Arabella Helado hastily grabbed an apple from the array of fruit lined up on the fruit tray, while pulling on her boots. Her mother would definitely chide her for wearing her shoes in the newly-refurbished marble kitchen, but that could wait until after school. Walking a lap around the kitchen in an attempt to break in the thigh-high brown suede shoes, Arabella Helado contemplated the new situation she had cascaded into.  

After spending a long summer vacation in Southern Cali with her uncle and his alluring shiny new step-wife, she exuded an effortless tan, after arduous hours spent on the Californian beach wearing her skimpiest bikini. With the help of Naomi, her step-aunt that still attracted the attention of teenage boys,  she had finally managed to shed a few pounds, get her hands on contacts and irrevocably removed the metal wires from her mouth, revealing a set of gleaming straight white teeth. That summer her life had changed- people started to look at her, realize her existence. Visits to the mall had resulted in a heaving wardrobe, filled with low-cut shorts and top that she could never dream to wear before.

The harsh truth of it was that Rowena was dead, and someone had to take her place. If the Willowheart queen bee had fallen, she had to be replaced. 

She knew that every girl returning to Willowheart would be ready. Hair blown out. Nails perfectly manicured. Rouge lipstick applied. 

The contest had already begun. And Arabella was going to win, no matter what the cost. 

***

Mrs Meyer was nervous, anxious and very,very tired. Anybody could tell, just by looking at the crinkled lines of stress forming on her forehead, the chronic, continuous strain placed on her shoulders, her back slowly sagging under the weight. Police were swarming across her school, looking for signs of Rowena's suicide. Apparently, it couldn't be formally ruled one, until they found some kind of evidence that she was in a bad state of mind. 

What did they think it was, a murder? The investigation so far had ruled nothing out, so they continued tarnishing the shred of reputation the school still had.

Emails flooded her inbox, disgruntled parents explaining that their girls wouldn't return back to Willowheart. It was a miracle if this term's attendance was even half of before summer. The attention was becoming too much for Mrs Meyer, taking a toll on her health and continuously straining her already rocky relationship with her husband. The media was slowly cornering Willowheart too- the esteemed exclusive institution she had build from rock-bottom, painted by the media to be a 'breeding ground for drugs, alcohol and stressed students, run by a pig that couldn't care less.' The only event that slightly submerged the media attention was the closure of a public school by the mayor, but even that couldn't result in diverging the dark cloud that was lashing out above Willowheart.

Mrs Meyer inhaled, noticing her faltering breath and caught sight of her rugged appearance in the dark screen of her laptop. Her wiry dark hair was tied firmly back into a ponytail, a few stray grey strands escaping from the rest. Deep-set wrinkles had formed beneath her weary eyes, and she was unable to differentiate between them and the dark eye bags. Her lips were white and pursed. She looked like she was on the verge of tears.

That was it. The final straw. Her time had come. There was a perfectly drafted resignation email tucked away in her inbox; all she had to do was press send. 

Yet, there was something tying her to Willowheart. Nostalgia. Or something of that sort. 

It was over. There was nothing that nobody could do to save the once-revered Willowheart from drowning along with Rowena. 

The best thing anybody could do at this point, was leave. An email popped up in her inbox. She clicked on it without thinking.

Mrs Meyer was right about leaving. But, she didn't get the chance to set sail from Willowheart, before it was too late.

Scared? Well, this is just the beginning. The lights were dimmed, the stage set and someone lurking in the shadows, playing the puppet master. Their grip tightening on each one of our protagonists.

A death, presumed suicide. A murderer contained within the school. It wasn't looking good for Willowheart Academy.