> Anna: hey there’s something I need to tell you.

> Wally: what is it??

> Anna: I don’t want to make things weird between us or anything…

> Wally: it’s fine lol, spill the tea

> Anna: … never mind

> Wally: dude that’s illegal u have to tell me now

> Anna: n o p e

> Wally: TELL ME OR I WILL COME DOWN THERE AND MAKE YOU

> Wally: u have THREE SECONDS

> Anna: ok ok fine. it pains me to have to tell you this but

> Anna: you suck at Street Fighter

> Anna: there I said it, I hope we can still be friends :P

> Wally: … ur an actual goblin

> Anna: yeah but I’m your goblin ;)

The texts are from six days ago.

I find this note on her phone from the same day:

> I want to tell him how I feel, but I can’t get over the fear that he doesn’t love me back. I’m scared I’ll ruin everything and then it will be like Noel all over again. I care about our friendship too much to do that…

***

It was past noon by the time I finished watching all of Anna’s vlogs. After my revelation about the missing pin, my next move was to gather all the information I had about her death. I started by uploading her final video to her laptop for safe keeping. I made note of the fact that she was still wearing the hairpin in the moments before her capture. It could have simply fallen out during the struggle, but I had seen an image of her riding a roller coaster wearing that pin. Surely if it could withstand those forces, it wouldn’t come off so easily. At least, not by mistake. Most likely, her killer had taken it as a sort of trophy. And with any luck, it was still in their possession.

The next clue was Anna’s cause of death: strangulation. But not from a normal chokehold. Though the marks were completely healed, my memory of them was crystal clear. They were thinner than human fingers, and wrapped continuously around her neck several times. She must have been choked with a weapon, perhaps a garrote or small chain.

Finally, the location of her body: deep in the woods, far from any path or trail markers. Somewhere the killer thought no one would find her. Unless they were willing to risk poor cell reception while hauling a corpse through the woods, they must have known their way around the area and planned a route beforehand. Perhaps the killer targeted Anna specifically and somehow knew she would jog down that path that fateful night, or maybe they were simply lying in wait for any unsuspecting passerby. Either way, it was clearly premeditated.

In all, I was left with frustratingly little to go off of. I would need to learn more about the people closest to her in her daily life. As if on cue, her phone lit up with a buzz: a text from Wally.

> hey you ok? heard from Josh you weren’t feeling well, let me know if you want to talk.

Because I had been distracted from learning about Anna’s life by looking into her death, I knew almost nothing about him. Not knowing how to reply, I opted not to respond at all. Instead, I began scouring Anna’s phone for information. Using the image Anna had assigned him in her contacts, an unflattering close-up of his face, I was able to identify him as the pale, lanky teen reluctantly featured in several of the photos on her phone. From their text history, I realized Wally had been the one who sent the texts which helped me discover Anna’s phone. In a small way, I was in his debt.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

I had just started reading their earlier conversations when I heard a faint knock on the door, followed by a gentle male voice.

“Anna? It’s Wally,” he said, just above a whisper. I didn’t reply.

“You haven’t been responding to my calls or texts, so I got really worried. I um… I hope you’re not mad at me.” The sadness in his voice made me feel a bit guilty, though not enough to risk speaking to him.

“I’m going to give you some space, but when you’re ready to talk, I’m here. I’ll just uh… leave these by the door.” I heard a brief rustling. “Just some things to help you feel better.” I waited until the sound of his footsteps had long since faded before cracking open the door and taking a furtive look. Wally had left a small basket filled with an assortment of foods, as well as a hand-written note.

> Hope these make you feel better! I know plums are your favorite. I added some noodle soup cans in case you’re still sick. Don’t worry, I made sure they were vegetarian! Also threw in a box of macarons since I know you love them. Just want you to know I’m always here for you.

> -Wally

I learned a lot from such a short note. Anna was quite close to Wally. She liked plums and macarons. And, unfortunately for me, she didn’t eat meat. Because of my unique biology, my body demanded much more energy than a normal human’s. I needed a lot of food, especially meat, for proper nourishment. Although my last meal was substantial enough to last another day or two, it would be a struggle to continue such an… unconventional diet. My only other option was to buy and eat meat in secret. But I had an even greater concern: it was by sheer luck that I found out Anna was vegetarian, and there was probably a lot more I didn’t know about her. But if I wanted to be able to pass as her, I would need to learn all of it. And fast.

I set the food aside, driven by an urgency to fill the gaping holes in my knowledge. I spent the rest of the day scrolling through the notes and texts on Anna’s phone, with a particular focus on her closest friend and confidant: Wally. The two became friends in high school, bonding over their shared social status as nerdy outcasts. Neither of them really fit in, not Anna with her passion for plants and insects, nor Wally and his love for astronomy. They ended up going to the same university, though that was just as much a consequence of financial convenience as of their close friendship.

She seemed to admire his intelligence, often asking him for help in mathematics and calling him ‘Einstein’ on several occasions. I didn’t understand the relevance of a renowned German physicist until I realized Wally’s last name was Steiner. They kept up a playful rapport, comfortable with teasing each other while knowing they could always rely on each other for support. It wasn’t until I came upon a fairly recent note that I realized how Anna truly felt about Wally. In it, Anna worried about her romantic feelings for an unnamed man. But, in combination with texts she sent Wally the same day, the truth became clear: Anna loved Wally, but she couldn’t find the courage to tell him. And now, she never would.

This certainly complicated things. Would I have to pretend to love Wally in her stead? If he already knew about her feelings, it would be strange if I began acting coldly, but if he was oblivious, it might seem out of place to express romantic interest. How could I possibly walk the fine line drawn by a girl in love yet too scared to confess? Beyond a biochemical explanation, I barely understood love in the first place.

Romantic dilemma aside, I knew I couldn’t push Anna’s closest friend away forever. I would need to learn to interact with him. Pulling out her phone, I stared at Wally’s last text for several minutes. I composed a dozen different responses in my head, but settled on a simple “thank you”. While waiting for a reply, I changed into Anna’s nightgown and nestled into her bed, prepared to sleep. I drifted off without seeing a response.