The girl in the middle

who now? I asked rather confused

Sophie!, he repeated, I remember now, after I discovered Adrien's body on the rooftop, I began to retrace my steps hoping I would find a clue to who the killer was but then I noticed a very familiar face, for like a split second though,..she moved swiftly

Okay slow down, I stopped him, trying to think..it can't be, Sophie wouldn't, no couldn't!,..could she?

Hold on, I snapped out of my thoughts, you said she's very familiar, how do you even know her?

Same way you know her,..from school, he replied in an obvious tone

yeah but when exactly did you get familiar with her, was it before or after you murdered her sister? I asked

Kai went silent at my question..I never killed any non member of squad six, he replied in a low tone

I sighed..her sister is Sierra?, she was your third victim?.. unless you didn't even know her name

Of course I know that name, stop trying to remind me, he huffed.. and we're obviously not talking about the same person

oh good!, I exclaimed, because the Sophie I know is no longer in Cedar Creek, she transferred after her sister's death.

I'm talking about the Sophie in our class, he replied

Oh.. who's that?, I wondered

please tell me you're kidding,...she sits in front of me in class, he added, noticing my obliviousness.

I think there're three of them, I replied, which one's Sophie?

When you get to class on Monday, look out for Sophie Beckett, you'll know her when you see her, he replied

Okay,..so anyways, your memory's fully back, that's good news, I digressed

Yeah, he responded, by the way, this might be the last time you hear from me..for now

I easily recognize that tone..

The police are to begin their questioning, I concluded.

Yes, he replied, a hint of sadness in his tone.

And you're going to tell the truth right? I asked

sure, why not, he said unsuccessfully hiding his anxiety

It's gonna be fine Kai, I assured, show them Keanu's video if you still have it, let them know you're not a monster, you're just a lost broken kid who thought that was the only way to heal

I'm not that pathetic, he defended

Mmhmm..I emphasized, earning a low chuckle from him

Also, make sure to tell them you didn't kill Adrien and definitely didn't attempt suicide, I added, my friends and I will get you your proof I promise.

Thanks, he replied, and thank you Amari. Also, can I ask one more favour from you?

Go ahead, who else would you run to, I replied proudly causing Kai to scoff

Could you please stay close to my mom and dad for me or at least encourage them to get a therapist, they're gonna need a lot of healing right now especially since my brother and I have done nothing but cause them pain.

I'm sure they'll say otherwise, I cut in,..and that's not a problem Kai, we'll make sure to come around to see you too before you leave the hospital

Okay, he began to break down, Bye now.

Kai cut the call, placing the phone on his chest as he lay back and sobbed quietly.

Monday..Cedar Creek High..

Sophie f***ing Beckett!!, Piper exclaimed as we walked through the hallway

Ssh, quiet down, I hushed

sorry, I just..I just lost it, I'm sorry, she apologized

who's that? Liana asked facing me

I'm still not sure, I replied, Piper do you mind enlightening us

She's,.. you know that girl.., Let me do the talking, Sebastian offered, cutting her off,.. remember the girl we met on Friday last week, the one who walked past us and only acknowledged Amari, the girl Liana called rude?

Yeah, Kai's main crush, I added

exactly, he replied, She's Sophie

Shit!, I exclaimed, why would she, she likes him,.. like really likes him

because she's a psycho, Piper replied with an irritated look

speak of the devil, Sebastian suddenly said causing us to go quiet and stare at the trio walking at a distance, their backs facing us.

Which one's her? Liana whispered to me,..The girl in the middle, I replied.., we continued to watch her in silence..

And to think she was being nice when she asked of Kai's whereabouts, Liana spoke up

She probably wanted to know if she succeeded in her mission or not, Sebastian replied.

I don't think her primary mission was to 'zero' him, Piper said in code, I did a little research and it seems like Zinc Oxide causes episodic memory impairment, which means a random loss of memory in certain recent events, now remember, only a few traces of it were found in Kai's blood, probably not enough to 'zero' him.

Okay, so she knew Kai saw her at the party, thats why she needed him to forget what happened, I added

Yeah, Piper confirmed. we glanced back at her as she walked into class with her friends.

Now we just need proof, I stated while brainstorming ideas.

Later in Class....Free period..

an important detail suddenly crossed my mind...Did I mention that I'm officially ungrounded today? I asked facing Piper and Sebastian

No you didn't, Piper replied with a smirk

I'm officially ungrounded today!, I repeated with my hands in the air

Congrats, Sebastian responded, we should celebrate

Indeed we should and we will I replied, but first I need to fulfill a promise to a friend, be right back, and with that, I began to walk out of class.

Where's he going?, Sebastian asked facing Piper

Sophie walked out of class a few minutes ago, he's probably gone to catch up with her.

So Kai's the friend he was referring to? He asked again

Obviously, Piper replied, returning to her crossword puzzles.

As I walked through the hallway, eyes on my phone, I 'unintentionally' bumped into someone... sorry, I wasn't looking, I apologized

It's okay Amari, I wasn't looking either, Sophie replied

I'm actually glad I bumped into you, I added, I've been meaning to discuss something with you, about Kai, I began to whisper

What about him, she shrugged

after sharing projects with him, I began to notice his withdrawn attitude, he seemed to me like someone who was hiding something

What'd you mean, she asked

I mean, I'm not sure but I think the school's hiding some 'things', things that I think Kai might be responsible for

What things and why are you telling me this? She asked

Because I know you're fully aware of these 'things', I replied sternly, you see I happen to have a gift of reading people, I admitted, that's how I know you know exactly what I'm talking about, the same way I know you know about his last victim, Adrien and the same way I know you're about to make an excuse for why you have to get back to class so you can avoid having this conversation..

Stop, please stop it, she said looking quite terrified

that's a good sign..

Fine, you know, I'm aware of these 'things', now what do you want? she asked

Not much I replied, just, now that I'm sure you know, we could expose Kai, both of us, we could tell the police what we know, we could tell them he killed Adrien and the others

No, she began to shake her ahead, I can't do that Amari

Why not? I asked

Because he didn't kill Adrien, she replied

Don't lie to me Sophie, I can easily tell if you're lying, I said

I'm not, she insisted, he didn't do it

So who did then, I asked, don't you see Sophie, he killed Adrien and then tried to commit suicide, you can't possibly lie just to defend him

I'm not lying she replied

Look, if you're not gonna help, then I'll tell the school myself, I replied and began to walk away, towards the Principal's office

Amari stop! She yelled

I continued, not bothering to listen to her.

Yes Kai, was responsible for the other murders but he didn't commit the last one, she added

You can't keep saying that if you don't have any proof Sophie, I replied and Adrien's death is the only one I actually have proof of, do you know why? I asked turning to face her... because I was there, I saw Kai at the same party where Adrien's body was found, I even took a picture, I smiled.

No, you're wrong, she yelled again

I turned around, continuing my walk, I get it Sophie, you like him, it's hard to accept that the people we love could be capable of some things...

It was me, I killed him, she admitted

finally!....

I turned around feigning the most realistic looking shocked face I could make, I wanna say you're lying but something in your tone tells me you're not, I replied.

She stared fearfully at me as she began to give detailed explanations to back up her statement.

..................................

That was clever Amari, Piper complimented on the drive home

Thanks, I smiled proudly

the suprising part about this is, the wire, when and how did you guys come up with this? Sebastian asked from the driver's seat.

I'd been thinking on how I was gonna get Sophie to confess ,since that's basically the best form of proof we could get, so during lunch, I asked Liana if she had any ideas on how I could go about it and she came up with this crazy plan.

Liana smiled at the sound of 'crazy', yeah so I have this wire I stole from my dad's work stuff, she continued, and I always have it with me, so I made Amari wear it and have it connected to my speaker so I could record everything that I heard, and I had to stay in the bathroom the whole time to achieve it.

So she recorded everything Sophie and I discussed and edited it, leaving only the juicy part which I sent to Mr Anaki, I added, Proof successfully found.

Nice, Sebastian added

What? Liana asked as Piper seemed to stare at both of us

Nothing, she replied, facing the road, you guys make a good team, that's all

that's not all she's thinking....Thanks, I replied while Liana and I fist bumped

Message Alert, Sebastian suddenly said, Piper can you help me with that, he asked

Picking up his phone, she read out, Kai has been questioned and confessed to the killing of the first five victims but not the last, his dad presented evidence of his innocence in Adrien's case and his assumed suicide, Sophie Beckett is to be arrested for confessing to the murder of Adrien and attempted murder of Kai.

Yeah!, we all chorused, and somehow, Liana and I ended up hugging.

Hold on, you guys, that's not all, Piper continued...Amari Johnson is to be brought in for questioning..

Oh not again!...