Chapter 7: Seven - Whispers in the Crowd

Whispers in the Crowd

It had been five days since everyone last saw Brian. His absence lingered in the town like a shadow, thick and unsettling. He was reported missing three days ago, sparking whispers, and by the time the search parties mobilized two days later, those whispers had become a chorus of speculation. The police had nothing to show for their efforts yet, and the unease rippled through everyone—everyone except Abbie.

Abbie had found solace in distraction, burying herself in the old books she'd discovered in the dust-choked corners of the town library. Books about mythical creatures. Werewolves, specifically. Every passage confirmed what she feared—her transformation wasn't a one-time curse. Every full moon would bring it again: the strength, the sharp instincts, the raw, terrifying power. She traced her fingers over the brittle pages, lingering on illustrations of other creatures—vampires, witches.

"Wake up!" her mom's voice broke through her thoughts, pulling her from the pages of lore. The knock on her door was light but insistent. ""I'm up, don't worry!" Abbie muttered, quickly closing the book and shoving it under her pillow. Her mom's footsteps faded as she went downstairs, and Abbie pushed herself out of bed, her mind already shifting back to the chaos of the last few days.

She quickly washed up, her mind racing as she moved through the motions. She barely spared a glance at her reflection, only catching the tiredness in her eyes. Without pausing to consider much of anything, she pulled herself together, grabbing what she needed before slipping out of the house. The door clicked softly behind her, a sound that barely registered against the noise of the morning.

She didn't say goodbye. She hadn't in a while. It was becoming a quiet habit, one she didn't know how to break. Her mom would notice eventually—probably sooner rather than later—but Abbie didn't have the energy to care about it. The distance between them was growing, slowly and silently, like a crack in the pavement. And right now, she couldn't find the words to fix it, even if she wanted to.

The school hallways were thick with the buzz of rumors, the usual chatter replaced by whispers that clung to the air like smoke. Missing person posters were taped to every wall, their faces frozen in time. But it wasn't just the posters that caught Abbie's attention—it was the rumors. One of them had been circulating all week: Kai, the root of all evil, had kidnapped or killed Brian. The kind of tale that could easily slip into a twisted fairy tale if you weren't careful. But it wasn't just the gossip that was dangerous—it was the way it had turned everyone against him. The normal hateful glares had sharpened, turning into something more dangerous. Something like a hunt.

"Abbie!" Harmony waved enthusiastically from across the crowded hallway. She made her way through the cluster of students, weaving between them with ease before finally reaching Abbie. "Good morning!" she greeted with a bright smile.

"Goodmorning, do you have English today?" Abbie asked, trying to mask the nerves twisting in her stomach.

Harmony shook her head, her smile wide. "Nope. You?"

"Yeah..." Abbie muttered, glancing down at her shoes. "I've got to turn in my English paper. I haven't even started it. Been too caught up in... other stuff."

Harmony raised an eyebrow but seemed unbothered. "Well, if you ask the teacher, Miss Addison, she'll probably let you hand it in late. She's pretty chill about that stuff."

Abbie felt a weight lift off her chest at the suggestion. "Thanks. I'll ask her."

The bell rang, signaling the start of class. Abbie didn't have the energy to linger much longer, so she waved a quick goodbye and headed off.

The classroom was eerily quiet when she walked in. Miss Addison, the blonde with the large glasses, was in a surprisingly good mood. She had that serene smile that always made Abbie think she was hiding something. But today, it felt more like a blessing than a curse. Abbie slipped into her seat, but as she settled in, she realized something was off. Kai wasn't there. He should have been. He always sat next to her, always. But today, it was just her.

The class dragged on, but her mind kept drifting. When the bell rang, signaling the end of the period, she knew she couldn't put off asking Miss Addison about the paper any longer.

"Hey, Miss Addison?" Abbie approached the desk nervously. "Do you think I could hand in my English paper later? I've had a lot going on..."

Miss Addison gave her a considering look before nodding, her smile softening. "You know what, Abbie? I'll give you another week. Just make sure you actually hand it in, alright?"

Abbie let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. "Thank you. Seriously, thank you so much."

Lunchtime arrived, and Abbie's search for Kai and Jo turned into an exercise in frustration. They were nowhere in sight. That was, until she stepped outside and saw the crowd.

A knot twisted in her stomach. A fight. A fight that had drawn a crowd large enough to block out the rest of the world. Kai was at the center of it, throwing punches at a guy who looked like he could barely hold his own. But the guy wasn't going down easily. He got in his own shots, and the fight was slowly tilting in his favor. Abbie pushed her way through the students, the voices around her rising into an unintelligible roar. She found Jo near the front, standing with a tense expression.

"What's going on?" Abbie asked, trying to make herself heard over the shouting.

"That guy's Brian's brother," Jo muttered, her eyes narrowed on the fight. "And he's not happy."

Abbie could feel the weight of the rumor hanging over everything. It wasn't surprising, not really. The school was ready to explode, and Kai was the easiest target.

The fight raged on, punches landing with sickening thuds. But then, something happened. The guy, bloodied and angry, was about to land what would have been a final, punishing blow to Kai when a scream cut through the air. Then, in a quiet, almost imperceptible motion, he raised his hand, fingers curling as he muttered something under his breath—words so soft they might have been mistaken for the wind.

Suddenly, there was a loud, ear-splitting bang. The man's car exploded in a burst of flames, sending a wave of heat and shock through the crowd. The guy's eyes went wide as he turned, mouth agape.

"My car!" he screamed, his voice breaking, as he sprinted toward the parking lot, but the damage was done. The car was a blazing wreck, smoke billowing into the air.

Chaos erupted as students scrambled in all directions, and a teacher with a fire extinguisher rushed toward the flames. The air buzzed with frantic energy, but all Abbie could do was stare at Kai, his hand still raised, a faint, knowing grin playing at the corner of his lips.

Abbie's heart was still pounding from the explosion as she walked up to Kai, her eyes searching his face for answers. "What happened? Did you do something?" she asked, her voice a mixture of disbelief and suspicion, but with a trace of curiosity.

Kai turned to her, his smirk widening as he casually dropped his hand. "Me? Nah," he replied, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Sometimes the universe just gives you a little help when you need it." His eyes glinted with amusement, but there was no hint of guilt in his expression.

Jo, however, didn't seem nearly as amused. Her lips were pressed in a tight line, and her eyes were flashing with something dangerous. She grabbed Kai's arm, yanking him away with surprising force.

Abbie watched them go, confusion settling in her chest.

"See you later at the assembly!" she called out, but they didn't look back.

The assembly was mandatory, and Abbie had little choice but to attend. It was about Brian, of course, and the disappearance that everyone had been whispering about for days. The gym was filled with students, the tension palpable as everyone tried to act like they cared—at least, everyone except her.

A police officer, a woman in her fifties with graying hair, stood at the front. "We believe Brian is the victim of a kidnapping or worse. We urge anyone with information to come forward," she said. Her voice was clear, but Abbie didn't hear much beyond the words. She was too busy watching the faces around her. The way they all pretended to care so deeply. It was sickening.

Harmony leaned over to her, snapping her out of her thoughts. "You thinking about signing up for the search?" she asked quietly.

Abbie hesitated, but then a cold, calculated thought settled in her mind. "Yeah, I think I will."

"Great! I'll sign us both up," Harmony said, smiling brightly.

Abbie watched her walk off, her gaze lingering on the stage, the knot in her stomach tightening. She wasn't going to search to find Brian. No, she had other plans—plans that had nothing to do with helping the school play its little game of pretend.

The gym emptied quickly after the assembly, and Abbie stepped outside, hoping for a moment of peace. But when she spotted Kai, her first instinct was to walk straight up to him.

"Where were you and Jo?" she asked, her voice more curious than accusing.

Kai shrugged, giving her that smile of his, the one that always seemed like it held a thousand secrets. "Skipped it. Jo... I'm not sure where she went."

Before Abbie could ask anything else, a soft voice interrupted them. A girl, with wild, wavy hair and a hesitant expression, approached them.

"Hey," she said softly, as if testing the waters. "I'm Carrie. Brian's and David's sister. I just wanted to apologize... for my brother. He wasn't... well, he wasn't the best, but we're all worried about Brian. I just wanted to say sorry for everything." Her voice was steady, but the strain was there.

Kai raised an eyebrow as he looked her over, his expression unreadable for a moment before his lips curled into a sly grin. "Well, aren't you just a ray of sunshine," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He took a step closer, his gaze intense but playful. "Tell you what, I'd apologize for your brother, but I'm pretty sure the flames did that for me."

He paused, letting the words hang in the air, then shrugged nonchalantly. "But hey, apologies are cute, I guess. Doesn't change much, though."

Abbie's eyes widened, her brows knitting together in a mix of surprise and discomfort. She shot Kai a quick, sharp look before turning back to Carrie, her voice soft but firm. "Kai, seriously?" she muttered, stepping slightly between them. She didn't know if she should feel embarrassed or just plain frustrated with how he handled things, but his usual biting sarcasm was a little much.

To Carrie, Abbie offered a small, apologetic smile. "Don't mind him. He has a... unique way of expressing himself." She paused, glancing at Kai with a quiet sigh before turning back to the girl. "But I get it. I'm sorry, too. This whole thing has been... a mess."

Carrie's eyes flickered between Kai and Abbie, a soft sigh escaping her lips. She didn't seem offended, just worn down, like the weight of everything was pressing on her shoulders. Her lips curved into a faint, weary smile as she nodded. "It's... okay," she said, her voice quiet but sincere.

She hesitated for a moment, looking like she wanted to say more, but then she simply shook her head, as if resigning herself to the situation. "I'll, uh, leave you two to it. Thanks for listening," she added before turning away, her wild hair catching the wind as she disappeared into the crowd, leaving a lingering tension in the air.

Abbie watched Carrie walk away, her mind still processing the awkward interaction. She turned back to Kai, a mix of disbelief and frustration crossing her face.

"You couldn't have just said something normal, could you?" she said, her voice a little sharper than she intended. "I mean, the girl was just trying to apologize, and you—" she trailed off, shaking her head.

She exhaled, rubbing her temple, her irritation fading into something more resigned. "I get it, you don't care. But at least pretend, Kai. People are actually trying to make things right, and you could've given her something a little better than... whatever that was."

Kai chuckled softly, clearly unbothered by Abbie's frustration. He leaned against the nearby wall, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips. "Look, Abbie," he started, his tone mockingly patient, "I didn't ask her to apologize. I didn't even ask her to be here. She came to me, remember? Not the other way around."

He straightened up, eyeing her with a glint of amusement in his eyes. "And as for pretending—well, I don't do that. You want me to play the good guy and sit there, nodding along? Not my style. You should know that by now." His grin deepened, a mix of charm and cockiness.

He took a casual step forward, his gaze never leaving hers. "Besides, people trying to make things right?" He let out a quiet laugh. "You're adorable when you think that's how things work. Not everyone gets a neat little bow at the end, you know?"

Kai's eyes softened for a second, almost imperceptibly, before his usual smirk returned. "But hey, if you need me to put on a little show for you and her, just let me know next time. I can be a real charmer when I want to be."

He shrugged nonchalantly, his tone now lighter, teasing. "But, really, does it ever actually help?"

Abbie took a step closer to him, her brows furrowing with suspicion. "Okay, seriously, Kai," she said, her voice low but firm. "Why are you acting like this? Is it because of Carrie? Because I'm pretty sure that wasn't about her. It feels like something else is going on. And I can't help but wonder... does this have anything to do with Jo dragging you away earlier?"

She crossed her arms, her tone softening but still filled with the need for answers. "You're pushing people away, Kai. And I get that you don't want anyone getting too close, but something's different, and I don't think it's just because of some fight or whatever happened before."

Kai's expression shifted, a subtle tension tightening in his jaw as Abbie pressed him further. He took a deep breath, quickly composing himself, the smirk returning to mask any cracks in his façade.

"Jo's just being dramatic, okay?" he replied, his tone laced with annoyance. "She saw what happened and she was pissed, didn't know how to handle it, so she tried to drag me away." He shrugged nonchalantly, his voice losing some of its earlier edge. "It's nothing."

Abbie narrowed her eyes, still unconvinced. "But you're not telling me something, Kai. What's really going on?"

Kai's gaze flickered away, his lips pressing into a thin line. He looked around, almost as if trying to find a way to steer the conversation in another direction, but he knew that wouldn't work. He exhaled sharply and looked back at her, his eyes narrowing in warning.

"I told you, Abbie. It's nothing. You don't need to know." He let out a short laugh, masking the seriousness in his voice with his usual cockiness. "Sometimes people just overreact, you know? Jo included."

He took a step back, his posture closing off, as if to signal the end of the conversation. "And as for me, I'm just... me. You should know that by now. No need to make this more complicated."

Abbie stared at him for a moment, frustration creeping up inside her, but she saw the finality in his words. He wasn't going to open up about it, not now, not ever, and she knew pressing him further would only make things worse.

With a sigh, she turned to leave, casting one last glance over her shoulder. "Just don't make things harder, alright?" she said softly, but there was a hint of sadness in her voice as she walked away, leaving Kai standing there, his smirk fading as he watched her disappear into the crowd.