2nd Chapter

Valeria - 

Just like we planned, the girls and I arrive at the graduation venue late. Which is obviously against the school rules, if I recall the head of my department's words as he dictated the rules guiding the graduation ceremony to us, his forehead sweaty and his face twisted in wrinkles. 

But, hey. Who cares? It's graduation. No one listens to that stuff. 

Or, maybe they do?

When we arrive at the venue (which is a huge hall on a private property), the entire compound is silent, with cars lining up the parking lot. It's obvious from the low hum we can hear that everyone is inside the Hall.

The five of us exchange glances. 

"I knew this was a bad idea," Shirley begins, but Anna sends her a glare that makes her shut up immediately.

"Oh be quiet," one of the twins says. "So we're the only sensible ones who decided to be rule breakers on our graduation day. So what?" 

I nod. "Let's just go in. All we need to do is walk in and find seats. No biggie. It's graduation, Shirls. Loosen up."

After my not so encouraging speech, the cars are locked, our bags in hand, and we take extremely risky but confident steps towards the hall.

When Anna (being the most daring among us) opens the door, a hush falls upon the entirety, and that's when we realize that going late was a very bad idea. 

From the stage, our head of department is frozen, his hand seconds away from picking one of the scrolls on the table. On his left is Mitch Kelloway, whose expression shows disgust. He and Kelly (one of the twins) had always competed for best student of the year at the end of every session, and let's just say he never stood a chance. 

"Ahem," Shirley says, and we dive for the nearest empty seats, which are only four instead of five. However, we do not care, and we squeeze into those seats like our butts are on fire and they (the seats, that is) are our only way to put the flames out.  

What a wonderful way to begin our graduation ceremony.

Throughout the rest of the ceremony (excluding the moment when Gina Carlyle comes on stage and breaks a heel), the five of us try to be as quiet as possible. You would think we are high schoolers, with the way we occasionally giggle.  Like when some guys from the Geosciences graduands wink in our direction. We completely ignore the expressions the families sitting behind us (including the twins' and Shirley's parents) give us. 

It's graduation. No more lecturer disturbing our existential beings. No more projects. No more assignments. I'll be damned if I don't celebrate.

After the official event, we race outside before others do, and we have a blast taking pictures and dancing with some people who weirdly have a boombox. 

"Best college graduation day ever!" Shirley yells as she jiggles her body to a Beyonce song. The twins laugh and join her, while the Geosciences guys we met earlier stand a short distance away, staring at them.

"She forgets that it's the only graduation day for college," Anna chuckles. Her parents are abroad, and she stays on her own, so no one came to see her. She places her head on Jonas' shoulder and his hand starts moving up and down her arm. 

I ignore the pang that goes through my heart at the sight and let out a small laugh. 

Soon after the entire ceremony is over, and it's about 7 p.m. in the evening. Anna and I have an after party at her place for another three hours with most of the people in her department, and by 10:30 p.m., an intoxicated version of myself climbs on her bike and zooms off to my house. 

"The wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round, round and round. The wheels on the bus go- crunch?"

I look down, and at my feets are pieces of broken glass. That's when I realize how late it is, and that's when I see that our neighbourhood is very, *very* quiet.  

"Mother?" I say when I open the door with my spare key. The house echoes my call, and an eerie feeling claws up my spine. Something's wrong. Even with my alcohol-clouded mind, I can feel it. Involuntarily, I shiver. 

"Mother?" 

I wait for a moment to hear her yawning as she steps out from the room she shares with Father, like she usually does when I arrive late from night classes. But she doesn't come down. And my fear goes up. But I try my utmost best to ignore it, walking stealthily towards their room instead. As I do so, I pass the study. The lights are off.

Father's study lights are never off when he's around. 

And he's always home before 10 p.m. 

I can hear my heart pounding, and the beats are not in sync. It's more like a terrible rhythm, and it is as though I can feel the wrong in the air, reverberating through the walls.

You bet it's not a very lovely orchestra. 

"Mother?" I say, raising a hand and knocking on the door- 

Only to freeze when it opens the moment my fist comes in contact with it. My father's wide open eyes, full of shock, appear on the other side, staring at me. 

I don't believe it's true. I don't want to believe it's true. But when I run in and check out the bodies of my parents, I realize that not all wishes come true. Their bodies are cold, and their pupils are dilated. 

They're…*dead*.

For a moment, I am still, taking in the situation; my parents on the floor, dead, and I am in my after party attire, mascara streaks running down my face. 

During the after party, I'd felt very guilty about not talking to my parents in the morning. I'd run home with the intention of saying sorry, even though I swayed from time to time on the damned bike while dancing with some little piglets I saw on the sidewalk. 

But now, I meet the man I intended to speak with murdered in cold blood.  

My parents are…gone. Forever. 

That's when I howl. 

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