At the edge of the student parking lot, in the field, where the grass grew as tall as Maya, an the red and blue emergency lights bounced off the hazy mountain scape, Maya stopped, turning to face Emily, her voice trembling with a mix of anger and fear.

"Alright," Emily said, her voice barely a whisper. "We're far enough. Now, talk. What happened to Arilla?" Emily, her face pale and drawn, met Maya's gaze. The bravado that had masked her emotions all night had evaporated, leaving behind a raw vulnerability Maya had never seen before.

"Arilla was at Cairo's party to see Alex. I overheard Mark arguing with Arilla while I got lost. I just wanted to use the restroom. Alex bought Arilla the necklace, don't you see?"

Emily stood in silence. Just a few yards from them, in the student parking lot, crowds began to filter between the cars. Engines started. The usual laughter and chatter that accompanied football games seemed more somber.

"That doesn't make sense, Maya! Do you hear yourself? Why would Alex kill someone he loved?"

"Jealousy!" Maya retorted. "Arilla moved on from one man to the next. I know Alex dated Arilla after she broke up with Mark."

Emily shook her head. "You're wrong and so arrogant!" Emily's voice was sharp and cold. She turned way from Maya toward the parking lot. "Sarah's supposed to meet us at my car. We should go." Emily reached in her pocket and pulled out her car fob. She pressed the button to unlock her car.

Not far from them, a pair of headlights flashed on.

Headlights from a dark sedan. No license plate on the front.

The same car that had tried to run her over.

Maya stopped.

Emily looked at her, her eyes narrowing. "What's your problem now?" Emily said.

"The car — ." Maya said, trembling, feeling the rush of adrenaline through her.

Emily stared, her expression blank, then slowly shook her head. "Arilla got mixed up with shady people. Maybe it has something to do with that." But there was a forced indifference in her voice, a faint tremor in her hands.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The truth hit Maya like a physical blow. Every detail clicked into place. Emily, usually so painfully shy, always lingering wherever Alex went. Why put herself through that unless . . . it was an obsession, a twisted need to be close to him, no matter the cost.

"Everyone passed out because of the drinks, Emily," Maya began, her voice stronger now. "No one would have noticed you slipping something in. You never liked going to those parties, but you followed Alex . . ."

"Shut up," Emily hissed, rage flashing in her eyes.

"It was you," Maya breathed, no longer a question. "You killed Arilla because you couldn't stand the thought of someone else having Alex before you."

The field seemed to tilt beneath Maya's feet. Emily lunged, not with words, but with the shovel. Maya, adrenaline flooding her veins, managed to sidestep, but the sharp metal edge grazed her cheek.

"I won't let you ruin this!" Emily screeched, swinging the shovel again in a clumsy arc.

Maya, fear mingling with a sudden surge of defiance, ducked and grabbed at Emily's wrist. The two of them wrestled for control of the makeshift weapon, stumbling backward into the tall grass. Emily was smaller, sinewy rather than strong, but her eyes blazed with desperate fury.

"Why?" Maya gasped, grappling to keep Emily's hand away from the sharp end of the shovel. "Why kill someone over a guy?"

"You wouldn't understand!" Emily's shriek was barely human. Tears streaked her face, dirt smeared against pallid skin. "It wasn't just about having him. It was about making sure she didn't get him! She has any guy who wants her. Every guy." Emily shook her head. Her expression remained solid. "Arilla goes through guys like she went through money. She would fuck any guy who would have her. And she got to have Alex. I loved Alex and she ruined him for me. I don't want the town bicycle going around knowing she had him. I loved Alex, and now there's nothing special I could ever have with him that he already hasn't had with someone else. She had to die."

Maya's throat went dry. It suddenly hit her. Ethan had told her that Emily went everywhere Alex went. She was such an introvert, why else would she torture herself by going to Cairo's parties or every crowded football game? It explains why she was so interested in Alex's dating life. Everyone passed out at the party because they were drinking. Emily was so plain, she could blend in and never be noticed if she slipped a sedative into the beverages at Cairo's party. And Emily didn't drink. She just stood there in the corner by Alex all night.

"I will never be able to love Alex knowing he had her first. Her smug expression rubbing it in my face. He wasn't special to her. Just another flavor of the month. I couldn't bare the thought of her treating him like a toy, when he was something sacred to me. And if I ever had the chance to be with him, I'd never be able to look him in the eyes knowing Arilla had him first — that he would always think of her." Emily sucked in a deep breath. "I don't need to explain myself to you. It's not going to matter anyway. You shouldn't have gone poking around where you didn't belong."

Maya's shriek was cut short when Emily grabbed the shovel and crushed it against the side of Maya's head.