I plead. "Let me talk to Asia, then. Let's drive by."
"I can't let you go inside."
"What if everyone came outside?" I raise a brow, coming up with a crazy idea. When I tell Trystan the idea, to my surprise, he agrees.
_____
When we enter the quad at my college, Trystan and I split up, but not too far. He stays out in the open and sits under a tree with a guitar on his lap. I walk by a group of girls and press Trystan's phone to my ear. It's not on, but it looks like I'm talking to someone. "I swear to God, it's Trystan Scott. He's under a tree in the quad. Get over here!" They hear me and start squealing. I walk in a circle and repeat the same thing a few times in front of different groups of people. Instantly, students and teachers start to come out of the surrounding buildings and flock to him.
I wait outside my building. Asia will come out. I know she will. It seems like she's the last person to find out, but when she does, the girl comes racing down the stairs and flies out the door. Halfway across the quad, I fall into step with her. We're in a mass of people. "Hey, Asia!"
"Avery!" She stops, hugs me, and sounds giddy. "Is it really him?" She looks across the quad, standing on her tippie toes, trying to see past all the people.
"Yeah, it is. He's singing. It's the coolest thing ever." We walk together and talk about Trystan. She's really excited, so I get straight to it. "Was there a guy in Amber's room last night, before Naked Guy?"
Her lip curls. "Yeah, the old British dude. He was such a prick. He slammed the door on me when he was leaving. Where is the whore, anyway? She skipped finals today and even though she's a total Skankerella, it was unlike her."
They don't know? How is that possible? Lying, I say, "I'm not sure. Have fun listening to Trystan play. I'll be right back."
"You're not staying?"
"I need to grab something from my room." Well, I actually need to see if my dead roommate is still there. How could the entire night pass and nobody noticed?
Even though I promised Trystan and Sean that I wouldn't go into the dorm again, I do. I run up the stairs and down the empty halls until I get to my room. The silence is a little eerie. My skin prickles as those horrible memories of Amber with blood dripping down her face reappear vividly in my mind. It's my fault she's dead. I even feel bad for Naked Guy. He was a jackass, but Mel pounding him was enough for me. I didn't need him killed, not like that. As I think about it my stomach twists. He was shot several times, in places that don't kill, tortured until the final shot went through his head.
Stop! By the time I reach my room, I'm scolding myself to stop. I'm so nervous that I'm shaking and my body is ready to wretch. The silence just makes it worse. Everyone must have run out to see Trystan.
As I reach for my knob, key in hand, I tremble. I don't want to see that bloody scene again. It was so horrific, but I unlock the door and push it open. After I scan the room, my jaw drops.
She's gone.
He's gone.
There's no blood, no trace of anything. I stagger back and shiver, wrapping my arms tightly around my middle. Where are the bodies? How'd the blood come out of the white bedspread? There isn't a drop. There's no trace that anything happened here last night at all.
I glance at my dresser and grab my Mom's cross and stuff it into my pocket. I'm so scared, so terrified. Only someone with money and power could clean this up without anyone noticing, and only two people come to mind—Black and Mrs. Ferro. For a second, I'm afraid it was Sean. Even whore-y Amber deserves a funeral. Her family will never know what happened to her. It'll look like she ran off with Naked Guy right before graduation. No one will know they were murdered right here in this room.
The hairs on the back of my neck prickle as I feel eyes on my back. I round swiftly and scream, ready to throw a punch.
"Hey, calm down little miss ninja." Marty has his hands up, palms facing me. "What's wrong, skittish chick? I've been looking for you, and from the looks of it, you're in serious need of an ice cream binge." He leans on the doorframe, and folds his arms across his chest. His sandy hair is slicked back, and today he's wearing a suit that makes him look like one of the dudes on Mad Men.
When I realize it's him, I slap his arm and squeak, "Don't sneak up on me like that!"
Marty laughs. "I wasn't exactly quiet."
"You know what I mean." My voice quivers when I speak, even though I try to hide it. Marty straightens and looks down at me with concern, but I don't offer any hints as to what's bothering me. It's bad enough that I pulled Trystan into this. I'm not risking Marty, too. I have to get out of here. I race around my room and grab the few relics that matter most to me, besides the cross. There are only a handful of objects. I stuff them in my book bag after dumping out the educational contents on the floor and kicking them into my closet.