What Happened To Her

9

7:00am in the police station...
    "And that's it?" Detective Long asks.
    I nod. "The next thing I remember is the flashing lights and Olivia's parents."
    She nods her head and glances down at the notepad she pulled out at some point. "We're almost done. I know you want to get out of here," she says, her voice still sounding completely unlike a cop. "I've confirmed your alibi with Mr Gray and I know that Keri and Amber were together, attempting to go skinny dipping," she says, reading from her notes. "Could you tell me again the last time you saw everyone before the body was found?"
    "Heather was passed out upstairs practically the whole night, Tara and Grant had left and Jake was upstairs."
    "How about Eric Donovan?"
    "Eric got mad and stormed out," I say. "Grant said he was going to find him and take him home but I don't know that he did for sure."
    She glanced down again, nodding to herself. "Right. And Jake? He went upstairs alone at his own party?" Detective Long asks.
    I haven't been completely honest with these cops. I didn't tell anyone about Olivia hooking up with Jake or that she was going upstairs to talk to him. I know how they can make teenage girls look and I didn't want her reputation to be ruined.
    I know I have to tell the truth in order for this investigation to go the right way. "No," I say quietly. "Olivia told me she was going upstairs to talk to him."
    Detective Long raises an eyebrow and scribbles on her notepad without looking down at it. "Just to talk?"
    I nod, not being very convincing.
    "Have they talked in the past?" She asks, putting a weird emphasis on the word "talk".
    I nod again.
    Detective long puts down her pen and leans her elbows on the table. "That's very helpful. I know it's tough but any information you have is important."
    I take a deep breath. "They had hooked up before, I don't know if they did tonight."
    "Did Heather know about Jake and Olivia?"
    "Yes. And Jake knew that Heather knew."
    Detective Long nods once, leans back and writes something down.
    "I think that's good for now. I'll let them know you're free to go," she says, closing the notebook and standing. "Get some rest, Miss Taylor."
    She walks out of the door, closing it behind her. Once again, for what seems like the millionth time, I'm alone with only my thoughts.

    Suddenly, my mother barges in, frantically. "Jesus, Chloe," she says, grabbing me as soon as she got close enough and holding me tightly to her. "What the hell happened?"
    For the first time since I saw the dead body of my best friend, I let myself cry. The feeling of my mom was all it took to wake me from my shock and let my emotions take over. She let me cry and I heard my dad come in talking about having to sign so much paperwork and then I felt his hand on my back.
    "Come on, honey," my mom cooed. "Let's get you home."
    I stood up slowly, letting my legs remember how to move and made my way out the door of this tiny room that I hope to never see again.
    As soon as I'm in the hallway I hear shouting.
"You're a murderer," a voice yells to my left. "You killed my friend!"
    I turn my head and see Heather standing at the end of the hallway. Good to see her conscious again. She keeps yelling and pointing and crying in my direction. I'm about to open my mouth and ask her what the hell she's talking about when I notice she's looking behind me.
    I turn around to see Jake coming out of another room down the hall. His eyes are red and his face is tear streaked. Two police officers on either side of him turn him away and lead him down the hallway in the opposite direction of Heather's screaming. That's when I notice the handcuffs.
    Jake Parker in handcuffs. Putting someone in handcuffs normally means they're under arrest. Do they think he killed Olivia? Is he the one they think is responsible for taking my best friend from me?
    I want to ask questions, I want to go up to Jake myself and get answers but my parents each take one of my arms and lead me out of the police station, Heather's booming voice fades away.

    The ride home felt long. Stepping into my house, I felt like I'd been gone for days. My parents sit on the couch and I sit down in the chair across from them, not sure what else to do.
    "Chloe, do you want to talk about what happened?" My mom asks.
    I shake my head. "Not really," I say slowly.
    All of my muscles ache and my head is pounding. I know there's something I should be doing or saying but I don't have the energy right now.
    "Why don't you go lie down for a while. I'll make you some food and we can talk later, ok sweetie?" Her tone makes me feel like a little kid staying home sick from school. I just nod and make my way up the stairs.
    My room is a mess. Clothes from Olivia rummaging through my closet last night are everywhere. The smell of her still lingering in the air. I stand in the middle of the room and close my eyes, breathing in what's left of Olivia before it disappears.
    I'm so tired that just standing here with my eyes closed, I feel like I could fall asleep. I pull off the old bathing suit cover up that's been masquerading as a dress and push off the stolen sweatpants preparing to get in bed. Looking down, I step out of the puddle of fabric and notice something shiny coming out of one of the pockets.
    I bend down, pick up the necklace and hold it out in front of me. The round diamond glitters in the light from the sunrise coming through my window and I picture the way it used to hang just below Olivia's collar bone. Her collar bone that's now attached to a broken neck.
    I walk softly over to my closet, reach up to the top shelf and pull down a shoe box full of old notes and trading cards, a box that hasn't been touched in years. I lift the lid, drop the necklace inside and close it again.
    I slide the box back up on the shelf and immediately forget about it. I pull back my blankets and lay down in the bed. The softness cradling my body in a perfect way.
    I know this is only the beginning and I'll have to explain the events of this night many more times. But I've always been good at keeping secrets and with mine and Olivia's secrets tucked away in the closet, no one will ever know what really happened to her.