The next morning arrived with a deceptive calmness.
The soft beams of the sun leaked through the curtains, brushing against the sleepy faces of Lemon, Riley, Hazel, Autumn, Evelyn, and Scarlett. Slowly, one by one, they woke up — stretching, yawning, and heading to freshen up, like any ordinary day. Their chatter filled the room as they prepared for the classes ahead, packing their books and adjusting their uniforms.
"Finally a normal day," Scarlett said, tying her hair into a messy bun.
"Yeah, after yesterday's mess, we could all use a boring day," Hazel added, stuffing a pen into her bag.
Evelyn stayed a little quieter than usual, her face still holding traces of the anger from yesterday's fight with Alisha. Lemon glanced at her but chose not to push; Evelyn needed time to cool down.
Just as they were about to step out of their dorm, loud thuds of hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway.
"What's that?" Autumn frowned, pausing near the door.
The girls turned to see several students running — no, sprinting — toward one of the dorm rooms at the far end.
"Something's wrong," Riley said, instantly alert.
Without wasting another second, the girls dashed after the crowd, their hearts pounding with a fear they couldn't yet explain.
The door to the Room was wide open. Inside, chaos reigned.
A girl lay sprawled on the bed — unmoving. Her skin was unnaturally pale. But the most horrifying detail was the dark, angry mark circling her neck, shaped like invisible hands that had crushed the life out of her.
The buzzing noise around them faded for a moment. Time seemed to freeze.
Lemon felt her knees weaken.
"Evelyn..." Hazel breathed out, voice trembling, "It's her."
It was Alisha.
The very girl Evelyn had fought with just yesterday.
Whispers erupted instantly around them, sharp and venomous.
Before Evelyn could even react properly, a furious girl stormed toward her. She grabbed Evelyn by the collar roughly, shaking her.
"You!" she screamed, eyes wild. "YOU killed her!"
The hallway turned into a living nightmare.
Other girls immediately joined in:
"She threatened Alisha yesterday!"
"I heard her say it — 'You'll regret this!'"
"I knew something bad was going to happen!"
Evelyn stumbled backward, her hands trembling.
"No! I swear — I didn't — I didn't do anything!" she cried, her voice breaking under the weight of fear and shock.
Tears started to blur her vision, but she stubbornly blinked them away.
Riley immediately stepped forward, forcefully pulling the girl's hands off Evelyn.
"Don't touch her!" Riley snapped, positioning herself protectively between Evelyn and the others.
"Back off!" Scarlett added, standing shoulder to shoulder with Riley.
"Seriously, you guys are accusing her without any proof?" Hazel said sharply.
Lemon took a deep breath, trying to calm her hammering heart.
"Evelyn was with us the entire night," she said loudly, making sure her voice carried over the noise. "We were together. She never left. How could she possibly have done this?"
But the damage was already done. Suspicion filled the air, thick and heavy.
"Maybe they're covering for her..."
"She hated Alisha..."
"She's violent — we all saw it yesterday..."
The crowd's whispers grew uglier with each passing second.
Evelyn could barely stand, her whole body trembling with suppressed sobs. She clutched her arms around herself, her world spinning.
Just then, the teachers arrived — anger radiating off of them.
"WHAT IS THIS NONSENSE?!" one of them barked, forcing the students to scatter.
Another teacher rushed to the room, saw the body, and immediately called for medical help. The ambulance sirens could already be heard faintly in the distance.
"Everyone — back to your dorms immediately!" one teacher ordered, face pale with horror. "Classes are CANCELLED today!"
"Nobody leaves the building without permission!" another added.
The crowd dispersed slowly, throwing wary, disgusted glances back at Evelyn as they left.
Hazel gently tugged Evelyn's hand. "Come on. Let's go back."
Silent and numb, Evelyn let herself be pulled away.
Once inside their dorm room, Lemon locked the door securely behind them.
Evelyn sat on her bed, staring blankly at her hands. Her mind was a tornado of emotions: fear, confusion, anger, sadness.
"You guys believe me, right?" she whispered after a long, painful silence. Her voice cracked. "You know I didn't do it... right?"
Her eyes shone with unshed tears.
Lemon didn't hesitate. She marched across the room and dropped to her knees in front of Evelyn, grabbing her hands.
"We know you didn't," Lemon said fiercely. "We KNOW, Evelyn."
"You would never..." Autumn said, her voice thick with emotion.
Riley sat beside her, wrapping an arm around Evelyn's shoulders. "You're hotheaded, yes. But a murderer? Never."
Evelyn's chest shuddered with the effort to hold back sobs.
"But they all think I did it," she whispered. "They all want to believe it's me. They hate me..."
"They're scared. And scared people need someone to blame," Hazel said gently.
Scarlett crossed her arms. "And you're an easy target because of the fight yesterday."
Evelyn looked down at her lap. "Maybe... maybe if I hadn't fought with her... maybe if I'd just walked away..."
"No." Riley shook her head firmly. "Don't blame yourself for standing up for yourself. Alisha was cruel. Everyone knows that. You did what you had to do."
Autumn added, "And even if you hadn't fought her, someone else would've. She made enemies everywhere."
"But still..." Evelyn's voice broke. "It's my fault people are pointing fingers at me. What if the police get involved? What if they — they arrest me or something?!"
Lemon squeezed her hands tighter.
"Then we'll tell them the truth. We'll tell them everything," Lemon said. "We're not letting you go through this alone, Evelyn."
Scarlett nodded. "Even if we have to scream it from the rooftops."
Hazel offered a small, shaky smile. "Or beat some sense into those idiots."
A broken laugh escaped Evelyn's lips at that, wiping her tears away messily.
"You guys..." she whispered, overwhelmed by the fierce loyalty in their eyes. "I don't deserve you."
"You deserve better," Riley said simply. "And we're not going anywhere."
The room fell into a thick silence again, the reality of the situation settling on them like a heavy blanket.
Someone had killed Alisha. Someone dangerous, someone close enough to sneak into a dorm room.
And whoever it was... they were still out there.
Still watching.
Still waiting.
The ambulance arrived shortly after. They heard the sirens blaring through the closed windows, the murmurs of teachers and authorities outside, the somber thuds of footsteps carrying away Alisha's body.
Evelyn shivered uncontrollably.
Lemon immediately pulled out an extra blanket from the closet and wrapped it around Evelyn's shoulders.
"We'll get through this," Lemon said firmly.
Scarlett looked at the closed door, her mind racing.
"And we'll find out who the real killer is," she said quietly. "Before it's too late."
The girls exchanged glances — a silent agreement forming between them.
They weren't just going to sit back anymore.
They were going to fight back.
No matter what it cost.
That night, the dorm was too quiet.
Everyone had gone to bed early, the weight of fear suffocating the halls. Lights flickered off one by one, plunging the building into darkness.
Inside their room, Lemon, Riley, Hazel, Autumn, Scarlett, and Evelyn lay silently in their beds, pretending to sleep, each lost in their own thoughts.
For a moment, it felt like maybe — just maybe — the nightmare was over.
But deep down, they all knew the truth.