Because Love Hurts

Clues

I had to know what happened on August second in order to save Katie. Bailey gave me the smallest piece of information but it was enough to give me a place to start.

I was on the computer for over an hour looking for events that occurred on August second. None of the incidents looked remotely related to Kay, but I guess I could narrow down my options if Bailey would've gave me a year.

After slowly depleting some of the research results that were too far fetched, I decided to attack my problem from a different angle. Instead of searching that date, I curiously typed Katie Melendez into the Google search bar.

I never realized how many people shared Katie's name. After some time I came upon a yearbook that held a picture of Katie inside. Her face looked younger and her smile seemed bright and happy. Her ocean blue-green eyes sparkled in the camera immediately drawing me in.

When I tried to open the website it requested I pay 5.99$ to view the yearbook in its entirety. I scrambled into my pocket yanking out my wallet. I pulled out my credit card and made the exchange. Katie was worth way more to me than a mere 6 dollars. She was priceless.

Before putting the wallet away I looked at the picture of me and Katie that lied within. She had the same copy in her locket that always hung around her neck. We were sitting in the park under a tree laughing at our matching 'Thing 1 and Thing 2' shirts from Cat in The Hat. Her eyes looked so beautiful as they caught the color of trees surrounding us. I remember that day vividly. It was only a few weeks ago that things have been normal. I hope that when this is over things could be like that again.

I rubbed my thumb across the picture once more before closing the wallet and putting it on the computer desk. The year book loaded and I began to virtually flip through the pages.

I observed many faces in her advisory photo but chose to settle on a pair in the front. It was Katie with her arm around another girl. The girl had honey brown hair that was tied back in a bow sorta like the ones Blossom wears.

When I seen the dark eyes that were almost black and the freckled nose I knew it was her. This was Blossom err umm Bailey. Bailey already knew Katie. She reinvented herself as Blossom when she came to our school last year.

I continued to turn the pages. I came to the section of Best awards. Katie had won the award for Best Smile, Most Popular, and Cutest Couple. I stared at the cutest couple picture. It was her and a boy in a heart frame holding hands and looking into each other's eyes. I felt a tinge of jealousy until I realized who the boy was.

I looked at the boy with tussled hair and back at the caption. It read:

Katie and Ian. Most likely to get married and grow old.

Together for 2 years.

I winced at his name. This was the boyfriend that died. I continued to go through her year book.

I began to look at group pictures. Kay was a cheerleader. I smirked imagining her hopping around giggling like always. She also was in choir with Bailey and Ian. In this picture Ian is watching Katie while she stares straight ahead singing and smiling. Bailey on the other hand is watching Ian longingly. I could sense a love triangle going on.

I've seen this look before. It's the look Cameron would give Katie every time he spotted her. Bailey was in love with Ian. I collected as much information as I could get from her yearbook and chose to research her school instead.

I looked up H.S.I19 and links began to pop up. I clicked on one and read briefly about how the school was shut down after students refused to return when a basketball player dies. The next link I clicked sent me to an article about Ian Harrison having a heart attack on August second at H.S.I19.

These were all the clues I needed. I quickly wrote down the address of the old school on some scrap paper and called a few friends. I moved briskly and quietly through the house careful not to wake my mom or sister. I waited in my car. I know it was a little past 4 in the morning but my friends would come through for me. It'll be a long ride to the abandoned school.