Chapter 1-

I let go of the warm metal and let the trunk door of my car fall to close. I turn around and look up at the tall building; I even crane my neck and shield my eyes from the sun just to see to the roof. For as long as I can remember Winchester University has always been such a magnificent sight. The school practically resembled a castle, which definitely fed at my youthful desires of being a princess. I take a deep breath to prepare myself for a new journey as a college student. I drove all the way from Austin to my hometown of Winchester Cove, a small town in Northern Arizona, but I didn't actually set foot till now. It feels both foreign and welcoming, I really just hope the headlines of my stories are long dead now.

I pick up the cardboard moving box that I placed on the floor and shift its weight onto my hip. With one last body shake to rid the nerves, I make my way to the large doors of my future education. Surprisingly the doors don't creak as I push them open, the main office is also empty. "Hello?" I ask aloud as I make my way to the front desk. A small woman with salt and pepper hair pops out from behind the desk.

"I'm here for early move-in, my dorm mate is not here yet but I know the room number." My words come out shakier than intended but I do not think the woman noticed.

"Name," she says flatly. I squint my eyes and she looks back at me with a look of annoyance. For a moment I forgot my name, I almost blurted out some odd name for no reason.

"Castallanta...Cerys Castallanta." Back in Texas, my name meant nothing, but here that name was everywhere for months until my family moved away. The woman looks at me beyond her glasses then lightly nods her head. She stretches her arm out to hand me my room key, but before letting go she says "Welcome home", with a smile so warm that her words don't completely give me chills. I place the small plastic card into my back pocket and make my way to an elevator, I could take the stairs but I am already tired just from leaving my car.

...

A small ding and the elevator doors open up to a hallway with flickering lights, creepy but expected from a historical building. I step out from the warm elevator and it finally hits me. I am going to be living on my own for the first time in my life, I am going to be a college student who more than likely is going to switch majors with my outfits. I walk to the very end of the hall and stand outside my door, room 413. The door is slightly ajar and the sound of a faint jingle makes me shove my way in.

The jingle gets faster and closer as a small furry Maura jumps on top of my box of hair products, with my curls a box is completely appropriate. "Maura old girl you still remember me?" Maura answers back to me by purring and nuzzling her face into my chest. I smile and scratch under her chin, her favorite spot, which increases the purring even more. With the sudden sound of a squeal, I drop my box and turn around to welcome my best friend. She pulls me into such a tight hug that I hold back onto her so that I do not fall. I spit out long strands of strawberry blonde hair out of my mouth and pull away.

Willow has always stood above me at 5'7, her height always made her look even more like a model. Her glossy hair was pin straight and flowed down to the middle of her back, whenever she moved the light bouncing off it gleamed. Her tailored Kate Spade dress clung perfectly to her body, it accentuated her already long torso. Her deep blue eyes were already red as she wiped her own tears away with perfectly manicured nails.

"I've missed you so much." She sobbed and pulled me back in for another hug. I laugh and pull myself away once again, "Give me a tour of the place." I say as I blink away my own tears. Willow closes her eyes and when she opens them again she brings out her famous beauty pageant smile.

"Welcome to Winchester University's top of the line suites, here we have the kitchen" she points to the south wall that has a sink and a mini-fridge, "next is the luxurious bathroom with sparkling tile flooring", the bathroom is mediocre at best with two sinks, a shower, and a toilet "last...but not least! Is the bedroom! Two twin sized beds sit perfectly in the room with matching desks and two adjacent closets." When we make eye contact we both can't help but laugh.

"Too big of a change for Miss. Tiffany Pacifier?" I mock as I sit down on the bed that is not covered by a 1,000-count thread sheet. Willow sits on the other bed where Maura climbs into her lap, settling herself into a white furball.

"Things aren't too bad, my parents gave me a credit card for whatever I may need. Though I would not mind a bidet..." I roll my eyes and she laughs.

"Seriously, it is so good to have you back. It has been like what? Three years since you moved! Tell me, how does it feel?" Willow slides off her wedges and makes herself comfortable on the bed. I sigh and lay on my back to look up at the ceiling.

"I feel sick honestly, there are so many emotions whirring through me right now that I kind of just want to vomit," I sit up again, "what have I missed since my absence?". Willow shoots me a look that can only mean one thing, piping hot tea.

"Okay, so after you left Serena and Kyle got together. I mean of course they did, you were gone so she no longer had competition. Then eventually Kyle got tired of Serena's childishness and decided to break things off." Willow pauses for a dramatic effect and I place a hand over my mouth to emphasize my gasp.

"Well, Serena caught wind of the end of her relationship and decided she needed to do something drastic to keep him. So she faked a pregnancy for...a...year..." Willow stops talking and I can feel my jaw hit the floor.

"A year?" I repeat back being both stunned and confused.

"A year." The defeated voice comes from the direction of the hall and not from the lips of my friend. I turn my head to the side and see Kyle Espana, my could-have-been high school sweetheart. Tufts of thick black hair peek out from underneath the baseball cap that slightly covers his hazel eyes.

"Get in here," I say as I stand up and the weak smirk on his face stretches into a smile. He comes in and at first we give each other an awkward hug but then we melt into each other like old friends.

"Does this mean it is time to celebrate?" asks Willow from behind us followed with the clink of wine glasses. I turn around to see Willow holding three wine glasses and an unopened bottle of a Chateau Margeaux red wine.

"Nope, I still don't drink, and do not plan on ever doing so." I say as I go to take the glasses from her hands and set them down beside the sink. Willow pouts, "This bottle almost cost $2,000, I need to open her up".

"What about Sweet N' Spice? We can order pastries." Suggests Kyle and I look back at him with hopeful eyes, "They're still open?". Kyle waves a pair of car keys in front of us, Willow gives Maura a quick kiss and we head out the door.

...

Sweet N' Spice not only looked the same but also smelled the same. The gross combination of sweets and cleaning products danced in the air around us as chomped down on donuts. I ordered my absolute favorite drink, cookies and cream white mocha frap. There was always the risk of me going into a sugar shock but I would always come crawling back.

"So Kyle, are you actually pursuing your dreams of being a baseball star?" I ask as I take in a sip of cookie crumbles. Willow takes a big sip of her strawberry refresher that she desecrated by adding what she called a "teensy-weensy" bit of alcohol, but we all know was more than necessary.

"I'm using my baseball scholarship to fund my courses on becoming a teacher..." he says in all seriousness and both Willow and I almost fall back from choking. Things really have changed since I have left, and apparently for the better.

"W H A T? The Kyle Espana, self-proclaimed Columbian bachelor of the century wants to be a teacher...actually I am not too surprised, you always liked mansplaining things to me," I say with a smirk and Kyle sinks a bit into his seat.

Willow clears her throat, "That was old Kyle, a guy who's main priority was to get in as many girls pants possible...even if he was taken", Willow gives me a side eye, "Kyle shaped up after preparing himself to be a father".

"Okay but seriously, a year? You really believed that?" I ask after yawning. Kyle yawns too, "I honestly had no information on pregnancy, so a year sounded pretty normal to me." Willow completes the yawn train and we all look at each other, I take in the moment as the start of many more to come.

"Alright let's going we are clearly getting tired, I got a date with officer boy-toy and I plan on introducing him to the church so I will need as much energy as possible," says Willow. We all get up and head back to Kyle's car. Kyle shoots me a look to show his own amazement to Willow's remark as well. Willow was a funny one, a devout Christian but also quite the loose cannon. Willow always said that abstinence was something only the devil could have made up. Our long distant video calls always consisted of a new partner of hers.

"Woah, that serious?" I asked amazed at the fact that Willow might actually want to stay with someone for more than a month. I get in the passenger seat and Willow sits in the back. As Kyle pulls out of the parking lot and onto the street I turn on the radio. Several stations are dead but eventually, we come across the kids' radio station. At first, the sound of Kidz Bop makes the three of us groan but we end up caving in and singing along. Kyle takes the long way back to the university in order for us to make the most out of the music.

The music briefly cuts out before the voice of a concerned woman comes through, "Unfortunately we interrupt your entertainment with disturbing news." The three of us exchange looks of worry as we noticed the street was getting more and more covered with yellow police tape. "Northern Park is currently being closed off for an undetermined amount of time as officers investigate two bodies found earlier in the afternoon." As we get closer to the park more police cars with their respective officers appear to direct traffic.

When we drive past the actual park I set myself up higher to get a better look. I watch as two body length bags are placed in a white van labeled "Coroner". Just beyond the statue in the middle of the park is a weird distortion in the air. The distortion is not obvious but it is clear enough for me to see the difference compared to the rest of the park, but nobody seems to notice it besides me. It looks vaguely familiar but it also leaves a sour taste in my mouth. I shift my gaze and lock eyes with an investigator who appears to notice me too as his arm goes limp and lets the pen and notepad hang by his side. With the park almost out of sight, I switch from the investigator and steal one more look at the distorted air, a pit in my stomach grows.

***Next Chapter is Thursday-21/06/18***