♥Chapter 40: ᴡʜᴇʀᴇ ꜱʜᴇ ᴘʟᴀʏꜱ ᴅᴇᴀᴅ♥

✿Kennedy✿

Jake walks away and calls out Toothy's name.

Toothy looks up from splashing someone and grins at Jake before waving at him to come down. He shakes his head and gestures with his head to follow him. She frowns in confusion before swimming to the edge of the pool and pulling herself up.

Jake starts walking into the house and Toothy rushes after him while fumbling to wrap a towel around herself.

Someone taps on my arm before I let out a muffled yelp as Corey pulls my hand behind him. We stumble in the direction of Jake and Toothy.

"Where are we going?" I ask Corey.

He leans his head towards me, whispering, "We're gonna follow them."

My eyebrows raise, "You think Jake would want us to follow them?"

I mean what happened with Toothy is something really personal and even though Corey and I are close to them, I don't think Jake and Toothy would want us prodding into things that are personal between them.

Corey shrugs, "It can't be that bad."

They're going to the police station to see Toothy's rapist.

That is bad.

Right?

Should I tell Corey where they're going?

I keep silent, afraid I might blurt something out that Jake made me promise to not tell anyone.

Corey pulls me into a room and throws open a wardrobe. He takes out random clothes before throwing them at me.

We change our wet clothes; I, in the bathroom and Corey in the room.

Once we were changed, we run out of the mansion just in time to see Jake's car driving away.

Corey takes my hand and we run to his car. He quickly starts the car and follows Jake onto the streets.

"Scoot a little low," Corey tells me, "We don't want Jake seeing us then busting our ass."

Corey and I scoot lower into our seats.

My hands clutch the sides of my seat in a tight grip.

"Where the hell are they going?" Corey mutters under his breath.

"The police station."

"Oh, the police st—What?!" Corey's eyes widen.

"What?" I blink in confusion.

"What did you say?"

"What did I say?"

"That's what I'm asking you."

"What are you asking me—Oh." My mouth opens in realization. "Crap."

"Why the fuck are they going to the police station out of nowhere?" Corey asks me.

Corey glances at me when I don't open my mouth. I'm scared to blurt something else.

"Kennedy?" Corey asks in a different tone.

"Hmm?"

"What does the fox say?"

"What?" My eyebrows raise.

"I asked, what does the fox say?"

"Umm—"

"WHAT DOES THE FOX SAY?"

"Ring-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!" I erupt, singing, vaguely remembering listening to this song when I was little.

"We are a part of the rhythm nation." Corey sings randomly before yelling, "Everybody!"

"We are a part of the rheee-them nationnn." I sing along with him.

"Where are Jake and Toothy going?"

"To the po-lice stationnn." I sing.

"And whyyy is that?" He sings.

"Nice try but I'm not stu-pid Cor-ryyy."

"Damnit." He mumbles under his breath.

Did I almost sing out the answer though?

Yes.

Corey doesn't ask me again and only follows Jake and Toothy.

Soon we reach the police station, but Corey waits from far for Jake and Toothy to park and get out first.

Toothy gets down from the car, looking confused while Jake's face remains in a hard expression.

Her lips mouth the words 'why are we here?' to Jake. Jake only puts his hand on Toothy's arm and guides her inside the police station.

Corey shuts off the ignition and gets out. I jump off the car while taking in a pump from my inhaler and tumble after Corey into the police station.

Our eyes roam around the police station in search of Toothy and Jake.

"There!" I point.

We catch the sight of Toothy's glossy sheet of brown hair right before it disappears down a corridor.

Before Corey and I could follow them, a deep voice stops us from behind.

"And what might Corey Matthews be doing here?"

Corey and I turn around.

"Baldy." I recognize the police officer, whose precious gun I had in my precious hands.

Baldy narrows his eyes at me, "Kenney Kinky."

I narrow my eyes at him, "Uneducated Baldy who leaves guns unsupervised on his table."

"We're in a hurry, Dean." Corey interrupts. "Gotta catch up with my buddy Jake in there."

Dean nods his head, "Right. We finally caught the rapist."

An expression of pure shock appears on Corey's face before he masks it with continuous nodding, "Exactly."

Corey's grip tightens on my hand.

"Well." Dean gestures us off. "Be on it then."

As soon as Corey and I turn around and walk into the corridor, Corey lets his expression of shock appear all over his face.

"They caught him...?" He whispers.

I give a nod.

"How?"

"Jake's been working on it secretly," I mumble.

Corey looks at my face. Too many expressions crossing his face.

After a few seconds, we resume creeping down the corridor, peeking into rooms to look for Jake and Toothy. We come to an abrupt halt when we find them.

Their backs are facing us and Corey takes the perfect opportunity to slip him and me into the room and behind a wooden divider.

We couldn't see a lot through the tiny holes on the divider, but we can see enough.

Enough to see Toothy's slight panicking state and Jake's hands into tight fists.

"What's going, Jake? Why are we here?" She whispers to him.

Jake doesn't respond and only clenches his jaw.

We all wait in the room until a minute later, a man with his hands handcuffed behind his back trudges into the room with a police officer holding his cuffs from the back.

"Here." The police officer says, giving a slight push to the tall and broad man in front of him.

Toothy and Jake turn around to look.

A look of realization comes on Toothy's face—she screams.

Toothy's screaming. Her scream is so loud it sends a shock through my entire body. Corey's hand flies to his mouth to stop a gasp. Jake hurries to put a comforting arm around her shoulder.

But Toothy's pushing away from him. There's terror in her eyes and her face is white with shock.

The police officer quickly pulls the man out of the room before I could catch the man's reaction.

Jake tries to take Toothy's hands but she's stumbling away from him.

"Toothy! Please!" Jake pleads, "Listen to me."

"Stay away from me!" Toothy moves back until her back hits the wall and she slides down, her body shaking and trembling violently, not even realizing that there are tears running down her face.

"Toothy," Jake's voice softens but he makes no move to approach her.

A sob escapes Toothy's mouth and her hands come on her face, making my heart clench and shatter into a million pieces at the same time.

I don't even wanna look at Corey to see what expression is on his face.

"Toothy, please." Jake pleads again.

Toothy shakes her head, shrinking into the corner of the room.

"Toothy you're safe. He won't do anything-" Jake says as lightly as possible.

"He was supposed to be gone forever."

"He will. He will. He'll go into prison and-"

Toothy snaps her head up and looks up at Jake.

"Please tell me it wasn't you who found him."

Jake opens his mouth then closes it, "Toothy, I..."

"How could you?" Toothy stares at it him.

She gets up on her feet and yells, "How could you?"

"Toothy, he abused you and raped you for a whole year," Jake says carefully, "He needs to go to prison."

"So you find him and bring me here to what?" Toothy snaps, "To show me that you've done something good for me?"

"I-" Jake starts.

"I told you I want nothing to do with him! I told you I was getting better!" Toothy's voice raises until she's yelling, "I told you-I told you I was moving on. Why did you bring him in front of me, Jake?"

"Toothy I thought..."

"You thought what?"

"That you wanted to see him behind bars." Jake mumbles.

"I didn't want to see him!" She yells. "I never wanted to see him ever again!"

"Toothy—"

"Not everyone chases revenge! You knew I wanted to forget all about him! You think bringing him in front of me will help that?"

"I'm sorry." Jake's voice lowers.

"Bringing him in front of me like that when I was completely vulnerable and unguarded!"

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Toothy." Jake repeatedly says.

"Did you ask me if I wanted to see him? Did you make sure I was ready to see him? Did you really find him for me?" Toothy stares at him. "Or did you do it only to find another way to spend your time instead of drowning in grief for your mom?"

Jake almost stumbles back as if Toothy's words had reached out and punched him.

"I knew it." Toothy shakes her head at Jake's expression. "You didn't think making him stand in front of me would bring back the memories of what he did? It literally feels as if I've got slapped in the face."

"You knew how much time it took for me to finally get control over it," Toothy continues, "You knew how much time it took for me to cope with the horrible things he'd done—"

Her voice breaks, and this time Jake reaches out toward her. He puts his arms around her.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Toothy. Please."

She cries, her body taking support from Jake's.

Corey's eyes fix firmly on Jake and Toothy, his expressions closed off and stoic.

Something about Corey's expression seems off to me at this moment.

"You're right," Jake says, gripping Toothy to him, "I spent my time finding him as an excuse to drown myself in something or the other." A gulp goes down Jake's throat, "I...guess I always did make excuses to ignore the grief."

"Jake," Toothy sighs heavily, "You know I've always been here for you. Losing Amelia was like losing my own mother, you know that. You didn't have to ignore your feelings. I know it was hard for you."

Jake loosens his arms around Toothy, and she steps back, looking up at Jake while wiping her face.

"Every one of us suffers and experiences loss in our lives, Jake. Imagine if everyone chose to ignore their feelings? This world would be a lonely place. You think I've been moving on by ignoring my feelings?" Toothy asks, taking Jake's hands in hers, "I've let myself feel the trauma. I've let myself drown in fear and panic and the horrors of what happened to me. I know what it's like to feel those things, that's why I know how to get rid of them."

He remains silent.

It finally takes him a few seconds to look up at Toothy, "I should have asked you first."

"You should have." Toothy nods.

"I should have told you I was looking for him behind your back."

"You should have."

"I should have opened to you about mom."

"Again." Toothy gives a nod. "You should have."

"I'm sorry."

Toothy takes in a steady breath, releasing it through her mouth. She lets herself lean against Jake.

"I know it's hard for you but you need to express yourself sometimes." She says.

Jake brings his arms around hers, not responding to Toothy's words.

"What do you want to do with him now?" He asks Toothy.

Toothy's face goes a little rigid, "I don't know. I don't care. I just don't want to see him ever again."

He nods.

Corey and I look at each other, releasing a silent breath.

"You both can come out now!" Jake calls out.

Corey and I freeze.

"Does he mean...us?" Corey mouths to me, wide-eyed.

"No?" I mouth back.

"Let's pretend we're dead," Corey suggests.

I give him a thumbs up.

We both slowly slide down to the floor and lay beside each other, putting out our tongues and pretending to be dead.

"Corey, Kennedy. I know you're both behind that divider." Jake's voice addresses us flatly.

"I'm one hundred percent sure they're playing dead right now. If not Kennedy then Corey." Toothy says, "It's his go-to move of getting out of things."

"Yeah, I know." Jake sighs.

Footsteps thud our way and I force myself to remain calm with my eyes casually closed.

I feel a shadow over me, and I know Jake's standing over me.

"Oh, dear." Jake voices out in boredom, "Whatever do I do with these bodies?"

A foot nudges my ankle but I refuse to open my eyes.

If Corey isn't giving up his act, then who the heck am I to give up?

"Sad we'd have to dump these bodies in the trashcan now," Jake says again and I know he's talking bullcrap.

"I'm not picking up Corey though," Toothy says beforehand.

"Let's delete all his social media accounts first. People need to know their star truly died." Jake says.

"Don't you dare touch my phone!" Corey bolts up as fast as lightning.

A moment of excruciating silence passes.

"Fine, you got us. But seriously, even if I did die, none of you are allowed to touch my social media accounts, got that?"

A smack echoes through the room and Corey yelps.

Jake hit Corey, didn't he?

"Who the fuck told you to follow us?" Jake yells.

"Erm...Kennedy." Corey answers.

Liar!

Discreetly, I try to pinch Corey's leg, making sure Toothy and Jake weren't looking.

Corey yelps.

"Did that dead body just pinch Corey?" Toothy asks.

Oops.

I'm still gonna act dead though.

If Corey gave up, doesn't mean I have to. I'm tougher than this.

"Yeah, it fucking did!" Corey scowls.

"You can stop playing now, Kennedy," Jake says.

I don't respond.

"Kennedy."

"Kennedy."

Jake raps his knuckles on my forehead, "Get up. Your act isn't even selling that good."

I internally narrow my eyes. How dare he?

"Hey, Kennedy?" Jake asks, "If there's something strange in your neighbourhood, who you gonna call?"

Don't do it.

Don't do it.

Don't do it.

I can't help it.

I yell.

"GHOSTBUSTERS!"

I sit up grinning ear to ear, surprised that Jake even knew Ghostbusters before face-palming, realizing that I've given up on my act.

I narrow my eyes at Jake, "You don't play fair."

Jake smirks in response, "Gotcha."

"Let's get out of here, please." Toothy mutters.

Jake nods and helps me off the floor, before slinging his arm over my shoulder.

We all walk out of the room and out the corridor.

My eyes spot Baldy's gun on his table - unsupervised - on the way out of the police station. I try creeping towards it.

"Don't." Jake tightens his hold around me, steering me out the police station doors.

I narrow my eyes before reaching out to pat his cheek twice, "Soon, Barbie. Soon."

✄ ✄ ✄ ✄

I clearly got kinda lazy with this chapter and didn't bother editing it too much.

How did I use to go to school before, come back home and still felt energetic? Istg nowadays, I'm literally dead and can't do a single thing without feeling sleepy. WHERE THE FUCK DOES THE TIME GO???

IT'S JUNE ALREADY? FR? SO QUICK?

Words: 2,500

Date of publishing: 2nd June 2022