𝐚𝐦𝐲𝐠𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐚 || 𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦 ✓

chapter one

You can hear your pulse in your ears; your heart is pumping blood at a rapid pace. Blood. Blood everywhere. All you can recall is blood. You grip the steering wheel as the gruesome scene you witnessed plays in your head repeatedly. You try to focus on the yellow and white lines on the road in front of you. You begin chewing the skin off of your lips in a nervous frenzy. What the fuck did you just see? You know but don't want to accept it. The things you just experienced would send any average person spiraling, but this situation isn't normal. The culprits are two of the closest people in your life. Billy and Stu, your two best friends, just tortured and gutted Casey Becker. A part of you thinks you could be grasping at straws, but the mask peeking at you from Stu's trunk as Billy was about to shut it, was unmissable.

By the time you get home, your eyes and arms are weak from gripping the steering wheel and focusing on the road, trying to push away every other thought. You quietly unlock the door to the apartment you share with your mother. She's already asleep, judging by the silent darkness, so you can wallow in your room without being questioned. Toeing off your shoes at the door, you make your way to your bedroom. Not feeling like doing anything else except laying down, you just climb into bed without bothering with your clothes. Your eyes focus on the posters on your wall straight ahead, your mind unable to slow down. You were at Casey's to study for your English project the two of you were working on but left to go to the store down the street for snacks. In just the short period you were gone, Casey was violently slain and hung from the tree in her yard. Maybe if you had stayed, she'd still be alive. But perhaps if you had stayed... you'd be dead too. Laying on top of your comforter and pillows, your ears ring from the white noise of your quiet apartment as you stare into space all night. You swear you don't blink until your alarm goes off for you to wake up for school.

---

The news breaks the following day, and the whole school is buzzing. You had no idea her boyfriend Steve had stopped by, which makes you feel guiltier that he died too instead of you. You're still internally battling whether you should've stayed there or left as you did. Skipping class altogether sounds nice right now. Maybe you could take one of your mother's sleeping pills and actually sleep without seeing Casey's mutilated body behind your eyelids. But before you can turn on your heel, you feel arms wrap around your shoulders from behind. You nearly jump out of your skin before turning around to see Stu with Tatum behind him. Stu removes his arms from your shoulders. Your bewildered expression doesn't disappear at the sight of him, though, especially when you know what you know.

"What's wrong, (Y/N)? You look like you've seen a ghost!" Stu jokes, Tatum smacking his bicep immediately.

"Leave them be," Tatum says pointedly.

"Oh, it's nothing. I'm just a little shaken up, is all," you give them a sheepish smile, darting your eyes from their gazes to the ground.

"Weren't you friends with Casey?" Randy pops up behind you, and you actually do jump this time.

"Fuck, Randy!" You grit your teeth as you turn to him, hand over your racing heart, "No, not really, we were just partners in English."

"Have the police questioned you yet?" Randy asks, and Stu huffs behind you.

"Why would they need to question me specifically?" You ask, quirking an eyebrow and crossing your arms over your chest defensively.

You know why. But you don't want anyone, especially Billy and Stu, to know you were there last night.

"You had seen her before she died, right? Weren't you going over to her house for the project this week?" Randy questions, standing uncomfortably close to you now. You hold your breath. Did he really have to mention that?

"Yes, we were. I'm sure my time will come with the police questioning everyone. Now," you shoot andy a closed-lip smile, shoving past him and walking back towards the school entrance, "if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna be late for homeroom."

You accidentally back up into Billy's chest, not paying attention to where you're going. Turning around quickly to apologize to whomever you walked into, you bit your tongue in realization and a little bit of fear. You mumble a greeting and an apology before walking as fast as possible to homeroom.

---

Class is unbearable. All you do all day is doodle in your notebook and try to imagine anything else than Casey. You're exhausted and starving but have no appetite and haven't slept for shit. Everyone notices this at lunch when you hardly say a word, trying to hide your bloodshot eyes and a loudly rumbling stomach.

"I know this is a silly question but are you okay, (Y/N)? Don't mind me asking, but did something happen between the three of you?" Sidney gently asks.

You glance up at the two boys sitting in front of you. Stu was stirring up the rest of the group with a joke. Meanwhile, Billy sat there acting like he wasn't studying you moments before.

You decided to sit between Tatum and Sidney instead of Stu and Billy. It was uncomfortable just being around them, knowing what they had done. They were your best friends, and the three of you were inseparable.

"I could be better, but no, nothing happened. I'm just gonna be weird for a while," You frown, picking at a loose string on your jacket. You feel Billy's gaze on you.

You would've run to Billy and Stu for comfort and safety in a normal situation. But again, this is anything but a normal situation.

---

this was posted to ao3 as well!! welcome to my new hyperfixation uhhh,,, yeah anyways

I've enjoyed writing this and I hope you enjoy reading it! I hope I don't edit/ revise this a whole bunch but what can you do?

leave a vote and comment if you want chapter two?

check out my one shots/ drabbles book for scream!

CHECK OUT BOOK 2 OF AMYGDALA, ABJECTION, COMING SOON.

- ana x

edited: May 15, 2022