Kate

I took a deep breath as I looked up at Westhill High School. Today was my first day back from all the drama with Valerie and Black Rose in general.

Before I made it to the front door, someone placed a hand on my arm. I turned around and broke into a smile. "Let's do this," Bethany said, linking her arm through mine.

I was ecstatic after I found out that Bethany transferred to Westhill after everything happened at Black Rose. She was willing to stick by my side every step of the way.

"Okay," I replied, sighing. We walked through the large double doors into a crowded hallway filled with kids.

The minute I stepped foot inside, eyes turned to stare at me. Don't get me wrong: I was used to people staring at me, but this stare was different.

It was judgmental.

"Let's go to your locker," Bethany whispered, guiding me to another section of the main hallway designated for lockers.

We arrived at my locker a few minutes before the first bell rang. As I gathered my textbooks and pencils, I saw a note flutter out from my locker.

"Bethany, can you get that?" I asked, grunting from the weight of my textbooks. I repositioned them on my arm as Bethany picked up the note.

She read it to herself before saying, "It's nothing important. We'd better get to class. Got to get that education."

I blocked her path as she tried to maneuver around me. I was beginning to get a little impatient. "What does it say?"

Bethany sighed. "It says 'I'll be back.'"

Those three words kick started my brain into action. I began thinking about who could have written the note. If it were Valerie, that meant that she either broke house arrest or got someone to plant this note for her. I was guessing it was the latter.

"Just throw it away. It's probably some kid that's messing with us," I said, ignoring all of my radical possibilities.

Bethany must have seen the doubt on my face because she said, "It's not Valerie." I just shook my head.

After tossing the note in the garbage can, we headed to my first class. Since Bethany's class was right next to mine, we didn't have to go separate ways.

"I honestly think that note-" I began to say before Bethany cut me off.

"Forget the note. The last thing we need is another distraction from your education," Bethany interrupted.

Knowing she was right, I decided to drop the subject for now. School was always first on my priority list. I knew I wouldn't be able to focus if I kept thinking about a three-word note.

"Want to get some Chic Coffee later?" I asked Bethany, trying to change the topic to a more light-hearted one.

She smiled and nodded. "Of course."

Wanting to avoid the rush of kids, I hurried into my classroom and took a seat. For the time being, I was able to forget the note and all of my questions and just pay attention to my teacher.

"Good morning class. I have all the homework written on the board," my teacher announced. She pointed to the long list of assignments to the right.

As I copied down all the homework assignments, a thought struck me. This was going to be a long day.