The Vanishing Girls Of Willow Creek (Willow Creek, #1)

Chapter Five

Death is not the opposite of life, but a part of it - Haruki Murakami

When I woke up Monday morning, I was already dreading going to school.

The events of the weekend - locating Miranda - was sure to be on everyone's minds, and lips.

Groaning, I dragged myself from beneath the bliss of my comforter.

Brushing my teeth, washing my face with my mom's homemade facial scrub, and applying my eyeliner to save time, I exited my room, nearly bumping into Jon, who was also making his way downstairs.

The morning sun filtered through the curtains, casting a warm glow over the kitchen where Jon and I sat, mechanically eating our breakfast.

I watched as my mom rushed around the kitchen, her movements frantic yet graceful. Her curls bounced perfectly in place as if untouched by the chaos surrounding us.

"Okay guys," she said, her voice tinged with urgency. "I can't stress this enough. Please, please, please be careful." Her hazel eyes bore into ours as she raked a hand through her perfectly styled curls.

"Now that they've found that girl," she continued, referring to Miranda who had been missing for days before turning up dead yesterday, "you will need to look out for each other more than usual. Where one goes, I want the other behind. Unless it has to do with school. Do you two understand?"

We both nodded solemnly as she grabbed her purse and brushed an imaginary wrinkle from her tan blazer.

She walked over to us, giving us both a kiss on the cheek before heading towards the door. "Okay kids, I'm out of here," she said one last time. "Remember what I said, okay?"

"We will, mom," I assured her. "You don't have to worry about us. We'll be okay."

"Yeah Mrs. Masterson," Jon added with a smile. "I won't let her out of my sight... except for first period."

With a final nod and a smile, she left for work.

As we heard her car pull out of the driveway, Jon and I exchanged a knowing look. The recent discovery of Miranda's body had sent shockwaves through our small town, leaving everyone on edge.

Her disappearance had haunted us all, but now that she had been found dead, the atmosphere was suffused with an eerie tension.

"I can only imagine what today will look like," I said. "People with solemn expressions, some of them pretending to be sad she's gone."

Now that she was gone – sanctified by death as people often are – I couldn't help but wonder how those who once feared or hated her would react now that she had been found.

Jon nodded solemnly. "Her friends were already acting strange when she was missing. I wonder how they'll react now that she's been found."

I couldn't help but wonder myself. Miranda had made life difficult for many people at school, myself included. But now that she was gone, everything felt different – like a shadow had been cast over our small community.

Miranda's friends, known for their cliquey behaviour and disdainful attitudes towards others, were sure to be on edge now that their ringleader was no more.

We both knew that Miranda's death would send ripples through our community, exposing secrets and lies buried beneath the surface. But as we headed to school that morning, little did we know just how deep those ripples would run.

We finished our breakfast in silence before heading off to face whatever awaited us at school - a place now haunted by Miranda's presence even in death.