"Coop?" Addy spoke up as Cooper walked around the abandoned stage, hitting a piece of wood on his hand. "Coop? Are you going to tell us why we're here? I can tell you guys what happened with Janae."

"No, no. Let's let Cooper talk." Bronwyn seemed nervous, not only that, but before Allison could say anything about the password, Cooper had made an emergency meeting for the five.

"He's not saying anything." Addy pointed out in return.

Cooper pointed the wood toward Bronwyn. "Are you Maya Star?"

Bronwyn played dumb. "Who?"

"Travis figured it out. Wasn't very hard." Cooper shrugged, staring at her. "He did a reverse image search and found her real instagram. And your sister happens to follow her. You see, I thought that we were working together to find the police a new suspect. Or did you just mean anyone other than Nate?"

"No, um, it's not like that." Bronwyn spoke softly as she took a step forward. "I heard your drug test was negative and I just thought it was weird that your secret was the only one that was fake, and then I heard the cops were at your house this morning and I just figured-"

"Then you could have asked me." Cooper stopped her rambling. "Instead of catfishing my friend like a psycho."

"You weren't at school." Bronwyn defended herself.

Cooper took a breath before throwing the wood across the theater. Nate and Allison shared a look before Cooper went on, his voice broke. "I wasn't in school because my dad is in the fucking hospital! He had a heart attack this morning. That's why the police were at my house. They came with the paramedics."

"Cooper." Addy got to her feet and grabbed his hand. "I'm so sorry."

"Is he gonna be okay?" Allison spoke up with a sympathetic look.

"He could have died today and the last thing I would have told him would have been a lie." Cooper stared at the trio near the couch. "He could have died not knowing who his son is."

"What are you talking about?" Addy questioned with a shake of her head. "Of course he knows who you are."

"No, he doesn't. Non of you do." Cooper looked away after a second. "Guys i'm...i'm gay. Okay, and I tell myself i'm in the closet just because of Baseball. Then why can't I tell my dad, right? Maybe i'm just a coward. And-and the only person I want to talk to about this shit isn't speaking to me because he knows i'm a coward."

"Hey, you're not a coward." Bronwyn took a step forward. "And i'm really sorry."

"Look, you guys can't tell anybody." Cooper looked around at the four. "My life is already a total mess, and if this gets out, I don't know what i'll do."

"No bodies gonna say anything." Bronwyn promised him.

"And if it makes you feel better. All of our lives are total messes, man." Nate stood to his feet, leaving Allison alone on the couch.

Allison sighed. "So, I guess it's my turn now."

"Yes, please." Bronwyn faced her quickly.

"I don't know if this is the exact reason why my name was Simons password, but it's all I can really think of so.." Allison trialed off as she looked down, pulling on her fingers and popping them. "Over the summer, Simon and I were together."

"Wait, what?" Addy blinked.

"It was a secret, because of my parents. But, I turn eighteen in October so we were just gonna keep it lowkey until then. And I-" Allison started, stopping as her chest started to hurt. "And I was crazy about him. I didn't tell you guys because I didn't want you to assume that I was behind it or that it would somehow get back to my parents."

"You and Simon were together together?" Cooper repeated the word to express the meaning behind it.

"For three months we'd stay up really late, because that's the only time we wouldn't get caught together. And, I don't know, I just really liked him, a lot. And he acted like he really liked me, and we made plans to go to college together, and go public in September, and get a hamster, and then he just d-"

She cut herself off, because her voice cracked. She didn't realize that her vision was going blurry and her lip started to tremble. She looked at the four. "-and then he died."

"No one knows?" Bronwyn asked with a sad look, Allison shook her head. "So you've just been handling this alone this entire time?"

"No one has ever been interested in me the way he was." Allison cried as she whipped her face, shaking her head. "He asked me questions, he wanted to know about me, and he was so nice to me. I know he was seriously a douch with that stupid app, but I just, you know, I just really, really, really liked him."

Addy had to sympathize with her, running to her side. "Allison, i'm so sorry."

She hide her face in her hands as she cried, Bronwyn looked at the three as she walked over and sat by her side. Allison's voice was muffled. "I miss him so much."

Cooper sighed, walking to the couch to wrap an arm around her and Addy. Nate spoke up. "Simon Kelleher?"

"Nate." Bronwyn scolded him.

Allison had to laugh, whipping her eyes. "Yeah."

"I didn't take you as the asshole, emo type." Nate walked over, sitting next to Bronwyn as Addy pulled out tissues for her.

"Well, it was either him or some rock em' sock em' jock guy." Allison joked, whipping her face.

Cooper laughed slightly. "You hear that from him?"

Allison whimpered as she started to cry again, nodding her head. "Yeah."

Addy leaned over, wrapping her arms around Allison as the trio slowly added in.

Your five favorite murder suspects held a secret midnight meeting last night. The only question is, are they trying to cover up what the did to Simon? Or, are they choosing their next victim?

With a photo of the five attached, Allison was taking the longest lecture from her parents as she got home from school. She'd learned to tune it out somehow, staring off as her hands yanked on Simons necklace. He sat next to her with an exhale. "Well, this seems fun."

He looked up at a yelling Breena. "It's a good thing they aren't gonna find out that you've got a boyfriend. Or, had a boyfriend. I am still dead, you know?"

They were all cut off by a knock at the door. Victor looked out. "It's the police."

"Fantastic, look what you've gotten yourself into." Brenna said, walking to the door as she opened it. Allison couldn't hear, but as they started to search the house, and mainly Allison's room, she'd knew they were beyond suspicious of them now.

"You just stay where you are." one of the officers told Allison as she nodded, pulling her knees up to her chest.

Simon smiled over at her. "Have anything to hide?"

"No." Allison whispered.

"Better be carful about what's around your neck, Ali. I happen to be wearing that same piece of, as the bible says, silver metal around my neck in plenty of family pictures." Simons words panicked Allison, sneakingly bringing her hand up to tuck the chain into her shirt. "Smart girl."

"What does that even mean?" Allison laughed slightly as she laid across Simons bed, her head hanging off one side as she listened to him. "Rock em' sock em'."

"Like, a violent thing. A jock thing, you've never heard that before?" he flashed a grin her way, finishing up something on his laptop, facing her in his chair.

"Mmm, you sure?" her voice made him glance up to see she'd been staring as her phone. "Says here that it means fisting."

"What?" he laughed in disbelief.

"That's what Urban Dictionary says." Allison said in return, holding her phone up as he walked over to her.

"Yeah, with twelve thumbs down and only two up." Simon said in return, showing her it again before getting onto the bed with her. His finger traced at her exposed stomach from his her shirt had ridden up. "You know Janae?"

Allison hummed, pushing up on her elbow to look at him. "Sure. I mean, we've never totally met before."

"We were planning on going to that out door movie they've got going on tomorrow. If you wanna come." he shrugged, looking up to meet her eye. "Just a suggestion. You can tell your parents that you're gonna go with some friends."

"They don't let me go out. Everyone's always gotta come to me." Allison frowned slightly. "But, obviously I do want to."

He gave her a slight look. "Are you sure?"

"Am I sure what?" she asked, blinking with an odd look.

"I kinda get the feeling you don't actually want anyone to know about us." Simon pointed out as Allison gapped. "It's cool if you don't wanna, i'm just-"

"Are you stupid? Of course I want people to." Allison sat up fully as Simon came with her. "But, it's hard to explain."

"What is? Your parents? Would it really be that big of a deal if they knew?" he looked a her oddly, not understanding even in the slightest. "I mean, what's the worst they could do?"

A flash of panic flashed across Allison's eyes. "If I tell you, you have to swear to not tell anyone."

Simon nodded, Allison popped her fingers. "There's this camp my church does..."

•

kylie speaks

had to bless you all with
a double update