RED: Welcome To Fayetteville

#Prologue

Derrick walked underneath the neon lights of the movie theater as he held Kathrine's hand. His sharp edge of a jawline emerged from the opening of his dark blue hoodie; he didn't want anyone to see him. Kathrine was willingly holding his hand even though she didn't know exactly who Derrick Colten was. She had just moved into town two weeks ago and was glad to be making friends. She was worried that moving at this stage in high school would ruin every dream she ever had. But with Derrick, she liked the way he looked, the way he talked. She felt like it was somehow a reminder of home. "Maybe this could be more, " she thought.

The only thing on her mind was Derrick. Because in this moment, all she knew was that he was warm. His hands weren't rough as he rubbed her thumb with his. It felt right... but it wasn't. Derrick had Kathrine blocked on all social media and told her he didn't have it. He didn't want Kathrine to see all of his pictures with Natalie. Kathrine was the blonde that Derrick always wanted, not for a relationship but for a night.

Kathrine Woods was a gorgeous girl. Blue eyes. Full lips. She didn't need makeup, but she still liked it. She had even considered starting a makeup blog. At the least, she would always keep lipgloss on. Her height was just under 6 feet, just short of Derrick's 6'3". She always wore a hand full of simple rings, and made sure her white converse shoes matched everything.

Derrick took Kathrine behind the green restaurant on the top of the hill where he had parked his car. He got into the driver's seat; she got into the passenger seat, but not for long. Kathrine was attracted to Derrick, but she wasn't that girl. She had caught onto at least one thing about Derrick: he wanted something she wasn't going to give.

He was cheating on Natalie and Kathrine had no idea. She also had no idea what other secrets were in this town. This new small town was full of surprises, and she would be one of them.

Natalie tossed her beautiful painting into the trash can that sat in the corner of her room. For some reason, she couldn't see the masterpiece that it was or the talent she put onto the canvas.

Natalie's talent and beauty were the same: natural. Her short brown hair was wavy, and she hated it. Her eyes were cotton-candy blue, which just so happened to be her favorite color. She was short and petite in size, but she wasn't boney. Her favorite outfit was simple: leggings and an oversized

T-shirt (probably Derrick's), but she could only wear it when she wasn't at school. Good thing it was Christmas break.

The green and blue watercolors dripped from the canvas to the wrapping paper in the trash can. It was the leftovers from her present she got Derrick Colten, her boyfriend.

Derrick always wore the most recent solid-black, trending tennis shoes with khaki joggers. He was flat-chested and long-legged. He kept his face

Clean-shaven and showed his dimpled smile. His short brown hair matched his hazel eyes and bushy eyebrows.

Natalie had wrapped his new phone case in a beautiful, bright red wrapping paper. She felt like the intensity of the color showed how much she loved him.

She flopped onto her bed, grabbing her phone from the white nightstand. Her fingers had dried blue and green paint making her fingerprints show. She

Scrolled onto Instagram and looked through Derrick's photos, reading every caption. She loved to look at them. It was a way for her to relive the great times she had with him. She stopped at her favorite photo he had posted. It was a moment she would never forget, standing on a bridge watching the fireworks show over the rippling water.

That's why she loved her best friend Jasper. He was great! But he took even better photos. She would let him snap photos of her and Derrick every time they were together.

"I love this one, " she typed to Jasper after sending him the Fourth of July photo he took.

"Thanks! How are you?" he responded. "...I'm okay."

"What's wrong?"

"I just miss Derrick. I know that's annoying." "No, it's okay lol. Where is he?"

"He's asleep."

And Natalie believed it... She really believed that Derrick was asleep. She had not even considered that he was making out with the new girl, Kathrine, in his car just five minutes from her house. Derrick had both of them fooled. Neither girl knew about the other. But that's the way things go. People like Derrick

Stay in control until someone talks. And in a town like Fayetteville, it'll happen.

-----

"That's weird. All these white cars?" Genni laughed, pointing in the dimly-lit store parking lot.

Genni was short, so Kathrine towered over her. Her real name was Genesis, but "Genni" got less attention. She laughed a lot, which showed off her bleach-white teeth. Her cheeks were plump, and freckles danced on her nose.

They knew they probably shouldn't be there, but Genni loved adventure, and she was taking this opportunity to get to know Kathrine. Genni needed to show her that Fayetteville isn't horrible. To show her that this could be home if she would let it be.

There wasn't any wind that night, so their hefty jackets were enough to keep them warm. They couldn't even see their breath, maybe because it was too dark, but it wasn't even cold enough for them to shiver. Occasionally, they'd hear a car driving down Park City hill, but it wasn't close enough for the headlights to even showcase the parking lot. The sparse security lights would have to do.

"What are we even doing here?" Kathrine asked, scratching her arm with her light-orange nails.

"I've never really been over here. I always just pass it going down Park City hill. Who knows what's over here."

"I'm starting to get a little cold."

"Yeah, well, not everyone is used to the beach in Florida, " Genni laughed as she kicked a can and let it roll off the pavement of the parking lot and into the dead grass.

"So, you know Derrick, right?" Kathrine asked Genni.

"Yeah, what?" Genni asked as she peeked into the window of the rotting store that used to sell farming supplies.

"I think we're a thing. We made out last night."

"You did what?!" Genni snapped around to Kathrine so fast she almost lost her balance.

Kathrine leaned back, giving her a confused look. "Made out? Is that weird?"

Genni pointed at Kathrine wondering if she was kidding. Genni let her mouth drop, making Kathrine feel uneasy.

"What?" Kathrine asked.

"Oh, wow. He is cheating on Natalie, " Genni said to herself, looking up at the night sky trying to understand the situation.

"He's cheating!?" Kathrine yelled.

"Girl, look." Genni pulled out her phone and scrolled through his Instagram showing Kathrine the truth.

They were both so invested in Derrick's Instagram pictures, they didn't notice the slight sound of the can being stepped on at the edge of the parking lot.

Kathrine had her hand over her mouth as they scrolled two months deep in Derrick's Instagram.

Kathrine could just feel it. That feeling when you know you're not alone. Usually, it's just paranoia and you're wrong... but Kathrine was right. They weren't just being watched, they were prey. She felt like a poor animal sitting alone in the parking lot just waiting to be eaten. She listened to her gut and turned around to see the shadowy figure and a red hoodie hiding the face.

"Um, Genni. I don't like this."

"Me either. I can't believe he is cheating."

"No. Not Derrick." Kathrine's voice was trembling as she stepped backward in fear.

Genni finally turned around and locked her eyes on the heavy crowbar. The heavy crowbar that would soon be bloody.

The red hoodie ruffled as the crowbar swung back and forth. Back and forth. The moonlight occasionally catching it.

"Run!" Kathrine yelled.

Genni dropped her phone and her screen shattered as she spun on her heels to follow Kathrine into the dark street, but it was too late.

Thud.

Genni hit the pavement of the shady parking lot she knew she shouldn't have been at. Kathrine kept running, knowing Genni was no longer following her.

Then, the killer jerked the crowbar out of Genni's neck, letting her blood paint the white cars red.

Kathrine's Converse slapped the road as she ran down Park City hill. She was hoping that someone would stop to help her. She wasn't yelling; she didn't think anyone would be there to hear her. The breeze picked up, but she didn't notice. Her hair wrapping around her face, she still kept running. Her ankles were starting to hurt from the lack of support in her shoes, but she still kept running. She kept running and running down the hill and towards the strip of town. Just the streetlights on... store signs were off, the usual "nightlife" had gone to sleep. She just hoped she wasn't alone.

The sound of an engine was starting to rumble behind her. She turned her head, letting the breeze flip the hair away from her face. There was only one set of headlights coming down the street. She was still turning on the inside. She didn't know who was driving. What if it was the same person after her? She didn't really have a choice. She had to trust someone, so she hustled from the turning lane to stand on the right side of the road. The street lights were reflecting off the jet-black car as it started to slow down. The tires rolled to a halt in the middle of the vacant road. Finally, there was a standstill. She threw caution to the wind and ran to the driver-side door. Bang. Bang. Bang.

The teenaged girl cracked the window just enough to hear Kathrine's begging.

"Please help me! My friend back there, I don't know what's happening. I was scared, and I ran. I'm new here and I don't..." It was too much for Kathrine to handle. She was flustered and couldn't gather the words she wanted to say.

"Chill, girl. What's going on?" the girl asked from behind the cracked glass.

Kathrine made eye contact with the driver as she tried to catch her breath so she could say what she needed to. Her heavy breathing was starting to slow, "I need a ride to the police station, " she uttered between the breaths.

"Is it really that serious?"

"Please!" Kathrine yelled as she hit the window. It made the driver flinch like a jump scare in a horror film.

The driver tapped the steering wheel with her nails as she contemplated what to do. "Don't you have a phone?" the driver asked. She was actually getting angry that she was hitting her car like that.

"Yes. It's dead. I'm scared... please, " Kathrine said one last time.

The driver reached across the passenger seat and pulled the locking lever up. Click. "Get in, " she said as she rolled up her window.

Kathrine raced around the car and jumped in the passenger seat. She thought it was strange that no other cars were coming down the street. Yeah, it was midnight, but she was used to busy streets in Florida. In fact, going out

Late at night alone was something she had never really done. And she doesn't think she would ever do it again.

"What's your name?" the driver asked.

"Kathrine Woods. Thank you for doing this." Kathrine couldn't keep her eyes off the road in front of her. She couldn't turn to the girl. She was thankful, but you couldn't hear it in her voice. She was still trying to catch her breath.

"And don't you want to go back and check on your friend?"

"The cops will be able to do more than I can. I don't know what I'm doing!" Kathrine finished her sentence by yelling. Her breathing was starting to pick up again, and the driver was getting anxious now. She didn't know how to help, so she tried to connect with her as she drove into town and towards the police station.

"My name's Evelyn, " she said, still keeping her eyes on the road. "Evelyn Harper."

Kathrine didn't say anything. She continued to stare out the window, bouncing her knee to try to relieve her anxiety that wasn't going away. Evelyn's car smelt like Taco Bell. An empty bottle of Diet Mountain Dew rolled in the back seat. Her bookbag still in the floor from the last day of school before Christmas break.

Evelyn pulled into the police station parking lot, and Kathrine pulled the locking lever up, and within a second she was out of the car. She bolted up the cold concrete steps to the glass door.

"Hello?!" she yelled, searching around the door for a way inside. She alternated between yanking at the locked door and banging on it with her fist.

"There she goes again with that banging, " Evelyn said to herself. She shut her door and leaned back with her arms crossed. She still wasn't sure what happened, but she thought Kathrine was overreacting.

"Yes?" a voice said from a speaker to the left of the glass door.

"I need help! Someone was after me and my friend in a parking lot, and I ran. I don't know what happened but..."

A deputy opened the glass door from inside, keeping one hand close to his gun. "Ma'am, you need to calm down. Take a deep breath, and we will go inside." Kathrine nodded and followed his lead. The deputy caught a glance of Evelyn leaning against her car. "Can I help you?"

"I'm the ride. I don't know what's going on... I'm fine, " Evelyn answered. The deputy nodded and shut the door behind them.