Huntsville

This tale is set in the sleepy Oregon town of Huntsville. What was once an innocent town now has been changed forever by the strange disappearance of the Huntsville High football team. The Police remain unable to determine where they went or who abducted them.

The town, which had enjoyed peace and prosperity, is now regarded as a hunted town.

Every week, one of the players who has been missing is found dead by the authorities. Additionally, the fourth body has been discovered floating down the Huntsville River in the fourth week, sending another shock wave of fear back into the town again.

Getting back to downtown Huntsville's Elm Street. A strong knock on the door, Knock Cole out of his obsessive diary.

"Charlie, you have a visitor?"

"Jezz, you scare the crap out of me, Dad" Charlie exclaims,

"Next time try writing your weird diary without putting on your headphone," Fred says.

"what do you want, Dad?" Charlie asks.

"I don't know, some girl with blonde hair wants to see you."

"Thanks, Dad, Tell her I'm coming," Charlie responds as his head is still fixed on his book.

"Tell her yourself, get your ass down there now." He tells his son again before walking back down to the kitchen.

Charlie closed his diary book, grabbed a pile of flyers from the printer, and stacked them on the shelf.

"Jezz, Did Nate tell everybody at school about me or something? This is the fourth time in a single week, Jesus Christ."

Charlie swaggers down the stairs, but at the sight of his visitor, he stops dead. it wasn't one of the students from his school that keep coming to his house and asking Charlie to cheat for them in the exam.

"What the fuck? Why are you keep coming to my house, Cheryl?" Dissapoiment and anger toward his schoolmate reappear again in Charlie's head.

"Charlie, I'm sorry, that I sold you out last time, I know I'm wrong, I'm here to make it right, please forgive me?" the blonde teenage girl says.

"You cost me my school scholarship, you dipshit!!! I don't ever fucking want your sorry, okay, all I want is my fucking stupid scholarship back." Charlie says as he raises his tone up another notch.

"What if I told you I can get your scholarship back?" Cheryle says, happiness written all over her face.

"How, Principle Dipshit made it clear he doesn't want to see my face at his school ever again." Said Charlie as his hand still hold onto the door handle.

"Principle Hiram is gone okay, my Dad is the new principal of Huntsville High now."

"Why I mean he is a dick, but he is still a good principal?" Charlie mumbles.

"Hmm, the family of the football team wants him gone, they even went the extra mile to protest in front of the town hall."

"Well, this is the first time mayor Blossom, listen to his minions," Charlie smirks.

"Yeah with the Prescott family backing them, that's why Mayor Blossom fired principal Hiram and replaced him with my dad," Cheryle explains.

"So your dad is now in bed with the Prescott family, that just fucking fantastic." Charlie cursed, as he run his hand through his hair. He did it every time he feel stressed or overwhelmed.

"They not that bad, Charlie, They help build the road, hospital, and the new football field for the school football team."

"Yeah, with their drug money." His forehead creases and his blood vein start to emerge out of his skin again, showing how angry he is toward the town's richest family in town.

"Don't mean to be a dick, Charlie, but you don't have proof."

"Talking about proof, huh, My dad when he was still the chief of police, he nearly got the damn proof that was strong enough to bring the entire Prescott family down, but they use their drug money to bribe their way to freedom and robbed my dad out of his job and my family house, that why now we are this poor, Cheryl."

"I'm sorry about that Charlie, I really am."

"It doesn't matter now, so about the scholarship, what is your dad's offer?"

"My dad said, he will give you back your scholarship if you join the Bulldog, football team."

"Okay, Fine, I join the Bulldog," He sighs.

"So that it then, welcome back to Huntsville High again Charlie. Sadie will be really happy to see you back, See you on Monday." Cheryl says, her smile widening even further in happiness.

"Yeah yeah don't crimp your paint, Cheryl, I don't forgive you yet."

"I know I know, but at least it makes you happy now."

"You want my forgiveness, come with Sadie to Pop's dinner after school, if you come you have my forgiveness."

"Consider it done, smackhead," Said Cheryle.

____________

A few days passed, and Monday come so fast, this is the first time in three months that Charlie step foot in Huntsville High's front yard since he got expelled. The trip from Charlie's house on Elm Street to Lakewood High takes less than 30 minutes, but they are the longest 30 minutes of Charlie's existence.

Overwhelmed with anger and despair, when he arrived at the parking lots, parked his bike, he went straight to the school's hall, scan everything around him with his dark blue eyes, looking for the one girl in the entire school that can cure his loneliness, his depression and can calm him down.

His heart starts racing when his pair of eyes finally located her. Sadie Mayfield, his best friend, girlfriend, and his soulmate. Everything Charlie ever dreamt of in one body.

"Sadie," Charlie yells with excitement while standing by himself on the other side of the School's hallway.

Sadie's ears immediately pick up the calls. She turns to look around her to see if it is just in her head or somebody did call for her. She still didn't know Charlie come back to school yet, because Cheryl want to surprise her best friend, even though she was the one who get her best friend's boyfriend expelled in the first place.

Sadie's jaw drop and her face turn red in an instant as she finally saw the white haired, blue-eyed boy, Charlie, on the other side of the hall.

"Charlie !!"Sadie exclaimed with tears in her eyes,

"Hi Sad, I'm back," Charlie replies with an open arm waiting for Betty to run into it.

Without hesitation, Sadie drops her book and runs straight into Charlie's arm that waiting on the other side.

"I thought I never see you again, Charlie," Sadie says against his chest.

"Me too, I really miss you, my love."

"So you got your scholarship back, How."

"Oh, it Cherly doing, she pulls some strings with her dad and got my scholarship back."

"In exchange for??"

"Me joining the Bulldog."

"Seriously, I thought you quit it, after your last accident, Charlie."

"I don't have a choice Betty, Cheryl said the deal is non-negotiable."

"let me talk with her then."

"There's no need, Sad, I also want to play football again, and try to rebuild the Bulldog back to its glory."

"Somebody else can do it for you. It doesn't have to be you all the time." Sadie says, as she still maintains eye contact with her boyfriend.

"I'm the only experienced player left in this entire school. The new recruit needs someone to lead them, I can't abandon the Bulldog like that, especially in this difficult time when it needed me the most, Sadie." Charlie explains.

"Okay, I understand, but what about your art class with Mr. Jefferson, you gonna drop it too."

"No, I'll talk with principal Parker, to squeeze Art class into my school schedule, don't you worry Betty."

"I hope so."

"I'll meet you later, okay, I need to go to the principal office now."

"Bye, love you beb."

"Love you more," Charlie shouts back causing everyone in the hall to turn their attention toward him.

"Oh...sorry," Charlie says before making his way into the Principle office.

________

In Principle Parker's office, the interior smell overwhelmingly of Cheryl's perfume, with Cherly's Portrait hanging behind Principle Parker's office desk.

Opening the office door, Charlie saw Principle Parker, busy typing on his Laptop's keyboard with a lot of files on the other side of the desk.

"Hello, Principle Parker, I come here to thank you for having me back, sir"

"No worry there, Mr. Murdock, we are glad to have you back in Art class and in the Bulldog football team,"

"Sir, How do you know?"

"Cheryl told me, she said you are an outstanding student with amazing photography skills and Football spirit, and I know she was also the one who get you expelled from this school the last time, and I'm sorry for her, and I'm here to make it up to you.

"It's okay, Principle Parker, Cheryl, and I, we are good now."

"Glad to hear it, so I have another proposal for you Cole, I want you to be the new Bulldog's captain, I talked it over with coach Clayton and he agreed." Said the Principle.

"Thanks, sir, I will not let you down, sir." Charlie responds,

"That's it, Charlie, you can go back to class now."

"Thank you again, sir."

"I think many of us, maybe the entire town... had been hoping against hope... that somehow the remaining player in the football team that hasn't been found dead is alive, so they can tell the real story, to what happened to them that day inside that tunnel, the day that will mark in Huntsville history.

But that was before the undeniable, irrevocable fact...just happening this morning, another body has been found, it was the bulldog team Captain, and the son of the wealthiest family in Huntsville, Nathan Prescott... his body was found by the town scout group, lead by Mike Sinclair.

But this time, Nathan's body was found with a bullet hole in his forehead...the missing case of Huntsville's very own football team's captain has evolved into a murder case,

The only way to solve these terrible and mysterious secrete, that could only be revealed is by the cold steel blade of a coroner's autopsy scalpel...or the telltale beating of a guilty heart."

Back at the Sinclair house, in bed, a sweating chest Mike Sinclair, had a bad night, rolling in his bed, running a hand through his hair, thinking to the day when he go scouting with his friend before came across Nathan's body floating down the Huntsville river.

He can't handle the picture he just saw that morning, he grabs his cell phone from a nightstand, and composes a text to Sadie Mayfield that reads" R U up? can we talk?".

Back in Betty's bedroom, a phone in a mint green case buzzes on a bedside table. Betty hears the phone buzz, so she decides to take a break from the book she read and grabs her phone on the bedside table to check her messages, It's Mike's message, to which she replied: "NO..and No".

Setting down the phone, she rests back on her bed pillow, resting her hand on top of her head. When Mike received back Betty's messages that said: "NO..and No". Mike gets out of his bed, and walks around his room while sending another text to Sadie that said"Please".

Sadie goes to her bedroom window, and sits on it, looking at the full beautiful moon while texting Back"The answer is still No.. Stop bothering me." it read, and turns off her phone.

Mike grabbed a pair of black shorts that sitting on the edge of his bed and put them on, Moment later he run shirtless in the middle of the night to Ted's house, one of his scout team friends.

Mike stops for a minute, scanning everything around him, then hurries to the front door, Pounding hard on the door, his friend comes out and opens it.

"Mike, what are you doing? You can't be here?" Ted says as he leans past his friend to look around, to see if someone follows Mike to his house or not.

"I know, Ted, but I need someone to talk to, about that day, I'm pretty sure it wasn't a firework, it was a gunshot we heard that day." Said Mike as his face was completely covered in his sweat.

"Dude, you can't come to my house like that in the middle of the night, it makes us look suspicious."

"Ted, listen, That shot we heard, probably the one that killed Nathan Prescott."

"Mike, Com'on, we know exactly what the police and the rest of the scout team know, that a gun was fired, that a boy was shot, but we don't know by whom, so we stick with "it was a firework." statement."

"But we know when it was fired. That's something the police still don't know but we do, Ted."

"They're performing an autopsy right now, Mike, there is nothing we can do."

"But, Ted, we can call them anonymously."

"This is not a negotiation, buddy, everyone in the scout team that day agreed on this, and the cherry on top is, I'm not supposed to be there with your guys, if anybody knows that I was there, hanging around with the scout team, I could lose my spot in the Bulldog team."

They stare at each other for a whole minute in Ted's kitchen, and finally, Charlie decides to leave the house and go back to his.

The next morning, at Mike's house, Fred, Mike's father, feed the dog, while Mike slowly walked down the stair and joined them in the kitchen.

"Morning, Dad," Mike says.

"Hey, Bud, where did you sneak off to last night?"

"You, Uh---? Heard that last night?"

"Son, I've been hearing you sneaking out since the day you turn 10, going to Ted's basement."

Mike poured milk and prepare his breakfast before school, while his dad talked.

"I couldn't sleep, dad, I went for a jog to tire myself out," Mike explains as he pulls a chair out to put his bag on.

"All right, bud, got something on your mind?" said Fred, while his sipping his morning coffee.

"Nothing really, Dad, just all this stuff with the football team and Nathan." Said Mike as he finished his breakfast and take one last sip of his hot coffee.

"Yeah, I been meaning to talk to you about that, no more midnight runs until the police catch whoever it was that shot that poor kid or the group that kidnapped and kill the football team, I swear to god, This town." Fred shook his head, still can't believe what has been happening in his small little town.

Meanwhile, in Sadie's room, she prepares her stuff for school, while her parent comes into her bedroom and talk to her about their late-night date.

"Hey, Sadie girl, we just wanted you to know, it's gonna be a bit of a late-night for us, it gonna be a lot of late-night for us, your mom and I."

"Really, Dad, late night? There is a murderer on the loose, I mean come on"

"I mean, an accidental drowning,.... who cares, but the sociopath son of the wealthiest family in town murdered, that a national obsession waiting to happen with a big headline."

"The kid's barely in his grave, honey."

"Can you go downstairs and wait for me there will you, Roy, I need a minute with our daughter."

Roy exited Sadie's room, Sadie's mom, Joyce, walked up, sitting on the bed facing her.

"Betty, you know what I love about you the most, Honey?"

"My make-up skill?"

"No, not that,... I love your mindset?"

"What mindset?"

"It's that you always want to see the good in people, even people like the Prescott family?"

"What did they do to you, Mom, that makes you so mad with them?"

"They act like a good helping citizen, but deep down in their dirty heart, they want to burn this down to the ground, you'll see their true color soon enough."

"I'll keep on the lookout for them, Mom, don't worry."

"From this moment on, no backsliding, that means, no Valentina, and any of her friends like Cheryl, Ziggy, and especially no..."

"No Cole, I got it, mom"

Finishing the conversation, Joyce kissed her daughter on the forehead before heading downstairs to go to work.

A moment later, Charlie's doorbell rings, He answers his front door and surprisingly sees Sadie standing there and saying the famous catchphrase to him "Walk me to school."

Now along the quiet neighborhood street on the way to school,

"I needed time to process... to separate what my mom wants, from what I want...I think I want?"

"Which is??"

"My mom says, I should never speak to you again, but i... you know, even though we haven't seen each other for three months, I just want you to know I still love you"

"But why do you ditch me and Cherly yesterday, after we see each other in the hallways."

"Uhh... sorry about that, I'm too nervous you know, I thought I never you again, and I even heard you want to move to Arcadia Bay with your dad to pursue your art career there, is that true."

"Yes that is true, I received a scholarship there, and my dad and I already packed our thing, until the last minute, Cherly show up at our front door and said I got my school scholarship back, sorry I didn't tell you sooner, Sad."

"That okay, no need to worry, I understand, and I'm still happy you're back, Charlie"

"You do!!"

"Yeah, smackhead, I do."

"Oh, I mean that really great, Sadie. Me too."

"I will be lying if I said that it didn't hurt when I first heard the news, that you moved out."

"And I'm sorry again, Sad, I should have told you first, but back then, I thought it would be better in the long run... if you didn't know, and it would be easy for me and you to move on, but now we don't need to worry about that, cause I'm here now, no more moving out."

"I'll hope it stays that way until we graduated high school together."

"Yeah me too, my Sadie"

"And oh, don't tell my mom that we're dating again, promise."

"Promise." Charlie's response as the two teen's eyes still locked into one another.

____________

Later that morning, a student comes out of the school bus and enters Huntsville high school, in the Hallway, there are photos, stuffed toys, and candles comprise a makeshift memorial for the bulldog player near Charlie's locker, as Charlie standing near the locker, Mike approaches him.

"Hey Charlie, Do you think I could use Nathan Prescott's death as an excuse to get out of PE class, Like..?

"Like what?" Charlie asks.

"Sorry coach. I'm just too depressed and freaked out right now to do pull up?"

"Don't joke about their death, Sinclair," Charlie exclaims.

"What? Sardonic humor is just my way of relating to the world."

While talking to Charlie, Mike spies something down the hall.

"Heh, Look, it's the rich kids from The Goonies." unaware of what just entered the hallway, Charlie followed his friend's gaze.

It's the new Bulldog team that Principle Parker just recruited.

"All right I'm out, your new minion is coming, Charlie."

As Anton, Reggi, and Nial headed their way... Mike tries to head out, avoiding them, Anton's shoulder punches him.

"Watch it, Monday spang."

Don't want to make a scene, Mike quietly walks away, because it always happens to him, it is like a daily routine now.

Meanwhile, Jimmy and Sadie talk to each other in the cafeteria, about Mike and Charlie.

"Now that you and Charlie are back together, I'll say it, are you hundred percent sure that Cole will be okay when he knows, you and Mikey dating when he's not around because I don't think he will be okay that you dating his best friend behind his back."

"It'll be fine, Jimmy, Charlie is a chill man, and also a forgiveness type, don't you worry about me."

"And what about Mike, are you guys done with each other."

"I broke up with Mike like two weeks ago, Jim, even before Cole come back to school,"

"So that means Mike is single now, hmm... Dy, do you think Mike, like he's straight "straight" because no straight men have that kind of body."

Sadie smirks while replying back to her gay BFF.

"Speaking of bodies, have you recovered from finding Dastin's corpse floating down the Lakewood river?"

"It was more traumatizing having to explain to my dad what I was doing with Nial at the river that night, yet another perk of being Captain of the police's son"

Sadie smirked again, padding Jimmy on the shoulder while walking into the principal's office.

Back in the principal's office, "Oh, my god, those are gorgeous, are those for Betty, Mrs. Potts" said Jimmy, while looking into the beautiful bouquet of yellow roses sitting on the ledge of the front desk.

"That's why I called her, not you, Jimmy boy."

Jimmy examines the bouquet, he found a letter that reads "Dear Sadie, sorry for my behavior toward you at the party last Friday, please forgive me. XOXO M."?"

"Who the hell is M, Sadie?" Jimmy asks.

"Mason." Said both Sadie and Mason.

He enters the room with a pack of donuts in his hand.

"The yellow for friendship, I also had a donut that you love from Two Whale's dinner, because, as my mom likes to say, there's no wrong the right donut can't fix."

"Well thank you so much, Max," Sadie says with her calm and comfortable tone of voice.

"And I also buy you two VIP tickets at the twilight cinema, tonight if you want to go....with me or Jimmy......or everybody else you want to go with it's your choice, and again, I'm so sorry for my behavior at the party toward you, Sadie."

"It's okay, Max, I'm fine." Sadie smiles.

"I don't know what happen to me that night, it was such a basic-asshole move, it was like I was possessed by---" Mason shutters.

"Lord of the underworld Satan," Jimmy adds as he rolls his eyes.

Sadie turns and looks straight into Jimmy's eyes.

"Jimmy right, it like that night the "Old Maxin Mason" possessed me.....but I changed now, I will try my best to keep it that way, and I will never, ever do anything like that to you again, I swear on my mother's pearls, just--- can you please give me one more chance?"

"Okay, Maxin Mason, you got my forgiveness," Sadie says calmly.

Both Jimmy and Mason "WHAT?"

"Really, wow, I'll take it, and you won't regret it... and I'll bring the donuts to lunch so we can celebrate."

The teens share a smile and the bell start to ring, happily, Mason exits with the box of donut, and Jimmy disapproves and shakes his head.

"It's the path of least resistance, Jimmy, and I also don't want him and Cole because of me, can't look each other in the eyes while they practice for the opening season."

"But not that easy, Sad," Jimmy says, crossing his arm and leaning his body against the wall behind him.

"A week ago, he been a jerk to everyone in school, and now he tries to make amend, I think he deserved it, everyone deserved a second chance, Jay."

A moment later, through a speaker, Principle Parker has a new to deliver to his student.

"Goodmorning, Students, This is your Principle Speaking... There have been many inquiries about the upcoming pep rally, so let me state clearly... it is happening as scheduled,"

Standing with him in the office are, Valentina Prescott, and Captain Hopper

"Now on a less felicitous note if you give your attention to Captain Hopper." Said Principle Parker.

Captain Hopper leans over the mic on principal Parker's desk and speaks "Most of you already know the details...but your former classmate and former Bulldog team's captain, Nathan Prescott was found dead late Saturday night, make it the 5th body that has been found in the past 5 weeks, so as of the weekend... all of the 5th bodies that been found are now being treated as homicide cases, it is an open and ongoing investigation, and 5 more students are still treated as missing, may God bless them and bring them b---?"

nearly finishing his speech, Valentina interrupted the Captain.

"And may I interject? This is Valentina, Neither I nor my parent will rest until Nathan's death is avenged... and his cold-hearted killer is walking the Green Mile to sit in Old Sparky and fry,... and I for one have my suspicions, hashtag " Bring Nathan Justice."

Captian Hopper steps in and continues his speech.

"If you know anything that could help us find and apprehend the one responsible for the Bulldog team disappearing and Nathan's killer or anything about what happened to them in the Huntsville highway tunnel, I strongly urge you to come forward immediately, you can speak with me or Principle Parker, a tragedy crime like this wound us all."

In the hallway, Mike peered into the office, Principle Parker noticed it, but Mike step back and went straight into the bathroom while splashing the water on his face, Charlie come in,

"Sinclair," Charlie rise his ton as he approached his friends.

Mike turns back and looks up at Charlie with a little fear in his eyes.

"Weirdest thing, this Saturday we were supposed to go on a road trip, which you bailed at the last minute, is there something you wanna tell me, pal?" Said Charlie, flitch his eyebrows, looking straight dead eyes at Mike.

Charlie walks into a science class with the afternoon sun streaming in through the window. Mike is seated at the front-row table, and Cheryl and Valentina are seated behind him.

"I was wondering, Tina, back in August, you told the po-po that your brother never went on the bus with the Bulldog team, yet we come to find out that Nathan did go on that bus with the rest of the team, but he is the only one so far that got shot in the forehead, not like the rest of team, slightly suspicious, no?"

"Are you suggesting that I had something to do with my brother's and the rest of the Bulldog team's death?"

"I'm just curious, V, What do the police think happens?"

"I'll tell you like what I told them, which is that Nathan lies to me about going with the team, I don't why he does that in the first place, maybe he thinks my mom won't allow him to go with the team, so he lies, who knows?"

After a minute of chit-chat, Mr.Queen, the science teacher enters the class,

"Seat, everyone, Pair off, gloves on, scalpels up."

"Can I be with Valentina? Mr.Queen?" Mike raise his hand and Valentina sighed in annoyed.

"And I wanna be with Sadie?" Mason asks.

"Oh, Sorry, Mason, I was thinking, I'd partner with Jimmy." Said Sadie.

"Actually, Uh, Jimmy's with me, we like, talked," said Nial while pulling Jimmy away from the lab table.

Charlie walks up to Sadie's table and asks to join her, which Charlie happily accepted.

"Once again, fate throws us together, Dy." Said Charlie as he pull the chair out to sit.

"Couldn't agree more about that, my lovely Charlie," Sadie responds with a hug smile on her face.

Back to Mike, he slides over to Valentina's table and joins her.

"Valentina, we haven't talked since last summer, and I just wanted to say I'm sorry about your brother." Said Mike.

"Nathan was the best brother I ever had," Valentina explains as her eyes are still fixed on the death frog in front of them.

"If I can do anything to help, V." Mike offers.

"That's sweet, Mike...but unless you saw something more at Lakewood river before you come across my brother's dead body... if not, there is nothing you can help."

"Do, uh...Do you know if the police have any leads?" Mike continues.

"What? No, you slack head... but it's only a matter of time, and my brother-sister instinct is telling me, it's someone we all know."

"Right. Well, I'm not great at science, but I can take point on this... if it's too weird for you."

"Wierd why?" Valentina asks, looking down on the table she saw a dead frog "Oh, you mean because my brother is being dissected with a blade just like this one, possibly at this very moment, don't worry I'm fine." looking straight back at Cherly that now is sitting with Mason, she stab the dead frog on the table with a blade, and imagine the frog is Cheryl."

Back to the science lesson, Mr.Queen is explaining the inner body part of the Frog to the students.

"Every corpse has a tale to tell... look closer to the body, there are several morbid details you should find really fascinating and relevant to your upcoming test this month, so stay focused?"

After forty-five minutes of dissecting the frogs, the bell rings, Sadie and Mason, rush to Jimmy's lab table after his quote on quote "Jimmy's new boyfriend" Nial leave the room.

"So, What did Nial want with you, Jimmy?" Asks by curious Sadie.

"Oh, my God. I don't even think he knows, I mean, I am devastatingly handsome in that classic--- pre-accident Montgomery Clift kind of way,--- and sexuality is fluid...but do you really believe that someone name "Nial" actually be that fluid?"

"Okay, well, I ship it, Jimmy," Mason interjects.

"Well, of course, you would, Max, You're a big city boy with loose morals and a very rich parent."

"Really, I am."

"No, I just meant that Nial has an official girlfriend, her name is Veronica."

"Ohh, sorry to hear that, Jay Jay."

"That okay, Betty, but anyway, it's terrible to say... but part of me wishes he would just stay in the damn closet." while saying that, Betty, Jimmy, and Mason arrived at Charlie's launch table, the guy that now lives in a room that has the same space as a school closet... "Obviously, I didn't mean literal closet."

"Charlei, my man, how ya doing, bud?" Mason greets.

"Nothing much man, just trying and testing my new polaroid camera, that I just bought for 15$ at the thrift store."

"Would ya like to test that new camera of yours on us, we would love to be your first "new camera" model?"

"I...I don't know man." Charlie mumbles and looks down at his fifty dollars polaroid camera.

"Please?"Sadie pleas.

"Would you? I would love to be in one of your photos, C." She adds.

"Ohh, alright, girls, but I'm still working on the setting, so...you guys go and stand in front of that fountain,... don't forget to smile okay."

"Alright... we ready man, let's hit that button."

"1...2...3...SMILE."

*CLICKED*

Raising his eyes from his camera, Charlie looks at Sadie, she feels sad, and her button lips tremble.

"Sadie, are you okay?" Charlie asks, the other looking at her worriedly.

Sadie looked back at Cole, wiping her tear." I'm supposed to say yes, that is what the nice girl always says, but, No I'm not. I -- I want to be, I thought I could be, but it's too much, too fast, Charlie-- sorry that I ask you back to be my boyfriend, I don't know what possessed me that morning, but I can't do it, I can't be with you anymore, I'm sorry." Said Sadie while crying her eyes out and walking away.

"Sadie ---Sadie, WAIT." Charlie put down his camera, grab his jacket, put it on, and come after her.

"Sadie, Wait, com'on listen to me." Charlie grabs her hand, but she pulls it off and turns back looking at worried Charlie, who is now heartbroken inside.

"No. When-- When I think, Charlie.... of where I feel safest and most myself, I think of us on benches near the lighthouse, But..."

"Me too, Sad, me too, I feel that way too."

"No, Charlie, that's not true anymore... I thought I could pretend the last three months never happen, but...I can't give you the answer you want. That's what you said to me... the last time I called you, to ask if you were okay, and I know you remember the answer you gave back to me, Charlie... and that's how I feel right now. I'm sorry."

"Sadie, Please let me explain----" Charlie begs, the tears in his begin to build up and some of them manage to escape and fell down his cheeks like a river stream.

"Mr, Murdock--" Charlie turns back and saw Principle Parker standing behind him, while Sadie walks away.

"If we could have a word in private?" with a glance back at Sadie, Charlie walked with Principle Parker for a chat.

"You're in a very good place right now, Mr. Murdock, Bulldog Football, Art class with Mr.Jefferson," said Principle Parker, with a small smile, looking straight into Charlie's eyes.

"What do you have on your mind, sir?" Charlie asks.

"This Morning in the hallway, I saw you talking about something serious with Mr.Sinclair, and try dodging me all morning, Why?"

"I was distracted, and me and Mike just talking about the new camera that I just bought yesterday..."

"Charlie, son...If there's something you want to get off your chest...perhaps about our missing football team, and especially Nathan's death, now would be the time." Said Principle Parker, looking straight deadeyes at Charlie. Charlie swallows hard, try not to snitch at his friend.

After the chit-chat with Principle Parker is over, Charlie charges straight into the music room where Mike sits with his guitar.

"Parker just asked me if I knew anything about Nathan and the team." Said Charlie as his hand begin to shake.

"And? What did you say?" Mike asks, his face turns light purple instantly the moment he heard what Charlie just said.

"Nothing, That I didn't, but he said if I did. I shouldn't be scared and he'd make sure I was okay," Charlie shutters.

"Of course, he would. You're his student, Idiot." Mike says. Mike's heartbeat rising, faster like he's now running a marathon, setting down his guitar.

"If this-- come on man just tell him the truth."

Mike lowers his gaze and slides his square glasses up his nose.

"You can't go to Parker if he knew that I bring a gun on our scout mission, he will expel me in a heartbeat, and you know if I lose this school scholarship, that means I also lose my Blackburn scholarship to go to Archia bay with you too,"

"Okay, I won't tell Parker about your gun." after settling an argument with his best friend Mike, Charlie stormed out of the music room and went straight for his bike in the parking lot.