Never The Same

Chapter Five

Luke insisted on following me to all of my classes, even though I told him he didn't have to. He said it was to "protect me". But I don't need it. I don't want it. It makes me feel like something bad was about to happen, and I don't actually know that's true. I think that Dr. Bryce asked him to, because he gave me a bottle of antibiotics.

"What's this," I asked.

"Antibiotics," he answered casually.

"Antibiotics for what?"

"For you." He was making it into a joke now.

"Very funny. Why?"

"She said it was to help keep your visions away. The flashbacks you have been seeing."

I was right, it was Dr. Bryce. "I haven't been seeing visions or flashbacks."

"You're lying."

"No I'm not."

"Here," he hands me the bottle. "You have to take it three times a day."

How does she know I've been seeing things? What else does she know about me? Did Luke tell her? Should I have trusted him with a secret like this? But I didn't. Jenna did. I wanted to stop thinking, and it wasn't hard once my phone rang.

It was the same number from a few days ago. I looked at Luke and then at my phone again. The other day no one answered, but I decided to pick it up anyway.

"This isn't you," I whisper to Luke, covering part of the phone with my hand. He shakes his head. I talk into the phone. "Hello."

There wasn't an answer.

"Hello? Who is this?"

"Don't you remember me Emma?"

I ended the call and dropped my phone. I guess Luke knew I would run, because he grabbed me before I could. I was breathing deeply and fighting back tears. He held me and told me to calm down. I was still fidgeting in his arms.

"Have you ever thought about joining the track team?"

I laughed. Not a real lot, but I did. He let go of me when the bell rang. It was time for lunch. He couldn't stay with me, because he had to make up an english test. But I was actually fine with it. There wasn't a need for him to be with me all the time. Anyway, I still eat lunch with Miss Kent. I didn't need him tagging along for that.

I went to her room and sat in the chair closest to her desk. She was on her computer, and before she takes down the scene, I see a glimpse of different hallways.

"What? How, um-"

"I hacked the school's security."

"You can do that?"

"Not legally. I used to work for the government, but then I switched to the TAU and worked in that basic area for a while."

"And now you're a history teacher?"

"I was fired because I looked too far into a case. They told me if I kept looking into it and trying to find evidence or more reasons to convict the real murderer, that I would be let go. But it's my job to find out the truth, and they didn't want that. So I left."

"What are you saying?"

"Ellie, I don't know how to tell you this, but Asher didn't kill Brooke."

"No," I say. "It had to be him, no one else would've had the motive to kill her."

"Even Carter? Because I know they were good friends."

"Carter? I haven't seen him in years." I was crying again. I didn't want to believe it. "So, that's why Asher was released? How do you know?"

"Watch this."

A security video was playing. There was a room, with two people. Brooke and Asher. They both had guns pointing at one another. Brooke was saying something. It looked like "put the gun down, or I'll kill both of you." Asher bent down, slowly releasing his grip of the gun. Then a bullet sped across the room and hit Brooke. She fell to the ground and Asher got up. He went over and looked at her. I think he said "she's still breathing, let's go." He ran out of the room, but another bullet was shot at the camera and the screen went blurry.

"They were saying things. Is there any audio?"

"No, but I zoomed in and the angle of the shot is too high for Asher's gun."

"This is crazy. Why is this happening to me?"

"I don't know."

It just doesn't make sense. If Carter was there, why didn't he come into the room? Why shoot the camera after? What if Carter did it, because he wanted to save Brooke? That's just it, he shot it because he knew no one would find her there and he didn't mean to kill her, but he also didn't want anyone to know he's there. Maybe it does make sense.

"What now," I ask.

"You have to tell someone. You've told your parents, right?"

"No, I don't want anyone else to know."

"Well, legally I can't tell anyone. But please, I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Nothing will. I'm just going away for a while."

"Where to?"

"If I tell you where, you can find me. I want to be untraceable."

"At least tell me when."

"Soon, but don't tell anyone."

An alert went off on the computer. There was a lockdown. Miss Kent locked the door and shut the curtains. I climbed on top of the desk in the far corner of the room. I pushed up on the ceiling and threw my phone as far as I could. I got down and threw the antibiotics into the trash.

"What was that," Miss Kent asks.

"My phone. Untraceable, remember?" She slightly nods her head. "Can I use the window to get out?"

"Yeah, but come back soon. And please, Ella, please be careful."

"I'll try."

I open the window and climb out onto the roof. I looked to the left, then to the right to make sure there wasn't anyone coming. No one was. I wasn't worried about it being Asher. I figured that he's coming, but he's not here yet. I get off the building and find my way home.

I know that Miss Kent and Luke mean well, but there are some things in life that people just don't understand until it happens to them. And this is one of those things. I have to be strong and make my own choices. I have decide what I think is right. Because only I can know what this is like. So, only I know the consequence of my choices.