The loud cheers of the Middleton students filled their ears while they stood in the woods waiting for Wes's return.

They were nervous with many thoughts running through their minds. Michaela stared down at her feet wondering if he got caught as he was taking a long time.

"He should be here by now." Connor glanced at her trying to warm himself. "It's fine." She whipped her head around before hissing, "What if it's not?"

Connor closed his eyes briefly, "Michaela." His tone was very aggravated. "What if they got caught and went to the police or she convinced him to pin it on us?"

He looked through his hair glaring at her. "Wes wouldn't do that." He started to walk away but Michaela leaned closer when he got by her. "He wouldn't, but she would." He abruptly turned around lowering his head to line with hers.

"Stop, okay? It's going to be fine." Michaela's lip trembled glaring back at him. "No, think about it. How we got here- it's all her fault." Laurel sighed interrupting her, "It's not her fault. We're all to blame." Her voice was very sharp at the end showing her frustration.

She seemed done with Michaela 'whining'. "No, I'm gonna call Aiden." She began to get her phone out but Connor growled her name which caused her to start yelling. "No, I never agreed to this!"

Annora sprung her head up glaring daggers at Michaela, her voice a whisper-yell. "You think I did?! It's your DNA on his body so you're as much a part of this as we are!" She sharply sighed staring at her feet. "Don't act like you're not one to blame."

Connor nodded agreeing with the distraught girl. "You had a meltdown. You could barely form a sentence. So shut up, sit down, and stop acting like a little bitch baby." He looked her up and down before a few feet away.

Michaela scowled at him, grinding her teeth when she spat, "Do not tell me how to feel right now!"

Behind them, the one they were all waiting to arrive, Wes Gibbins, uttered a loud enough, 'Hey.' That made the four jump and the girls let out a small screech.

He bent over, a bag dangling in his hand trying to catch his breath. "Sorry, it took so long." He apologized letting the bag softly hit the tree. "I went back for this."

Bringing the bag to his abdomen, Wes opened it digging inside only to pull out the Lady Justice trophy.

Annora skipped down the steps walking into the home's kitchen. In the kitchen, she saw her parents getting ready for the day. She grabbed her travel mug filling it up with coffee kissing both of her parents on the cheek.

"Okay, I'm heading out." Annalise looked up and gently grabbed her wrist. "You sure you don't want to ride with me?" With no thought or hesitation, she quickly said no picking up her bag and leaving the house with only a small goodbye.

Once she reached the school she quickly locked her bike jogging inside. She hurried to her seat as she already saw her mother's car outside.

Pulling her bag onto her lap, Annora took out her notebook, a fresh pen, and a mechanical pencil.

Soon Annalise came waltzing in setting her bag down and taking some papers out. She then leaned in front of her desk ready to announce what would be happening today.

"The question I'm asked most often as a defense attorney is whether I can tell if my clients are innocent or guilty." She sat up walking around as she spoke. "And my answer is always the same."

She turned around with a smile on her lips. "I don't care." It suddenly dropped and her eyelids drooped.

"And it's not because I'm heartless, although that's up for debate but because my clients, like all of us here in this room, lie. And that makes them unknowable. Take Mr. Millstone, here."

Asher turned his head a small bit in interest of what she has to say about him. "Are you really who you say you are, or are there other sordid details that we're missing?"

The man only blinked at her not understanding where she was going.

"Criminal record, divorce, an actual skeleton in your closet?" Asher pursed his lips shrugging, "I can assure you I've, uh, I've never hurt a fly."

Connor sat in his seat rolling his eyes. Annalise held amusement in her eyes staring back at Asher. "So you say." She walked away eyes running over the classroom.

"Look around you. At the quiet girl you share notes with, the cute guy you have a crush on," Connor smirked down at someone who he found looking at him.

"the gunner who talks too much. And ask yourselves, do you really know who anyone really is?" Her voice was sharp and meant to be heard clearly.

"Your instincts better be good, or you'll find yourself choosing the wrong people to make a story group with, to sleep with, or even marry. Just ask Marjorie St. Vincent." She stepped back clicking the remote which made a brunette woman appear on the screen.

"Heir to her family's billion-dollar department-store fortune until she was stabbed 16 times," She switched it over multiple photos of the dead woman lying bloodied and wounded in her bed.

"In the master bedroom of her Gladwyne mansion. The alleged killer- her husband, of course." She switched it to a magazine cover of a man with the words, The Dashing Slasher, on it. "Max St. Vincent."

Annalise told everyone else that they were free to go, and The Keating Six were to stay and come take notes on him but at his house.

Where the murder was committed. Max let them in speaking as he walked them through the house.

"I met Marjorie in Paris. I was shopping for my daughter Eloise's fourth birthday. My wife had just passed. I need something," He rubbed his hands together clicking his tongue while the others' eyes wandered around the house.

"special. When Marjorie saw me struggling to speak to the owner in French, well, from the minute she opened her mouth to translate, I knew this was the woman for me. And twenty years later, she's still the only woman who knew how to make me happy." He paused in his steps staring off into space.

Max then turned around to face the people he has let into his home. "Well, as much as anybody can be happy in an institution as barbaric as a marriage. Don't you agree, Mrs. Keating?"

She shook her head at him closing her eyes briefly. "Let's keep it moving." He opened the double wood sliding doors revealing his bloody bedroom. Everyone followed after him, the students taking notes.

Annalise looked to her students whose eyes went around almost shocked to be in the same room where the murder was committed.

"I asked Max to preserve the crime scene until after the trial was over. You never know what forensic clues you'll find to help out case later."

Annora stared at the dark bloodstains on the bed wanting to feel sick but couldn't as her mother stood in front of her.

"And the room needed some color anyway." The six students started at Max once he said that, as he said it like it was nothing.

Frank smirked staring at Wes who stood next to him. "You gonna throw up?" The amusement was obvious in his eyes.

Wes gulped eyes fixated on the blood before they flickered up and about. "No. I'm good." Annora elbowed Frank as he snickered to himself making him crunch over his side in pain.

Annalise let a small smile take over her lips before she dropped it looking back at her students. "Look around, take photos, be the fresh eyes we need to help this case."

The others took notes on small things they noticed whilst Connor took photos of the bloody bed and walls.

Annora gaped at the bloody mirror, frowning to herself then going back to notes.

Max leaned forward looking almost excited to Annalise. "Is it time?" She looked through her hair back at him, nodding her head. "I think it is." Max took his hands from his sweater coat's pocket walking towards the six students.

"I need a volunteer. Ladies?" Michaela and Laurel looked up shaking their heads at him, not wishing to do anything he asks for.

Annora however wanted to impress her mom. And with that, she'd do anything. "I'll do it." She slowly raised her hand by her side watching Max's eyes switch to her.

Max walked forward to where she stood, "Very well. You're about as pretty as my wife was. Maybe prettier, hm."

He touched her shoulder bringing her closer to the bed where she now started to get nervous. "Now... on the bed." He flicked her shoulders making her fall onto the bed.

Frank let out a low growl from his spot next to Wes, glaring at the man. "Watch it, pal." Annora grimaced as she laid on the very large blood spots peering at Max while he paced.

"The forensic report claims that Marjorie was in the bed reading," He walked around to the left side of the bed before he got onto it next to Annora. "When I joined her with, uh...ah!"

He strutted for a bit letting his eyes move around before they landed on Laurel. "Your pen, dear. Pen." She took quick steps forward, handing him the pen with a black casing.

He held the pen up staring deeply at the object. "The knife, which I hid, like this." He dropped his hand behind his back, bringing his face closer to Annora's.

"Then I pretended..." He draped his leg over her waist which made her far more uncomfortable than laying on the blood. "To initiate sexual relations."

Max's eyes glanced down at her lips which caused her to pull her head away not wanting him to actually initiate anything. "And just as we were about to kiss... I struck." He dropped the pen down roughly hitting her in her chest.

Annora along with Michaela flinched letting out an audible gasp. "But missed, hitting the carotid artery, which was now squirting like a loose fire hose, hence the walls, so then I struck again number two."

He hit her in the middle of the chest causing her to grunt as it very much hurt. "Hit here."

He got on top of her, sitting himself on her waist. "Followed by number three, here." He jabbed the pen down lower before hitting her on the left side. "Number four,"

Max stabbed on the right side. "Five." He brought he pen up and in a swift move jabbed down on the rib cage." "Six, seven." He stabbed down twice before continuing in seem d to be anger.

With each hit, Annora scrunched her nose in pain releasing grunts while her fingers grabbed onto the sheets. Max himself was grunting as he jabbing but his were more breathy.

He at last brought down the final strike right on the lower abdomen. "Sixteen." He sighed rolling off of her and back where he first started. "Sheesh." While Annora still laid uncomfortably on the mattress Annalise spoke up, "Or so that's the prosecution's theory."

Max laughed on the bed rubbing his hands together. "Theory? Good luck proving that, huh?" His eyes glanced over at the girl next to him still chuckling to himself.

Annalise called the students to her house it was now around six p.m. Frank brought out thick binders full of papers eyes wandering around to room at the students.
"The murder book, given to us by the prosecution with all the evidence they've gathered in Max's case. Go through it."

Connor and Laurel stepped forward grabbing two of them, letting the others get the rest. Annora was still shaken over from the day's events, she was sure that she would have bruises raking her body. "Find the holes to help get out guy a 'not guilty.'"

Annora was looking through a folder when her mom called Wes into her office, which caused her to question the actions but knew it most likely had to do with the case. He set his binder down walking in after Annalise while the o their students watched.

Connor rolled his eyes glaring at the back of his head before he spoke in an aggravated tone. "What do you think is going on in there?" Asher glanced up as he was picking up Wes's binder with confusion setting on his face. "What do you mean?"

Connor still stood glaring as Wes closed the door to the professor's office. "We all earned our spot here, right? Even Annora did something to earn her spot. But waitlist?"

Annora shook her head standing up to him. "Don't call him waitlist." Asher shrugged glancing up at the door, thinking of something that could be true.

"Maybe he's her secret baby like she gave him up for adoption and he doesn't even know." He made a giving gesture with the binder a big smile plastered on his face.

Michaela turned glaring at the man. "Because all black people are related." Asher's smile almost instantly dropped, gaping at the girl. "What? No. I-I wasn't..."

Annora scrunched her face looking at him in bewilderment. "It's not possible because apparently when I was three my mom never left the house or let anyone in the house."

Connor rolled his eyes once more pacing around the room, "My point is, something is going on. Otherwise, why would he be here?"

As Annora was just about to say something Bonnie walked into the room not glancing up from her phone. "Why are any of you here? That's the question I'm still asking myself." She stared at the students with a blank face before giving a small smile to Annora.

"Not you, Nora." Bonnie walked away just as Wes came from the office stuffing a piece of paper in his pocket.

"Wait, Wes." Annora hurried up to him just when he grabbed the doorknob. "Where are you going?" He glanced down at his legs before slowly meeting his eyes with hers.

"Your mom- Uh, Professor Keating, asked me to go get something on the case. Is there anything you needed?" Annora shook her head with a small smile of relief. "No, I just thought she either yelled at or fired you."

The two hugged goodbye before she turned around sitting in the corner got back to work.

Frank glanced at the door as it closed before he took long strides over to Annora. "What's, uh, what's going on with you and the puppy?"

Her eyes fixated on him standing in front of her wearing his usual suit. "Nothing. He's my friend. My only friend, so don't scare him off like you did Jaclyn."

He chuckled as she rolled her eyes, sitting himself down next to her. "She's the one who broke your pencil."

Her eyes shot wide open in disbelief playfully glaring at him. "She was joking around!" Frank shook his head placing his hand out in front of her face.

"Hey, she had an evil look in her eyes." She abruptly stood still carrying the binder in her arms, going to stand away from him. "Just get away from me, unbelievable."

Frank only sat chuckling to himself at her frustrated state.

Wes finally having enough of the arguing, reached down picking up a coin then looked over yelling at them all. "Shut up! Shut up!"

They instantly stopped arguing letting the man talk. "It's two against two, leave Annora out of it. We have no other choice. We flip a coin."

His head turned back and forth as his eyes glanced over all of them when he spoke. Michaela threw her head back letting the tears take over her, "That's the dumbest thing you've ever said."

Connor walked forward lowly hissing at Wes. "I'm not letting a freaking coin decide whether or not I go to jail tonight!" Wes leaned his upper body forward arguing his own.

"We don't have time to fight! We need to make a decision and commit to it. So if someone has a better idea, say it now!"

The group stayed silent all letting their gaze rest on Wes. Holding a coin between his fingers he met his eyes travel to all fo the cold faces. "Heads, we get the body. Tails, we leave it where it is. Okay?"

Annora and Laurel were the only ones who gave him a nod, which made him flick the coin high into the air with each of their eyes following it.

The coin fell back down into Wes's hand. He flipped it over onto the top of his left hand before saying aloud. "Heads." Though it wasn't heads, it was tails.

"We go back for the body." He stared at each of their faces before taking the quarter and placing it back in his pocket.

He began grabbing his stuff off of the ground looking up seeing that none of them were moving. "Let's go!"

*•*•* 2877 words *•*•*

-