16

Alyssa was standing outside the hospital, pacing in circles and checking her phone, looking anxious and biting her nails, when Leif tapped her on the shoulder, causing her to return the tap with sad eyes.

"He hasn't called yet?" he inquires, his voice worried.

"He should've called by now," she said, sighing heavily. "I'm getting worried what if something bad happens to him? Should we call the cops?" she suggested as she gripped his shirt tightly.

"I'm sure he's fine, no need to call the cops," Leif reassured her. "Perhaps he's just really busy that's why he hasn't called yet."

"I don't know, I just have this strange feeling that something bad happened to him, and I don't like it," she said as she let go of his hand.

"Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be alright; come on, let's go back inside; your friends have just arrived," he added with a smile.

"Go ahead, I'll stay here for a bit; I need to clear my thoughts," she said, sighing hard.

After Leif had departed, he nodded and swiftly returned inside. Alyssa takes a walk around the hospital to distract herself from her worries about Angelo. She rested on a seat under the shadow of the cherry blossom after a long stroll.

She sighed deeply as she checked her phone, and it was then that she received a call from Elvira.

"Hey, Elvira," she spoke hurriedly, "I heard you guys are here, why did you call by the way? I was about to go back to Clydesdale room."

"You best come back here immediately," Elvira said, "because Jordan just got some significant news to relay about what occurred yesterday."

"Okay, cool. I'm coming, lol," Alyssa replied, chuckling as she stood up and shook her head.

Elvira hung up when Alyssa claimed she was on her way. She arrived at the Clydesdale room a few minutes later.

Everyone was confused and anxious as she entered the room and asked what the news was.

"Well, you'd best sit down for this one," Jordan advised as he inhaled deeply.

Alyssa looked perplexed, but immediately sat down and inquired, "So, what is it?"

"So, yesterday we got the biggest news ever: one of our classmates, Abegail, was found dead on the school's rooftop; not only that, but they also posted her body on our school's page, which was quickly deleted by the school's TECH organization; no one knows who killed her, but some anonymous person on the page said the killer is in our class," Jordan elaborated.

"Why is our class becoming entangled with a lunatic killer?" Camille shouted, hiding her lips.

"We're not sure whether someone in our class is the murderer; let's not leap to conclusions; our class isn't getting involved; it's just a rumor," Jordan speculates as Camille calms down.

"Are they implying that our class is the one that has been murdering people?" she wondered. "Just because we're the third to last section, doesn't mean it's someone in our class," she said.

"Well, I don't believe it's for that reason that they're pointing out that someone in our class is the killer," Elvira wonders, "but what if it's real and it's not just a rumor?"

"Are you serious?" Camille questions, her eyes widening. "Are you suggesting the accusations are true?"

Elvira shrug "What I'm trying convey is, What if there is one but I didn't imply that the reports are genuine" she remarked.

"We still don't know who the killer is or whether the murderer is in our class or not," Jordan shrugged.

"We have evidence," Camille says, pointing out the man Jelyn contacted. "He can help us locate down the killer."

"You're correct. Clydesdale, you have the guy's number, right? Can you phone him?" Jordan agreed while asking Clydesdale.

"You fool, he doesn't remember a thing," Alyssa smacks Jordan on the shoulder. "Here, let me contact the person."

"But wait," Elvir says, grinning, "do you know Clydesdale's phone password?"

Alyssa nodded and typed the phone password without hesitation. "Okay, I'm in," she stated, eliciting gasps from the audience. She said, "What?" with a puzzled expression.

"How did you figure out his password?" Elvira inquires as she nudges her elbow.

"Will you please stop doing that. He told me, captain clearly, and there's no hidden meaning behind it. Okay, so, cease it," she replied, rolling her eyes.

"All right, Mrs. Lawrence," Elvira taunted, poking her elbow once more.

"Stop that," she shouted, "I'm calling the man, and I'll walk outside to take this call," she added as she exited the room.

Camille asks, wondering, "So, who do you suppose it is?"

"Well, we're not sure whether the killer is truly in our class," Jordan explained, "so let's just wait for the man Alyssa contacted and see who it is."

"However, if you were to guess who it was, who would you choose?" Elvira said as she posed the question.

"Well, I hate to blame someone because there is no actual evidence," Jorsan said, "but I'll go with my instinct on this one and it's Limuel for me."

"Why him? It's because of his silence," Camille says, lifting an eyebrow.

"Well, sure. I mean, he's quiet, but I don't think he did it," Jordan responded.

"Well, I have one. Her name is Jelyn," Elvira explained.

"Why Jelyn? She hasn't done anything," they said, as everyone gazed at her in disbelief.

"I mean, it might be her or it could be someone else," Elvira remarked, shrugging her shoulders.

"How about you, Camille?" Jordan inquires.

"Well, I don't know who it is yet, but I'll go with Jelyn as well. I know what you're thinking, she hasn't done anything wrong," Camille continued, "but, I'd say she's behind it all. She thinks we wouldn't suspect her since she's our friend."

"Well, I spoke with the man, and he claimed that there was an error concerning the outcome on who killed Anne and Abegail," Alyssa explained.

"You see, this is the evidence that Jelyn is the one who killed Anne and Abegail," Camille continued. "Remember, she's the one who requested for the man's phone number, and we didn't receive the reply about the findings after three days, which implies Jelyn had contact the man and didn't inform us about it" she pointed out with a proud smile.

"She knew that if we got the findings first, we'd know who the killer is," Elvira explained as she stood up.

Everyone applauded and said, "Wow, we already have a lead on who our killer is," as though they couldn't believe they had solved the case.

"But, are you sure it's whose name it is again. Oh, right, Jelyn," Clydesdale expressed his skepticism.

They had no idea that Leif was listening in on their talk from behind the closed door. He instantly departed and informed Jelyn of what he had heard.

"I'm convinced, after all, we have all the proof that she's the one who did it," Camille boasted.

"Hey, you guys. Have you seen Kuya Angelo anywhere? He hasn't returned since yesterday, and I can't reach him either," Alyssa remarked, her face concerned as she checked her phone many times.

"I'm sure he'll be OK," Elvira replied, hugging her from behind. "Besides, he's an adult, he can handle himself," Elvira said with a smile.

"Even as an adult, I'm worried. Maybe he's gone. Ugh, this can't be. Kuya is missing, Abegail is dead, and Clydesdale can't remember a thing. It's all my fault. I'm the one to blame for everything going apart," Alyssa sobbed as she sank to her knees.

"No, don't say that," Clydesdale replied, standing up and reassuring Alyssa from behind while touching her shoulder. "None of this is your fault, so don't blame yourself," Clydesdale continued.

Alyssa started screaming and blaming herself while hitting her head against the wall, which surprised everyone and caused the males stop her from doing it.

"This isn't like you; please, don't harm yourself for the sake of others," Clydesdale implored, his voice troubled.

"Oh my God! You're bleeding!" said Camille, terrified.

"Take Alyssa to the emergency room with Elvira and Clydesdale," Jordan urged.

Jordan and Camille were left in the Clydesdale room after they both nodded and rushed to the emergency department.

"Poor girl, she must have been so frustrated that she believes she was the one who did it," Camille murmured, her voice mournful.

"I've never seen this side of Alyssa before, so when she started beating on the wall, I was taken aback," Jordan explained.

"Should we contact the cops and leave it to them to find Jelyn?" Camille offers.

"We could," Jordan said, "but we're not sure whether it was Jelyn who did it. What if there's a reason why she's doing all of this?" he wondered, shrugging his shoulders.

Camille ponders as she crosses her legs and sits down. "Do you hear yourself right now. What do you mean she's not the one who did it? It's apparent she's the one. Are you on her side?" she asks, suspiciously.

"What do you mean, I'm not siding with her," Jordan scoffs, rolling his eyes. "What I meant was, let the professionals handle this, I mean your the one who suggested it earlier" he says.

"Oh, right," Camille laughs uneasily. "Sorry, I was too fast to judge," she apologizes.

"All right, let's hire a detective. A good one this time, since we can't risk this case being unresolved if Jelyn is the one we're looking for," Jordan explained as he pondered.

Camille said, "Do you know any competent detectives that could file our case?"

He pointed out, "In fact, I do have one," as he swiftly phoned someone on his phone. He exited the room and said, "I'll be right back."

They arranged to meet later that night at a coffee shop after Jordan talked on the phone for a few minutes.