Vera Reinhart,

You've had a busy week. So have I. Of course, yours involved a lot more killing...

Wish my life was so exciting.

P.S. Next time you commit murder, don't be so obvious. 

-Secret Keeper

Vera Reinhart's life was turned upside down within a matter of ten minutes. It started when she heard footsteps coming up behind her as she walked home from school Thursday evening.

"Hey, V," the boy greeted as he caught up to her.

"Jason."

Jason Hargrove fell into step next to her and she immediately wanted to knock him upside the head. The only reason she was walking home from school was because she wanted peace and quite. The path through the woods on her way home was perfect for deep thinking. And of course, Jason ruined it.

It's not like she hated Jason. He was, after all, one of her closest friends for as long as she could remember. Plus, it was kind of hard to hate Jason with his peppy smile and optimistic character. He was the kind of person America fawned over, not for looks or power (although he had both), but simply because of his good nature. Someone like him was hard to find, but once found, no one ever let go. Afterall, how are you supposed to hate someone who always smiles?

"Whatcha doing?" he sing-songed.

"Walking."

"Really?!" he dramatically placed a hand over his chest. "Shocking. I thought you were riding a unicorn."

"Why are you always talking about unicorns?"

He shrugged, "They're cute, magical, and destructive."

"Only you would think unicorns are destructive."

"They are!" he argued. "They have magical powers beyond our imagination! There has to be a reason that Scotland chose them as their national animal. Seriously, unicorns could turn us all into shrubs if they wanted to," he shuddered and added, "I would rather not be a shrub. Plus, you could weaponize them by placing knives and maces around their horns like in this one book I read..."

"Seriously? Since when did Jason Kleizmick read fiction?"

His forest green eyes became darker as he spoke, "It's Hargrove. Jason Hargrove."

"Sorry."

"And," his voice became light again, "I have many interesting hobbies that you guys don't know about."

A long silence fell between them as they approached a bridge in their path. Finally, Vera asked the question that had been on her mind the past two months.

"Why did you change your last name to Hargrove?"

Jason thought for a while before speaking, "I don't know."

"It just doesn't seem like something you would do."

Jason sat on the railing of the bridge as he looked down at Vera. His eyes were unnaturally void of emotion as his blond hair blended into the fall colors of red and orange leaves. The clouds above made him seem darker, moodier. Scarier.

"Then what would I do, Vera?"

Vera blinked. "What?"

"You said changing my name isn't something I would do. So tell me, what do I do? What defines me?"

"What do you mean?"

"Maybe I just wanted to have an identity for myself, something other than being my father's son," he said, answering Vera's earlier question.

God, this conversation is such a roller coaster.

Vera went along with him, "By changing your last name to your mother's maiden name? That doesn't make any sense."

"Why not? I love my mom."

"Still, you wouldn't be separating yourself from your father's legacy. It doesn't work like that and you know it."

Jason shrugged.

"What's really causing all of this?" Vera pressed. "What's wrong?"

Jason turned to her and raised an eyebrow, "Why are you taking a lonely walk through the woods today?"

"Jason," Vera groaned, "Stop changing the subject."

"Is it because you found out that Will Wright has a girlfriend?"

And then Vera's concentration was lost. "How did you know?"

"That Will had a girlfriend or that you had a crush on him?"

"Both."

"Well, I am the most respected Senior in our school," Vera suppressed an eye roll as Jason continued, "I tend to get all the juicy gossip including the fact that Will Wright is possibly dating Julianna Amor. I don't know her that well. I think she's Reina's twin sister..."

"I didn't even know Reina had a sister," Vera mumbled under her breath. "Look, Jason, I don't care about all of this. I want to know why you-"

"As for the crush," Jason continued, "I know you. Besides, even a blind person could see the way you practically drooled over him."

"You asshole," Vera lightly punched him and he laughed. "Seriously, though. Why did you-"

"You know, Vera," he interrupted. "You shouldn't have a crush on someone like Will. He's older than you, and don't argue with me that he's only a grade older, he's still older and dangerous. And yes, I know that I'm a Senior too. But I'm fine since we all know I'm not dangerous, just amazing."

"Jason, I'm serious."

"Hello, Sirius. It's nice to meet you. If you're looking for Harry, I'm pretty sure he's somewhere that way..." Jason lifted up his arm and pointed east as he was left to precariously balance on one arm.

"Jason!" Vera shouted again and gave him a light shove.

That was her first mistake.

Jason, who only had one arm supporting him, was gone in the blink of an eye. Vera had barely caught the way his face changed from amusement to surprise before he fell between tree branches. Vera heard a scream, but she couldn't tell if it was from her or him.

She heard the branches rustle and a thump. The panic in her chest swelled.

Vera called his name over and over again only to be answered with a complete and pure silence.

Water was starting to well up behind her eyes as she ran to the end of the bridge and through the trees, trying to find her way to the steep ditch beneath the bridge. She couldn't remember how long she had run like that through the trees. She couldn't remember the twigs snapping or the bushes rustling around her. All thoughts fled her mind as she looked down at the bottom of the ditch where Jason lay still on his back, blood pooling around him and seeping through the crisp leaves.

Vera stumbled down the side of the ditch and to Jason's side, desperately trying to find a pulse. All she felt was his abnormally hot skin and bone. She dropped his arm back down.

"No, no, no, no, no," she whispered to herself as she rocked back and forth, staring at Jason's lifeless body. It wasn't until the flashing blue and red lights reflected off the trees that she stood.

She looked at Jason and then the lights approaching in the distance. Vera took a step back. And then another. And another. And then she was running away from the scene behind her, running away from the horrifying events that had unfolded.

That was her second mistake.

Somehow, she reached home. Vera managed to avoid her parents and brother as she flew up the stairs, heading straight to her room. She crashed through the door and shut it behind her as she slid to the ground. Her hands found the TV remote and turned it on to drown out any noise. And finally, the tears fell, cascading down her cheeks and onto the carpet in blotches, just like Jason's blood over the leaves.

No, no, no, no.

She placed her head in her arms.

What did you do?

The tears kept falling as she tried to steady her breathing.

No one needs to know.

The light mascara smudged over her fingers.

They don't need to know anything.

Vera tried to rub the black stained water off her cheeks but failed.

Because I didn't kill him.

That was her third mistake.

The tears didn't stop falling until the news channel flipped to another anchor, the music changing to a more fast tempo as the volume heightened. Vera looked up just as the words "Breaking News" flashed across the screen.

"Just earlier today Jason Hargrove, son of David Kleizmick and Elizabeth Hargrove, was found at the bottom of Lakeside Bridge. They believe he had fallen off the bridge and hit his head at the bottom of the bridge. The seventeen year old was taken into the hospital as the paramedics desperately tried to revive him after this harrowing accident. Unfortunately, officials are now reporting that he has been pronounced dead."

The words that followed afterward were lost to Vera as a ringing filled her ears. She couldn't process her mother calling her name as she talked on the phone downstairs with Elizabeth Hargrove. There was only one thought going through her mind, one thought that would haunt her forever.

I killed Jason Hargrove.

Author: Hello, my dear readers. Welcome to Part 1. You are in for a roller coaster ride more confusing than Jason's conversations. Enjoy! And don't forget to vote :)