As Saira urged Fareeda to hurry, she saw Orchid walk out of the office, tucking a printed piece of paper under her blazer. They exchanged brief glances and while Saira wasn't on happy terms with Orchid, she mouthed, The cops are here, be careful. Orchid nodded swiftly as Saira and Fareeda exited the building.

"Oof, it's chilly," Saira said although her anxiety of the cops was melting away. Fresh air was just what she needed. Fareeda laughed and Saira pouted. "What? Ugh, you are such a tease."

"Am not!" Fareeda gasped, stunned. "Oh, there's the greenhouse." The glass greenhouse was tucked behind a couple of trees, if Silverleaf students passed by, they wouldn't even notice it. From the outside, Saira saw exotic flowers and stale veggies being grown.

Fareeda unlocked the glass door, holding the door for Saira to enter. It was like Saira was transported to somewhere else, the vegetation was beautiful and majestic, bursting with bright colours. "Our cleaners are kind of lazy, so Headmaster Roux appointed me and some cooks to look after the place," Fareeda explained, smiling widely.

Saira giggled at the idea of Stoll gardening, it was so silly to imagine. "You've done an outstanding job of growing these plants," she said, making Fareeda blush. They wandered around and Fareeda pointed out some special flowers.

"The plants suffered some damage after the flood, but the flood wasn't too harsh in Silverleaf, so we're good." Fareeda kept blabbing on and on about the flowers until Saira saw a pot of orchids in a dark corner. Orchid. She sighed, not wanting to dwell further on the topic.

She shouldn't have argued with Orchid and even threatened her, but she got so angry. If the Originals came forward to the police with their suspects, ideas, and proof, the cops would surely look into everything and discover their secrets.

"Saira?" Fareeda asked and Saira snapped back into reality.

"Sorry, just tired."

"It's about Orchid, isn't it?" Fareeda frowned, biting her lip. She always seemed quite needy and annoyed at the mention of Orchid Gray. Why? "You were so upset last night and lately, you have been spending more and more time with that girl."

"Yeah, so?"

Fareeda's jaw tensed as she straightened her stiff posture. "Nothing." She coldly brushed past Saira and something dropped out of her blazer. Saira picked up, realizing it was her diary.

Saira bent down. "Wait, Fareeda, you dropped something—" Something fell out of the diary's pages and they were pieces of paper. "W-What is this?" She read what they said.

I KNOW ALL YOUR SECRETS. I KNOW WHAT YOU DID. STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM HER. YOU KNOW WHO, O. G.

Her breath hitched as Fareeda turned around. "Saira—" Fareeda realized what Saira was reading. She ran forward, wide-eyed. "No, wait, don't!" She tried to snatch the papers back, but Saira backed away.

"These are threats addressed to Orchid?" Saira gasped, standing back up. She backed away as Fareeda stared at her then the notes.

SHE'S MINE, NOT EVER YOURS.

Saira glanced back at Fareeda, who was full of shame and averted her gaze to the greenhouse's floor. Suddenly, it hit her. Stanley Crawford wasn't writing the threat that Orchid got to stay away from Madeleine Xing as they had thought—it was Fareeda who told Orchid to stay away from Saira.

This is obsessive. Saira read the last threat, her jaw dropping wide open.

I will tell everyone what you did, I know what happened to your "best friend." What kind of friend are you, Orchid? A rotten flower in a gleaming flowerbed. Stop making trouble for Saira and I.

┉┈◈◉◈┈┉

At the rooftop, the wind was whipping as Saira, making her hair swish behind her. Stoll's back was pressed against the roof's edge, his gray hood pulled over. Saira didn't know much about him at the time, other than the fact that he was some insanely good hacker according to Orchid. Plus a Silverleaf janitor, but she didn't judge. Well, she didn't judge that much.

"So, is this the part where we tell our secrets?" Stoll had asked. Orchid said if they wanted to be a part of the Shades of Gray exposés, they all had to have an insurance policy. If one of them ratted each other out to the headmaster, the person would go down with them. Smart, Saira thought.

"You don't have to be detailed," Orchid said quietly, wringing her hands.

"What if I don't have some 'dirty secret,' huh?" Saira countered. She wasn't going to let two strangers know that she allowed Papa to burn in hell, even if she longed to join the Originals. Exposing shitty people? Totally Saira's thing.

"Oh, please, Levine." It was Stoll who answered. "Everyone at Silverleaf Academy has secrets." God, he was unbearable already. "Stop making excuses and confess." The last word was said aggressively—did Stoll Finnegan have anger issues? Probably.

It was hard to talk openly about her childhood trauma, and even harder to admit she was abused. She let Papa die, she murdered him. She'd kept her confession short and curt. "I killed someone because they hurt me. My real name isn't Saira Levine, it's Sarah Le Vil." Crap, had she said too much?

She bit her lip, wincing. Stoll was shocked and while Orchid kept a firm face, even she was fazed. "Thank you for your insurance policy, Saira. Welcome to Shades of Gray. Now, Stoll, it's your turn."

He crossed his arms, tilting his head back. Stoll seemed to contemplate for a few minutes before blurting out, "I steal a lot of things from the school, hefty and expensive things. Things that will ruin the Finnegan reputation." Stoll shifted around uncomfortably.

"Thank you, Stoll," Orchid said softly. "Welcome to the crew." Orchid took a deep breath before speaking. "I committed attempted murder against my best friend. It spun out of control and i-it's my fault."

There, they confessed all their secrets. Did they think less about each other? No.

Because the Originals' secrets and lies were really just their sins in disguise.

┉┈◈◉◈┈┉

"S-Saira," Fareeda said under her breath, her voice quivering. "I can explain."

Saira blinked, appalled. "Then explain to me why you sent a threat to Orchid! The hell? Are you some obsessed stalker?!" She's mine, not ever yours, Fareeda wrote. Saira didn't understand.

"Why did you write these threats to her?" she asked first.

Fareeda's eyes welled up with tears. You don't get to cry, Saira thought sourly. "I only sent one and the r-rest were locked up in my diary, I decided it was too harsh. I wasn't ever going to send the rest, just one to scare O-Orchid."

"Jesus Christ, Fareeda..."

"I was jealous, okay, Saira?" Fareeda cried out, snatching back up her diary. She clutched onto it for dear life. "I didn't like the way you both w-were so close when you barely knew Orchid."

"I..."

"But you just hated me so much," she continued bitterly. Her lips puckered as if she was disgusted. Her posture was slumped as she shut her eyes. "From Day One, you just decided I wasn't good enough. Not ever. I-I was always—fucking always—there for you, yet you still didn't love me."

Saira blinked, not knowing if she heard Fareeda correctly. "Love you?"

Fareeda threw her head back in frustration. "Maybe if you weren't so arrogant and selfish sometimes, Saira, you'd realize the signs! Yes, goddammit, I love you! I love, love, love you until it physically hurts. Until it feels as if thorns are wrapping around my lungs."

To think of it, maybe it wasn't boys that Fareeda was always writing about in her diary entries, but Saira. "You're bisexual?" she asked, gawking awkwardly. She didn't know what else to say to a bi girl with an obsession with her.

"Yeah, I'm bi." Fareeda sighed. "Why else do you think I need this scholarship to Silverleaf, Saira? You're not the only person in this world. In my last school, Riff Hills CHS, I was bullied because some snob named Hillary Arthurs revealed that I liked boys and girls.

"And, well, being queer is usually seen as a sin in Catholicism. Even if I wasn't Catholic, a lot of community members were." Fareeda gnawed at her nails, chipping away the black nail polish. "It got so bad that I had to change schools, the bullies were too much for me. My mummy wasn't very accepting either, that's why I wanted to stay at a boarding school.

"Mummy was okay with me dating boys, but the second that girls were thrown into the mix—she lost her cool. You know what it's truly like to have your classmates, community, and own mother think of you as an outcast?" She pressed her lips together tightly, crying. "No, you don't. And all the hell I went through just because I was queer. Just because I also liked girls."

Saira's cheeks were red. She didn't really like boys either, they freaked her out romantically since they reminded her too much of Papa. And what about Mama's unhappy marriage with that man? God-awful. Saira did not give girls much thought either until she started to think about Fareeda last night.

"That doesn't excuse the fact you obsess over me."

Fareeda flinched. "I-I get that." She gently touched a flower's petal, taking a whiff. For a split second, Saira debated asking more. "I'm sorry, I truly am. I liked you too much to lose you to Orchid, so I wrote a threat."

"Orchid and I are just friends." Saira looked at Fareeda, her eyes softly. Maybe to some degree, Fareeda was right—was Saira just too stuck up to miss the signs of attraction? Without another second to grasp the idea, she grabbed Fareeda's waist, pulling them closer until they closed the gap between them, and planted a kiss on her lips.

She never kissed anyone before, let alone a girl, but it was sudden and exciting for her. Fareeda wrapped her arms around Saira's neck and they let themselves drift in their mind for a bit before Saira drew back.

She wiped her mouth, flustered. "That was out of nowhere, that was so wrong of me." But it felt so right. Fareeda turned away, blushing as bright as a rose. Saira almost laughed.

"Saira," Fareeda said, "I love you—"

Suddenly, the greenhouse's door was pushed open by a woman in a brown trench coat. She was accompanied by a male police officer, Saira could tell by the uniform. She froze, her breath hitching. The police were here to take her away, the police were here to take her away—

"Which one of you is Saira Levine?" the male asked.

Saira averted her gaze and the woman nodded at her. "My name is Detective Erin Hollison," she said, crossing her arms. On her right wrist was a semicolon with a heart tattoo. Detective Hollison had fair skin with vivid blue eyes, matching her faded bright navy-coloured hair. Her pixie cut dyed with the navy colour was so bold, that Saira found herself gawking.

"What's g-going on?" Fareeda asked, quivering.

"You were also present during Bailey's attack in the hallway?" the lady inquired.

"It was in the Main Hall," Saira replied, snorting. "Everyone saw Bailey bash Ivory's head into the wall." Speaking of Ivory, what happened? Did she live? Did she actually murder Robert? Saira vaguely remembered Ivory Kee's name being on Orchid's suspect list, but she didn't know for sure, she'd have to ask Orchid. She frowned, remembering that she was supposed to be avoiding her.

Detective Hollison raised her navy eyebrows, as if unimpressed. "We just need witnesses to take a statement and Mr. Roux told me that you helped restrain Miss Bailey Preston, Miss Levine."

"Um, okay."

"This is Officer North," Detective Hollison jerked a thumb towards the male cop, who seemed mildly bored. "He'll be talking to Miss Patel." Officer North directed Fareeda to the corner of the greenhouse.

As the detective spoke, Saira tried to cover as much of her face as possible. Of course, as Sarah Le Vil, she had dirty blond hair and was short. Now as Saira Levine, she had recently bleached hair but was still short as a stump. "So, Miss Levine, tell me what happened, as descriptive as possible, please."

"Erm, Fareeda and I were walking around the hall to go to the greenhouse when we saw her burst out of Headmaster Roux's office, furious and screaming. Our headmaster ran after her when Ivory and Ruth came down the stairs, I think."

Erin Hollison jotted it down on a notepad. "Was Miss Kee or Miss Barlowe upset? Or were they taunting Miss Preston? Anything to trigger or provoke Miss her?

"No, Bailey was just so furious and charged straight at Ivory once spotting her. I kind of know Bailey, from around, you know?" Saira shifted her weight. "So I obviously held Bailey back because she kept attacking Ivory, God, they fought like hell."

"Anything else?"

Saira didn't mention releasing Bailey back to hound Ivory to buy Orchid more time in the office. "I mean, Headmaster Roux and Helen the office lady were there when Ivory's head slammed against the wall. Ruth was crying and... wait, Lizzy wasn't there." Where was Lizzy during the brawl? Now that Scarlett was dead, Ivory, Ruth, and Lizzy became a tight-knit trio. Well, other than the fact that Bailey shortly replaced Scarlett after.

Detective Hollison swiftly compared her previous notes, arching her eyebrow. She seemed to have a silly habit of looking perplexed. "Ah, yes, Miss Connors. I'll look into that. Thank you for your time, Miss Levine."

Damn, she and Roux would be best friends with the whole last name situation. "Wait, I remember something else now. Bailey was shrieking about how, uh, Ivory screwed her dead boyfriend, Robert."

Hollison's eyebrow went up again. "Oh. So you know of Mr. Reuters' death?"

Saira panicked, not wanting to seem suspicious. "Basically, Bailey came to my friend's dorm in tears, saying that Robert was dead. So we hurried to Robert's dorm room and sure enough, he was lying dead on his bed." It was fucking murder.

"Huh, interesting." No, a teen boy dying is not interesting, Erin Hollison.

"Just ask Headmaster Roux," Saira added quickly, maybe too quickly. "He knows, we came to him after Professor Asher found us." When Hollison's nose scrunched up, Saira explained Professor Asher was their math teacher.

Detective Erin lowered her voice. "So you are a witness to Mr. Reuters' crime scene? Hm." She wrote some more observations in her notepad, unnerving Saira. Were the things she was writing about her? She hoped not. "I'll have to interview you later, either at the academy or down at the police station."

Saira's face went pale and she gulped. Take as many resources away from cops, as Orchid would have advised. "Erm, sorry, Detective Hollison, but I'd rather not deal with the whole police station thing." She flashed a charming smile, something Saira got good at over time. "It's quite stressful, in fact."

"Okay, I'll figure things out. Please, call me Erin." Erin seemed to be a little less traditional from most cops, she had a very kid-friendly demeanour. She turned to her partner. "Aye, North, finished?"

The cop gave a stiff nod, allowing Fareeda to join back to Saira. She grappled for her hand and Saira squeezed her hand in return. What's happening between Fareeda and I? She didn't know, but she needed someone right now. "We'll walk you back to the main campus," Erin said, motioning them to follow. Going out of the greenhouse, the strong breeze made Saira's hair whip behind her.

"You okay?" she asked Fareeda, hand-in-hand.

"Just shaken, that's all."

They walked back into the academy as eyes watched Saira and Fareeda carefully. She felt Fareeda shudder, almost afraid. After all, they both were being escorted back into Silverleaf Academy by cops, it seemed something almost scandalous happened. "This is super weird," Saira said to Fareeda.

"It's almost like their eyes are crawling all over the back of my skin." She shuddered again. Fareeda turned to Erin. "Sorry, could I go to the washroom quickly? Gotta pee." When Erin nodded, she went ahead of them, letting go of Saira's hand and taking a sharp right into the girls' washroom.

The one by Professor Green's classroom. It was where Saira would meet up with Orchid and Stoll in the girls' washroom. Jesus Christ, why was she so stupid to argue with them? Yes, she still wasn't on board with Orchid turning all their findings to the police, but she should have just talked to them.

Erin and Officer North were exchanging mumbles when Fareeda came running out of the washroom, pale-faced and hyperventilating. "F-Fareeda?" Saira ran up to her, grabbing ahold of her arm. "Are you okay?"

"I-I—" People started to stare at Fareeda Patel. She wheezed, clutching her chest. She looked as if she had seen a ghost. "God-awful," she muttered, catching her breath. Erin and North ran up to them.

"What's wrong?" North demanded.

"Lizzy Connors' body is o-on the floor in one of the stalls," Fareeda blurted, wide-eyed, gasping. "I-I think she's dead."