Accidentally a Criminal

Chapter 7

10:04 am, Xavier, Vermont, 10/8/23

Wanna know what I did as soon as Sage left?I took an eight-hour long nap. It was awesome. Oh, and I put on my freshly washed clothes. Don't you love it when the clothes come straight out of the dryer and they're still hot? Truly an amazing experience.

-✩☺☺☺✩-

I arrived at school about five minutes late. Which, surprisingly, wasn't that bad. I got a tardy slip and that was it. Most people would think that since I'm a scholarly student, I'd freak out over a tardy slip or a C on an assignment. I genuinely don't care.

My first hour, math, went by incredibly slowly. On top of that, I still have some missing assignments to take care of, since I was gone for two days. Mr. Yldirm ( his last name is Turkish, I still don't know how to pronounce it), droned on for what seemed like hours.

Time flew by, next was art, then English, and then- lunch.

Our school cafeteria is disgusting. I usually eat outside with my friends, and this is why. Imagine a zoo with uncaged monkeys, but the monkeys are human and they're in a school cafeteria. The poor school mascot, Ricky the Rhino, constantly has applesauce or mashed potatoes flung onto his smiley mural on the wall. Unfortunately for me, the weather is starting to get colder, so I have to eat inside this jungle.

I sat down with my friends, Gwen, Ryliee, and Ava. I would say that my friends are pretty great people. Both Ryliee and Ava play in the school orchestra, Ryliee on cello and Ava on violin. Ryliee and Ava also happen to be twins. Same dirty blonde hair, brown eyes and all.

Gwen and I both play softball together, but I personally think she's better than me. She'll try to tell you that she's not, but trust me, she is.

I'm personally both interested in athletics and the arts. I enjoy both. I do choir as well as softball and theater.

Ava, the gossip of the group, started talking. "Did ya hear about that murder down in New Hampshire?" She looked at Gwen and me. Ryliee had obviously already heard the story, as she was rolling her eyes. Ava didn't wait for Gwen and I's response. She just kept talking. "So there was a murder at a gas station down there. Two highschool boys our age were stabbed in the stomach. The murderer got away. They still haven't found him!"

"Ava's lying." Ryliee objected. "Some guy killed one of them and was going after the other one, but the other guy stabbed him in self-defense and ran away. They still haven't found him."

I started to get uneasy. "Where was this uh- incident?"

"Some place called Taylor, It's about an hour and forty-five minutes from here, or more. I can't remember." Ava said like she knew everything.

I swear, if this has something to do with Harvey, I'm gonna cry. He could potentially be a murderer! But, like Ryliee claimed, it was out of self-defense. Am I going to have to play detective now?! Whose story seems more trustworthy?

Another thing that I forgot to mention. This morning, before I woke Harvey up, he was talking in his sleep. He repeated the name "Duncan". A possible victim? I'll have to ask Harvey.

Possibilities of the situation swarmed through my head like wasps, stinging me with every nagging, horrible thought. The rest of the day was a blur.

When I got home, I found Harvey asleep on the couch, just as he was before. It was scary, having a potential murderer inside of my house. I mean, I helped him! I'm letting him stay here! If the police find him, I'll go down with him! I needed to lie down, the weight of the subject was too heavy for me to carry.

I took a glance at Harvey. He seemed so... peaceful. His face was so relaxed and didn't seem to have a care in the world. Also, he was drooling on the couch. I grumbled a little. Whatever, that's besides the point. He looked too much at rest to be a murderer, if you get my drill. Doesn't he have any guilt for the crimes that I assume he committed? Unless he's a psycho who doesn't feel shame or guilt, or any human emotion.

Of course, this is all an assumption, a theory. Harvey probably just ran away from home or something. That's still a bad thing though. Wait, when I first took him in, I checked his phone didn't I? Why didn't I call his parents when his phone wasn't dead?! It's probably dead by now! I slapped myself a few times in the head.

I decided to watch some TV to melt my brain a little and get these thoughts out of my head.

-✩☺☺☺✩-

I woke up to the TV blaring and my headache worse than ever. Sage looked at me. "Oh, hi." she said blankly. Her stare seemed cold and calculating, not at all how peppy and cheerful she had been before. She was distant from me, as if I had a disease or something.

Does she know?! Does she know that I killed someone? It definitely seems like it! Her stare felt like it was burning a hole through my head. A cold chill crawled up my spine. Sage's eyes smiled viciously as if to chant, "I know." I felt like she would jump out at me any moment.

Then she turned her head towards the TV. I could finally breathe!

"Hey Harvey?" I stopped breathing. " You were talking in your sleep last night."

"Huh? What did I say?" I tensed up. According to my older brother, Alex, I have said some pretty messed up stuff in my sleep. I hope I didn't confess my crimes right then and there while I was sleeping.

Sage looked a bit conflicted. "You said the name 'Duncan'. Who is he?"

My voice went up an octave. "Oh-um, he's a friend."

"You had a dream about your friend?"

"I guess... I don't remember the dream though." I lied. She stared at me again. It was as though we were having a telepathic conversation or something. Her cold eyes gave no light and they clearly said, "You little liar."

I hate this. I'll burst any moment. She knows. I think she knows at least. She could just be having an irrational girl mood swing. I tried to ease myself up with the thought, but we all know I'm lying.

Sage suddenly gave a heavy sigh. " Let's just start working on the treehouse. Come outside, we need to take measurements."

I followed with hesitation. The cops could be waiting outside for me. I grabbed my jacket, put on my shoes and, with trembling legs, I walked out the back door.

There were no authorities out in Sage's backyard, just Scout, who was chasing a squirrel. Sage handed me a tape measure. She was holding a red composition notebook and a pencil. I guess I'll be the one measuring stuff then.

Taking measurements for a tree that I just fell out of a couple days ago is kinda scary. At one point I was hanging upside-down from a branch with only my legs wrapped around it for support. I also fell out of the tree on multiple occasions. No major injuries though.

Sage was trying to keep up her ominous vibes, but they were starting to wear off. I'd catch glances of her hiding a smile with her notebook every time I was being a klutz. But then she would immediately correct her emotions, as if scolding them, and then went back to being icy and distant. This act went on until we were done getting measurements for the treehouse. Either she has a crush on me and doesn't want to admit it, or she's bipolar. I'll let you choose.