DANIELLE'S P.O.V.The hustle and bustle of the school cafeteria, though temporarily, served as a source of distraction, for me, from my warring thoughts- situation that I was very grateful for as the ideas that were filtering in my mind were confusing and scary, putting me in a quandary."We all agreed on having the cheeseburger, fries, and soda for lunch. Are you okay with that?" Melody asked."Yes, I'm fine with whatever. As long as it fills my stomach and rejuvenates my fatigued spirit." I replied, shrugging my shoulders."Good! They should be here with the food any minute from now." she said, turning her head to face the fastly growing queue.They? I was sure that Azra had gone to get the food on her own, so who was this second person who made up 'they'?I meant to voice out my thoughts, but I was beaten to it by Madelyn who had on the same confused expression as myself."I thought Azra went on her own?" she asked Melody, her forehead creasing with a confused frown."She didn't. S
DANIELLE'S P.O.V.My ears rang and my heart beat faster at the uncomfortable topic of conversation that Azra had brought up at the lunch table.I knew that Adrian and I's identity had been kept anonymous by the reporter who had covered the story and that there was no need to worry about our names being brought up while my friends discussed the topic, but I could not help the flurry of panic that had started to grow in my stomach and chest. For some reason, unknown to even myself, I was distressed about the path in which the conversation was sure to take.I wished I could do something, anything, to change their line of interest, but the topic of an elite's penthouse being burnt down was just the type of gist that my friends would like to talk about, and I feared that trying to change the topic would only lead them to be suspicious of me. Therefore, although my utmost desire was that they talk about anything else but the one tragedy that had befallen my family and I- that one thing I wa
DANIELLE'S P.O.V.Azra and I opted for the later option; we both erupted into a loud laughter that reverberated in the room. We continued to laugh our hearts out until the doctor fixed us with a look of disapproval that caused our laughter to subside into awkward chuckles."She's a germophobe, you said?" the doctor asked Mason, giving him her undivided attention."Yes, she is." he replied, nodding his head at the same time."Did she come in contact with a form if impurity or something unclean? Is that why she fainted?" she asked."Yes, ma'am." Mason replied."What kind of dirt or germs did she come in contact with exactly?" the woman asked.Mason looked at Azra and I, his eyes glinting with a question. They seemed to ask, "How in the world do I tell her what actually happened?".Azra seemed to understand the question in his eyes as she answered the doctor's question in place of him."A piece of a half chewed French fry flew from someone else's mouth into hers." she said.The doctor lo
DANIELLE'S P.O.V.After Melody was released from the school clinic; she, Mason, Madelyn, Azra, and I, made our way across the other end of campus, where the clinic was situated, all the way to the other end of campus, where our designated lecture hall stood. I would have loved to have been making my way to the cafeteria, but we had all elapsed the time allocated for the lunch period while we were waiting for Melody to regain to regain her consciousness. Unfortunately for me, I could not get to prove or disprove the claims my friends had made; the allegations they had made about the school cafeteria's signature cheeseburger being the one thing that i needed to alleviate my stress and worry, thereby leaving me in the same state of tension and unease that I had been ever since I woke up that morning.The rest of the day went by in a blur of chatty professors, classes made uninteresting by my hunger, and my unceasingly rumbling stomach- that too being as a result of my unsated hunger. Onc
DANIELLE'S P.O.V.I listened as my a ringing sound signaled that the person on the other end of the call had not yet picked the call. The ringing sound continued three more times before the beep signalling the receipt of the call sounded."Hey Dannie." Azra's chirpy voice floated through the speakers."Hey Azra." I greeted back."I'm almost at the restaurant, are you there yet?" she asked."About that..." I trailed, thinking of the best possible way to drop the bomb on her."What? What's up? Did you get lost?" she asked, worry lacing her tone."No, no. I didn't get lost." I denied, shaking my head in the passenger seat of my car."Then what's wrong?" she asked.I sighed in fatigue. I had no idea how to tell her that I would be changing the plans that I had consensually made with the she and the rest of my friends. I decided that keeping her on suspense for much longer would only elongate the inevitable, so with another release of breath, I broke the news to her."I'm sorry, but I have
DANIELLE'S P.O.V.I sat on one of the living room's couches, staring, very gobsmacked, at the man who sat across from me; I was not by myself in staring at the man in surprise as everyone else in the room, including his own partner, was gawking at him with the same expression that I had on my face. It was as if they were all thinking the same thing that I was- maybe they were also asking themselves the question that was playing in my own mind as I continued to look at the police officer who was sited in front of me.You might be wondering what that question was?'Who the hell was this guy?'That was the question that played in my head, over and over again, and I did not doubt, by the look on everyone's faces, that they were asking themselves the same question.Detective Trevor Wilson, as Alvida and the man himself had introduced earlier on my arrival to the living room, started right back at me with impassive and accusing eyes."What were you doing on that day, Mrs Valentino?" he aske
DANIELLE'S P.O.V.Once Detective Trevor Wilson had been booted out of the living room by my father-in-law, his partner, Detective Gale Jones, left on her own and that way, she was consequently tasked with the responsibility of going through the process that entailed taking my statement in place of her expelled partner.She seemed a little taken aback and shaken by the events of the past few minutes and gave the impression of being nervous; that much was obvious from the way her feet were tapping, continuously, against the marble floors.Alvida turned in her seat, beside her husband, to look at the female police officer."Now that we are rid of the nuisance that is your partner, we are ready to get down to the business of the day." she said, addressing the Detective, "You may now proceed with your assignment."After receiving the go-ahead from the woman of the Valentino household, Gale Jones nodded her head in understanding."Yes, ma'am." she said, clearing her throat before turning in
DANIELLE'S P.O.V."What about you, Mrs Valentino? Did you notice or do you recall seeing any one or anything suspicious before the incident occured?" Detective Gale Jones asked.The question jogged my memory as I racked my brain, trying to recall if I had seen or noticed anything particularly suspicious during the days leading up to the incident. While working in overdrive, in its attempt to figure out and bring to my remembrance any particular sight that I could or might have been privy to before or after the incident occured, it finally hit me.The memory hit me as hard as a rock, jolting and shaking me to awareness, firmly and forcefully- I imagined that the Titanic ship must have felt the way I did, in that moment, when it had hit the infamous iceberg that had been the cause of its renowned doom. I sat in the living couch, my eyes wide open, and my body trembling slightly as my memory allowed me to recall and draw upon the past events, allowing and bringing to my understanding, th