Jennie fell back into her seat, unable to stand after the news. The table fell silent, only Rosé's sobs could be heard from the gang. "Did she...you know?" Lisa uttered softly, racked with guilt. The Australian wiped her eyes, "I don't know, everyone was saying her cellmate found her dead, I didn't hear anything more than that". "Let's find out" Wendy said calmly as she stood up, the rest of the girls following behind her. Joy wrapped her arm around Rosé's waist, comforting the distressed girl as the gang walked towards one of the girls who had come in with Rosé earlier. Jisoo got the girl's attention and pulled her to the side "do you know what happened to Nayeon? Did she kill herself?". The girl shook her head "No, she was murdered. Found dead in her bed. I reckon it was her cellmate, I mean she alerted the guards that Nayeon was dead this morning but I heard the doctors saying she'd obviously been dead all night. Her cellmate said she thought she was asleep when she saw her yesterday evening, but how likely is that?" she gossiped excitedly like it was a high school drama. Lisa spotted a familiar face out in the corridor and the gang ran out with her. "Sunmi unnie!" the Thai yelled as Doctor Lee turned around to see the small group of girls coming towards her "Lis, hey how is your head?". "Better thank you. It's about Nayeon, is it true she was murdered?" the blonde asked. Doctor Lee nodded with a sad look on her face "I'm afraid so. We can't determine the exact cause of death until the pathologist has performed an autopsy but it looks as though she was garrotted. Don't spread this around though". Dahyun whispered into Jennie's ear on behalf of herself and Chaeyoung who were confused "what does garrotted mean?". "Strangled with a weapon" the older girl responded. "Do you think it was her cellmate?" Wendy enquired. "I doubt it. Her cellmate has no known motive, alerted the guards in the morning before she left the cell and there was no possible murder weapon in there. Plus she seemed genuinely upset to me, I've recommended therapy to the chief warden though of course she is a suspect for now. In my opinion, Nayeon was killed yesterday evening before lights out and posed in bed to look like she was sleeping" Doctor Lee answered in a quiet voice as the gang listened on in horror. Doctor Lee patted Lisa on the shoulder "I have to go get back to work now, as you can see things are very dramatic at the moment. Please Lisa, Jennie and the rest of you, keep out of trouble yeah? For me?" she smiled as she turned away and left.
Rosé fell backwards against the wall, sobbing again "oh my god, Nayeon, no" she wept as Joy tried her hardest to console her. "Holy shit" Chaeyoung mumbled puffing her cheeks out as the group tried to contemplate the news. "Do you think it was Jihyo's girls?" Dahyun asked. Wendy shook her head "Nah I doubt it. They're thugs but they aren't killers, besides Jihyo and Irene are the brains of the outfit, the other members wouldn't do something so crazy without their permission and obviously they're in solitary at the moment". Jennie noticed how Lisa and Jisoo were both silent, their eyes watering "Lis, are you ok?" she said softly. Lisa stared at the wall "I made her life hell. Nayeon's last days on earth were miserable because of me". Jisoo started to cry "I told her it was her lucky day...fuck". The girls all stood around in the corridor in silence, emotional and distressed until a young warden grabbed their attention "Lisa. The chief asked me to take you into the office for questioning". "Jimin...? what?" the Thai said as she lifted her head up to see the man she tricked a while ago. The warden looked worried "It is about Nayeon's death. You are a suspect Lis". The girls all looked at Lisa with wide eyes, shocked. "A suspect? B-but" the blonde stuttered on the verge of tears. "I'm sorry Lis, I know it is ridiculous I tried telling him that it wasn't you but he wouldn't listen, you were overheard threatening to kill her a couple of months ago remember? And you've been seen picking on her now suddenly she's dead...it doesn't look good Lisa but I know you are innocent and I'm sure everything will be ok. Just come with me and don't give the chief a reason to punish you yeah?" the young warden said as he held the Thai's arm and took her into the chief's office. Before he turned the corner, Jimin looked back at the group "other's are being questioned as both suspects and witnesses so don't be surprised if you get called into one of the offices too".
"I hate this fucking place" Wendy yelled as she punched the wall.
The girls sat at the table in the food hall hoping that Lisa would soon turn up, nobody had seen her yet since the morning even though all of the gang had now been questioned about Nayeon. "This is bad guys where is she? She should've been out of questioning before we were" Joy said with worry as Dahyun and Chaeyoung nodded in agreement. Jennie was trying to act calm but she was terrified, she herself had provided the wardens with an alibi for Lisa, after all they were arguing in their cell during the evening, it all depends on whether or not the wardens believed it. Smiles appeared on the faces of the girls, particularly on Jisoo as Lisa finally came into view, being closely followed by Jimin which Jennie couldn't deny bothered her quite a bit. "LISA" Dubchaeng squealed happily as the blonde approached the table. Lisa smiled and gave them both a hug before sitting down next to Jennie who looked at the Thai with relief, grabbing her hand under the table. Jisoo leaned forward "so, what happened with the questioning, you were there a long time". Lisa took a sip of her drink "they aren't charging me with anything" she said calmly before Jimin interrupted. "They aren't charging you with anything yet but that doesn't mean they won't. So far your alibi checks out, a few people said they saw you and Jennie run off to your cell having an argument but that isn't conclusive and all the witness statements suggest that you guys were the last people to see Nayeon alive, the chief is very interested in talking to witnesses who saw you guys with her yesterday evening. The second to last witness has just finished being questioned which leaves only one more you saw you all" the young warden said sternly, not wanting Lisa to believe she was out of the woods just yet. "Who is the last witness?" Wendy asked intrigued. Jimin looked away from the table for a second and sighed, "It's Tzuyu".
"Oh fuck" the entire gang said in unison.
[[ Earlier in the morning ]]
Tzuyu stirred from her sleep grumpily not appreciating the harsh banging on her cell door from the wardens waking her up, as if she hadn't heard the alarms already. "Alright alright we are getting up, sheesh!". She glanced over at her cellmate and friend Momo who looked like a zombie, her hair sticking up like crazy and not looking like she knew where she was. Tzuyu giggled at the sight "Momo are you ok? You look like you have been drinking heavily". Momo sloppily waved her hand in her cellmate's direction, dismissing her mockery, "I'm tired shut uuuuup" she groaned while yawning. Tzuyu laughed "How are you so tired? You fell asleep before I did!". The Japanese girl glared at her Taiwanese friend, "Are you kidding? Do not tell me you didn't hear all that moaning and screaming last night? I hate being so close to Manoban's cell now, always waking me up with her sex games ugh". Tzuyu blushed and cringed, her young ears too innocent for such talk "I didn't hear no! And I don't want to know omg". Momo smirked "you are such a baby Yoda seriously". The younger girl rolled her eyes "Nice hair Mo!"
Tzuyu left the showers with Sana, Momo and Yeri. The girls all stuck close together in the absence of Jihyo and Irene, in honesty they all felt a little worried, they had got into a fight with Lisa and Jennie the day before and with their two leaders in solitary confinement they were now massively outnumbered by Lisa's gang and were concerned the Thai and her friends would take advantage of the situation. "If we can avoid them to our best ability for a few weeks then things should be fine, nobody start any trouble unless you have to, only self defence ok" Momo said quietly as the other girls nodded. "Shit there's Jisoo and Rosé" Yeri mumbled as the girls tried to avoid Lisa's best friend and the Australian.
The four girls sat down at their table which already seemed much lonelier without Jihyo and Irene. "Ew this coffee tastes gross, it's like salty or something" Sana shrieked as she spat her drink out. "That's because you put salt in it idiot" Yeri said shaking the empty packet of salt that Sana had mistaken for sugar. Sana stuck out her tongue, still disgusted by the salty taste as the other girls laughed at her. Tzuyu now pulled a face similar to Sana's as she witnessed something happening in the distance "Jeez would you get a load of Manoban and Kim making out like that? Weren't they fighting the other day?". "Probably all part of their kinky sex games" Momo teased trying to gross out her friend. "You have to admit they're pretty hot" Sana said causally as she drank out of Yeri's cup. Momo shook her head furrowing her eyebrows "You are so gay Sana". "So people tell me" she replied winking. The girls' attention was alerted by a group of inmates bursting through the door, with lots of wardens and doctors running across the corridor behind them, some of the inmates were in tears, including Rosé who was running towards Lisa's table. "Hey, Hyuna!" Sana called out to one of the blonde haired inmates sitting at the table close to them, "what did Amber just tell you? She knows what happened right?". Hyuna nodded "Amber said that chick Nayeon is dead". "Oh shit!" Yeri gasped. Tzuyu put her hands over her mouth, she had never known someone in here to die before.
Tzuyu pealed vegetables in the kitchens in preparation for lunch time, one of her duties as Yeri ran in suddenly behind her. "Crap you scared me!" the Taiwanese girl squealed with her hand over her chest as Yeri jumped on her back. "I'm sorry I just had to tell you the news!" she replied, "Nayeon didn't kill herself like we thought, she was murdered!!! can you believe that? So creepy". Tzuyu began to shake a little, "yeah that is so...omg the poor girl. Nayeon was so nice and sweet, she didn't deserve that. Why would anyone want to kill her?". Yeri rolled her eyes to the side "I'm not pointing fingers here but Lisa and her girls left the food hall in a pretty big hurry after the news spread". "Shit...that's true" she replied.
A warden walked into the kitchen area as Yeri quickly ducked behind some crates, she wasn't supposed to be in there as it wasn't her duty. "Chou Tzu-yu?". Tzuyu turned around to face the warden, a little surprised she was being called, "yes?". The warden stepped forward and approached the girl "can you come with me please, you are wanted for questioning. I am sure you have heard by now that another inmate has been murdered. You have been named as a witness to a particular event yesterday evening we want your account of. You aren't under any suspicion don't worry. Oh and Yerim, stop hiding behind there and get back to your duties".
[[ Afternoon, recreation time]]
Lisa paced around her shared cell throwing things at walls and screaming with anger, tears pouring down her face as Jennie ran in behind her. "Lis? Lis calm down ok, just relax" the brunette pleaded to the Thai who looked like she was having a full scale mental breakdown. "How can I calm down?! It is happening again Jennie. I'm going to get in trouble for another murder I didn't commit. How many more bodies are going to be attached to my name? I can't fucking take this" she dropped to her knees in pieces, sobbing against the floor, Jennie had never seen the girl this way before and was frightened that she wouldn't be able to calm the blonde down. The older girl crouched down on the ground and wrapped her arms around Lisa, "It'll be ok baby, you have an alibi and Jimin himself even said it matches what other people have said, Tzuyu can't undo everyone else ok? Plus they know she's in Jihyo's gang and has reason to dislike you, they may not even pay much attention to what she says. Please don't panic baby, please". Lisa raised her head to look at her cellmate, seeing the Thai so upset was breaking Jennie's heart, Lisa was struggling to breathe "maybe I deserve it if they do blame me Jen. I was awful to Nayeon, maybe it is justice that I get punished, I know you think it too, she was your friend you should be mad at me". Jennie shook her head and gently wiped away the tears from Lisa's cheek "I'm not mad at you. You aren't a bad person. Do you do bad things sometimes? Sure, but you have been through hell, not many people could blame you for the way you are if they knew what you have to live with every day and I hope you don't get too offended with me saying this but you aren't well, in the head, I really think you should be receiving treatment for your mental health. I know there is a good, warm, sweet person deep down because I see her when I look into your eyes. Do I agree with the way you treated Nayeon? No. Do I think you behave like an idiot a lot of the time? Yeah. But what happened to Nayeon is not your fault. And if you want someone to blame you and make you feel guilty then I'm not your girl", Jennie gripped Lisa's cheek lightly as she leaned in and kissed the crying younger girl, "I love you Pranpriya Manoban".
[[ The Interview, Chief's Office]]
"Miss Chou. Please sit down, we just need to ask you a few questions" the chief said calmly, while police officers sat close by, making Tzuyu nervous even though she knew she was only a witness.
"O-ok sir" she replied, stuttering with nerves.
"Miss Chou, you have been called in here today because at some point estimated between 7-8pm a fellow inmate Im Na-yeon was strangled to death with some sort or wire or string. According to witness reports, Pranpriya Manoban, Kim Ji-soo, Kim Jennie, Park Soo-young, Park Chae-young, Kim Da-hyun, Son Chae-young and Son Seung-wan were all seen socialising with Im Na-yeon shortly before her death, you have been named as a possible witness to their interactions before the event. Can you please tell me what you saw happen between the girls."
"The girls came walking through, Nayeon was already there, Lisa called her I think and then like backed her up against the wall. Nayeon didn't look comfortable, Lisa said something to her but I didn't hear what" she answered coolly.
"Manoban backed her against the wall and you say the victim did not appear comfortable? In what way would you interpret that?"
"Um...well she wasn't happy obviously. Lisa can be a scary person and it isn't like Nayeon had a big gang behind her to protect her like Lisa did"
"So you are saying this was not a friendly greeting, and more a confrontation? Interesting. The witness before you had said that they believed Nayeon was a member of Manoban's little 'gang' as you call it"
Tzuyu shook her head and shrugged her shoulders "Didn't look friendly to me, it looked aggressive. And as far as I know Nayeon wasn't part of Lisa's gang. Lisa picks on her. Well, used to..."
"Then what happened after Manoban confronted Na-yeon?"
"Uh, I think Jennie got angry about something, she stormed off and Lisa followed her, they were having a fight and went to their cell"
"So Manoban and Kim Jennie left the situation and returned to their cell. They did not leave again or pursue Na-yeon?"
"No"
"So Manoban and Kim Jennie have left, what about the other girls. What is happening now?"
"Jisoo said something to Nayeon and then Nayeon left, I assume to go back to her cell, but once she went down the staircase I lost sight of her, don't know what she did after that, I stayed where I was"
"And the other girls mentioned before did not follow her? What did they do after she left?"
"No they stayed and carried on gambling over their monopoly game. Rosé, sorry uh Park Chaeyoung sat reading in her cell which in on the same level. So I stayed and watched them playing their game, me and Irene usually gamble over it, it's been going on for 6 days this time so yeah"
"They have been playing one game of monopoly for 6 days?"
"Yeah, nobody can win because they are all cheating. Me and Irene have a bet on how long it will take them to get tired and admit they aren't playing fair or start fighting with each other over it. The game carried on all night till the wardens escorted us all back to our cells as normal"
"So in your opinion, do you believe at any point during that evening, any one of Manoban's gang could of gone to Im Na-yeon's cell and murdered her?"
"In my opinion? No. Like I say, I watched them all night seen as there's a lot of mone...cigarettes and stuff at stake. If any of them left to go down the staircase I would of noticed".
"Thank you Miss Chou, you have been very helpful. We will let you know if we need anything else from you".
"Sir? Do you have any idea who killed Nayeon. People don't feel very safe right now"
"We are following multiple leads right now but no, we don't, the cameras suffered some sort of malfunction for several hours, so please tell us if you discover anything of importance, or remember something else that may be of relevance to the investigation".
Jennie and Lisa sat in bed cuddling, the brunette was still upset about Nayeon's death but Lisa seemed to be calming down finally so she didn't want to do anything to disturb her. Jennie gently stroked Lisa's hair "So tell me more about how you met Jisoo and how you became friends". The Thai smiled recalling the memories "We met at school, she was in several grades higher than me and I just thought she was cool as shit. She had purple hair, dark make-up, wore like awesome punk clothes, never stuck to the uniform regulations, was always in trouble, her and her friends just used to skip class listening to music and smoking. I was this dorky little kid but I so badly wanted to be her friend, she was so pretty and yeah I started dressing like her and trying to hang round her which she fucking hated". Jennie smiled and softly kissed Lisa's forehead "what made her change her mind?". Lisa laughed "you know I don't think she ever did. She used to be savage to me all the time, picked on me, called me names, played pranks on me but I was persistent, I found it funny and I could tell she was warming to me, she is naturally a very protective person, does anything for anyone. She saw some kids picking on me this one time and she got maaaaddd, she kicked the crap out of one of the dudes, they never messed with me again. I stuck to her like glue after that, she used to groan and pull annoyed faces every time I hugged her but I knew she liked it really. Eventually we became really close". The older girl giggled imagining this badass prisoner as a little kid following Jisoo around like a puppy "That is so fucking cute oh my god. I have the cutest girlfriend I swear". The Thai looked into Jennie's eyes with a huge grin on her face "I'm your girlfriend huh?". Jennie blushed furiously and looked away as Lisa began to tickle her.
"Every inmate into their assigned cells immediately, wardens will escort every one of you back. Lockdown in immediate effect!"
"Lockdown? But it is day time? What the actual fuck is going on?" one of the inmates yelled unhappy they were being dragged into their cell, the block now filled with a lot more active wardens than usual.
Jennie and Lisa both got up and looked out of the window on their cell door as the alarms went off and all the doors locked shut. "What the hell is happening?" the brunette said panicked, she had never experienced anything like this since she had been here. "Jimin! Jimin what's going on?!" Lisa called out as the young warden walked by. Jimin quickly made his way to Lisa and Jennie's door, "the whole cell block has had to go into lockdown till we are told otherwise, meals will be brought to you all through the slot in the cell door, I don't expect you'll be allowed out till tomorrow, maybe even after that". "But why?" the Thai asked frantically. Jimin sighed "I'm not supposed to tell anyone this yet so please Lisa, and Jennie, you guys can't say anything. A girl was found dead in the kitchens just now by a couple of the wardens, her body was hidden behind some crates, she's definitely been murdered" he said quietly. Jennie and Lisa both gasped and looked at each other, terrified and in disbelief. "W-who..?" Jennie asked, almost not wanting to know.
Jimin looked behind him to make sure no other wardens could over hear, "Yeri".