do they know it? The writers, or writer?'

The whole table looked in her direction. At first, no one answered. She didn't know why she even asked. Because she wanted to know if they suspected anything? Because she wanted to talk about it all, even in a way where she technically didn't say anything?

"How do they even know anything?" Hannah said, still simmering with rage. "How do they know all of these details?"

"I told literally no one about our situation at home, except for you guys," Charity surprised them all by saying. "And I really don't think any of you would be capable of doing such things."

No, they wouldn't. But they would not do anything when they saw it happen before their eyes. Amethyst struggled to keep her face blank, but luckily no one paid any attention to her when Hannah continued to rage by saying: "It's not as if they have spyware everywhere. That would just be pathetic. I mean, the whole thing is pathetic."

It was, really. But it also frightened everyone in the school.

"They really know things they aren't supposed to know," Hayden commented softly, visibly still upset. "Sometimes it's like if they can read thoughts, or something."

Amethyst forced herself to nod along with her friends. At that exact moment she remembered that she had Johnson next period, same with Austin. She hadn't even noticed the subject had changed until she nudged him under the table and he looked up in the middle of his sentence.

"Huh?" he said. Amethyst bit her lip, and she knew he could see the worry on her face.

"We have him next period." She meant for it to come out softly, reaching only the boy sitting across from her, but the whole table turned in her direction.

"Oh, shit," said Austin. "You think he read it yet?"

Amethyst shook her head.

"No idea. But if it's really true... I think he won't be able to hide that stuff."