Dissociation

Few steps back

Aaron forcefully made his way to the bathroom as he got up from his bed. He barely slept the night before due to overthinking about the case and his competences, the frustration of not going a step forward with the case was slowly getting to him. As he brushed his teeth, he began to hear voices in his head; some comparing him to his father, others praising him for how far he'd come. He bath, put on gym clothes, running shoes and plugged his earphones, slowly shutting down those voices. As he opened his door, he noticed Snow crossing the road, moving towards his house with a smile on her face. It had been some time since they'd run together for various reasons, he didn't feel happy nor annoyed when he saw her coming over.
« Hey there! » She said.
« Hi, how was your night? » Aaron replied.
« Pretty good!! » she said with a smile.
« I can see that, you look all enthusiastic today » he said genuinely. They both started jogging and stopped few minutes later to drink some water. Aaron looked at the pale woman in front of him, contemplating whether he should say what he had in mind or keep to himself.
« Well, I'm all ears» she said.
« Huh?? » Aaron replied confused.
« I can tell you're dying to interrogate me.. so, go on » she said with a smile.
« Is it that obvious? » Aaron said, laughing faintly.
« Kind of » she laughed.
« Well, I was wondering.. do you remember much about.. the death of your friend John? » Aaron asked at last. Snow looked up to the sky for a second, as if asking permission to John to talk about that night.
« You know, it was a long time ago and I was still very young so I can try to remember but I can't promise to have the answer to your questions » She said.
« Don't worry, my questions won't be convoluted » he reassured her. They both started walking while Aaron started his innocent questioning.
«So, what was your relationship with John? » he asked.
« We were friends.. he was the first one that spoke to me when I arrived here, I was really shy and had a hard time making friends.. I guess he noticed that and approached me »
« What about the other boy on the scene? » Aaron asked.
« Rick? They were friends way longer than we were, they basically grew up together.. to be honest I felt like the third wheel sometimes » Snow responded while scratching her head awkwardly.
« I know everyone swore he was the most loved boy of the village but do you know someone, anyone who didn't like him? » Aaron asked. Snow reflected for some time then answered.
« Honestly, no.. the guy was cool and quiet, wasn't a trouble maker unlike his best friend and came from a good family.. although.. » she stopped walking and took a sip of water.
« The night he died, he'd ditched Arya for us, he was supposed to help her trick or treat but left her to herself so she might have taken it seriously » She added.
« But she was like.. 10 when this happened, plus kill someone with so much passion because of a silly Halloween tradition is a little unhinged I think » Aaron said smiling.
« Yeah I know but that's the only one I can think of » Snow answered.
« Any girlfriend? » He asked. Snow burst out laughing.
« Aaron, we were 12.. all we think about at that age is having fun.. though I thought he had a little crush on me but I always ignored it »
« Why? » he asked.
« This may sound silly but although I'm quiet and introverted, I like more extroverted and dynamic people so yeah.. we weren't a match » she explained.
« I see »
The walked for some time and reached their street.
« You should go to his house, find out if there's still something interesting there » Snow proposed before going to her house.
« I will, thanks » Aaron replied waving her goodbye. Once home, he took a bath and put on his work clothes before boiling two eggs and eating them with bread.

At the station..

« How's my favorite guy? » Edward asked, tapping Aaron shoulder with a smile.
« I barely slept last night » Aaron sighed, making his way to his office. Edward followed and closed the door behind him.
« So.. what's our plan for today? » Edward asked, sitting on the chair in front of Aaron's.
« I think solving the first murder will give us closure to the the second so we'll have to go back in time » Aaron replied, tapping his desk.
« And how do you plan on doing that? Cold cases are complex as we mostly rely on the witnesses at the time» Edward replied.
« Looking through the files on John's murder, I can see some laxity on solving the case.. they didn't even bother digging into this young boy's life to find any potential suspects.. they only interrogated the friends with him and the other girl » Aaron said.
« Well, there isn't much they could do.. » Edward explained.
« You think? Okay.. this happened at the Sanders house but no one bothered asking Karl Sander where he was, it is written Arya came back home at 05 minutes past 11 but she claimed she only waited 5 minutes for John before heading back home, Snow was left with him alone before the incident so she had the opportunity but they didn't even really question her, claiming she's traumatized » Aaron said in frustration.
« You do realize we are talking about kids here.. and none of them had a motive » Edward said.
« None of them had a known motive, kids can be sneaky and they fight all the time.. maybe one of them had deep anger issues and snapped » Aaron said.
« Snapped? There has to be an argument or something for someone to 'snap' and that was not the case the night of the murder » Edward said confused.
« We don't really know about that, we don't know what Snow and John talked about when the other guy left them, we don't know if Arya really took it well when he abandoned her in the middle of the road to hang out with his friends » Aaron explained.
« So what now? » Edward asked, tired of arguing.
« We question Arya then Karl first » Aaron said.
« Then? » Edward asked.
« Well, we'll know where to go from there fortunately » Aaron added. They both got up and entered the car.

At Arya's house..

« You go round the house while I knock» Aaron instructed.
« Round the house searching for? » Edward asked. Aaron smacked his forehead before responding.
« Sometimes I wonder if you're really.. never mind.. just look around and see if you find anything suspicious then join me in front of her door » Aaron sighed. Edward did as instructed and Aaron made his way to Arya's door and knocked. There was no answer, he knocked again and glanced over to her neighbor Rick, loud music could be heard coming from his house and his motorcycle was parked outside. Edward came back.
« She's not there I think » Aaron said.
« She definitely is.. while checking her backyard, I glanced over to the window and saw her looking directly at me, gave me chills honestly.. I waved but she didn't wave back and just stared » Edward said feeling a little disrespected.
« Maybe she's having a bad day.. happens to the best of us » Aaron sighed and raised his hand one more time to knock. Arya opened the door, greeting them with a huge smile.
« Aaron! » she hugged him, surprising him and Edward too.
« Hey Arya, how are you? » Aaron asked.
« I'm good, what about you? »
« I'm fine, this is my friend Edward » Aaron said, pulling Edward closer to him. She smiled and shook his hand.
« So.. what do you want? » she asked.
« We'd like to ask you some questions if you don't mind » Aaron replied.
« Sure but I was about to head out so we'll have to make it quick » Arya explained. They made their way to the living room and sat on the couch.
« It's about the murder of John » Edward said.
« I doubt I could be of much help but go on » Arya said.
« Do you know if anyone had a grudge against him ? » Aaron asked.
« No but then again, I didn't know him that much so I can't really answer that » she said.
« What relationship did you have with him? » Edward asked.
« Our relationship was nonexistent.. We had dinner together from time to time when his mom came over but apart from that, we didn't talk much.. my mom wouldn't let me »
« Why? » Edward added.
« I don't know, my mom was the paranoid type.. she won't let me talk to anyone or go to school.. I hated her for it » Arya sighed.
« Can you recount what happened that night? » Aaron asked.
« I can try but the memories are blurry honestly » Arya said looking at the ceiling.
« At what time did John ditched you? » Edward asked.
« I don't know » she replied.
« Where was your meeting point? » Aaron asked.
« Not really far, it was in front of the house with the wooden fence a few blocks away » Arya answered.
« What was the relationship between John and Snow? »
« Umm.. I can't really tell, they seemed close but she seemed more interested by Rick than him and I'm sure John noticed this too » she said.
« He did? » Aaron asked.
« Yeah, I can't really tell how but observing them as my hobby, I could tell he knew » Arya said. She then got up, grab her bag and keys.
« I'll have to go now if you don't mind » she said. They both got up and went to their car.
They drove for a few seconds when Aaron asked Edward to stop the car.
« What now? » Edward asked.
« See that house » Aaron said pointing at a house nearby.
« I think it's the house with the wooden fence she mentioned » he added.
« Hum.. it's not really far from her house » Edward noticed.
« Yeah.. how could she take almost 15 minutes to go from there to her house when it's barely a 3 minutes walk? » Aaron asked.
« Well maybe she was walking reaallllyy slowly » Edward said.
« Or maybe younger Arya made a little detour » Aaron retorted.