Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"Okay, what do you see in this one?" I sighed as the picture was held up, I had done this over and over again since I was admitted to Westin Hills 2 years ago.

Apparently, the way to find my inner demons was a monthly Rorschach test and group time, where we get to talk about our 'feelings' and whatever else is on our minds in a safe environment.

I didn't have to go to many of those after 'acting out' aggressively when another patient began taunting me, I soon learned he had a personality disorder that made him act out towards new people.

He stopped bothering me after our first group session together, his black eye and split lip healed after a week.

"a black splodge" I answered with an annoyed huff as Dr. Myers raised an eyebrow at me but continued onto the next ink dot, she was used to my passiveness when it came to our sessions "another splodge" this went on for the following few cards.

"I want you to take a moment and really look at this imagine Katherine, this is very important" I frowned at her words, but I did as she asked.

I had seen the card before, it was red, black and white.

I usually just called it a colored splodge and moved on, but this time I gave myself a moment to really think about what I saw. I could tell by the look on my doctor's face that this was relevant to something.

What it was relevant to; however, I had no idea.

Eyeing the card, I felt my breath hitch when my mind revealed what it saw "a mask" I answered weakly as Dr. Myers watched my movements when I continued to stare at the card "a mask with blood on it" I could feel her eyes on me, but I kept my face blank.

"How did that make you feel-..." The brunette doctor questioned, scribbling on her notepad as she gave the card a quick glance "...-seeing something like that?"

I knew saying what I really felt would probably go against me, so I just gave a small shrug with an innocent smile.

She gave me a hard stare before moving onto the next card, which I gazed at before my eyes meet doctors Myers once again with a knowing grin "a messy splodge" The older woman sighed exasperatedly as she placed the cards down.

"Katherine this important to your recovery" I rolled my eyes as she pulled her chair closer to mine and reached out to touch my hand "I know you hate doing these, but you've been here for two years and today was the first day you admitted to seeing anything in these cards."

"The cards are stupid," I pouted childishly as I curled my legs up to my chest and leaning my chin on my knees "I'm fine now, so I had a tiny little breakdown in the hospital. I've been good since then."

Dr. Myers sputtered at my words as she gave me a look of disbelief "Kat since you've been here you've injured eleven fellow patients, incited three riots against the staff, and managed to escape the facility 3 times-" my mouth dropped into an 'O' shape.

"-But you've also studied to the best of your ability to graduate, come to all of our sessions even though you think they're a waste of time and developed some healthy bonds with other patients and staff" I could see the small smile on her face.

"I tried really hard on all of those things" I pointed out as I played with the sleeved of my cardigan when I noticed her eyes narrow like she was observing me, or waiting for me to jump up and say 'just kidding, I'm actually a monster, fooled ya!'

"You've come so far in these last few months, we've had no reports of acting out or fighting. You had better grades here than you ever had in school and you even managed to graduate in time" I nodded at her words as I stared at a loose thread in my sleeve.

The older woman handed me a book of characters I had made up, a short scene and movie board that I had designed during art therapy; I had no need for macaroni necklaces or painted ashtrays.

"Sue told me about your passion for film," I nodded, knowing that Sue wrote on my notes, and Dr. Myers read them being my primary doctor.

But Sue was also good at keeping secrets, especially if it was something she didn't think the doctors needed to know "she also told me that she thinks you are ready to leave."

My head shot up as the brunette doctor analyzed my expression before giving me one of her wry smile "I think she's right" I jumped up happily with a grin as Dr. Myers laughed and motioned for me to sit back down "you'll still have to check in with a doctor to monitor you."

"I can do that, I promise" two years in a nuthouse would send the craziest person sane, I knew I still had problems, but no-one was perfect, I could work on them from home.

"I think we should give it one more month just to make sure you're ready, I don't want you to get overwhelmed by the thought of being out in the 'real' world if it's too soon" I was so excited to see my dad and to go home that I wasn't really listening to her.

"There's also something I think you should do," the older woman admitted as she pulled out an envelope out from inside her notebook and handed it to me, opening the brown package I noticed the words 'Windsor College Application'.

"I called in for you, and they're willing to let you go as a late addition if you get accepted" my eyes blurred as I held the papers tight, I wanted to get out of here but was I ready to go back into education with other people.

"Don't let them continue to take up room in your head Katherine, push all those bad thoughts aside and let yourself think about what you want" I bit my lip as I read through the paper before smiling at the older woman.

"Let's do this" I finalized, this was going to be the next chapter of my life, yes I thought about Billy and Stu every day, but I could no longer be the sad little girl who cried over the dead body of the people who killed her mother and friends.

Doctor Myers handed me a pen as she sat next to me to help me fill out the application. "Oh, and I saw images in every single card you've ever shown me," I admitted offhandedly as I neatly wrote my name and details in the corrected boxes.

An amused glint appeared in Dr. Myers's eyes as she looked at me, fondly, "I know you did, Katherine."

Chapter Text

“Tell me about your family Katherine” I heard the words, but my attention was on the pouring rain I could see out of the window, there was a storm outside, the sky was a dark blue, and the clouds were a gunmetal gray color.

It looked how I felt.

“My family?” I repeated, but my gaze and attention hadn’t moved from the roaring storm going out just the other side of the locked window. It had been two weeks since my talk of being well enough to leave, and I was trying to be on my best behavior, but today felt different.

A storm lingered over me too.

“Yes, your mother, father and twin sister” Dr. Myers pushed as she sat patiently in front of me, by the tone of her voice I think she knew something was happening with me that this session wasn’t going to be one of our breakthroughs.

“My father is Neil is a businessman, my mother Maureen was a housewife but passed away almost three years ago, and my sister is Sidney she’s older than me but only by a little bit” I answered robotically as if I had done this a thousand times.

“That’s lovely, Katherine, but I’m asking you about your family, not the overview of the white picket fenced family you were taught to say” I quickly glanced at the female doctor. Still, my face was emotionless, even with the surprise I felt.

I remember now.

I had  told her about how it had always been drilled into our heads that we were the perfect all American family, we had the ‘apple pie life’ . The hard-working husband, the homemaker who always had a smile on her face and food on the table, and then the two inseparable darling twin sisters.

It was all a fucking lie.

If anyone truly looked closer, if they took a peek behind the curtains, they’d see the truth.

A husband who overlooks his wife’s infidelities, the homemaker who liked the men in the neighborhood a little too much, the oldest twin who shadows her mom so much she can’t see past her lies and deception.

And then there was the illegitimate son that gets forgotten or is unknown by all except the youngest twin who hates everything and everyone so much she gets put into an insane asylum.

Everything always had to be perfect, everything, even pictures it was always ‘Picture, picture, smile for the picture. Katherine pose with your sister, why won’t you be a good sister?’

Everyone thinks that we’re perfect.

“my family?” I repeated out loud as my thoughts began to tick over “I don’t have a family I have a Dollhouse” I answered as my eyes flicked back and forth as my memories start to pull up front and center in my mind.

“A dollhouse?” Dr. Myers questioned, sounding confused as I hear the scratching of her ballpoint pen against the notepad she held in her hand.

“We’re all just dolls, we put on our doll faces, everyone thinks that we’re perfect. We don’t let them look through the curtains,” I mumbled, trying my best to explain the only way I could; we’re just marionettes in the pursuit of her perfect life.

“My mom she had it going on. People we’re blinded by her jewelry, but when you turn your back, she pulls out a flask and forgets her infidelities”.

I finally looked at the brunette doctor in the eye as I whispered to her, “I see the things that nobody else sees. No one never listens. One day they’ll see what goes down in the kitchen”.

A few beats of silence go past where the only sounds that could be heard were the rain and the clock ticking.

“A dollhouse” I alliterated once more as Dr. Myers just sat and watched as I let her in on the secret of the Prescott’s, we’re not real, we’re a family built on a cracked foundation and it crumbled under the pressure of what was built.

“where did you fit in? In this ‘dollhouse’?” I carefully thought about the question as I quietly listened to the hands of the clock tick as the minutes passed by.

“I didn’t,” I answered truthfully before glancing up again, “and that’s why she hated me. That’s why she chose Sidney. She always chose the option that made her feel better” I bit my lip in thought, “I reminded her too much of some else, and that killed her inside.”

“who did you remind of her of?” The older woman gently asked, and my frown instantly melted from my face as a soft smile grew for the first time since I walked into the room an hour ago.

“Her nightmare,” that’s what Roman called himself the day that we met, I asked why our mother didn’t want to talk or see him, and he explained how he was apart of a past life that she no longer wanted.

He was a nightmare that she was trying to place back into the shadows, a nightmare that she was desperately trying to run from, but in doing that, she was unknowingly creating a new horror, and there was no way of stopping it.

Roman was everything she was trying to forget, she found a gullible man to marry and had two daughters to mold into her version of the perfect life, but I don’t think she realized that to have that life she should’ve fixed her own demons first.

“what about your father? How did he fit into this dollhouse?” Dr Myers asked as my eyes narrowed dangerously at her question. My father wasn’t a topic I was interested in her burrowing around in.

“I love my father,” and I do, he was the only one who treated me like an actual member of our family. It wasn’t his fault that his wife played away from home while he was away trying to look after his family.

“What about Sidney” the older woman questioned quickly as if ripping off a band-aid, we’ve had many conversations about my older twin, the same twin who stopped visiting me a few weeks into my stay here.

My father’s excuses had started to run out, and I knew she wasn’t coming back to see me.

The bond we’d recreated after the massacre had once again broken, and my previous dislike for the favored twin who was the obvious ‘good child’ slowly turned into something that terrified even my father who didn’t want his daughters at war with each other.

“what about her?” I ask nonchalantly as my gaze moved back to the awful stormy weather, just another 2 weeks, and I could be back out in the world, but going back out there means having to see people I really didn’t want to see.

It also means I have to battle demons that I wasn’t entirely sure I was ready to take on, being in here protected me against a lot of things after the murders. I didn’t have to deal with the all out of the massacre, the press couldn’t get to me, and I didn’t have to testify to anything.

“Do you love Sidney? Did she belong in the dollhouse?” Dr. Myers questioned as I blinked before letting out a small laugh at my own thoughts.

“She doesn’t need a doll face Doc, she’s just like her” I muttered before realizing how crazy I was beginning to sound, why had I left it until 2 weeks before my impending release to reveal my real thoughts on my family and life.

“She is just like her, and I am just like him,” I said to myself as I sighed before standing up and walking over to the window, placing my hand on the cold pane, “I think I loved her once” I frowned to myself.

“Then why did you save her?” I turned my head to face the older woman in confusion. “In a statement Sidney made, she states you saved her life, more than once I’ll add, why?” letting out a huff, I turned my head back.

“she’s my twin,” I answered softly, once again,hearing the scratching on paper as my simple answer was documented.

“and because she’s your twin, you view her what? Worthy of having her life saved? Did you feel a need to help her?” my eyes scanned the grounds of the outside area smiling when I remembered the times I tried to escape. “Why did you save your sister from dying?”.

Turning to face the doctor, I leaned against the window as I crossed my arms with an amused smirk, “You never know Doc one day I might need a spare kidney.”

Chapter Text

Sitting on my bed playing with the matted fur on my giraffe, I watched other residents from the window they were all doing different types of mindful therapy.

I had just come from my own therapy where we hit a willing member of staff with soft foam paddles as 'healthy anger expression.'

Looking around my room, I sighed at the sight of it. It was bare except for the brightly colored flowers that I was being sent once every month on the first of the month; the sender was a mystery, but I appreciated it all the same.

I was -hopefully- in the last few days of my stay here, and I was still in two minds about it, as much as I was desperate to be out of this place I was still a bit nervous about being back out in the world without Sue or the safety of being secure here.

A knock at the door threw me out of my thoughts "come in" I called out as Sue popped her head around the door with a smile before she closed the door behind her, Sue was the only person allowed in here with the door closed.

I didn't need to find an easy exit away from her. She had become like a surrogate mother to me for my duration here; I tried to fight it at first, hissing at her that I didn't need a friend, let alone anything closer than that, but all she did was smile and respect my boundaries.

Over time her patience with me didn't change, but my attitude towards her did. I found myself glaring at the other patients when they treated her in the same manner I used to, and I was put in 'time out' more than once for my aggressive actions towards them.

I had somehow fallen -platonically- for her soft ways, almost unshakable belief in me and mostly the way she swore like a sailor when it was just the two of us. Her laugh, too, was something I'd miss; it was a smokers chuckle that almost always had her crossing her legs.

I wasn't looking forward to that when I get older.

"Afternoon sweetheart," Sue greeted as she made her way over to me with one hand behind her back that didn't make me as nervous as it should've if it were anyone else I would have pounced by now. "How was therapy?"

Smirking softly, I continued to play with Binky's fur remembering the events of my morning "I accidentally hit Roy in the balls with the foam paddle" Sue's mouth turned up into a smirk that mimicked my own.

"Good girl," The older woman whispered, tapping my knee as I told her about my accident with the overly grumpy orderly that pretty much made everyone's lives here that little bit more miserable.

"So, what are you hiding?" I bluntly question, trying to peek over her shoulder as her face drops into a nervous look as she takes her hands from behind her back, revealing a large envelope, and I instantly understand her nerves.

I took the envelope from her hands and blink at the words' Katherine Prescott' then roll my eyes at the words above it 'To the carer of..." just because I was locked up here doesn't mean I can't read my own mail.

Total lie.

Turning it over, I noticed the envelope hadn't been opened that was unusual. I was one of the many patients whose mail had to be regularly checked before I could read it.

Mostly because I had 'fan' mail, interview invitations, and reporters writing to me all wanting to talk about the killings or just wishing to express their views to me. The fans all wanted to show their 'devotion' to me; honestly, they sounded like cultists.

It was just unfortunate that I was in the communal living area when I received the first letter than made me spiral into a rage that had put a few of the other patients in the hospital bay.

Gently prying open the envelope I began to read the words on the page to myself, I felt weird, I was anxious about if I didn't get in, but I was also worried that I did get accepted into Windsor.

My breath hitched before I glanced up at Sue, who had been waiting patiently "What did it say?" Sue looked at me questioningly "Did you?-" she then frowned when I didn't say anything but instead sat frozen "-Oh shit, I'm sorry Kat"

Shaking my head, I let a few tears fall onto the paper "I got in" I whispered in shock as I looked up at Sue again "I got in" I felt Sue pull me into a hug and placing a kiss on the side of my head.

"I'm so happy for you," Sue told me only to stop when she noticed my frozen frame, "Kat?" I put my college acceptance letter down as I sat on my bed quietly thinking, "What's wrong, Katherine?" The older woman asked, stroking a hand threw my hair.

Something I had come to love but would never willingly admit.

"I got in," I repeated quietly, letting the information process as Sue just watched, knowing I was just trying to wrap my head around the significant change coming up "everything is going to change now," I frowned to myself.

"I don't want to leave you," I finalized as I sniffed rubbing my eyes in the sleeve of my dressing gown "I don't want to go" the edges of my peripheral started to darken as my chest tightened.

Sue moved closer to me and gently took my hand in hers "I'll see you again you can count on that" I smiled gripping her hand tighter as my breathing evened out before I exploded into a panic attack.

"Sidney will be so excited to see you again" Sue gushed as I rolled my eyes remembering that Sidney and I would once again be attending the same school, I shared the womb with her for 9 months wasn't that long enough?

"Yeah, Sidney," I hissed bitterly, my dad was so proud when I told him about applying for college, but he couldn't wait to tell me that my darling twin sister had also applied for the same one.

One big happy fucking family.

Although the thought of seeing the look on her face when she sees me again did something to me, I felt an evil cackle bubbling in my throat whenever I pictured Sidney's face dropping at the sight of me.

I can't say she didn't deserve it; leaving me to rot in a psychiatric ward with a broken mind wasn't nice, but I would get the last laugh.

"So, let's hear it, what does it say?" Sue asked gleefully nodded to the paper as my mind began to darken at the thought of Sidney, she was like a slow-acting poison to my mind, and it was rotting my brain.

Smiling at the woman's excitement, I picked up the paper carefully and cleared my throat, "Dear Kathrine Prescott, Congratulations! We are pleased to accept you as a late addition to Windsor College..."

Chapter Text

Sitting in Dr. Myers's office, I was trying not to frown as she eyed me; I knew she had already written my discharge papers, but I honestly think she's just doing this for show. To see if I'd crack under the pressure of leaving and put up one last fight before I go.

She's a sadistic bitch at times. I loved it.

"Do you think I'm ready to leave?" I question as her eyes opened wider in shock at my question, in the two years I'd been here I never spoke the first word.

She sighed and crossed her legs. "In my opinion, I think you would have benefited from more closer care" my mouth dried up at her words as I felt confusion seep through my body, then why was she letting me go if she thought I wasn't ready.

"Then why did Sue tell me you already signed my papers?" Dr. Myers's face lit up with mischief as I showed her the ace in my sleeve, I never divulged anything Sue ever told me and visa versa, but I had to know if I was leaving or not.

"You do not belong here," She admitted with a raised eyebrow. "Yes, I think you would benefit from more guidance, but I don't think you'll get what you need from this place" I just stayed silent as I watched her explain.

Taking a deep breath, I didn't really know what to say "You can always come back here Katherine, but I think it's time for you to be out there and show the world who's the boss now" I smiled at her words as I nodded, I was ready to take this world by storm.

But I was also ready to just be Kat Prescott, an ordinary girl who goes to college and wanting to make a life for herself with a clean slate.

"Your father's here" my head shot up at her words, and she gave me one of her knowing smiles "he left some of your clothes with Nurse Taylor and is waiting for you."

I felt my chest tighten a little at the thought of getting out of here, all I had left to do was get dressed and walk out the door. It seemed so simple but that compared to the aggressive tackles I had been on the brunt end of when I tried to run told a different story.

Standing up, I felt like I should make a gesture like a hug or some type of embrace when I realized I was awkwardly holding out my hand for her to shake as if I hadn't met with her every week for the last two years.

Letting out a small laugh she took my hand in hers but didn't shake it, she just held it like a hand hug as she grinned at me "You'll do just fine, Katherine. Just remember to breathe," I felt my eyes watering as I nodded at her words. I was getting out.

"Thank you" I whispered as I left her office only looking back once to memorize her face, I wasn't planning on coming back to this place, and I didn't want to forget who helped me along the way, maybe it was a story I can tell when I'm 80 and surrounded by grandchildren.

I was planning on being the morbid type of Granny who does nothing but curse, tell weird stories, and try to get into fights with other old Grannies.

Opening my door I paused seeing my name written on the whiteboard that was stuck to the outside of the door I smiled as I wiped the marker away leaving it bare, this was no longer my room, it's a room that I spent two years of my life, but now I was moving on.

Walking into the room I smiled seeing a pile of clothes waiting for me on the bed, I had only worn the scrub like top and bottoms that were given the in-patients since I began my time here so seeing real clothes made me feel like this was the beginning of my new journey.

Knowing I couldn't keep my dad waiting I quickly put on the plain black t-shirt before tugging on my worn-out jeans and Dr. Martens, I felt more like myself again. Glancing down at the bed, my heart stopped when I saw the last piece of clothing left for me to put on.

"Kat?" I heard Sue's voice, but I didn't acknowledge her. "I knocked, but you didn't answer" honestly, the only thing I heard was the blood rushing to my ears. "Are you okay?" she asked, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder.

Picking up the gray cardigan, I just stared at it. "This was Stu's" I muttered, holding the material to my face and smiling to myself as I was hit with his scent, I had borrowed this from him not long before everything happened.

"Oh, do you want me to take it away?" Sue questioned quietly as I almost hugged the clothing into myself like a hug, one that I'll never get again, I shook my head as I sniffed trying to keep my tears to myself.

"No, it's fine. I'll keep it" Putting my arms through the sleeves, I pulled the cardigan close to me feeling oddly safe now considering who it belonged to, but I couldn't help but still feel that love towards Stu.

"Come on, your dad's waiting," my stomach did a weird flip as I felt both excited and nervous at the thought of being able to leave... without being tackled and sedated. Taking my already packed suitcase, courtesy of Sue, I dragged it behind me as I officially vacated my temporary home.

Walking through the familiar color-coded halls I did two years ago except now everything was different, I wasn't so lost anymore and actually wanted to make something of myself.

Not that I wasn't sad to be leaving Sue behind and that I was totally fixed because I wasn't, and a part of me knows I never really will be, but like Sue and Dr. Myers said, 'Take it one step at a time.'

Just before leaving the official in-patient area, I could see my dad pacing the waiting area before I turned to Sue, but words escaped me as I tried to tell her how I felt.

She just gave me one of her knowing smiles and pulled me into a familiar warm hug "Don't look at me like that, I'll see you soon. Just because you're leaving doesn't mean I won't see you again".

My face brightened at her words, and the voice gnawing in the back of my mind that was telling me that Sue was abandoning me stopped. "I'll come to see you when I have my check-up and when I get time away from college."

My promise made her smile grow, and I knew that all she had was this place and me, so she was probably feeling the same way I was right now. "Don't forget me before then," I begged as she gave me a small laugh.

"Who could ever forget you, there's only one Katherine Prescott. Thank god " I smiled along with her joke before turning my head and seeing my dad waving at me looking very happy "Go on before I keep you here."

Hesitating for a moment, I gave Sue another rare hug and finally leaving the in-patient area. "Hi Dad," I whispered, letting him pull me into his chest and feeling a few tears drop on the top of my head.

"I've missed you so much," He said, and I wanted to argue that he was here last week for a visit, but I understood what he was saying. Taking my suitcase from my hand, he placed an arm around me. "Come on, little bird, let's get you home."

Chapter Text

I smiled as we passed so many familiar houses on the way back home, everything from the house I pranked every year on Halloween to the house where the Brahms used to live, but all the kids in school said it was haunted – only the bravest kids knocked on the door.

I was either brave or stupid back then, but old man Brahms just gave me the deepest glare when he caught me, and I never did it again; I was, however, something of a legend for the next week in my school.

It's weird, I've been away for two years, but being back here, it's like I've not missed a day.

"Here we are home sweet home" Glancing forward, I saw my house and swallowed hard before slowly getting out of the car, instinctively thinking about the last time I had been in this house and who I was here with.

"Stu!" I shouted angrily as he began to apologize profusely before freezing and staring at me, I followed his eyes down before realizing I was still only in my underwear and threw a pillow at him "Oh my god, Stuart!".

I stood by the car as my dad picked my suitcase and followed him towards the house, my heart started beating the closer we got, and I felt almost stupid for being so nervous about a house I had grown up in, but unfortunately, bad memories always beat the good.

Wrapping my arms around myself in comfort, I silently walked through the door after my dad held it open for me. My eyes widened a little seeing the interior had changed – nothing of my moms was here anymore.

Maybe my dad needed this change just as much as I did, I can only imagine how he felt after finding out your wife fucked the whole town and your daughters a loony.

Peering into the living room, I noticed the same changes had been made; my eyes saw the new coffee table sitting in the middle of the room, and I flinched, remembering the pain of the glass shards embedding into my skin.

"Here sweetheart before I forget" turning towards my dad I saw him holding out a key and a pink envelope, taking the items from him I frowned at the small metal key "I got the locks changed, I thought it might be safer" dad mumbled scratching his neck as I silently nodded.

"Good thinking, I guess" I sighed blowing out a small puff of air, everything was so different but painfully the same, and I was getting mental whiplash – I was beginning to wonder if this was a good idea after all.

"Why don't we take your stuff upstairs so you can get used to being back" my dad offered probably having seen my deer in the headlights expression, I bit my lip as a few tears welled up and my dad smiled sadly "Come on little bird" he whispered guiding up the stairs.

Opening the door to my bedroom, I almost gasped, seeing the state of it, my red walls were now a dull white shade, along with my bedsheets and curtains. All of my stuff was gone, the pictures I kept on the walls were missing and in their place was a framed picture of Mom, Sidney, Dad, and I.

"Your sister came in here and cleaned up a little" Dad mentioned as I gazed around the room, Sidney had changed everything, she had taken everything that screamed 'Kat' and turned it into a muted version of herself.

Walking towards my closet, I opened it to find all my stuff placed into boxes and crammed into the small space. "I never said she did a good job" My dad joked as my eyes bounced between items in the boxes before I quickly closed the door.

"Thank you," I muttered as he gave me a pat on the shoulder before he placed my bag near the door and gave me a small kiss on my forehead before leaving, quietly closing the door behind him.

Sitting down on the bed, I picked up the envelope I had placed on my bed after seeing my room, tearing it open I smiled, seeing a funny card with the words 'congratulations' printed on it, opening the card I began to read the words inside.

Kat,
I'm happy that you're home and going on to better things.
I'll always be here and love you very much.
Dad x

Blowing out a breath of air, I sniffed as I placed the card onto my bedside table with a small smile before standing and throwing my suitcase on the bed as I began to unpack humming to myself as I carefully placed Binky on my pillow.

Opening the closet up again, I grimaced at the state Sidney had left me belongings in, it's like she couldn't care less about how I would feel when I got back as long as everything was gone – out of sight, out of mind.

Now she was over at Windsor College having the time of her life making new friends and living a simple life, all the while sweeping her crazy sister under the rug like dirt she didn't want to clean up.

Glancing over to the picture on the wall, my eye twitched, seeing my mom and Sidney smiling back at me, their eyes following me as I slowly stood and walked closer to the frame happily mocking me.

Taking the frame off its hook, I sit back on my bed, just gazing at it before turning it over and gently prying the hooks on the back apart, lifting the photo from the frame I hold it delicately for a moment.

Swiftly ripping it into two pieces, I smiled, holding the part that now only held my dad and me, which I quickly put back into the frame, carefully placing the back on and fixing it back on to the wall.

Much better.

Picking up the other half of the photo I walked over to my vanity and took out the matches I used to light my candles, striking the red head of the match I let the flame touch the edge of the photo before throwing it into my trash can watching as the fire devoured the photograph.

Crawling onto my bed, I picked up Binky and sat the giraffe in my lap as I crossed my legs, glancing around the bright white room I let out a hollow chuckle at the idea of my sister trying to forget the past by doing a room 'exorcising.'

Nothing would bring back Mom, Stu, Billy, Tatum, or even Casey, nor would it change the things we both learned about our mother but the fact that Sidney was doing her best to put all of those things behind her by pretending didn't happen is insane.

And yet people say I'm the crazy one.

Chapter Text

The past four days have been such a blur of similarity I could practically taste the routine. I got up, had breakfast, ignoring the world while simultaneously wishing their demise, dinner with dad, throw darts at my sister's picture and then back to bed.

Apparently, that wasn't 'healthy'.

That's how I found myself wandering aimlessly around a town I once felt so big in, now after everything, I couldn't help but feel minuscule as I watched people go about their days with no care in the world that it only takes one moment to fuck up their entire lives.

I walked by my former place of employment that I had technically never quit from but couldn't bring myself to set foot inside, Clive's death was one of my major setbacks in the hospice. A heart attack took him suddenly and he was gone.

So if I just stayed outside I wouldn't have to see that he was no longer there.

If I stayed right where I was I could imagine him bossing around the poor person who took over my job thinking the old man was some mean ex mafia guy instead of the loyal and caring person he actually was.

Continuing on my directionless walk with a subtle breath of denial I found myself passing all of my old hangouts, the places all looked the same but everything else was different. The people I cared about the most were gone and new faces littered the area, a lot can change in two years apparently.

Pushing open the black iron gate, I walked down the stone path until I stopped in front of the black headstone, I almost smiled at the tragic irony of it all. Somehow I always end up here when it wasn't my intention to ever come back.

I pulled my hood from my head as I shook my hair with a sigh, coming to terms with being here and subconsciously bringing myself back to the one person who caused all of this pain “No flowers huh” I spoke gazing at the barren marble.

“A part of me wants to tell you that you no longer have any power over my feelings” I started as my jaw ticked “that the doctors cured any violent and aggressive thoughts I have of you” I had worked hard with Doctor Myers after letting my walls down “but I can't”.

Sniffing back the hot tears I could feel angrily accumulating in my eyes I felt explosive “I'm so angry at you, at Sidney. God, I'm angry at the world!” I hissed letting it out just as I was taught “and now I'm in the middle of a graveyard yelling at a fucking piece of stone!”.

I laughed agitated as I wiped my eyes “I really am crazy” pressing the heels of my hands against my eyes I willed the sick burning feeling from my gut knowing I would never truly be able to forgive and forget with my dead mom.

“Katherine?”.

I jumped and turned seeing the caring face of my aunt Kate. History really does like repeating itself with my family, I remember this exact situation happening two years ago before my best friends got stab happy and our lives change forever.

“Oh, sweetheart” Her expression changed after seeing the first few tears running down my cheeks and I let her wrap her arms around me, trying not to think about the similarity between her warm hugs and my mother's own rare ones.

Maybe I have underlying mommy issues?

That's fucked up even for me, I acknowledge that I might have anger issues and hatred for my own kin but being a touch starved teenager with mommy issues just sounded like a weird kink in an awful smut novel.

“I hate her aunt Kate!” I said trying to show my anger but all that came out was a whine that could rival that of a newborn pup “I really do hate her” my hair was being smoothed as the older woman hushed my cries but made no effort to stop my verbal expression escaping.

“I know you do sweetie” She admitted still cradling me “I've always known” I gripped her sweater in my fist as I choked on my sobs “why do you come here, Kat? Who are you punishing by coming here? Because the only person hurting is you” Aunt Kate stated holding me tight.

“Maybe I'm a masochist” I joked through my tears knowing she was right, I only came here when I was lost or wanting to feel something. Seeing my mother was the quickest way for my numbness to dissipate but in doing that it left room for pain and hurt.

“Mommy?” pulling myself away from my aunt a smile tugged at my lips when a small brunette suddenly shrieked with happiness “Kitty Kat!” Jill yelled throwing herself into my arms as I twirled her happily “Mommy said you were sick in hospital”.

A glance a said woman told me that was true “I was sick Jilly-Bean but now I'm much better” I tried to explain to the now 5-year-old as I pulled her in tightly and sighing contently to myself “look at you” I cooed as she blushed “you got so big and beautiful”.

Placing her back on the ground I pushed her hair behind her ears as she gave me a gaped tooth smile, obviously, the tooth fairy had paid her a visit recently “She reminds me so much of you when you were a kid” Aunt Kate said as Jill wrapped her arms around her mom's waist.

“Then you, Aunt Kate, are in for a wild ride” I laughed along with Kate and Jill as I remembered how hellish I was at her age, not that I'm much better now but I like to think I've evolved since putting fake spiders in Sidney's bed and reading her diary to the whole school.

As our laughing tampered down I remembered where we were “I should get going” I say pointing a thumb over my shoulder as both my aunt and cousin frowned at my sudden change in demeanor, it was nice pretending to be normal for a moment.

Kate nodding slowly but looked worried “Do you want to come home with us?” she questioned as her eyes quickly moved from mine to the gravestone and I knew she was scared I'd stick around for another little mental breakdown.

My aunt had visited me once in the hospital and I had told her in my nicest voice to not come back, I didn't want her nor Jill anywhere near that place. She argued but relented when she realized I was serious, so she never came back but dropped off homemade cookies every month.

“Nah, my dad is probably wondering where I got to,” I said as her face brightens at the prospect of my dad being at home waiting for me “and I have to get packed for college” another wide smile appeared on her face as she nodded looking proud.

I tried not to think if that smile would match the one my mother would have if she were still around, would I have made her proud going to college. As much as I hated it the thought managed to worm its way into my head.

I gave one last hug to Kate laughing when her arms didn't immediately release me before Jill jumped into my arms complaining how she missed me when I was away “I'll see you again soon don't worry” I promised the little girl.

“Definitely a mini you” Kate smirked when Jill pressed a tiny kiss to my cheek as she giggled before I walked away giving them both a small wave.

“A mini-me?” I mused to myself thinking about Jill and how her life would be much better than mine, she had a mom and dad who loved her, no family secrets or hidden skeletons in her closet “poor kid” I cackled thinking of a grown-up Jill being like me, without all the life trauma.

Walking through the graveyard I stopped cold seeing another gravestone that I wasn't familiar with but the name shot a chill through my heart and body.

TATUM RILEY
A BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER AND SISTER
TAKEN FROM US TOO SOON

There was nothing I could do but stare at the words engraved in the marble headstone reading the words over and over again wondering if anything could have gone differently. Maybe if we hadn't spent so much time fighting over Stu or arguing, in general, she could have lived.

If I had either told Stu from the start or been straight with him then Tatum would still be here, she'd hate me for sure but Billy wouldn't have needed to kill her. No matter how many times Dewey told me I wasn't to blame I still felt the vice-like grip of guilt cinched around me.

I knew it wasn't logical to feel guilt for all the murders my two best friends had committed but it didn't stop me from wondering what would have happened if I had found out sooner, could I have stopped them?

It was only when my eye caught the ornaments saying 'worlds best sister' and 'Best Friend' did I put my guard back up and slowly began to walk away, this place was no good for my sanity and everything I had worked upon.

I couldn't allow myself to be dragged back into the past, panic rose in my chest before it fully bloomed and I started to run with no real end line. My feet carried me through the town as people began to look my way and whisper, I forgot to pull my hood back up.

Everywhere I went felt like a curse.

I wasn't ready for this. I'm not ready to face my demons.

Chapter Text

Hearing a repeated tap on my door, I lifted my head off the pillow feeling drained, the last couple of days had been tough, especially with my trip through memory lane and seeing my aunt again.

The nightmares have been hitting me hard, all of them containing either my mom, Roman, or people now gone.

Another tap sounded out, and I realized it was someone knocking on my bedroom door. "Come in," I stated, knowing the only person it could be was my dad, Sidney had yet to call or even acknowledge my existence since being home.

"Good morning, Little Bird," my dad said as he let himself into the room and pressing a kiss to my head with a smile. "It's the big day," He announced happily as my eyes immediately moved to the packet suitcases sitting in the corner of my room.

"Yeah, the big day," I repeated, running my hands through my hair, tugging at the knots that got caught around my fingers "Can't wait" I muttered unsurely, half of me was genuinely excited at the prospect of doing something I enjoyed.

However, the nagging insecurities in the back of my head drowned all that passion out.

"- and hopefully you'll see more of your sister then I do" Dad joked as he opened my curtains with a flourish as I caught the last part of his one-sided conversation, so I wasn't the only one who hadn't seen or spoken to my sister lately.

"Does she even know I'm going to be at Windsor?" I questioned, watching him walking back towards the door as he prepared to leave.

"She knows you're home" He grimaced as if he thought I would be upset by my twin not contacting me after leaving an asylum, "but I haven't heard from her since so I haven't been able to tell her about you going to Windsor."

I tried to stop the malice filled grin from growing on my face, I honestly did, but I couldn't wait to see the look on my big sister's face when she sees me in person again "I can't wait to see her" I say to my dad who looks pleased with my words "I really can't."

"And I'm sure she'll be happy to see you too Little Bird" I almost scoff at my dad's cheerful words, I love the man I honestly do, but he really can't tell when a female is untruthful. How he couldn't see the distance between Sidney and I truly confused me.

"Get showered and dressed, I have a surprise for you," not the words I really wanted to hear, but I know my dad wouldn't say or do anything to upset me, so I nodded and began to do as he said.

Although taking a shower wasn't nearly as fun anymore now Sidney wasn't screaming from the cold water spraying her when I 'accidentally' used up all the hot or when I flushed the toilet, making her squeal from the sudden burst of scolding water.

Pulling open my closet, I eyed the now nearly empty space, most of my clothes were now tucked away in my suitcases. The other things that reminded me of bad times didn't get such a happy ending after I realized my favorite shirt I'd borrowed from Stu was missing.

Holding Stu's shirt in my hand I glanced around the mess in my room, I had managed to pull every item my sister hid in the closet back out, and now the once clean room was overfilled with things that only reminded me of that night.

The outfit I had worn that night, the stuffed toy that Billy had bought me, pictures of all of us together, clothes that I had borrowed from Casey, and never returned. It was all just lay there mocking me, trying to pull me back down.

Quickly placing it all into a trash bag, I took it outside as my dad called my name demanding to know what I was doing, but I ignored him in favor of unloading all the items on the ground in the backyard and soaking it in lighter fluid.

Striking a match I held it for a second as my dad shouted my name before I let it drop onto the pile of my belongings and watched it all burn slowly, I know it was time to let it all go but why did it hurt so much to see it all burning.

Maybe burning all my belongings wasn't the best way to show my dad I was trying to start fresh, I think he was ready to send me back to speak to Dr. Myers, but I convinced him that it was something I needed to do to get over everything.

Putting on the clothes I picked out I moved to my makeup, I had to make my reappearance into the world and also show Sidney that I was okay. I'm out of the hospital, and I am better than I was before, I was going to show her how unaffected by her betrayal I am...

I couldn't let her know that even after hours and hours of therapy, the mere thought of her sent my blood boiling. She promised me that she'd never leave me in that place alone, but after things got a little tough, she quickly broke that promise.

"Katherine" I heard my dad call up the stairs as I finished my makeup snorting at the use of my name, Dad had become accustomed to calling me nothing but Little Bird since I had been home. He only used my full name when he wanted my attention or to annoy me. "Come on, kiddo, your surprise is here."

I frowned wondering what that could be, I still wasn't big on surprises, but my curiosity was always the one thing that could get me into a lot of trouble. After all, curiosity could kill the Kat.

Grabbing my jacket, I pulled it on while dragging my suitcases behind me, letting them bang against each step of the staircase as I ran down them. "Careful!" my dad scolded as I gave him an apologetic grin until I heard a familiar voice.

Spinning around with a shocked face, I gasped "Dewey!" moving forward I wrapped my arms around his waist as he placed his around my back, the last time I had seen Dewey we were both on stretchers being taken away by paramedics.

It was nice seeing him again, especially since I had heard from my dad that after I was taken to Westin Hills, Gale Weathers had written a 'tell-all' book that portrayed Dewey in a bad light even after he'd been seriously injured trying to save us.

Fucking bitch.

Dewey gave me a broad smile as we both pulled away. "It's nice seeing you, Kat, you look..." I laughed at his stutter, knowing that Dewey wasn't that great with words, but I knew what he was getting at, but still, I had to mess with him.

"Not crazy?" I offered even though that was probably the last sentiment on the man's mind, though it was a reoccurring gesture of the people around town, it's like they were expecting me to walk around in a straitjacket.

My dad gave me a scolding look when Dewey froze with his eyes wide in surprise before he began to splutter, "No! No, I mean, you look great. Fresh. Like brand new," Dad put his hands on Dewey's shoulder, comfortingly stopping his desperate words.

"She knows what you were saying Dewey," My dad told him making Dewey sigh in relief as I walked over to the wall mirror and fixed my clothes "Although she has been fixated on the 'crazy' word" Dad whispered to Dewey as if he thought I wasn't listening.

"I'm still in the room" I called out with a small smile as I flipped my hair from the collar of my jacket, my dad still worried about everything I was doing and saying but I promised him that I would call Sue or Dr. Myers if anything was really getting to me.

That, however, didn't stop him from worrying, I guess he was just coming to terms with how to deal with me and my self-deprecating jokes.

"But not for long," Dad sighed, sounding upset, making me frown as I hugged him "It was nice having you back Little Bird, even if it was only for a week" he whispered in my ear as he squeezed me tight and I relished in the feeling.

"Same, dad," I replied with a nod as he let me go and picked up my suitcases following Dewey out to the car with me trailing behind them.

"Call me whenever you can," Dad asked as I opened the passenger door with a sad expression, this last week really had bonded the two of us more than the previous 19 years ever had, but I couldn't blame him for that, I could only try and fix it while I had the time.

"I will," I promised quietly as I pressed a small kiss to his cheek before climbing into the front of the car with a bundle of nerves settling in my stomach. There was no time to get ready for this new chapter in life, I was already living it.

Chapter Text

An awkward silence filled the car for the first half of the journey, what exactly did we have to talk about, the last time I saw Dewey we were both lay on stretchers after my best friends tried to murder everyone we knew including his sister.

"You know I don't really think I got to thank you for everything you did back then" Glancing over at Dewey, I noticed he was staring intently at the road in front of us, but I knew what he was talking about.

It was the one thing people tried to avoid when talking to me, but I could always count on Dewey to not shy away from tough topics. "It's no problem," I whispered, playing with my fingers as the image of her cold body hit me.

I heard him let out a shaky sigh next to me "She had a great send-off, she would have loved it" I remembered getting an announcement of the funeral "I'm sorry I missed it" I told him as the guilt hit me.

Dewey just smiled softly as he patted my leg "It's okay. You were trying to get better" The hospital wouldn't let me attend Tatum's funeral as they thought it would set me back in 'my journey of self-help.'

"Yeah, better," I mumbled to myself, not only did I miss Tatum's funeral but Billy and Stu's. Mr. Loomis didn't really have a big funeral for Billy after the town caused an uproar about it, and the Macher's decided on a quiet private ceremonial.

"I know you two didn't always see eye to eye, but I know she would have appreciated what you did," Dewey said as he quickly faced me, high school dramas felt so petty now in the grand scheme of things.

My on-going fight with Tatum didn't seem so important now, if only I knew then what I know now.

"I wish there was some way it could have been different," I told him, swallowing hard as I fought my tears. "Sidney and me we're still here, and now moving on with our lives, everyone who died won't get to do that."

Dewey lay his hand gently on mine with tears of his own "You can't blame yourself forever, Kat."

I sniffed as I glanced up at the older man as my eyes swam with tears, "Can't I?" I asked softly because I had been doing such an excellent job of beating myself up, I was their best friend, how did I not notice they had been killers.

"Well, I guess you can but you shouldn't" Dewey sighed putting his hand back on the wheel "we had Billy in custody, and we let him go, should I still be blaming myself for that?" I shook my head, but I knew like myself he would do it anyway.

Glancing around my eyes widened a little when we passed the sign for 'Windsor College' as Dewey drove into the campus, my stomach tightened when I saw the number of students walking around.

"Wow, we're here already," I gulped before narrowing my eyes when I noticed not only students but also news crews and reporters "Dewey?" when I turned to look at him, I frowned at his uneasy expression.

"Your dad told me not to tell you until you got here" my nose scrunched up at his answer "Two kids were killed yesterday at the movies, they were seniors here" closing my eyes I sighed heavily.

It was the opening weekend of the movie Stab, it was a telling our 'life' story, they had taken everything that happened and turned it into a fucking spectacle. I haven't even seen who they cast me as yet "What happened?"

"Someone wearing a Ghostmask stabbed them in the theater, bystanders thought it was some kind of joke," Dewey explained as I lifted my gaze out into the crowds. "Your dad didn't want you being scared away from doing this."

I tapped my fingers on my thighs as my foot bounced. "He's right, I can't run away from this. People are going to be talking about it for years, the movies just making everyone crazy".

The older man nodded as he parked the car before pulling himself out of the vehicle, following his lead I watched with narrowed eyes as Dewey limped around the car "So - what up with that?" I motioned to his leg with a small frown.

Dewey gave his leg a pat as he smiled at me. "Severed nerve," he answered shortly but not angrily. "I'm still here, so I guess a limp is a price to pay" Dewey tried to joke, but I could see the sadness in his eyes.

Taking a breath, Dewey helped me take my bags from the car as he showed me the way through the campus with thoroughness. "You seem to know you're way around here pretty well," I asked in mock suspicion causing Dewey to turn red.

"Well, I did stake out the place a little when your dad told me you and Sid applied here" Dewey smiled happily when I nudged him gently. "I'm like the older brother you never wanted, huh?" he laughed as I stiffened up, "You okay?".

"Yeah, I'm good," I tittered nervously as I dragged my suitcase behind me, trying to control my face "Just excited to be here and get into the college life" Dewey nodded proudly at my words.

"You can do this, Kat, I know you can," The older man acknowledged as he stepped in front of me to open the door to the reception area as I repeated his words to myself with an anxious expression.

"Hi, how can I help you?"

My head shot up at the friendly voice and smiled falsely when my eyes met that of a middle-aged woman, the receptionist if I was hazarding a guess "Uh I'm here as a late starter," I forced out taping my finger on the desk nervously.

The lady grinned at me as she pulled out some files before turning back to Dewey and I "Name?" she questioned as my finger stopped tapping suddenly.

"Katherine Prescott"

Her gaze locked with mine when I noticed her smile falter, she knew, Dr. Myers prepared me for this. People would know my name and know everything that happened, but seeing the pity in her eyes, I wasn't ready for that.

"Well, of course, you are, dear," She replied as she quickly went back to her receptionist's duties before handing some papers, a key, and a map. "If you ever need anything, you just call on me, okay?".

Taking the items from her, I did my best to keep my face clear as I thanked her "Let's go" I hissed at Dewey, I would have left limpy behind to take the fall, but he looked just as uncomfortable as I did.

Pocketing my key, we headed back outside as I opened up my paperwork with the help of Dewey, who mind you didn't go to college, understood it better than I did. "That's your dorm hall," he pointed out on the paper.

"Okay, and that's over-" glancing back at the map we turned it around a few times before realizing where we were supposed to be going "-there" Dewey sniggers as I push him "I'm here to learn the film industry Dewey, not map reading."

The older man just shook his head as he read through the rest of my paperwork, only bumping into me when I stopped dead in front of him "Kat?" He questioned, sounding concerned until he followed my gaze.

"Sidney?" 

Chapter Text

It was like everything went in slow motion as I watched my twin sister turn around, her eyes wide and mouth dropped open in shock, whether that was due to seeing Dewey or me again, I had no idea.

"Kat, Dewey" I heard her whisper as I stood frozen "Oh my god" she laughed as Dewey moved around me to pull her into a hug "Hey!" the smile she now wore seemed to brighten up her face as our 'surrogate brother' held her tight.

She looked so different now, she was no longer the meek little Sidney Prescott that promised to stay by my side forever before leaving me to fend for myself in a mental hospital.

Looks like being almost murdered and psychologically tortured does the body good.

Suddenly my sister's eye met mine again as she gave me a quick look over, I could see her eyes go from shock to confused before they settled on neutral as if she didn't have a hundred questions running through her mind.

"Oh my god, Kat..." Sidney breathed unwinding herself from Dewey as they both along with the group my sister was standing with turned to face me. "I had no idea you were going to be here."

Nodding I looked around her friends who all were looking at me in interest they'd obviously followed last years' events.

"Clearly," I muttered, biting the inside of my cheek in contempt. "Were you still hoping I was away at the crazy hospital" my sister physically flinched at my words, and it felt so good.

"Kat!" Dewey scolded obviously shocked by my evident distaste of my sister, but I ignored him in favor of glaring at the other half of me as she put on a sad face that made me want to be sick.

Sidney opened her mouth in shock as her eyes turned sad for a moment, "Kat…".

I quickly cut my sister off from her words that I knew would be full of self-pity, "No! You left me there to rot," I growled, stepping forward, causing her to recoil, and the guy standing behind her to steps ahead of Sidney protectively.

Giving him a sneer, I felt Dewey pull me back a little whispering for me to calm down, and I clenched my hands, remembering the techniques I had learned to keep my temper from flaring up.

"Hey Sid, Can we talk?" Dewey asked my sister as he rubbed his hands up and down my arms in comfort as my sister nodded sadly, taking her eyes off mine as I watched the two of them walked away.

Realizing what just happened, I turned slowly to face Sidney's friends who were all eyeing me differently, I had just been left with a bunch of random strangers who either look terrified of me or interested.

Quickly gazing back at Dewey and Sidney, I cursed their existence as the two of them glanced back towards me every now and then "So-" I grimace hearing an almost valley girl tone call from behind me.

Turning back to face the dark-skinned girl smiling nervously at me, "I'm Hallie," she gave a small wave as I nodded politely. "That's Mickey and Derrick, he's Sidney's boyfriend."

My eyes widened in surprise for a second at the news of my sister's new beau before giving the three of them a half grimaced smile, "I'm Kat... Prescott", I added after awkwardly, it had been a while since I had to play nice with strangers.

Derek's perked up a little at my words as he gave me a smile "Sidney's twin sister" this guy smiled like a puppy dog being praised as the other two just watched on in curiosity. 

I rolled my eyes subtly before shaking my head and crossing my arms across my chest, "No."

Sidney's boyfriend physically deflated at my tone of voice and visible hostile body language, but I did hear a snort come from Mickey, which I'll take as a win. Grinning to myself, I tilted my head to the side. "You know Derrick, you're brave, dating Sid."

"Why's that?" The dark-haired man questioned predictably as he sent a nervous expression to Hallie who just shrugged, Mickey was the only one seemingly not nervous about my presence or threatening tone.

I sighed, "Because people who get close to us end up dead…especially boyfriends" I snigger at his wide-eyed appearance before hearing Dewey and Sidney getting closer to us.

"Dewey we should go find my dorm," I say, pointing over my shoulder, wanting to get away from, well, everyone.

"I can show you if you want?" Sidney offered a small smile as Dewey gave me a reassuring nod, but I felt dread pool in my stomach, was this it now? Was my sister going to forget I was ever gone and want to go back to normal?

Picking my bag up as I wrapped my arm around Dewey's I gave my sister an emotionless face. "I couldn't think of anything worse, and I spent two years in therapy," almost dragging Dewey away I passed him the map as if nothing happened.

"Kat-" 

Pulling my bag up higher on my arm I just sniffed "I don't want to talk about it" guilt hit me as Dewey instantly went silent as we walked across campus "I didn't mean to snap at you, Dewey" I said sadly as we stood outside my dorm "I'm sorry." 

Dewey just smiled and patted my arm before looking up at the building. "This is it" pulling open the door I followed Dewey into the dorm as we looked for room 237 – my new home for the next few years.

Passing most of the rooms, I brightened up when I saw the metal numbers on the white door. "Dewey, it's this one" I call to the older man who hobbled straight passed the door as I took my key out of my pocket.

Dewey flushed red as he made his way back to me. "Sorry, must have overlooked it."

Sniggering, I pushed the key into the lock and knocked on the door as a second thought, I'd read a lot about college and seeing two people going at it wasn't how I wanted to start my first day here.

"Oh! Hi!" A voice called from inside as I opened the door fully, I carefully looked around the room before even moving over the threshold "I'm Tara" glancing at the taller blonde girl I smiled as she shyly waved at us.

She looked meek and timid, but that didn't mean she couldn't be dangerous.

"I'm Kat" short and sweet, just until I get to know her better.

"Oh, let me help you," Tara gasped as she quickly pulled a few of my bags into the room with a polite smile as she introduces herself to Dewey, who blushes as he gives her a nod. 

Glancing around the room, I noticed the vast difference between her side and mine, her half was a lot darker due to the posters, bookshelves- full of Wiccan styled books and the red fabric wall cloths.

Tara smiled as she quickly showed me around the room before asking if I needed help with anything; after seeing me shaking my head silently, she gave me a grin before picking up a bag "So, before I go I should tell you that I probably won't be around a lot."

I turned to her with a confused look as Dewey moved my bags over to the empty side of the room. "My girlfriend is over at Stevenson Hall, and I'm there pretty much all the time, but if you need me, we're in room 214. Just ask for Willow if you get lost".

The corners of my mouth turned up as I watched her wave to us shyly again before leaving "She seems nice" Dewey says after a moment of silence, although Tara seemed like she lacked confidence she sure left an impression.

"They always do, Dewey," I frowned, dropping down onto the unmade bed that I would soon have to painstakingly put my sheets on, but at least I would pretty much have the room to myself.

The older man gave a small sigh as he awkwardly crouched in front of me "You're going to be fine, okay, I know you. No matter what, you always make the most of any situation. Remember there's only one Katherine Prescott".

My mouth twitched at his words before I gave him a smirk feeling more confident that I could do this "God help them all."

Chapter Text

Glancing at my reflection, I bit my lip; I was trying to delay getting out of my dorm room, I'd been awake and ready for hours, but the thought of walking out the door made me second guess my presence here.

Especially with the murders that happened and seeing my sister again.

Picking up my messenger bag, I pull it over my body as I take deep breaths before opening my door slowly, peeking out into the hall, I felt relieved when it was empty.

Closing the door behind me, I made my way out of the dorm house, hoping to find Dewey again; I knew he'd be around somewhere watching over Sidney and me.

I spent most of my first night here awake thinking about the murders Dewey told me about yesterday, questioning if it was a random occurrence or was it because of the Stab movie coming out, but whatever it was, it still felt too close for comfort.

Pulling open the door, I'm immediately mobbed by several people I suddenly realize are reporters. My stomach drops as microphones and cameras are pushed into my face as questions are hitting me from all sides.

"There she is, Katherine! Hi! Do you know what happened to the victims?"

"Katherine, did you know the victims at all?"

"Do you feel frightened by the murders?"

"How does it feel to be so close to more murders?"

I try to push through, but I can feel a panic attack crawling up my throat before a pretty blonde girl makes her way between me and the reports as she levels them with a glare. "Can't you see she doesn't want to answer any questions. Just leave her alone".

I gulp as she takes my arm in her hand and pulls me through the crowd of bloodthirsty reporters as they continue to call out their questions "Katherine, can you tell us anything?!".

The blonde girl just huffs as she throws her head back and calls over her shoulder, "Yeah, you guys are a real pain in the ass." I wordlessly let the blonde tug me behind her as she ranted about how shitty those reporters were; it was something that weirdly felt familiar to me.

Feeling her suddenly stop, I watched as she turned to face me quickly with her eyes wide and mouth open before she drops my arm as if it burned her. "Oh my god! I am so sorry for pulling you around. I-i just saw how you froze and-".

I just smiled as she stuttered apologizes to me.

Seeing my expression, she blushed and stopped her ramble "-I'm Cici" she introduced herself with a small wave and big smile that made me feel less anxious than I was when I woke up this morning.

"I'm Kat," I told her, rubbing the back of my neck; who knew I'd be socializing this early on in my college life, me, Katherine Prescott, the girl who dislikes human interaction. Who would have guessed?.

"Yeah, I know," she replied instantly before her eyes widened again. "Oh! Sorry If that freaked you out, it's just I know you from… you know", she insinuated with a tight smile as if she didn't want to say 'hey, I know you from those murders you got caught up in two years ago.'

"I'm getting a lot of that around here," I motion to the stares from other students as they not so quietly whisper to each other while they walk past us. I wonder if Sidney had this reaction too, or was I just special because I was in a mental institution for two years.

Cici smiled at me, sympathetically. "Well, don't worry; not all of us want to know every detail" I smiled at her; it was refreshing to speak to someone who didn't want to know everything and push me to talk about my feelings.

I couldn't put my finger on it, but she reminded me of someone we'd only just met, but I feel at home talking to her, and I was genuinely enjoying it. If only Sue could see me now, she'd definitely be proud of my social skills.

"So, how about I show you around campus? I bet you stayed in your dorm room since you've been here," Cici said with a small smirk when I dropped my head with a laugh "am I right?" she giggled as I nodded guiltily.

Slowly wrapping her arm around mine, she watched me carefully before smiling brightly and began to gently lead me around, showing me all the different dorms, halls, and the best places to hang out.

"What class have you got first?" The blonde questioned as I pulled out my schedule for my classes later. "Film Theory," I said with a happy face, but nervous tone, a small part of me still wanted to go back to my room and hide under my bed covers.

Stopping dead, Cici turned to me in shock as she shook her head in disbelief. "Me too," she clapped her hands excitedly before looping her arm with mine again. "You know Kat, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."

Chapter Text

Cici led me around campus chatting the whole way, I was more concerned with ignoring all the stares coming our way, whether it was because of the blonde who had her arm curled around mine laughing loudly or the shock of seeing me here, I had no idea.

But it wasn't the best feeling in the world; all I could do was take a breath and count to ten as I let the blonde guide me through the college gardens.

Coming almost full circle, we end up back in the place I had seen my sister yesterday. Glancing over in that direction, my stomach tightens at the familiar brown-haired boy that looked no different than the last time I had seen him.

Randy.

"I'll be right..." I stop in my sentence as Cici glances at me, confused. "I'm just going to-" I point over to the group of people as Cici nods knowingly as she turns and walks over to a group of girls, all happy to see her.

"Oh man, this is huge," I heard Randy say as I slowly walk closer to him, not really knowing what to say, but I had been friends with him since we were kids, and I wasn't going to give that up for anything.

"Randy!" I call out, causing him to jump and turn to me with a shocked smile, my eyes quickly scanned the area for my sister, but I was pleasantly surprised to not see her anywhere.

"Kat?" Nodding, I blinking when hugged Randy me tightly. "How are you? What are you doing here? You look great", He stuttered as his breath hit my ear; I noticed Mickey watching us closely over Randy's shoulder.

Moving back, I let out a small laugh at his questions; he looked so confused but happy to see me. It was nice.

"I managed to graduate while in the hospital, and they convinced me to give normality a try," I grinned as Randy laughed along with me before he threw an arm over my shoulder, turning towards the people I had met yesterday.

Randy eyed them as they glanced between us with various expressions on their faces. "What's going on?" My oldest friend questioned them, sounding confused.

I shrugged with a smirk. "They must still be really shocked to have met me yesterday" my eyes turned towards them with a scowl. "I can just imagine Sidney telling you all about her crazy sister, right?".

Derek's face flushed, and I knew I was right in some way, Sidney had told them about me. "She didn't call you crazy," He muttered as my jaw clenched angrily at his attempt to smooth over whatever shit my sister had said.

"She shouldn't be talking about me at all," I hissed as his face dropped in shock, Hallie stood awkwardly, driving me to wonder what she had heard about me, and Mickey's face hadn't once changed as he continued to study me in silence.

My gaze turns back to Randy when I feel his body straighten, and I followed his gaze towards where my sister was walking towards us, away from where Dewey was stood. What we're they looking so suspicious about?

Randy's face brightened considerably, "Deputy Dewey, Woodsboro's finest. What's he doing here?" He asked my twin playing it cool he obviously still likes her, but she immediately stood by her boyfriend's side.

I silently watched Dewey as he hobbled away.

"He's worried. Our surrogate big brother," Sidney laughed but seemed on edge about something; maybe it was because what she and Dewey we're talking about, or it could be the flocks of reported shrouded over the campus.

"Wow, nothing like a funeral bringing the family together." My ears perked up at the word funeral that must be the murders Dewey was talking about yesterday.

Just as Randy pulls his arm away from me, my sister's gaze drops on me like she didn't realize I was even there. "Kat..." she breathed, but I ignored her, turning my back towards her, I watched the small gathering of reports in disdain.

"Not a fan of reporters?" Mickey asks with a smile as he stands by my side, glancing down at the same flock of people I was.

"I'm not a fan of people who put out blatantly false reports and bring other people down to fuel their own egos," I say, glaring at them as I watch their microphone being shoved into the faces of students as they walked by.

"Plus, I don't have the best track records with reporters."

"Sidney, look, it's Gale Weathers," I heard Hallie gasp as I follow her pointed finger to see Gale down by the front steps of the main building talking into one of her cameras as she, like many of the others, tried to get some juicy news.

"Star of the Gale Weathers press conference. Author of the press conference starring Gale Weathers. Soon to be a major motion picture starring Gale Weathers," Randy recited with a grin as he almost buzzed excitedly.

"Fucking Gale," I muttered to myself, still feeling a lot of resentment, not due to what she said about our mother because, let's face it a lot of it was right, but it was from everything after the murders.

"Be kind, she saved our lives," My twin scolded as she stood by my side; I faced her with narrowed eyes. Who was she to tell me what to do and how to feel. She lost that privilege a long time ago.

"No, she saved your life. She's done nothing for me," I hissed at Sidney as she subtly flinched from my tone of voice; Sidney had nothing to worry about; she wasn't written about in a tell-all book.

I was the one who had a whole chapter dedicated to me and my mental health, my anger, and my being close friends to the murderers.

"Check the calf implants. I'm gonna get closer," Randy whistled, breaking through the tension; he seriously had some weird crushes.

"Hello, girls," A high-pitched voice called out as I tore my gaze away from the crowd below us to see a group of pretty preppy girls, Sidney and her friends I could handle, but these girls looked plastic.

I snorted to myself, remembering how I felt about Casey before we became friends, she was the bouncy preppy one, and I was the more laid-back sarcastic queen, but somehow I don't think this would end in the same type of friendship.

Hallie moved closer, smiling brightly at the girls. "Oh, hello sister Lois, sister Murphy" I faced her in shock, she sounded like a robot – was that normal?

"Hello, pledge. Hi Sidney, and you are?" Murphy, the blonde one asked, looking at me with a scary wide grin, but before I could open my mouth, Lois had beaten me to it.

"Don't you know Murphy" She questioned her friend without even turning her head as she watched me with gleaming eyes "this is the famous Katherine Prescott," the other girls all seemed to whisper among themselves.

"Hi," I muttered, not feeling too great that she was staring at me like I was some sort of prize to be won.

"Well, Katherine, we are the sister from Delta Lambda Zeta," Lois explained like they were some hot shit; the other girls gave me a robotic wave after being introduced - seriously though, was this normal??

"Good for you," I muttered as Mickey snort from beside me; the girls, however, did not look put out at all. It seemed like my usual mean sarcastic self did nothing to them as they turned to face my sister.

"Are they robots" I mock whisper to Mickey, who lets out a loud laugh, seemingly amused at my question. I could take down a killer wearing a mask - no problem, I got stabbed - cool fine, but these girls were actually terrifying.

Murphy glanced between Sid and me with a sad pout, a really fake one at that. "This must be hell for you" I shifted to my sister, who looked like she wanted to run away from these girls—same sis.

"I manage" was all that Sidney said, and her tone of voice really didn't match the polite smile she was wearing.

"To think that this fest is all about you. Not directly, but in some six degrees of Kevin Bacon way," I pulled a face again as Mickey laughed into his hand, causing Murphy to glare at him.

"So, Kat, I can call you Kat, right?" My awkward look was ignored as the curly-haired female continued talking, "We're having a little Martini mixer soon; you should totally come!" her excited stare freaked me out, and luckily she turned to face my twin "You too, Sid."

Giving Lois a half smile-grimace, I was about to tell her 'hell no' until Hallie threw her arms around mine and Sid's shoulders giggling as if we were all the best of friends. "We'll be there."

What the actual fuck?.

"Oh good, cause Sid, we have our eyes on you" I stared at her ice-blue eyes and shivered internally; sorority girls did not play around. I'd rather face off against a hook-wielding maniac than these chicks "and definitely you, Kat. The Delta Lambda's are very sensitive to your plight, and if you need anything, just call". 

"Oh! Kat, you should come down before the party and hangout. Bye!" Lois blushed, walking away with her sorority sisters following.

Glaring at the hand on my shoulder, I glanced over to Hallie as she watched the sisters walk away. "You're touching me," I tell her emotionlessly, making her jump and take her hand off me speedily as if I had burned her.

"Are you ok?" Mickey questioned me from the wall he was sitting on as I sat next to him with a short nod. "Murphy seemed to really -like- totally like you," he joked in a valley girl voice as I gave him a small smile, quickly looking down at my feet.

"They smile so much it's unnatural," I say wide-eyed as he sniggers at my expression. I feel shell shocked, so much has happened, and it's only the start of the day.

"The Delta Lambdas are the biggest bunch of..." Mickey starts before Hallie whirls around to glare at him, though it's just like being glared at by a little lamb, so no big deal.

"Hey! I'm pledging Delta Lambda,"

I snorted when Hallie's head pivoted my way "That explains so much," Hallie's face drops as my sister glares my way, obviously upset at me being 'mean' to her bestie.

Slightly cringing at the loud crowd below, I catch the sound of questions being asked, I still had no idea about the people who were killed, but if it was because of the Stab movie, then that was just unfortunate. "It's like a circus down there."

"Chief Hartley said the girl was stabbed seven..." Mickey tried to say before he was interrupted.

"Drop it!" Derek growled at him nod towards my sister, who had become visibly upset; the dark hair boy obviously did not want Mickey to talk about the murders to not distress Sidney.

Just like 2 years ago after Casey and Steve's murder when Billy wouldn't let Stu and Randy talk about it.

"You take a knife and slit from the groin to the sternum" we all groan at Stu and throw anything we had in his direction.

"It's called tact, you fuck rag," Billy stated when he saw the look on Sidney's face.

Thinking about it now, that could have been a cover-up either to make sure Stu didn't say something stupid or for Billy to pretend to be the caring boyfriend he tried to make us believe he was.

I turned to Mickey noticing his eyes darken at Derek's tone. "What else happened?" I questioned, ignoring the incredulous expression on Derek's face as a smile grew on Mickey's.

Chapter Text

"Hello Sidney" Those two words made my twisted worse than the first time I had ever heard them; her voice still manages to grate on my nerves even after all these years. Here I was, thinking I'd never have to see or hear from Gale Weathers ever again. "How are you?".

"Hi," My sister greeted timidly as we turned to see a smiling Gale, along with her newest cameraman who twisted the lens of his camera pointed directly at us as I glared at him. Why was he filming us?.

Gale's face lit up when she noticed me stood behind my twin. "Oh! Katherine," my eye twitched at the sound of her saying my name. "It's great to see you, too; I had no idea you were out of the-."

Her sentence was cut off by my sister, "What do you want, Gale?" Gale's sharp eyes moved from mine as she gave Sidney another false smile; thankfully, her attention was no longer on me or my release from the mental hospital.

"Well, I was hoping I could get a few words from you with..." A tall, instantly familiar man wearing a suit moved between Gale and her cameraman, mine and Sidney's breath audibly hitched at the sight of the man.

"Cotton."

"Hello Sidney, Katherine" He gave a slight nervous nod but smiled happily as if he was a cat who had gotten the cream. He looked no different from the last time I had seen him in person, except now the suit he was wearing wasn't prison-issued.

What the hell was he doing here?.

Gale spins around all business as she faces the camera holding a microphone in front of her face. "Here we are at Windsor College where Sidney and Katherine Prescott have just been reunited with Cotton Weary for the first time since Sidney wrongfully accused him of her murdering their mother."

My mouth drops open as I realize Gale was trying to fix an interview with Cotton and Sidney, that's why she was so happy I was here, better to get both Prescott Twins than just the one.

Sidney grabbed onto Gale's arm that was holding the microphone and tugged at it. "What the hell are you doing?" I turned my head to the others who watched on just as clueless as my sister was being.

"We want to know how you feel." The fake smile was back on Gale's face as she pushed her microphone towards us, my heart began to speed up angrily. "Tell us everything that's happened looking back on the last two years."

"Girls," Cotton's voice broke through the tension, "I'd just like to say that I forgive and forget, and like you, I'd like to move on with my life" He too smiled falsely and gave the camera a quick glance.

We were being set up.

"Do you have any comments" Gale questioned as she once again places her microphone near our faces giving us an encouraging smile as Cotton stood in front of us, shifting from foot to foot.

"You bitch!" My sister hissed, stepping closer to Gale as everyone moves in to grab her. Gale holds up a finger and leans away from Sidney. I glance at Cotton, who gives me a smile, but I stay emotionless to his 'friendly' attempt.

Derek turns my sister away from the reporters who, by now, have all taken out their own equipment to capture the scene going on in front of them. Who wouldn't, this was a pivotal moment for all of us.

The moment Gale was obviously trying to set up and show the world that she Gale Weathers had been right all along, Cotton wasn't guilty of our mother's murder, and now the three of us we're being brought back together again.

The set up was so clear, and it made me furious; how many more times was Gale going to do this to us? We weren't something she could write about in a book or ambush for her next news piece.

"Oh, Sidney, Katherine, share with us please!"

Unfortunately, my anger wasn't something that I had complete control over yet, and my body was moving before my brain even had time to catch up. "I'll share with you!" I shouted as my fist made contact with Gale's face.

The crowd was visibly shocked as gasps rang out; I moved forward slightly as a terrified-looking Gale shifted away from me, and I felt a pair of arms wrap around my waist, which is when I realized that I had been shouting at Gale unintelligibly.

My sister's face was open in shock and concern as Mickey picked me up over his shoulder when I fought his grip, my anger at not only Gale but everything else had spilled over, and now I was struggling to stop it.

I felt Mickey's shoulders shake with laughter as he comfortingly carried me across campus as the other reporters rushed around Gale to get her 'comments' on what just happened.

"Kat?" I heard my new blonde friend call as we passed her and her friends, and I internally groaned at the thought of Cici seeing what just happened and no longer wanting to know me.

Mickey finally put me down when I stopped kicking and shouting, but he didn't move that far away, and I probably should have been angry or upset at him, especially only having known him for like a day, but I wasn't.

"Are you okay?" Cici asked as she next to me on the bench outside my door where Mickey had taken me. "What happened?" she questioned, giving Mickey a glance. "What did you do, Mickey?".

The dark-haired man put his hands up, protesting his innocence with a grin as he explains to the blonde what happened with Gale. Cici sighed as she rubbed my shoulder in comfort. "Fucking reporters," she swore as I tried to calm myself.

"Two years," I said solemnly as the two of them faced me, Mickey's smile gone as he heard the tone of my voice. "I worked on myself and all these problems for two years, and she comes in here with her stupid camera, stupid smile, and fucking ruins int all."

Standing up, I began to walk away as Cici calls out to me, "I'm sorry I just-" I stopped with a sigh as I turned back around and walked into the building towards my dorm room. Tentatively opening the door, I sighed with relief when the Wiccan girl was nowhere to be seen.

Pushing the door shut, I slowly slid to the floor, reaching up to twist the lock as I silently sat with my back pressed against the door fighting away the tears that were begging to be let go.

Chapter Text

Loitering around the hallway, I tried to make myself as inconspicuous as possible while my classmates make their way into the room labeled: 1408.

Film Theory was my first class of the day, so not only was it the first class I would be taking since high school, I was already a week behind everyone else. My anxiety was forcing me to chew my nails at the thought of simply finding a seat in the room.

"There you are," a bubbly voice called out as I jumped away from the door like a surprise cat. I quickly turned around to see a concerned-looking Cici give some guy a kiss before walking towards me. "I was wondering if you would make it here," she laughed gently before placing a hand on my shoulder. "You okay?".

Giving her a smile, I nodded as I subtly glanced into the room to see where everyone was sat and for any empty seats at the back of the room; maybe being out of the center would make me feel better and away from everyone's prying eyes.

"it's been a while since I've been in a class and with other people," I tell her nonchalantly, trying not to show her how much it's affecting me but still the thought of being stuck in the room with a bunch of strangers gave me a headache.

"Do you need some time" Cici questioned as she rubbed my shoulder comfortingly as I shook my head; if I didn't go in now, I never would. Taking a deep breath, I gave the blonde a nod as we moved through the door.

All eyes immediately turned to my fake confident entrance into the room; I grinned to myself, seeing both Randy and Mickey in the class. At least I'll have three people here that I know – it could be worse.

Cici tapped my shoulder as she moved to sit in one of the seats while I gave my attention to the teacher who was leaning against his desk with a smile reading from a piece of paper "You must be Katherine Prescott, my late addition."

Sucking in a short breath, I nodded sheepishly. "It's just Kat," I say as he nods at my words with a smile of mischievousness.

"Well 'just Kat' I'm Mr. Lecter not unlike Hannibal but also not related" I let out a laugh at his words, feeling more comfortable than I was before. "Take a seat anywhere," he motioned to the room "today, we're talking about plot holes in films."

Turning around, I noticed a free chair next to Cici, who was waving energetically at me and motioning for me to sit down next to her. Unfortunately for me, the seat was right in the middle of the class, but I sucked it up in favor of sitting next to my new friend.

Mickey, who sat just the left behind my seat, smirked at me as I put my bag on the floor. "How's your fist," He asked as he leaned his forward onto his desk to get closer to me.

"Sore," I chuckled, showing him the fresh bruises appearing on my hand, "but that's not the first time I've hit her" Mickey laughed out loud, causing the other students to look over at us with raised eyebrows.

Feeling embarrassed, I hid my face as I sank down into my seat as Mickey chuckled again. I glanced at Cici, who gave me a small smile and a wink as she lifted her eyebrows teasingly. I let out a soft groan as she giggled.

Getting my notebook out, I started taking notes as Mr. Lecter began showing us a video of The Shawshank Redemption. "Who put the poster back in place after the daring escape in The Shawshank Redemption? Andy spent months on that tunnel and covered his tracks thanks to a poster...".

Blinking slowly, I listened to the calm tone of my new lecturer's words before feeling a little hazy; the lack of sleep I had been getting was coming back to bite me in the ass.

Letting my eyes close for a second, my breath evened out as the class continued on without me.

Hearing a cough, I opened my eyes, seeing the movie had been paused, and Mr. Lecter gave me a small amused smile making the class laugh again. "Sorry," I grimaced as I sit up in my seat.

The older man once again gave me an entertained expression as he glanced around the room. "I'm paring you up for your assignments. I want an essay on plot holes..." I looked out the window, frowning when I saw something that looked like a person ducking behind a tree.

"Kat?" Quickly taking my eyes away from the window, I saw Mr. Lecter watching me with a little concern this time as he too glanced out of the window as if wondering what I was looking at.

"Huh?" I asked dumbly as he smiled, shaking his head; this man has the patience of a saint. 

"You're partnered with Mickey for the essay," he explained, motioning to Mickey, who gave me a finger wave.

Shaking off my sleep and confusion at the person outside, I smiled at the dark-haired boy and took the assignment paper I was offered from the older man as he whispered to me, "are you okay?".

My mouth curved up into a small smile at his concern, but I nodded at his words; it was probably just first-day jitters, and thinking about it, I wouldn't be too shocked if it was a reporter trying their luck.

The bell rang out as everyone quickly packed their things. "You all have a week to do your essays," Mr. Lecter shouted as most of the class ran out of the door, making the older man laugh – I liked him.

Putting my notebook in my bag, I also made my way out of the room as Cici pulled me into an arm loop. "I have to go and find Ted again, but if you want, we can meet up later," she said as I frowned in confusion.

Cici gave a duh face when she saw my expression. "Oh, Ted is my boyfriend. You probably saw him with me earlier. Anyway, I gotta go, catch you later?" I nodded, freezing when she gave me a small hug before bouncing away happily.

Letting out a tired breath, I leaned against the wall and let my head fall back. That was only one class, and I already felt exhausted. Closing my eyes, I took another breath tensing when I felt something brush past me.

Chapter Text

"Hey," I gasped, opening my eyes seeing Mickey leaning over me with one arm on the wall above my head, glancing down at me. I let out a shaky breath in remembrance.

I looked up at him with a wide grin. "You know girls have feelings that's a new one" somehow, in our talking, I had leaned against the wall, and Stu had his arm leaned above my head but his body leaning towards me.

We stood like that for a few minutes before Stu rubbed my face gently. "Listen, Kat, we need to talk.." 

I sighed sadly as a flashback hit me. "Kat, are you okay?" Mickey questioned as he watched me in worry. I gazed at him for a second before remembering he was not Stu.

Stu was gone.

Giving him a forced smile, I waved a hand in the air, trying to disperse some of the concern he was giving off, trying to feign the idea of me being okay. "Oh- uh, flashback" I fake laughed as he frowned.

"Do those happen often?" he asks, appearing genuinely interested as he slowly moving away from the looming position he had over me.

I took a deep breath as I began to nod slowly ""Frequently-" My eyebrows knitted together as I continued "-today" We begin to walk side by side down the now-empty hall.

The silence between us was almost awkward but not totally there yet.

"So we're paired together?" Mickey starts with something in his tone that I couldn't decipher, but the twinkle in his eyes screamed mischief; it was so familiar to me that it was almost too painful to remember.

I just smirked at him playfully, trying to forget about those eyes that I would forever miss. "Elementary, my dear Watson," I joked as Mickey belted out a surprised laugh at my sarcastic tone.

"Funny," He mocked, giving me a slight nudge as if testing the waters. "Anyway, what film do you wanna dissect?" he questioned, smirking down at me as I 'oohed' in jest.

Our laughter was soon broken by gangly nerd "Hey, are you talking films?" Randy huffed, pushing his way in between Mickey and me, who gave Randy a glare, not that my oldest friend noticed.

"Hey, Einstein," I greeted as he smiles widely at his childhood nickname. "Who are you partnered with?" I questioned from not paying attention in class to the pairings when he suddenly looks deflated.

"Well, I was hoping for you-" Mickey's face subtly tightened as Randy continued talking, "but I got Jessica Mason, that girl has no idea about movies. She's just there to watch the movies instead of working" I patted his arm softly as he whined.

Randy scowls when Mickey and I laugh at him, stopping to stand together when we get outside. "Seriously, she doesn't know Freddy Kruger from Freddy Mercury," Randy splutters, desperately making us laugh even more.

"Yeah, laugh it up," He pouts, crossing his arms, "what film are you doing anyway?" Randy questions the two of us as Mickey looks at me with a shrug, seemingly offering me the choice.

Randy's face brightens at the movement before wrapping an arm around my shoulder. "Oh man, she's a horror buff, so you'll probably get stuck with some slasher film," Randy giddily tells Mickey with a laugh as I nudged him jokingly.

"Oh, really?" Mickey questions in surprise as he turns to me with raised eyebrows and a broad smile, his face seemed shocked, but his voice had a hint of knowing.

"It's very likely," I tell him biting my lip as his eyes drop down to look at my lips, making me smirk before clearing my throat. Mickey shook his head and blinked a few times.

"Oh, shit, here she comes," Randy mutters as we all turn to see a girl whom I was guess is Jessica Mason making her way over to us; Randy runs in the opposite direction rapidly.

"Where is he going?" Jessica huffs, crossing her arms like a typical valley girl, not too unlike Cici, but at least I didn't want to throat punch the blonde when she spoke.

"Uhhh, he had to go-" Mickey starts giving me a help me look, and I give in to the pitiful puppy dog eyes he was displaying.

"-Yeah, he had some bad food, and it's really got him. He's been in the bathroom all day if you get what I mean." I tell her with fake sympathy as Mickey laughs from behind his hand when Jessica looks in the direction Randy ran off in disgust.

"Poor boy just can't stop..." I say, but Jessica runs off looking like she wanted to be sick. Perhaps the thought of her partner having explosive diarrhea wasn't what she was expecting to hear from us.

"He's going to kill you," Mickey announces as he gazes at me with an impressed smile, and we both turn to watch Jessica run in the opposite direction Randy had.

"Ehh, he'll live," I tell him laughing, the look on Jessica's face will be imprinted on my mind for the rest of the day. It was probably the best thing that had happened to me since I got here.

"So, do you wanna go to the video store and find a movie?" Mickey asks when we both go quiet, I look up at him, silently pondering his question, but he must have mistaken my silence for something else.

"You know if you don't have anything better to do," he stutters when I continue to look up at him biting my lip, wondering if this is a friendship I should be pursuing. I told myself I would never get close to anyone again.

Then along came Cici and even Mickey.

I nod, letting out a small breath. "Sure," Mickey smiles widely and pulls me over towards the student car park. I glance around and see a few reporters still mulling around but luckily, none of them both us.

"You drive?" I question as we walk through the car park stopping at a white ford, which looked a little rough around the edges, but it didn't look as beaten up as some of the other cars in the lot did.

Mickey nods, pulling his car keys out of his bag, and unlocks the car. "Jump in," he says easily as he opens the passenger side door for me; facing the car, my stomach tightens as I internally begin to check off all the dangers.

Getting in a car with a stranger was not something I would have expected to be doing when I woke up this morning. I breathe heavily as Mickey looks at me with a frown as he leans on the door. "You can trust me, you know."

My eyebrows shoot up in surprise as he caught my expression. "I know," I lie, my jaw set tightly. I was really out of practice with the whole friend making thing, not that I set out to make friends when I enrolled here.

"We can walk if you want?" Mickey explains, throwing his bag into the back before turning to me with a smirk. "Hell, I'll carry you there if I have to" A laugh escapes my lips, and Mickey grins grows.

Putting my bag next to his, I give him a quick smile as I move to get into the car. "Let's go."

Chapter Text

The car was silent for the first few minutes of our journey before Mickey clears his throat. "So?.." Mickey starts as he looks at me out of the corner of his eye.

"So?" I repeated with a laugh trying to keep my mind off of the fact that I had only known Mickey for a short while, and yet somehow, he had managed to talk me into getting into his car to go to the video store.

This is how dumb people get murdered.

"What's with you and Sidney?" He questions bluntly until he saw the look on my face. "Uh, I just thought we could get to know each other" I smiled at the sheepish look on his face.

"It's a long story" I sighed as I thought about my long lost brother, my deadbeat mother, and doormat father before my mind rests on perfect little Sidney, who could never do any wrong in our parents' eyes.

Mickey's eyes met mine. "We've got time," he tells me seriously as we drive along "that's if you want?" I noticed how he always followed up his question with an out if I didn't want to answer it.

I liked that.

"We've always been at war, Sid and I. She was always the golden child, and I was just me," I huff before continuing, "We were fine when we were kids, but then we grew up, and I found out some things about our family which tore us apart."

"Wow, that's a lot," Mickey expressed as I internally laughed, knowing that didn't even really scratch the surface of our family drama.

"I protected her a lot when our mom died, through the trial, and after even though I knew she was sending the wrong man to his doom," I admitted, not really knowing why.

I let out a sigh "after that, we were never really friends. We were barely twins. She hated that I had a lot of secrets, and well, I just disliked her. She was always child number one, and I was the one who shouldn't have been born".

I looked at Mickey and noticed his jaw had tightened. "When I went away after the murders, she stopped visiting me after 3 weeks. My dad always gave me an excuse, but I knew better," I hissed, still feeling the hurt and abandonment.

Mickey's hand reached out for mine before stopping short "I guess she really is just like our mother" I spit out words I had heard my brother use so many times before, but I never knew what he meant until I was older. Mickey looked over at me, shocked as he stopped the car.

Gazing out of the window, I saw we were at the video store that I had been to so many times before in my life. "Sorry," I sighed, realizing I had just ranted my whole life to him.

Feeling his hand on mine, I glanced over to see him looking at me seriously. "Don't be, okay? I'm always here to talk. Always." he whispered as he gripped my hand tighter.

I coughed and pulled my hand away as we both got out of the car, "So are you ready for this?" I ask, looking at Mickey, who was staring at me with a look I couldn't decipher.

A grin broke out on his face as he let out a chuckle. "I've got to admit something I'm a huge horror fan too."

I grinned and grabbed his hand. "Well then, let's go before all the crappy movies are taken," laughing, pulling Mickey into the video store, forgetting all about our conversation and only thinking about what film we were going to choose.

Dragging Mickey into the video store, I smiled, "So are we doing horror or what?" I asked, looking up at him as he smiled down at me. I was actually going to let go and just have some fun. What was better than watching movies with a new friend.

"How about we look around?" He said as his eyes scanned the store smiling, I looked down, and my eyes widened when I realized we were still holding hands. I was beginning to feel more comfortable with him, but not that comfortable.

Dropping Mickey's hand, I quickly walked over to the first section, which so happened to be the romance genre. Clearing my throat, I pretended to scan the covers, but as I eyed Mickey, I noticed he was doing the same "Not into romance?" I asked him with a small smirk.

Mickey looked over to me, his face in a half grimace. "Oh no, they're great. Just fine." he lied, making me smile widely at his obviousness. He looked like it was actually paining him just to say that.

"Great, so we can do our essay on this genre?" I say to him, wondering how he'd get himself out of it as I picked up a random video case from the shelf and waving it in front of his face with a gleeful grin.

Mickey's face dropped when he saw the copy of You've Got Mail, but he nodded slowly in reluctant agreement. "Yeah, sure," he swallowed awkwardly, reading over the film description. "I'm sure this could work if you want?".

Breaking my facade, I let out a giggle. "God, you're too easy," I tell him as he looks over to me in surprise. "I hate romance," I say to him as I walk to the next section when suddenly I felt a hand on my ribs, and fingers soon began to tickle.

"Ahh, no! Wait!" I scream out as Mickey tickles up my sides, causing me to begin laughing loudly.

"Say, 'Mickey, I'm sorry. You're the best,' " Mickey told me as I hear him laughing in my ear; the warmness of his breath tickled at my ears.

"Never!" I declare as he pulls me tighter into him as he tickled me more.

"Say it!" he shouts playfully, getting attention from the other shoppers who just glanced on with amused smirks at the two 'kids' playing around.

"Mickey, I'm sorry.  I'm the best," I squeal as I manage to turn myself in his arms. Looking up at him, I see him smiling widely with a devious twinkle in his eyes, "That was so unfair; how did you know I was ticklish?".

Mickey just shrugs, his smile never dropping "it's fair if it's the truth," he tells me with a cheeky smile, one that I noticed was frighteningly familiar.

Frowning to myself, I suddenly noticed everything about this situation screamed Stu. Mickey was so much like Stu that it almost made me forget that anything had happened. It was like being back in high school again.

Chapter Text

The frown on my face must have been evident as Mickey looks concerned, "What's going on in that pretty head of yours?" He asks, squinting at me, making me smile.

That's something I had been doing a lot of the last couple of hours, all because of Mickey – a complete stranger up until yesterday. Now I was beginning to feel like I had known him for longer.

"You think I'm pretty?" I joke, batting my eyelashes at him as he laughs and rubs the back of his neck.

"I think it's a known fact that you, Miss Prescott, won all the genes in your family" I stared at Mickey, my eyebrows raised in shock.

People were not usually this playful with me. It was nice to talk to someone who won't treat me like glass or that I'll explode like a bomb any time something terrible happens.

I opened my mouth to talk when Mickey's cellphone began to ring. He pulled it out of his pocket, his eyes widening at whoever had been calling him. "I need to.." he starts motioning to his cellphone.

I nodded in understanding. "I'll keep looking," I tell him as I walk off towards the horror section. We both know this is what we'll be working on anyway.

Mickey watched as Kat walked away and smiled; he was having a great time with her; he knew that he shouldn't be getting too close to Kat, but he couldn't help himself she was just too great to pass up, he was falling for the broken Prescott twin.

"Hey," Mickey said, answering his cell phone, picking up a random case on the shelf while carefully watching Kat look at the cases where she was stood on the other side of the store.

"How's it going?" The voice asked; Mickey knew this voice very well; he had been talking to it for months now

"Good, very good," Mickey answered as he smiled, seeing Kat stealing a piece of candy from the candy stand.

"How is she?" The voice asked again softly, this time

"She's great; I'm with her right now," Mickey tells The voice, knowing he'd want to know.

"Tell me about her," The voice requested; Mickey understood Kat had been through a lot with being let out of the institute she was being kept in and now being back around people, especially Sydney.

"She seems like she's... coping. Sydney hasn't been a very good girl," Mickey said, his voice growing darker at the thought of Sydney abandoning Kat.

The voice sighed like he wanted nothing more than to reach through the phone and make it all better, but that's what he was doing right now, making it all better.

"I'm trusting you with her, do what you can," The voice instructed, "Just keep her safe," he added, obviously sensing mickey's soft tones when talking about the dark-haired girl.

"I will," Mickey promised, frowning at the thought of anyone hurting Kat; he would hurt them first, he would do anything to keep her safe.

"Stick to the plan," The voice ordered before ending their call; Mickey pulled the phone away from his ear and put it back in his pocket.

He leaned on the top of the shelf as he watched Kat sing to herself, oblivious to his staring, could she sing?

Mickey couldn't help but let his mind wander about a lot of things. Did she like him? How could he keep her close without her getting suspicious?

Mickey's thought began to drift further when he noticed Kat waving to him; he smiled and made his way back over to the girl who was now permanently imprinted on his brain.

He suddenly got an idea and picked up some chips and candy before making his way over to Kat.

"Ok, so I know we said we'd look around, but I think I found the perfect one," I told Mickey, who was walking over to me after his phone call; looking at him, I noticed his hand were behind his back getting suspicious I eyed him carefully.

"What are you hiding?" I eyed him distrustfully, watching as his eyes widen before they close in realization, and he pulls loads of junk food from behind his back

"I thought if you didn't have anything to do tonight, we could do a movie night?" he asks, giving me a broad smile, which made me feel instantly guilty.

"Oh."

I looked down and smiled. I had to stop comparing Mickey to Stu. It was getting me nothing but trouble, they were nothing alike, plus Stu was gone now I had to let it go. "Sure, I would like that," I tell him with a grin as we walk to the counter.

Giving the teenage cashier the movie, I pulled out my purse, but Mickey pushed my hands away. "Nope, not happening," he said as he gives the spotty teenage some money.

"That's not fair," I pout while grabbing the junk food.

I walked backward, watching Mickey walked towards me after picking up the movie "So Halloween?" Mickey questions holding up the case to me while I bite into a red vine

"Yep," I tell him, still walking backward, looking around a few times just in case I walk into something. "You got a problem with that?" I sass, giving him a smirk.

Mickey shakes his head with a grin and throws an arm over my shoulder, turning me around. "No, ma'am," he tells me with a fake southern accent before biting the red vine I held in my hand.

I stared at Mickey in shock as he winked at me, getting back into the car door with a cheeky smirk. "Hey, no fair," I call, running over to Mickey's car, wondering what the hell I was getting myself into but also not even caring. This was going to be one hell of a ride.

Chapter Text

Getting back onto campus, Mickey stopped the car and turned to me with a weird look on his face. "What?" I asked with a small laugh, freaked out a little

"Nothing, it's just..." Mickey started before shaking his head and scratching his ear as a pink hue subtly came over his face.

"Tell me," I insisted as I put my hand on his arm at his reluctance and his eyes looked down at where my hand lay for a moment before glancing back up at me with a smile.

"I feel like I've known you for more than one day." I smiled at his words, knowing I felt the same. It was weird how I made friends with Cici and Mickey so quickly.

Why was I letting people in? were my walls coming down?

I looked up to see him looking embarrassed and probably mortified by my silence. "It's because I'm cool," I told him jokingly, making his face brighten.

"Oh no, I've done it now," he whispered back, shaking his head with a grin on his face. "I've given her a big head," he playfully muttered, knowing I could hear him.

My jaw dropped as he got out of the car laughing at my expression, "Hey!" I called, grabbing the bag of junk food as I ran out of the car and jumped on his back, making him yell and grab my legs to keep me from falling.

"What are you, some kind of spider monkey?" Mickey asked sarcastically but never let go of me; in fact, he held on tighter than before.

"Spider Monkey? Did you get that from the discovery channel?" I laughed in jest, smiling when I felt a rumble through Mickey's back as he laughed too.

"God, you're something else," He told me over his shoulder as he carried me through the campus where we got some weird look, but neither of us cared.

This is the happiest I had been in years. I wasn't going to ruin it because people couldn't mind their own businesses.

Mickey soon walked us both into a building, which wasn't easy considering we both tried to keep the heavy door open, and I was still on his back.

"That was not easy," I laughed as Mickey walked down a hall filled with doors.

"Try being the packhorse," Mickey joked, he didn't seem like he was even effected by my weight on him, but I still knew I had to mess with him. that seemed to be the basis of our new friendship.

"Are you calling me fat?" I question him pretending to sound upset, waiting for his reaction.

"NO," he shouted before he saw me laughing. "Oh god, you got me again," he sighed with a chuckle as we stopped at a blue door.

Dropping me to my feet, I smiled as Mickey looked at me before unlocking his door and opening it to show a group of 3 boys all shouting at the TV. They hadn't even noticed us.

Mickey walked into the room while I leaned against the door frame "Mickey!" they all shouted jokingly and started to roughhouse until they saw me at the door.

The boys all suddenly stood up straight, acting like they hadn't been messing around. "Hey, I'm Kat," I say, giving a small awkward wave as one of the boys walks up to me.

"Hey, Kat, I'm Jason, Mickey's roommate," Jason told me with a weird voice like he was trying to be suave. "So are you and Mickey?.." Jason asked, pointing between Mickey and me, insinuation clear in his voice.

I just smiled and pointed between him and his two friends. "Are you guys?...." Mickey belted out a laugh at my sarcasm as Jason's face dropped, and his friends began to protest to me

"No way, Kat, believe me, I'm ladies, man," Jason tried again, giving me a flirty smile, which I realized wasn't as nice as he probably thought it was. I was suddenly thinking about how my new friend's smile was better.

My eyes drifted over to Mickey, who looked annoyed but quickly changed when he was me looking, "a ladies man, huh?" I question as Jason nods and winks back at his friends who cheered him on like typical college boys

"You know your ass must be pretty jealous of all the shit that comes out of your mouth," I tell him with a broad smile when his friends being to laugh and push him.

Jason nods and smiles at me. "Your alright, Kat," he complimented as he and the other boys begin to walk over to the door.

"We'll be at the Phi Lambda Alpha house party, can't wait to see the pledges squeal!" Jason shouted excitedly as the other boys cheered and ran out of the room.

I just looked at Mickey with my eyebrows raised as Mickey half laughed "he's not usually..." Mickey started until he saw my amused expression. "I can't lie. He's always like that," I laughed as Mickey threw his hands up, exasperated.

Belting out a laugh, I began to look around his dorm room while he got the movie all set up, I noticed his side of the room was a lot tidy than Jason's, but after meeting him, I can't say I'm shocked.

I smiled seeing all Mickey's horror memorabilia but frown when I didn't notice any family pictures, not that I had any in my dorm either. It was like half Wiccan and then half bare.

Maybe my two years in nothing but a white room ruined my decor skills?

"What ya looking at?" Mickey asked close to my ear, making me jump and smirk, knowing he got me back for earlier. I gave him a playful glare before turning again.

"No family pictures?" I question seeing his eyes roam around the walls like he was thinking.

"Yeah, no, I don't have any siblings, and my parents are a little..." Mickey trailed off before giving me a small smile, "...absent."

I nodded slowly, feeling bad for asking him but also feeling like I could relate to him more "sorry," I muttered as I sat down on his bed before I had time to think about Maureen.

"Don't be sorry, I'm not," Mickey replied with a weird look on his face.

"Right. so.. plot holes" Mickey laughs nervously when we're caught in silence just looking at each other. I nod my head with a smile passing him the candy bag.

"Yeah, right. So pen, paper?" I ask as he quickly hands me a notepad from a draw under the bed.

I give Mickey a smile as the movie begins to start. "Oh wait," he mutters as he gets up and turns the light off and the lamp next to his bed on before grinning at me "horror films have to be watched in the dark."

I chuckled and nodded before opening my candy up and making myself comfortable while shoving popcorn in my mouth. "I love the classics," Mickey mutters to me with a mouthful of candy.

Laughing softly, I smirked with a slight grimace "beautiful."

Mickey swallowed the mouthful before giving me a big grin "finally, I've been telling people this was my best look," he joked, making me giggle as I turn back to the film, noticing we had missed the first part of the film.

"Oh, that has to be one!" I shouted as we watched Micheal steal a car from a nurse and taking off with it.

"carjacking is a plot hole," Mickey snorted as he looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

I gave him a small glare before answering him, motioning to the tv, "No, if Micheal's been locked up since he was a kid, how does he know how to drive?"

Same, Michael, same.

Mickey gave me a surprised look and laughed. "I've never thought of that" I smiled brightly as I wrote it down as Mickey continued to look at me "it's so cool to meet a girl who likes horrors as much as I do," he complimented as I smiled brightly and looked back to the TV.

After we had finished finding all the plot holes, I sat up and looked at the clock on Mickey's bedside table. "Damn, it's getting late," I muttered as Mickey picked up another movie.

"Just one more?" He asked, trying to tempt me, shaking another horror movie at me as I bit my lip enticed. I could stay here all night and watch horror movies and still want more.

"Do you know what you're getting yourself into?" I questioned Mickey with a raised eyebrow. I was the queen of horror movie watching; not even Billy and Stu could keep up with me.

Mickey smirked at me, put the video in the player, and sat back with me as I gazed at him, expecting an answer. "The question is Kat, do you?".

Chapter Text

Sitting on Cici's bed, I played with one of her stuffed animals as she danced around the room, looking for a cardigan to go with her outfit, not that we were going anywhere, but these sorority girls always had to look good.

Seeing her yawn, I smirked "late night? a midnight stroll from Ted's, maybe?" I questioned with a laugh as my friend threw a sock at me.

Cici blushed the same hot pink color as the cardigan she held before she rolled her eyes, looking upset. "Yeah, well, he's an ass anyway" I frowned at my friend as she brushed away a tear.

"Did he hurt you?" I whispered as she thankfully shook her head, I didn't need to be beating up any guys right now, but I would.

"No, he just, all he does is drink and party. I just want to be with him and not have to babysit him," she admitted as tears fell from her eyes. I wiped them away the best I could as she leaned into me and let herself cry.

Listening to her final sniff, I grabbed her hand and looked at her seriously, "Want me to kick his ass?" Like I said, I totally would kick Ted's ass. He doesn't deserve someone like Cici.

I smiled when she let out a small, sad laugh as she reached for a tissue off the nightstand. "No, We'll work things out. We always do."

Frowning at her defeated tone, my eyebrows knitted together, "Well, you shouldn't have to. You should have someone who would move mountains for you".

Cici gave me another smile, and I sighed. "Love is crazy."

She nodded along with me in agreement, "have you ever been in love?" she asked genuinely as I looked at her thoughtfully. I guess I 'loved' my family because they were genetically tied to me that love is ingrained when you're born.

Then I thought of Stu and the way he made me feel even before we got together. A part of me always thought we would end up together, maybe at college or even after, but I guess now that's impossible. "Once," I admitted but didn't elaborate.

A silence enveloped the two of us as we sat silently thinking about our loves, recent and lost.

"You know what, let's go to Baskin Robbins and get a chocolate milkshake and forget all about love, boys, and all that other stupid stuff," I ordered with a huff as I stood from the bed.

Cici laughed at me as she stood by my side. "Only if we can get extra cream on top."

I turned and gave her a look. "Well, duh!" grabbing my bag, I set off with Cici trailing behind me. "Who gets a heartbreak chocolate milkshake with no cream" I stopped when I felt an arm loop into mine and saw Cici grinning at my side as she pulls me in the direction of Baskin Robbins.

Smiling to myself, I listened to some funny story she was telling me, and I realized maybe Roman had been right all these years. Maybe my family had been holding me back.

Giggling along with Cici about our stories, I felt freer than I had ever been.

"Kat?" I looked up to see Dewey smiling at me from the counter as he sipped on what looked to be a strawberry milkshake.

"Dewey, you're here, still." I greeted him, giving him a small hug with a confused laugh wondering why he was still hanging around, but I didn't overthink it. Dewey was looking out for us.

"You look happy," Dewey said as he looked between Cici and me, I saw the happiness in his eyes when he glanced between my new friend and me. Maybe he was worried about me fitting in.

"Yeah, I am. Oh, Dewey, this is Cici, my friend" Dewey and Cici nod at each other as the blonde gave a small, timid wave to the older man.

"What are you girls having? It's on me," I smiled up at Dewey as he gave me a small nod pulling out his wallet.

"Well, Dewey, we're fixing heartbreak today, so two chocolate milkshakes with extra cream and chocolate" Dewey smiled and gave me a pat on the shoulder as he passed by.

I looked back at Cici, who was looking at me knowingly. I knew she followed what happened last year, so she definitely knew who Dewey was. "Thanks for being here with me, Katherine" I smirked when Cici used my full name, knowing I hated it.

"You're welcome..." I stopped when I realized I didn't know what Cici stood for.

Cici laughed at me before wrinkling her nose. "Casey, my name is Casey," my body froze in my chair as she told me her name. How did I not know her name was really Casey.

"Well, what are friends for" I joked, feeling like I was underwater and my head was spinning as she laughed, wrinkling her nose.

"Best friends," she corrected as I looked up again, noticing the blonde hair, wide smile, and musical laugh. Holy shit.

Letting out a small awkward laugh, I nodded slowly as I gazed at Cici. "Yeah. Of course, best friends."

Chapter Text

To say I had been avoiding Cici for the last few days was a bit of an understatement in the sense that I was actively avoiding her and everyone else. My sister had tried to talk to me a few times, but I wouldn't have wanted to talk to her even if I wasn't avoiding everyone.

Mickey was the only one I had been spending any time with, which was mostly filled with horror movie watching. He'd all taken me to the campus video editing room, where he showed me how he edited all the things he taped on his camcorder.

Finding out that my new friend's name was the same as my old best friend, who got murdered by my other best friend and boyfriend, rocked me. Casey is a pretty common name, and I knew I wouldn't have to avoid it forever, but what were the odds that it was Cici's real name.

While it did send shivers down my spine, the more rational side of my brain was nudging me to go find Cici and forget about it. The look of confusion on her face when I quickly made up an excuse to leave and then all but ran from her played in my mind on a loop.

It was like she knew something had happened, but she couldn't put her finger on it, and it's not like I gave her much of a chance to figure it out either. When she entered the room, I exited, when she called me, I rejected it.

I was being a sucky friend because of my trauma.

Sighing to myself as I pull my hood over my head, the weather looking the way I feel. Students were running all around me as I wandered the campus aimlessly. Kicking my converse through a muddy puddle and skimming a small rock with the toe of my shoe, I shivered from the cold of the rain.

Just as I was about to turn around and head back to my dorm in hopes of Tara and Willow being done with their 'special time,' I saw a very familiar figure leaving the theatre. Sidney was obviously doing some work inside, and as much as I wanted to let it go, my curiosity had gotten the best of me.

Slowly making my way towards the theatre, I peek through the doors, seeing no one; I slip inside silently. The sheer size of the room was daunting after having classes in a small space and tables almost touching. I could always hear Randy muttering some movie quote or sarcastic comment about a classmate if I was quiet enough.

Moving up to the stage, I carefully skimmed my finger over some of the instruments that people had left unattended.

Music therapy had been one of the most significant recovery aids in the hospital. At first, I wanted nothing to do with it – like everything else in there – but once again, Sue had managed to find something in me that not even I knew I had.

Talent.

Sitting at the piano stool, I glanced over the beautiful glossy black wood of the grand piano before placing my fingers down on the ivory keys. I didn't expect to ever play the piano after leaving Westin Hills, but here I was.

My fingers diligently moved over the white and black keys as the sound came from the grand instrument. My smile grew a little more as I instinctively played the songs Sue and I practiced over times when she had snuck me into the music room.

Without thought, my lips began to move along with the music "Don't you know I'm still standing better than I ever did / Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid / I'm still standing after all this time / Picking up the pieces of my life without you on my mind-"

The sound of clapping quickly pulled me out of the small jam I had going on as all my fingers clanked against the keys in shock. Turning my head, I noticed a tall gray man clapping while watching me from the seats.

My eyes widened quickly as I rapidly spat out words, none which made much sense, as I collected myself and stood. "No, no, you don't need to-," he began as I tried to make a quick exit.

Running down the opposite side of the theater to him, I could only hear concern and wonder his voice as he called me back. At least I knew that I wasn't in trouble for sneaking in.

Forgetting to pull my hood back up, I rushed through campus as my heart continued to beat rapidly, my hair began to stick to my face, and I could just tell that my mascara was running underneath my eyes.

"Kat?" crossing my arms over myself in comfort as my feet stomped in more puddles. "Kat!-" gasping, I turned in surprise when my arm was grabbed, and for a moment, my heart stopped as if waiting for something terrible to happen.

Closing my eyes in relief when I see Cici, my hand automatically clutches my chest over my heart. "You scared me," I admitted as she gave me a sad smile. Glancing at me, she gently puts her arm around me and leans her bright pink umbrella over the two of us.

"Come on, I'll take you back to your dorm room" I nodded silently at her words and let her pull me towards my dorm. The atmosphere around us wasn't awkward, but it had an air of sadness. I knew we were both suffering from my avoidance.

Opening the door to my room, Cici walked us in, and I looked up to see Tara and Willow cuddling on the bed, smiling at us until they saw the state I was in. "Oh Tara, I think I left something in my dorm. We should-".

My roommate nodded her head at her girlfriend, but her eyes never left mine. "Yeah, we should," she agreed as they gathered their bags. Tara pressed her hand gently to my shoulder as she and Willow passed by. "You know where we are," she whispered into my ear.

Closing the door behind them, Cici began to move about my room as I just sat at the end of my bed, leaving my wet hoodie to dry on the back of my desk chair. "I'm sorry," I mumbled, looking down at my hands, hoping she'd understand.

"Don't be," The blonde sighed softly as she began to dry my wet hair off with the dark red towel that was usually sat in the closet with all of my shower essentials. It was moments like these that made me realize how much I appreciated my friendship with Cici.

Even having a friendship at all.

Cici stops drying my hair and sits on the bed with me. "You have your issues. I don't want to force you to have to talk to me. I know you will when you're ready" I blinked slowly as I took in her words.

Why couldn't everyone be like her?

Even my own twin tries to force me to tell her my problems, but here's a girl whom I made friends with only a short time ago and already knows how not to push my buttons.

"It's was your name," I explained honestly as my gaze was stuck to the pattern on my bedsheets. "When you told me your name was Casey, I freaked out, and I just couldn't do it again," I whispered in despair.

"Do what?" The older girl in front of me questioned, leaning her head towards mine as she tried to catch my eye.

Taking her hands in mine, I played with the ring on her index finger as I tried to think of a place to start. "I had a friend called Casey-" my eyes met the blondes who was watching me with a frown "-she was murdered."

Chapter Text

Yesterday, I let my walls down to someone knowing that it was safe to do so. I knew Cici wouldn't judge me for my past, nor would she leave me when my mental health became an issue.

I felt like I could really trust her but not only her. Cici, Randy, and Mickey were really becoming a small group of people that are bringing me back out of my shell, showing me that I could bounce back from the horrors that have happened.

Walking over to the Omega Beta Zeta house, I pulled my bag over my shoulder tighter, ready for the first class of the day. Cici and I had sat down and compared our schedules to find what classes they have together and planned out our 'hang out days.'

Apparently, the blonde was serious about being my best friend.

Knocking on the big white doors, I turned the handle, letting myself in, as Cici and the other girls said they were okay with it. Closing the door, I glanced up the stairs as I always do, taking in just how bit the sonority house was.

"Hey Kat!" An excited voice called out.

Turning my head, I gave a small smile to the brunette whose personality always matched her vibes, just pure sunshine. Although I couldn't relate to that, I couldn't put out that fire either, so I let the girl bounce up to me with a wide toothy grin.

"Hi Dawnie," Letting her pull me into the lounge, I noticed a few of the Omega Beta Zeta girls sitting on the couches with their bags or necessities with them.

A redhead saw my look of wonder and gave a little laugh. "We're just waiting for Cici, that girl, and her outfits," I snorted to myself, knowing exactly what she was talking about.

"So, are you ready for drama class, Kat?" Dawnie asks, taking a seat next to me as she and the other girls turn to me with equally friendly smiles. Honestly, it took me back to being in high school when the cheer girls hung off my every word.

"Uh, sure," I grimaced; the theatre wasn't really my thing. "Why do I have to take a theatre class if I'm a film student?" I questioned. Cici had already tried telling me about the classes I was taking, but to be honest, I wasn't paying attention.

"well, the students who are here for acting, singing, film making, etc. all have to take some classes in the other subjects. Like if you wanted to be an actor, you would still take a class on how to use cameras," the redhead explained.

"Yeah!" A pretty black-haired girl chimed in, "You're a film student like Cici, right? So you'll still have to do classes that don't really fit film making like the theatre class, which is why we all take it together in a mixed group".

Nodding my head slowly as I took in the information, "it's just annoying in there with the 'princess' thinking she's better than everyone" my ears perked up as I listened to the redhead's words.

The girl with the black hair nudged her quickly before giving me a smile, but apparently, the redhead didn't get the message "What? You know Gus gives her all the good parts because she's 'famous' and knows it'll bring people in and- oh my god I forgot".

After seeing the subtle glares of the other girls, the redhead glanced at me wide-eyed.

"Are you talking about my sister?" I asked, hearing footsteps coming from behind me, in the midst of the redhead girls ranting about what I assume to be my twin sister Cici had finished getting ready and put a hand on my shoulder in concern.

A quick glance around told me what I think I already knew, these girls were not fans of my sister. Their apologies rang out as I shook my head. "Don't apologize for your opinions. I know what it's like to dislike Sidney Prescott, but what did she do to you?".

Cici sighed when I motioned for them to continue on "girls, I don't think this a good idea."

I shook my head while they all gave each other side-eye glances. "No, please do. I don't want you guys to pretend just because I'm here" The blonde huffed softly as she fell down into one of the armchairs but didn't say anything else.

The redhead, however, looked like a shaken bottle of soda ready to pop and give me everything I needed to know about my sister "okay, so like I was saying, she gets all the good parts just because of everything you guys went through, which was so-"

"-Tragic," Dawnie chimed in with a sad smile.

"but it's like the more she gets to be the center, the more she looks down at us like she's better than we'll ever be. None of us ever get to show our talents or ideas because 'little miss victim' takes over everything" a sigh of relief escapes her as she sits back almost as if she were keeping all that contained.

When I look at the redhead compared to the girl with black hair, I see something she has that the other didn't. Jealousy.

"Wow, that was refreshing," the girls gave nervous laughs. "I'm serious. I've gone through years of 'Sidney's a good girl, 'you need to be easier on Sidney.' So it's nice that other people see what I can see".

"Okay, let's go before we're late," my friend claps her hands as she stands, taking my arm in hers, pulling me towards the door with the other girls flanking us or trailing behind.

"We, as the film students, usually work with the sound and music department, the set designer, and Doug, our teacher, likes us to be more involved with the theater kids. Gus, however, likes to be on the lookout for talents. So even if you're not a theater major, he'll still let you be in the shows".

Wrapping my head around college was hard enough without the possibility of having to join in any plays or having to act. I was pretty content with watching an endless number of movies with Mickey.

Walking into the theater only gave me butterflies after being caught in here, especially after being caught so vulnerable. Those moments were made for Sue and me. That's where I wanted them to stay, not spilling out in front of strangers.

Silently following the girls, sitting in the red theater seats between Cici and the redhead whose name I still hadn't thought of asking for, but it seemed too weird to ask for considering we'd had an entire conversation.

Glancing around, I quickly smiled, seeing Mickey waving at me from a group of guys who were all laughing with each other. Randy was gesturing with his hands wildly, clearly really into what he was telling them.

Giving Mickey a small wave back, I looked around the room and took in everything I could. Front doors were the primary way in, two other exits I could see, and no doubt a way out through the back of the stage.

Hearing a familiar voice, my head turned to see my sister talking to some of her classmates, but it was more like a student to another student kind of talk than an animated chat with friends.

From what I was told, Sidney stuck with the small group I had seen and mostly talked to Hallie or her dopey-looking boyfriend.

Sidney cleared her throat as she walked to the center stage, oblivious to me sitting with the sorority girls in front of her. My dear sister stood alone but confident "We always start with someone singing just to get ourselves focused and energetic," one of the sorority girls whispered in my ear.

The piano at the side of the stage began a tune, it was the same piano I had been caught playing, but the song was a lot different from mine. I watched as Sidney let out a breath before opening her mouth to sing the first lyrics to the music.

I could admit that she had a good voice, but she was trying too hard, and I was saying that without prejudice. It had always been like that with Sidney. She was always trying hard to be the perfect version of herself.

That's what made Sidney a little copy of our mother.

"Show off," The redhead girl hissed next to me as I let out a small puff of laughter, but my eyes were still trained on my twin. She gave off the aesthetic that she commanded the stage, but I could see the fear and nerves in her eyes.

She was a good actress, but not good enough to fool me.

My head slowly began to nod along to the words of Whitney Houston's 'Emotional Baby' as a few of the theater kids joined in with their instruments to help with the energetic bop of the song.

"I've been hearing your heartbeat inside of me / I keep your photograph beside my bed / Livin' in a world of fantasies / I can't get you out of my head / I've been waiting for the phone to ring all night / Why you wanna make me feel so good / I got a love of my own baby / I shouldn't get so hung up on you. Oh, I remember the way that we touch / I wish I didn't like it so much."

My eyes flittered around the room, seeing the other students whispering among themselves while watching Sidney sing. I glanced at Mickey, who just grinned at me as if seeing the chaotic energy in my eyes.

Just as my twin began to take in a deep breath of air, I smirked as I quickly beat her to the punch. "Oh, I get so emotional baby / Every time I think of you / I get so emotional baby / Ain't it shocking what love can do."

Seeing the look of shock on her face when she not only realizes that I'm here, but I've cut into her song, I get up with a sly smirk as I hear the girls around me giggling and gossiping as I slowly stand up from my seat.

Sauntering to the stage, I continued to sing as a few whistles rang out, "Ain't it shocking what love can do/Ain't it shocking what love can do" from my position, I could hear the sorority girls cheering me on along with what sounded like Mickey and some of the film guys.

“Ahh, that's my bestfriend!”

"Woo! Go, Kat!".

Sidney glared at me before turning away to storm off the stage. Grabbing her arm from behind, I twirled her around and sang the lyrics to her face; I saw her eyes wander from the other students then back to me.

Clenching her jaw, her eyes steeled as she began to sing in unison with me as the two of us circled around each other. My expression was one of playfulness and mocking, whereas Sidney's was of anger and bitterness.

Being on stage and singing with Sidney did remind me of the old days, especially as we moved in sync and danced around each other. Most of our youth was Sidney being competitive with me for no reason and me just going along with it.

My mother always stressed that a bit of twin competition wouldn't hurt us, oh how wrong she was.

"I get so emotional baby /Every time I think of you / I get so emotional baby / Ain't it shocking what love can do" For a beat while singing, it did occur to me how close the lyrics were to our situation.

As much as I really disliked my sister for leaving me and hating me for such trivial reasons, I did miss her. As a sibling, I was forced to love her because of my brain's chemistry but being her twin, I was forced to feel that we made up two halves of a whole.

It was always supposed to be her and me, and in constantly having to be a part of a pair, I now felt lonely when I had to be by myself. I had Casey, and then she was gone; Billy and Stu were supposed to be my forever, and that didn't happen.

So when Sidney told me she'd always be there for me, I stupidly believed her and trusted that she wouldn't lie to me because what big sister (and twin) would leave behind someone who was coerced to need them in the first place.

Repeating the chorus one last time as my smile faded away, Sidney and I stood in front of each other, breathing heavily, waiting for the other to make the first move. However, through the cheering and clapping of our classmates, a louder clap knocked us both out of our stares.

"Girls, that was wonderful" it was the man that had caught me playing the piano before.

"Thank you, Gus," Sidney said, swallowing hard as the man's eyes turned to me expectantly and brightening in recognition. "This is Kat," she cleared her throat awkwardly as she reluctantly introduced me, "my sister."

"If only we were doing a play of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake" The older man smiled widely. "I could see you being the Odette to your sister's, Odile. Light vs. Dark," his face lit with excitement. "The white swan vs. the black swan."

I let a short burst of laughter. This man had summoned up our entire relationship without even realizing it. I was the black swan to my sister's pure white, the evil duplicate – in our case, the bad twin to her good.

"We're currently working on Agamemnon specifically within the Oresteia trilogy. Would you perhaps be interested in auditioning?" hearing a small gasp from Gus' question, I noticed Sidney frowning at his words.

"Uh, no," Gus nods unhappily with my answer, but I wasn't looking to perform other than embarrassing my sister. I just wanted to learn as much as I could about my chosen major and go back to the world.

Which granted was a lot harder than it seemed.

Levelling my sister with a mocking gaze, I left one last sneering remark, "I think I'll leave the theatrics and drama to my sister. She truly is good at what she does". 

Chapter Text

After everything that happened yesterday in Theatre class, I was ready to just chill out in my dorm room, but Mickey reminded me that our paper for Film Theory needed to be written by tomorrow.

That and the sight of Willow and Tara kissing on her bed had me awkwardly scrambling to give them privacy. So embarrassing, the only time I had really seen my roommate since I arrived, and she's getting it on with her girlfriend.

Mickey had fun teasing me for a good 10 minutes when he realized why I looked so red in the face.

Considering the only person I had been with was Stu, sex wasn't something I was well versed in, and lesbian sex was something even more foreign to me.

Not that I minded she was lesbian, I'm open-minded about same-sex love and all that stuff. It was just a shock to see it in person.

"Stop laughing," I said with a slight giggle of my own as I gently pushed Mickey away from me. "How was I supposed to know they were in there doing that?".

Mickey sniggered as he threw an around my shoulders and guided me through the campus. "Well, it is your roommate and her girlfriend. Where else did you expect them to be?".

Rolling my eyes, I pinched his side. "She's my roommate who's never there" at Mickey's silent questioning look, I continued, "she practically lives in her girlfriend's dorm. It's like having a dorm room to myself".

Opening the door to the library, I hear him mutter the words 'lucky' behind me as I smile. I'll admit it is nice to have the room mostly to myself.

I worried for a while that I would hate my roommate, but considering I'm practically my own roommate, I wonder if that worry still applies.

Seeing two computers free, we quickly made our way over. Setting my back down, I notice Sidney and Hallie sitting a few tables over, working on their own computers.

Ducking behind the screen, I sighed, not wanting to be seen by Sidney right now. My usually unconfrontational sister could suddenly do a 180 and begin arguing with me in the middle of the school library.

Mickey just glances at me knowingly before turning the computer in front of me on as I watched my sister alternate between working on something and giggling with her friend.

Letting the brunet lean into me slightly while he quickly typed on the keyboard, I was suddenly struck with the smell of his cologne, and although it was different than Billy and Stu's was, it still gave me nostalgia.

"You okay?" He whispered to me, not having lent back in his chair. I felt his breath on my cheek as I nodded with a small smile. He quickly reciprocated before showing me how to use the campus computer.

We had agreed to both write our own theories on the paper's conclusion but ultimately merge our work together. We both have similar tastes and mindsets regarding horror, so we eventually realized that we had the same thoughts and findings.

Typing it up was my job, anything to keep my mind from running on worries or thoughts about things that have happened or may never actually happen.

In other terms, we were keeping me busy.

I think throughout the time spent together, Mickey had seen me drift off into my own head. He's had to pull me out of some of my darker thoughts already, but he's never once judged me.

My attention span, however, was the real killer here. I think I spent equal time writing as I did poking and pinching Mickey's sides. Apparently, he's very ticklish on the ribs.

"Kat, stop," he chuckled, squirming away from my fingers as I once again moved them across his side. I could see him smiling from the corner of my eye as he tried to stop me.

Giving him a smirk, I complied and continued typing up our essay until I felt something tickle my side. Jumping with a gasp, I squinted at the brunet who pretended not to see my glare as he faced his own computer screen.

"Revenge," Mickey whispered as he still didn't even glance in my direction, but the smirk on his lips gave away his amusement.

"Don't think that I won't go all out tickle fight with you in the library, Mickey, because I will," I jokingly threatened, only gaining a broad smile in return.

My fingers clicked against the keyboard, which was pretty much the whole ambiance of the room along with low talking and whispers, "You started it" I could almost hear the pout coming from Mickey.

"I can't help it. I struggle to keep my attention on one thing at a time," I admitted as his eyes met mine. I gave him puppy eyes as I nodded with a pout of my own.

His lips turned up as he jokingly rolled his eyes at me dramatically.

"Okay, so let's do something fun" He grins as he leans over me again and pulls up the instant messenger and types something in the recipient box, and types a quick message.

Seeing his screen change, I frowned when the message appeared on his screen when he clicked a couple of buttons "anonymous instant messenger," he said before nodding in my sister's direction.

Slyly smiling, I typed out a message of my own and waited for Sidney to see it. It was probably cruel to message my sister, who had been through the same trauma as I had been, 'I'm behind you', but the fear on her face was worth it.

Turning her head with a gasp only to see nothing behind her, my sister put her hand on her chest as she tried to control her breathing. Her eyes squinted as she frowned in anger.

My sister gazed over her computer and around the room as Mickey and I ducked down in our chairs with matching grins, Mickey's eyes filled with amusement as I shushed him when Sidney glanced our way.

This time Mickey pulled up another message box and typed out the message 'We all go a little mad sometimes' before hitting the send button. "Psycho a classic movie," he said, almost giggling to me.

My sister quickly shot up out of her chair with a louder gasp, her eyes roaming around the room before she got hissed at by the old librarian who glared at my twin as she quickly dished out a string of apologies.

Sidney's eyes meet mine, and she quickly says something to Hallie, who glances over in our direction. I could see her eyes move between Mickey and me with annoyance as my twin moved in our direction.

"Great," I sighed as Mickey quickly hit a few buttons, and the screen only showed the work we were doing.

"Act natural," he mumbled as he looked down at the book he had been writing in for our paper, quickly typing the words that I was copying from my notebook, I managed to type more than I had for the whole time we had been there, "I said act natural, we both know that's not natural for you."

Laughing to myself, I suddenly dropped my smile as my sister rounded the table and eyed my screen before leaning down to my ear "are you sending me messages?" she asked as I turned my head to glance at her.

Instead of the fear I was expecting, I saw only anger, which in turn angered me, even if I was the one sending her those messages "I have better things than to message you, Sidney."

My sister's jaw clenched as she gazed around the room. "I can't see anyone else here who would send hateful messages to me. Especially-."

"Of course, not Sid. You're everybody's favorite little victim. Poor baby who can't protect herself," I hissed as I faced my computer, trying my best to ignore the heated stare that bore into eh back of my head.

"I need-" Sidney started as she leaned in close again with a whisper, "I need to know if I'm safe here. After everything that happened...".

Turning in my chair, I gazed at her for a moment. "I think we both know you're not safe anywhere, and you know it " her eyes widened at my words, "what's wrong, you need little sis to take care of you again?".

"Why are you even here?" She hissed in my ear, "I was trying to get away, change my life around. I didn't want that part of my life following me here".

Fury ate at my insides as I felt a hand on my thigh when I turned around so fast that my twin flinched. "Follow you? I spent two years in a fucking mental asylum trying to piece my life back together so I could change my life around while you got to spend your days leisurely forgetting me and erasing everything I had".

Every word that escaped my mouth was hissed at a low, threatening tone, which even I'll admit sounded scarier than me screaming at my sister like a banshee. "Leave," I almost growled as she backed away slowly, silent tears rolling down her cheeks.

I watched as she collected her things and ran off. Hallie stood but made no attempt at following my twin before she glared at me and sat back down at the table.

Mickey said nothing as I furiously typed up our paper. His hand still lay on my thigh, and I didn't remove it in fear of losing myself to my anger. His hand felt like a weight that was helping to keep me grounded.

Time went by silently for the next twenty minutes before a finger poked against my ribs, my lips twitched, and my hands stilled on the keyboard. "I'm sorry I got you into that argument," Mickey's voice whispered.

I said nothing as I checked my work before deciding to flutter my own fingers over his side as he let out a small laugh that had the old librarian eyeing the two of us and a finger put to her lips in a 'shh' motion.

Hallie glanced up from her computer too, the annoyance and anger still displayed on her features, but I paid her no mind as I turned my attention back to the brunet next to me.

"It wasn't your fault," I told him, biting my lip as his eyes lowered to watch. "Like I told you before, we've never really had a great relationship. Everything that happened just made it worse".

How dare she think so mighty of herself to say I followed her here. Even Randy enrolled in Windsor, and I bet she didn't try accusing him of following her, even though I know he would. Like a dog with a bone.

Some things never change.

Soon we were back to annoying each other, with pokes, tickles and now apparently flicking each other. Gasping as he flicked my cheek, I swatted his arm, laughing in shock as he quietly chuckled.

I knew we were gaining more attention, but luckily for us, the librarian had left our area to put some books away. Which was more than what I could say for Hallie. Her eyes have been trained on the two of us for almost a half-hour.

The look of jealousy could only be from mine and Mickey's playfulness. "So I have a question?" I huff, not looking in his direction, knowing that I would probably embarrass myself with my query.

Mickey hummed as he typed, "So I may have an answer," he said cheekily as I softly laughed.

"Are you and Hallie like a 'thing' or something because I've been getting some decent glares from her, and I'm worried I'll start to melt at this point" I laughed as Mickey gave a short glance over to Hallie, who turned away.

"Uh, no, we're not" He scratches his head with a sheepish look, "Your sister told me that Hallie was into me, but I never pursued it," he admitted with a shrug of his shoulder.

"Why not?" I questioned in genuine interest.

The brunet eyed me for a second before letting out a small chuckle. "I guess she's not my type of girl."

My eyebrows raised as I gave him a teasing look, once again more interested in his answer. "Ohh yeah, and what is your type?" Hallie seemed to be the type of girl that guys would want. She's pretty, maybe a little too peppy, but I thought guys liked that kind of stuff.

A toothy grin was thrown my way. "I guess my type would be a horror fanatic, who I can have fun with and can throw some punches when she needs to."

My face heated up as Mickey flicked my head gently before pinching my thigh. "Now get on with the work, you attention deficit."

Chapter Text

Opening an eye, I let out a small groan and closed it again, trying to get back to sleep, when I suddenly realized my room looked different. Not only that, but the familiar scent of a guy's bedroom hit my nose.

My eyes shot open as I looked around and remembered I was in Mickey's room. After doing our paper and my run-in with my sister last night, Mickey suggested I come back to his dorm, and we watch some movies.

The night mainly consisted of horror movies and cuddling into Mickey, who had quickly realized over our short friendship that I'm a cuddler when I watch movies.

Especially if I was very comfortable with the person, I was watching the film with.

Cici learned that pretty quick, too, only she made me watch rom coms instead of horrors. I've watched Pretty Woman more times now than I ever had before.

Feeling a heavy weight tighten around my waist, I groggily glanced down, seeing an arm strung across my body. Slowly glancing behind me, I saw Mickey being the big spoon as our feet entwined.

"Oh god," I shouted as I jumped up and fell to the floor, waking Mickey as a loud thump echoed around the room.

His face twisted in confusion as he peered down at me on the floor. He held his hand out to try and help me up. "Kat? You okay?". His voice sounded so much huskier in the mornings.

It was sexy.

Oh no, bad, Kat. No thinking thoughts like that right now.

I jumped up with a fake smile and began to back out of the room, excuses flowing from my mouth. I accidentally walked into the door frame in my haste to run away.

Mickey looked more confused as I stuttered, "Kat, wait!" I heard him shout as I threw open the door and rushed down the hall, still hearing Mickey's voice calling my name.

Anxiety ran through my veins as I went over my friendship with Mickey and at what point I started thinking of him in a different light than just a friend who liked the same things I did.

I somehow ended up outside Omega Beta Zeta in my frenzied walking state. Shrugging, I continued up to the big brown doors and knocked, knowing Cici would be able to help me with my nerves and thoughts.

Dawnie opened the door with a wide smile. She was such a morning person it psychically pained me to watch her be so chirpy sometimes, "Morning Kat!".

The girl opened the door wider and let me through. "Cici!" she called over her shoulder as she shut the door behind me, knowing I only really come here for the blonde.

"Kat?" I saw Cici behind me, but her smile dropped seeing my expression. She took one of my hands. "You're shaking," Cici whispered, pulling my arm upstairs and into her room.

"Sit down," Cici told me as I sat at the end of her bed while she watched me worriedly for a moment. We'd talked briefly before about my up and down moments. She wanted to know what to do if I felt depressed or overwhelmed.

"I'm sorry for dropping in," I muttered as I picked at the skin around my fingernails as Cici moved around the room. She gently tapped my hand away and handed me a stuffed bear while I held it tightly.

Cici scoffed at my words as she handed me a water bottle from her mini-fridge. "Hey, we're friends. That's what I'm here for" smiling at the acknowledgment of our friendship, I sighed softly.

"What's up?" Cici asked, hugging a stuffed pig into her chest and looking at me seriously when I took a shaky breath.

"It's Mickey," I whispered, feeling more than stupid right now, but I needed someone to talk to, some 'girl' advice, and Cici was the only person I wanted to talk to about this kind of stuff.

"Altieri?" Cici frowned, tilting her head as I narrowed my eyes at her question.

"No, Mickey Rourke," I state sarcastically, rolling my eyes with a laugh when she blushed. "Yes, Altieri. How many Mickey's do we know?" I snigger, knowing he was the only Mickey that I knew.

The blonde giggled, throwing a pillow at me. "I just wanted to be sure. So what about Mickey?" she prodded gently.

"I had a run-in with my sister yesterday, and it sucked. Like yelling at each other in the library in front of everyone kind of sucky," I explained as Cici just silently nodded along with my words.

"Mickey noticed I wasn't okay, so we went back to his dorm to watch some movies, you know, like always" I reviewed another head nod. Cici knew that if I wasn't with her, I was usually with Mickey.

"Anyway, we had a great night. We laughed and cuddled. I forgot all about my sister, but I woke up in his room and totally freaked out," I added as Cici gasped.

"Did you?" She questioned quietly with a raised eyebrow, and it took me a minute to figure out what she was implying.

I felt fire erupt across my cheeks when I understood her insulation of Mickey and me hooking up. "Oh no, we didn't. We just fell asleep and woke up practically entangled".

The blonde's face softened as she let out a gushing aww noise. "So what's the problem? I think it's adorable" Cici smiled at my distressed face. She knows the only person I had been with was Stu.

"Major problem. The last time I had a boyfriend, he murdered my mom and helped my best friend kill other people. They also stabbed me and terrorized our whole town," I objected, losing my breath as I listed everything Stu and Billy had done.

Cici's grin suddenly dropped, and I felt terrible. "I'm sorry that was heavy," I apologized. I shouldn't dump all my shit on her and not expect her to feel upset for me.

"No, it's just-" She began as she reached forward and held my hand, "-I'm glad you're talking to me. I know you hate talking about it".

"We're friends, right? That's what we do," I repeated her words from earlier back as she laughed with a nod. I threw the small pillow back at her gently as she got a thoughtful look on her face.

"Okay, so don't think of it that way" At my confused face, the pretty blonde explained, "Not every guy is going to be a psycho killer. You and Mickey have so much in common. Don't let it be ruined by ghosts," she pleaded with me.

"You're saying go with the flow," I mused, thinking about it. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to start fresh and not think every guy is out to kill my friends or me.

I mean, how likely was it that it could happen again.

"What happened with you and Sidney?" Cici suddenly questioned, looking interested. "I mean before, not now. Why are you two so rocky? No offense, but you would think a horrific thing like that would bring you together".

"It's always been like that since we were kids, but she blamed me for a lot of stuff from last year," I admitted with a frown remembering how my dad told me that Sidney was having a hard time understanding why Billy had 'chosen' me to live.

"But you're twin sisters," Cici blurted out, exasperated as I looked over at her. Cici is an only child, so I didn't expect her to understand what having a toxic sibling relationship was like.

She also came from a very loving family. Her mother and father were both rich people but not snobby like you would expect them to be. Cici wanted for nothing, but that didn't change her.

"By blood and genetics, we are, but we've never been that close," I explained as Cici nodded slowly, trying to understand our dynamic. How could I tell her that my estranged older brother was the only thing that really kept me going in my childhood?

That having a sibling like Sidney was like being related to your worst enemy. That your mother so clearly preferred one child over her others and showed it daily.

Glancing over to Cici's heart-shaped clock in her overly pink room, I realized we had been talking for hours. "Wow, it's nearly time for lunch" tapping my empty stomach, I stood from her bed, feeling better than before.

Drinking the last of my water and putting the stuffed animal away, I noticed Cici smiling at me. "What?" I questioned as she laughed a little, pointing to my severely creased outfit.

"You may want to go change first especially seeing as you'll probably see Mickey," Cici teased as my eyes widened as I internally panicked. Would I make things weird now that I figured my own feelings out?

How did I ever act so cool in high school when I was practically in love with Stu and didn't want him to know.

My face dropped, knowing I couldn't avoid Mickey forever. "Woah, nope. No panicking" Cici hurried over to me and grabbed both of my arms as she firmly looked at me.

"Breathe. Remember to go with the flow, and if you decide you really do like him, it's no big deal. He's a college boy, not a serial killer," Cici reminded me as I took a few deep breaths.

"Great. Good job" The blonde patted me on the shoulder as she put her purse together. "We should meet up before class so you can let me know how it went."

My eyes widened at her words. "You're not coming with me?" I spluttered, feeling nervous all over again. Seriously I think I've lost all the cool points I had obtained throughout high school.

"Nope, I have a lunch date with Ted," Cici explained with a slight blush as I began to walk out of her room, laughing, knowing exactly what this 'lunch date' was.

Giving my best friend a raised eyebrow, I grinned as she started to fluster. "Really? Is that what they're calling it these days".

Chapter Text

Glancing in the mirror, I smiled, feeling happier about my appearance now that I had showered, brushed my teeth, and put on another outfit.

My little talk with Cici had done me good because she was right. Why was I worrying about this? Not every person I meet is going to be a psycho killer.

The odds of the same thing happening are slim, especially since Billy and Stu are gone now.

I bit my lip as my worry continued to climb. No matter how much I trusted Mickey, my old anxieties would never truly leave me.

Sitting on the edge of my bed, I sigh before picking up the phone and dialing a number I'd forced myself to memorize. After a few rings, a cheerful voice answered, "Hi Sue!" I greeted with a wide smile.

"Oh Kat, how are you, sweetheart" tears sprung into my eyes just from hearing her voice. Sue had been my safe place for so long that hearing her was enough to make me feel better.

"I'm uh, I'm okay," I say with a short stutter, but I knew Sue would hear straight through my lies.

"Let's try that again with the lying. Hi Kat, how are you doing?" Her sarcasm was much needed, I think between her, Cici, and Mickey, I would be set for life.

Those three are my people.

"I'm having some trouble. Boy trouble. Also, Sidney trouble, but that's nothing new to me" hopefully, we wouldn't have to talk about my sister. That's not what I need advice on.

A joking 'ooooh' came through the phone as my face heated up. "Boy trouble, huh? Tell me all about him, and I'll see if he's good enough for my girl".

My stomach tightened at her words. My girl, that's how she thought of me. "Kat? Are you still there?".

Sniffing, I wiped a stray tear. "Yeah, I'm here. His name is Mickey, he's a film student like me" I gushed to her all the details I already knew about Mickey and how we're together all the time.

"Sounds like he's sweet on you for sure. So what's the problem?" Sue asked, sounding confused.

"I just don't want history to repeat itself, Sue, and what if I'm not ready for another boyfriend. What if-" a sigh cut me off from my rambling. I could already feel myself spiraling.

"You can't live your life on what if's, my darling. The way you talk about that boy is enough for me to say I think you're ready, and if I understand the situation, I think he might like you too-" my cheeks go pink just at those words.

"-just go spend some time with him, let it be what it will be. If you want to be with him, then do it, Kiddo, it's that simple. If you don't, then you'll have a good friend out of it".

Sue made it all seem so simple, and it probably was. My past trauma forced me to believe I was always in danger. Blow situations out of proportion is what I do now.

Everyone's a suspect, not innocent until proven guilty.

"Okay. Yeah, okay, I can do that," I muttered, standing up with the phone. "Thanks, Sue. I owe you one."

"No, you don't. You'll never owe me anything. I'm always here for you. Hopefully, I'll see you soon, and you can bring your new boyfriend to come meet me" I grinned at Sue's words as we both said our goodbyes.

Placing the phone back down, I grabbed my bag and slipped my boots on. Now I was feeling a lot better. The conversation with Cici was good, but nothing would beat how Sue made me feel - she was the closest thing I'd get to a mother.

Slipping out of the dorm, the closer I got to the dining hall, the more anxious I became. "You're nervous," I whispered to myself, unable to walk through the doors to the hall. "Why are you so nervous again."

Glancing through the windows, I saw the packed room, and my stomach burst into tiny little butterflies at the thought of seeing Mickey. "Well, that's new," I mumbled aloud.

"What's new?"

Sighing heavily, I just shrugged at the question "Nothing," I said dismissively before turning back to the hall, trying to see if I could spot that familiar face that turned my stomach to fluttering insects.

Wait...

My eyes suddenly widened when I realized what had just happened and who was behind me. "Mickey!" I exclaimed when I glanced back at Mickey, who was smirking at me.

"So.." he started as I nervously laughed. This was awkward. Why was it so awkward? Maybe because the last time I saw him, I literally ran out of his dorm room and left him yelling after me.

"I'm sorry-" we both said in unison like a bad cliche rom-com, kind of like the ones Cici forces me to watch as she sobs into my shoulder.

"Ugh, cliché" I grimace in disgust as Mickey and I both smiled at each other. Frowning for a moment, I realized that he had apologized too. "Wait, why are you sorry?".

He rubbed the back of his neck, looking embarrassed. "Well, I obviously did something wrong to make you run off."

Giving him a sad smile, I shook my head. "No, it's not you. It was me-" I told him as he looked at me with raised eyebrows "-and I just realized that's the worst line ever."

I smiled uneasily as I began to wring my hands again, remembering my talk with Cici and Sue. "I'm just going through something right now, and waking up in your room was a bit disorientating."

Mickey gave a small chuckle as I embarrassingly stumbled over my words. "Listen, I get it, okay, just don't run next time" he put his hand on my arm when I nodded, pushing myself into his chest.

"Lunch?" I gave him puppy eyes; Mickey smiled widely as he nodded and held his arm out for me to walk in front of him.

Turning, I looked through the doors to our usual spot and groaned, seeing our friends already sitting and talking to each other. I really didn't want to deal with my sister's bitching right now.

"What's up?" Following my gaze, Mickey looked through the glance when I made no move to enter the dining hall. "Ah, I see. Come on," he grabbed my hand, linking our fingers, and pulled me back outside.

Trying to force down a blush, I realized that figuring out my feelings might come to bite me in the ass if Mickey saw me blushing every time he came near me now.

"Where are we going?" I asked but made no move to stop him from pulling me towards his car.

Mickey unlocked the car and got in. I followed in suit, still having no idea what was going on but trusting him to not lead me astray. "You obviously don't want to deal with Sid, and I want to spend some time with you."

Geez, even his words were starting to affect me now.

Glancing out the window as Mickey drove, I grinned when we pulled into a familiar food chain "McDonald's?" I giggled when he opened my door for me.

Mickey through his arm over my shoulder as we walked inside, the smell of fast food and salt was in the air, and I loved it.

Pulling me over to a table in the corner, I smiled as I sat across from him, and it almost reminded me of the last time I saw Roman, except I was going to leave here sad.

"Yeah, romantic, right?" the sly wink sent me into laughter as he leaned forward. "Okay, tell me what you want. It's on me. You can't say I don't know how to treat a lady".

Giving him my usual order, I watched him walk away, purposely shaking his hips when he saw me watching. I don't think I had stopped smiling once since meeting him.

Sue was right; whether or not we get into a relationship, I hoped to still have this with Mickey. Now I know how to smile again; I didn't want to lose it.

A tray was placed on the table as the smell of the food drifted up my nose. "Wow, is that smile for me or the food" Mickey jokes as he drops into the booth with me.

"Obviously, just for the food," I say, making him snort as he passes my order. I jumped, feeling his hands tickling my ribs. "Oh no, don't start that again, mister!".

Stealing one of my fries, he shoved it in his mouth before putting his hands up in the air in a surrender motion.

Giving him a jokingly glare after he stole another fry, I unwrapped my straw and blew the wrapper into his face. He stopped eating in surprise before grabbing his straw with a look of deviance.

"No!" I yelled with laughter, using the tray as a shield when he blew through the straw.

"Such a child," He muttered jokingly as we both started to eat our food properly. I noticed him giving me a few looks every now and then before smiling softly to himself.

Finishing up our food, Mickey gives a small sigh. "Okay, I'm gonna be honest here. I like you a lot-." I dropped the fry I was about to eat as he admitted his feelings.

"-It's okay if you're not ready for that. I just want you to know I won't hurt you," He continued as I felt my stomach flutter like earlier, and here I thought I'd be the one to admit liking him.

Feeling him brush my hair from my face and giving me probably the only serious look I'd ever seen on him, I realized he was telling the truth. "Wow" I was in too much shock to say to him that I actually felt the same way.

Mickey's hand rested on my chin, lifting my head to look at him. "How about we start slow? We can do this again as a real date and see where it takes us?" He said as he played with a strand of my hair.

Smirking at him, I lean in closer. "So you're telling me this wasn't a real date? I thought you knew how to treat a lady" I flirted as his eyes widened at my tone.

A teasing smile appeared on his lips as he leaned in close enough that I could feel his nose graze mine. "Oh baby, if we were on a real date, you'd know it."

"Please don't tell me you're one of those try-hard to impress kind of guys," I laughed as his head tilted with a questioning look. "Just buy me food and take me to a horror film, and I'm yours."

Mickey seems to like my answer when he tickles my sides with a laugh. "Does that mean you've been mine all along? I buy you food all the time, and we've watched more movies than I can count".

I tried to argue with him but couldn't through the tears and laughter. The teenagers at the till were looking over at us and whispering to each other.

"Say you're mine," Mickey taunts while I try my best to grab at his hands, "say it-" he trailed the word off as he pushed me deeper into the booth with a toying grin.

"Okay! Okay, I'm yours" I let a shriek of laughter before Mickey stopped his tickling. He was leaning over me a little as I breathed heavily. He knew that my ribs were my weak spot.

"I'm glad we could agree on that," He mumbled as a small smile turned at the corner of his mouth before he gently placed his lips on mine.

Chapter Text

Walking into Film Theory class with Mickey, I smiled, seeing my blonde friend already sitting in her seat. Her expression made my smile fade. She didn't look like the happy Cici I had come to know.

Her eyes caught mine, and she grinned widely, seeing me walk in with Mickey. She was never going to let me live this down. She was my own little cupid, I guess.

Slipping from under Mickey's arm hung over my shoulders, I sat behind my desk next to Cici. "So, how were things with Ted yesterday?" I questioned as we waited for the class to start.

The blonde sighed heavily and pushed her hair behind her ear before leaning closer. "Not good. I tried to talk to him about how I felt, but we started arguing and he stormed off," she pouted, playing with the sleeves of her shirt.

Glancing at my best friend, I grimaced whenever I think of who she reminds me of. I hadn't thought of Casey in a while, but now, whenever I'm with Cici, I'm instantly reminded of my friend who was brutally killed.

It wasn't just her name that caused me to think about it. They both had more in common than just the same name, they both had the same musical laugh the beautiful smile, and they both made me feel like I was normal.

It was just that instant sister-friend bond you always wished for growing up.

"Well, if he's not willing to step up, just dump his ass," I tell her with a small laugh when I realize she was waiting for me to say something.

"Wow, Kat, is that your outlook on relationships," Mickey said, leaning over his desk and looking at us, causing the whole class to hone in on the conversation.

He may be laughing, but I could see the glint in his eyes. We'd only just started our relationship, and he looked a little worried about my advice for Cici.

Laughing at the look on his face along with Cici, I clicked my fingers, "Don't be a woman that needs a man, be the woman that a man needs!" the females in the class erupted into cheers before Mr. Lecter came into the class.

Getting a wink from Mickey, I sat back in my chair with a smirk, he no longer looked worried, but his toothy grin gave me shivers.

"Today, we're going to discuss your theories on the influences of movies and the effect they have on people," Mr. Lecter announced, clapping his hands, "and I'm looking forward to reading your Plot Hole essay. So pass them forward."

Taking the essay Mickey and I had worked on together out of my bad, I handed it forward to Mr. Lecter as he nodded at a student who was talking about his horror movie theory.

Suddenly everyone burst into conversation, fighting and arguing their opinions.

Joshua and Nina, who sat in the front of the class, were arguing back and forth about how horror movies were or weren't the reason why some people went on crazy killing sprees.

Mr. Lecter sat at the end of his desk, interested in the topic. "So, what you're saying, Joshua, is that killer's influence was based on the movie itself."

Cici let out a huff and sat up straight in her chair. "That is so moral, majority, you can't blame real-life violence on entertainment" sighing to myself, I see Mickey staring at me intently before looking over at Cici.

"Wait a minute, yes you can!" Walt spluttered, shooting up straight in his seat as he faced the blonde, his face lighting up with passion as he began arguing back, "Don't you watch the news?".

Joshua scoffed in agreement. "Yeah, hello? The guy was wearing a Ghost mask, just like in the movie. It's directly responsible" I felt the color drain from my face; they were going to talk about it.

I can't talk about it.

"No, it's not! Movies are not responsible for our actions," Cici shouted from beside me as she let out a massive huff. I shakingly glanced at her, suddenly having a flashback of that night.

"You sick fucks have seen too many movies!" Sid shouted at them, holding me to her side. Billy stabs Stu again, "Sid, don't blame the movies. The movies don't create psychos; movies make psychos more creative".

... "Thank you. I agree with you," blinking, I felt like water was rushing through my ears as I heard Randy speak up, "Let me tell you about reality, Mickey. I lived through this. We lived through this," Randy motioned between himself and me.

I tried to slink lower in my seat when a few eyes turned to me. "Okay? Life is life. It doesn't imitate anything" Glancing over at Randy, I could see how eager he was to get into the conversation.

It was shocking how excited he seemed to be now that we were talking about our near deaths.

Mickey scrutinized him in disbelief. "Oh come on, Randy, with all due respect, the killer obviously patterned himself after two serial killers who were immortalized on film."

My chest felt like it was getting tighter as Mickey argued his case. Clearing my throat, I looked at the clock, wondering how much longer I had to be here.

"Thank you!" Joshua shouted, clapping his hands together obnoxiously, earning a glare from Cici, who no doubt was glaring at him for his childishness. "Plus, if it was a movie, you would have been killed off for being the sidekick to Kat's main character."

Mr. Lecter coughed, and we all glanced at him. I didn't realize that I had stopped breathing for a moment when he asked his question, "So, you're saying that someone is trying to make a real-life sequel?"

I peered down at my desk with my eyes wide. I don't think I could survive a 'sequel' of what happened, not only mentally but also physically.

The only reason I wasn't dead was because Billy and Stu didn't want me to be. I was a part of a plan that I never knew existed. A pawn in a game where I had no idea I was actually the Queen.

"Stab 2? Why would anyone want to do that? Sequels suck!" Randy called out, making the class cry out in protest, "Oh, please. Please! By definition alone, they're inferior films," Randy stated as the class talked over each other.

"It's bullshit generalization. Many sequels have surpassed their original," Mickey told Randy; his face held an intensity that bordered fervency and a little bit of fury from what I could see.

"Oh, yeah?" Randy laughed, looking humored at the intensity Mickey was showing. I didn't know he was so passionate about sequels.

"Name one" I smiled at the deadpan tone Cici had used. Even Mickey seemed shocked to be provoked about the subject.

"Aliens. Far better than the first," Walt called out as a few others mumbled in agreement. I wasn't one of them. Aliens wasn't a film I had much to say about.

"Yeah, well, there's no accounting for taste" Cici laughed, her eyes crinkled as her nose scrunched up. The pit in my stomach gave a small twist like an imaginary knife that cut me whenever I thought of something bad.

Randy nodded with the blonde in agreement. "Thank you. Ridley Scott rules. Name another".

Joshua shook his head quickly. "No. Aliens is a classic, okay? 'Get away from her, you bitch!'" he argues while using hand gestures to act the part.

"I believe the line is 'Stay away from her, you bitch.' It's film class, right?" Randy sasses, looking over to Mr. Lecter, who just nods with a smile while the class lets out a laugh.

"Actually..." I start as the class quietens down to hear me. "Joshua is right. The line is 'Get away from her, you bitch' " Randy visibly frowns at my words as if trying to remember the line correctly.

Joshua claps his hands excitedly as he points to me while laughing at Randy. "See, she knows her shit. Thanks, Kat" He gave me a wide smile, clearly mocking my friend.

I gave my nerdy friend a teasing smile as I tried to push the anxiety away in favor of fake confidence. "And you call yourself a movie geek, Einstein." he just gives me a joking glare as he points at me.

"Another."

"T2," Mickey calls out as Joshua and Walt nod in agreement and point back at him.

"You've got a hard-on for Cameron," Cici jests smiling at Mickey, who looks at her in surprise, "you've got some competition, Kat," She jokes, tapping my foot with hers as 'ooohs' ring out.

I rolled my eyes at her joke as my face got hot. Other than Stu, I hadn't had a boyfriend. Even then, no one knew we had been together. So being teased was totally new to me.

"Wait a second. The first Terminator is historical," Walt interrupts as I internally start to calm down, thankful that we weren't talking about the Woodsboro and college murders anymore.

"Sarah Connor?" Randy says in Arnie's voice, "Yes." he replies to himself, sounding like a woman causing me to smile at him as he pretends to shoot a gun, and the class laughs at his antics.

Joshua clicks his fingers. "All right. All right, okay. House Il: The Second Story" he seemed very pleased with his choice until we all groaned. I laughed as Mickey threw a paper ball in his direction, only to land on Mr. Lecter's desk.

He confirmed that he is my favorite teacher of all time when he laughed along and picked up the scrapped paper.

Biting the inside of my cheek, I felt a little more confident, especially seeing Cici argue her point. "Hey, I got it, by the way. I got it" Everyone looks over in my direction "The Godfather, Part II."

Mickey raises his eyebrows in shock but nods appreciatively as the class all chatter in agreement. "Wow, Kat, and here I thought all you watched were slashers."

I gave him a mocking glare before adding a quick wink watching as his face turned a little red.

Mr. Lecter smiles at me, seeming proud of my answer.

"Very good. That's the Oscar-winning exception," Randy told me in his Godfather voice as the class chuckled.

"All right, that's enough. Back to the sequel idea, do you think a person could try to recreate such a sad event to try and better it?" Mr. Lecter questions; his eyes catch mine, and I see the pity in them.

I squirmed in my seat again, frustrated that the subject would be brought back up. It's not something I thought I'd have to discuss in class.

Fucking Stab movies.

The class started to mutter before Randy piped up, now sounding a bit uncomfortable, "The first time around was enough for me. What do you think, Kat?".

You could practically hear crickets chirping as the whole class looked at me. Noticing my sister at the door, I felt like I couldn't breathe. It was all becoming a little too real again.

"Kat?" Mickey called out as my nails dragged against the wood of my desk. I saw Cici looking at me in concern before touching my hand. Flinching away from her, I swallowed down the fear I was feeling.

"I can't do it again. I won't," I hissed at Randy, who watched me in worry when I jumped up, grabbing my bag and hurridly putting my notebook away.

"I'- I have to go" Mr. Lecter also gave a concerned expression when I all but scurried from behind my desk. Mickey tried reaching out for me, but I moved back from him and my friends as panic rose in my chest.

Hearing them call my name, I quickened my pace, bumping into my sister's shoulder as I pushed my way passed her, and for once, it wasn't to be mean. It was pure panic. "Kat?" she called out to me in confusion.

The world felt like it was spinning around me, like someone had tipped it on its axis. My little bubble was being burst like fate was laughing at my attempt to live a normal life.

Hearing footsteps quickly following my path, I tensed, thinking my sister had followed me. It was not the time for the Prescott twins to hash out the past.

"Kat?" A tentative voice whispered, almost too afraid to jolt me back to reality. I glanced up slowly, seeing Cici and Mickey watching me with the same intensity I was giving them.

Mickey relented first and moved forward to wrap his arms around me with a forlorn expression. Cici wasn't far behind as she pressed herself into my back, trying to get in on the hug.

"I just want to be normal. I thought-" gripping tight onto Mickey, I hiccupped a cry hating myself for not locking my emotion away like I'd been doing for most of my life.

Cici gave a sad laugh as she brushed her head against mine, softly burrowing herself in closer.

"What is this normal you speak of?" Her voice trailed off, she didn't move away as my body shook from the emotions I was trying to hide, but they only grew stronger.

Chapter Text

Today was my first official check-up since leaving Westin Hills. Dr. Myers was personally coming to Windsor for our appointment, and I was curious whether that was a good thing or not.

My punching Gale had been well documented once again, though just as the last time, she hadn't pressed charges. I assume it's because of her trying to get a sneaky interview, and she doesn't want to tarnish her 'reputation.'

That hadn't stopped it from making the news or being published in the local paper. Both my dad and Sue had called after seeing the paperback in Woodboro 'Local teen hits opportunist reporter Gale Weathers'.

Another tally on my aggressive behavior chart ready for my next mental health check, but also a wave of 'fans' who had found a way to write or call me.

My small interview was given while walking across campus to my next class with multiple microphones pushed in my face. It didn't help when I told that reporter my only words were, 'Talk shit and get hit.'

At least Gale could probably get a book out of it. I would love to read another book with a whole chapter dedicated to me and my psychological problems.

The last one even showed a picture of me punching her outside the police station.

Gale's book had been sent to me in Westin Hills, and the chapter about me had been bookmarked and highlighted. The rest had remained untouched as if my chapter was the only part that mattered.

Like the flowers, I had no idea who sent it, only that they weren't happy about my portrayal or so the notes they had scrawled into the pages. I had fun reading them, though - it was refreshing having someone on my side.

But now I had to see the sole woman who could snatch all my hard work back from me in a second. I could be locked back up without a thought if she believed I wasn't doing well enough.

That was a scary thing to have hanging over my head.

Slipping on my doc martens, I picked up my bag and quickly put it over my shoulder, briefly checking the alarm clock beside my bed for the 3rd time in the last 5 minutes.

Time management was something I was still getting used to. You never really have to worry about the time when your days are planned for you inside the hospital.

Opening my door, I frowned, seeing a bundle of brightly colored flowers lying on the ground. They were identical to the ones I was getting back in Westin Hills.

Picking the bouquet up, I dropped my bag on the bed as I looked the flowers over to see if there was a message or any identifying notes. It would be nice to finally figure out who was sending me flowers.

With a sharp gasp, my heart clenches as my eyes lock on to a silver ring with a purple gemstone tied within the twine wrapped around the bouquet.

It was a ring I lost at Stu's party two years ago.

Untieing the knot, I let the ring drop into the palm of my hand as I slowly sit on the bed, gazing at it.

The ring had been a Christmas gift from Billy and Stu, well mostly Stu, who had picked it out and purchased it. Apparently, the purple gemstone was for healing and protects you from negative energy, or so the woman at the store told them.

I held my stomach as a small sob escaped me. Who had found my ring, and how had they delivered it to my dorm? Did they even know the meaning of the jewelry and how much it meant to me?

Slipping the ring back onto my finger, it felt as if I had never lost it, but as much as I would love to pretend that I wasn't curious and scared about who had found it, I was.

Had Sidney been keeping it all this time and was now taking back her revenge in scaring me?

Billy and Stu were both dead. Other than them, my sister was the only person I could think of who knew both where I was and knew about the ring.

Although deep down, I knew it wasn't my sister. The flowers were the biggest clue; she wouldn't even visit me, let alone send me something as nice as flowers.

My mind wandered to my brother for a moment until I could also rule him out. He'd never met any of my friends, and I hadn't seen him in almost 10 years.

I was genuinely perplexed at who it could have been.

Remembering my appointment, I picked my bag back up and continued on the journey I was trying to make before finding the flowers, albeit more dazed than I was earlier.

Weird how a bunch of flowers could do that to a person.

Brushing past all the other students who were happily chatting and going about their days, I couldn't help but feel a little paranoid. It was almost like I could feel eyes on me at that very moment.

Everyone was quickly becoming suspicious to me.

"Kat!" I heard a voice yell as I crossed the campus. Turning slightly, I sighed, seeing my twin waving her hand at me and calling my name loudly.

Ignoring her, I quickened my pace, not expecting her to try and keep up. I knew whatever she wanted wasn't good, so it could wait until after my appointment with the head psychologist of the psychiatric unit I was kept in.

Soon Sidney's voice was drowned out by my entering the main reception area of the campus. I nodded at the receptionist, who motioned me to go to the room with the open door and Dr. Myers waiting by it patiently.

Eyeing the two chairs in the room facing each other, I quickly opted for the one that faced the door, even though I knew that was the one Dr. Myers was sitting in because her bag and notebook were placed next to it.

As she raised an eyebrow at me and sat in the other chair, I gave a broad, obviously fake grin, but she didn't mention it as she greeted me, "It's been a while, Katherine. How are you doing?".

I was just about to spin a tale of how great my life was in college and how well I was doing when the door burst open. My jaw clenched as my sister stood in the doorway with the receptionist stuttering behind her about a private meeting.

Dr. Myers began to ask Sidney who she was when my voice spoke over her with venom. "What the hell are you doing, Sidney?" my eyes had gone hard as I glared at my sister.

"Sidney?" Dr. Myers perked up hearing my twin's name come from my lips. "Your twin sister Sidney?" As I nodded, the doctor got up to shake hands with Sidney introducing herself as my doctor.

Standing up defensively, all I wanted was for my sister to leave. She couldn't be here for this. She didn't care two years ago, so she shouldn't get to know.

"I was, uh, just calling Kat to talk to her, and she scurried off," My sister politely laughed, sounding all innocent and caring. "I'll admit I followed her to talk about an incident we had a few days ago."

My chest heaved as I felt enraged. "You need to leave now," was all I could say without sounding like I wanted to kill my sister in front of the looney doc.

"Actually, I was thinking that now Sidney's here, it might be good to have a session together" My eyes widened at the doc's words, and my sister smiled brightly. "Maybe we could air out some of your problems?"

Sidney blinked as if taken aback. "Problems? I wasn't aware we had any problems? At least none needed to be dealt with by a professional" my hands clenched into fists.

I walked around the back of the chair and gripped it tightly. "I only have one problem, doc; she was born 2 minutes before me and has been the bane of my existence since!"

My sister gasped and crossed her arms with an annoyed expression as if I was the one who was in the wrong here. "Uh, I'm standing right here." she gave a small wave.

"Yeah? Well, I wish you weren't," I threw back at her as the doc stood between us, observing my hands on the chair as if worried I would throw it at my sister at any moment.

That honestly wasn't a terrible idea.

Chapter Text

After Sidney agreed to stay, Dr. Myers pulled another chair into the room and gestured for my sister to sit opposite me before taking the new chair for herself.

She calmly sits and watches me cautiously, knowing this could all go downhill quickly.

"Katherine, when you're ready, we'll start" I barely made any motions to suggest that I heard her, but she knew what I was like and made small talk with Sidney before I silently moved to take my seat.

Dr. Myers gives me a nod before explaining to Sidney how these sessions usually work and what kinds of things to expect. My sister sat patiently and listened, but I knew the doc was watching for my answers and movements more than hers.

This felt like a test, one that I hadn't been prepared or do the homework for.

After a few questions that went unanswered by me, I noticed Sidney had started to get fidgety. I wondered if that was from the clinical nature of the questions or my deadly gaze that hadn't stopped burning into her.

Listening to my twin list the things we usually disagreed on, and what went on during that night two years ago, I felt like that small girl who was being tattled on to her mother.

"Katherine, is that right?" I blinked at the question having no idea what the two had been discussing. I glanced at the clock as I watched the minute hand tick over. "Sidney mentioned that you have always been an outsider to your family ever since you were young."

Of course, I was an outsider; she and my mother made me one.

I just shrugged as the doc made new notes, and a pit of darkness opened in my stomach. My college life could be over in the next half hour, and I would be dragged back to Westin Hill kicking and screaming.

Tuning back into the conversation, I caught the end of Sidney's exchange "... that's why I didn't come. It was really hard for me to see her like that. After everything that happened that night and then seeing her..."

"Shut up," I hissed through my teeth as my sister stopped short. "It's one thing for you to nose your way in here but another for you to sit there and lie!" Sidney stared at me in shock and opened her mouth to argue.

Standing up quickly, the chair behind me fell to the floor with a loud thud. "It was hard for you?" I questioned in a mocking baby voice. "Aww, poor baby, imagine being there," I seethed as Sidney stood from her seat when I began to get fired up.

"Imagine hearing nothing but screaming and wailing from the other patients. Not being able to leave. To see your family. Knowing that your best friends killed people and having people blame you for it!" I screamed as the doc stepped over to me with her hands out.

"Sidney, I think you should go," Dr. Myers warned, knowing my sister was the one my anger had always been targeted towards, but she'd never seen us in the same room.

"No! You don't get to do that and then leave!" I yelled, wrenching my arm away from the doc when she tried to grab it as I stalked after my now terrified sister out into the courtyard.

"Katherine! Katherine, come back!" Dr. Myers called from behind me as I continued on with a red haze covering my vision.

Grabbing my twin, I spun her around and pushed her against the bricked wall of the building. This is what she got for trying to one-up me to my own fucking doctor.

"You don't get to leave this time," I say quietly, angry tears filling my eyes. My skin felt itchy, and my breathing quickened as I watched my twin squirm and plead.

Trying to blame me for everything that's happened in our lives to the woman who could lock me up. Was that her intention when she realized who I had been meeting with?

"Kat? Woah, Kat, stop!" I heard from behind me and internally recognized the voice belonged to Mickey, but I was too angry to stop. I felt like crying. I felt... defeated.

The younger version of me had been through this many times with both Sidney and our mother. I never came out the good guy; I always ended up coming from this grounded or belittled.

I had nothing to say to my sister, who tried to duck under my arm, but I slammed it against the wall stopping her from moving. "Stop it!" I screamed as she tried apologizing, but her words meant nothing to me anymore.

"Katherine, you need to let Sidney go and come back inside with me" Dr. Myers's calm give-no-fucks voice came out monotonously compared to the worried voices of the others surrounding us.

I didn't move; I just stayed still, glaring into the eyes that were identical to mine. Both were filled with tears, but so different in contrast.

Feeling a hand on my shoulder, I listened as Mickey softly spoke and tried calming me down from the irreversible things I wanted to do to my sister right now.

Maim and murder were my go-to's now that everything was ruined. It was inevitable that as soon as I was in that room, the doc would call to have me taken back in.

Dropping my hands from the wall in defeat, I let Dr. Myers steer me back to the room we had been in. She quietly walked me towards the chair I had been sitting in before pulling her closer to mine.

For a few moments, everything was silent. I could almost feel her thoughts as she did nothing but observe.

"Do you think you need to come back to Westin Hills?" I was confused by her answer but shook my head anyway. There was no way I would have said yes to that question.

"Neither do I" at my shocked wide-eyed expression, she continued, "You've been here for a while and made friends, a boyfriend as it seems" I gave a small smile but didn't confirm it.

Motioning to the door with her head, she nodded. "You neutrally greeted the overly friendly and nosey receptionist but only seemed angered when your sister showed up."

Playing with the necklace around my neck, I still didn't say a word, but having that here made me feel safer. Dr. Myers' eyes flickered to the pendant silently. "Even reaching a level of extreme anger, you were able to bring yourself back when needed."

"Maybe a few more sessions are needed, but I don't think you need to be taken as an in-patient for getting angry at someone you have a negative relationship with-"

I began to explain that Sidney was the one at fault, but she held her hand up, stopping me "-Yes, you did react strongly, but nothing happened as a result. I can only imagine the things that were going through your mind."

A slight smirk slowly grew on my lips as I lifted my head to gaze at the woman who didn't outwardly seem bothered about my attempt at bodily harm. "Oh, doc, you have no idea." 

Chapter Text

I sat in the room for at least an hour after Dr. Myers left, my eyes locked on the clock as the minute hand ticked by. The room's silence only fueled my dissociation until an exaggerated gasp shattered it.

"Oh, Katherine. I didn't realize you were still in here" My eyes stayed locked onto the clock as the minute hand passed 12, ready to do another minute. "Katherine, are you okay?".

"I'm fine" I couldn't even recognize my own voice right now; it sounded so void of emotion.

Watching the clock, I frowned to myself, thinking about the whole appointment with Dr. Myers. Something was nagging at me in the back of my head, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was.

I shouldn't have been let off what I did, everyone could clearly tell that I was very close to hurting Sidney, and I probably would have had Dr. Myers and Mickey not pull me away at the last minute.

Why was Sidney even allowed in here with us? My files clearly state no group sessions with family, not even my dad, and, most of all, no Sidney.

Dr. Myers left with an unusually soft pat on my head as she gave a rare smile stating she had to meet her son for dinner. I wasn't aware she even had kids; she didn't seem the type.

"Katherine?" I turned to look at the receptionist, who was watching me with a concerned expression as she seemed a little perturbed by my silence. "Do you need me to get anyone, Hon?".

"No-" Picking up my messenger back, I put it over my shoulder "-I'm fine. Just needed a minute" At her eyebrow raised, I rolled my eyes as I mumbled, "Or sixty."

Moving past her, I just waved my hand when she offered to find the 'handsome' gentleman I had arrived with. "No. I'm okay. Just going back to my dorm".

Playing with the ring on my finger, I realized getting back would be less inconspicuous than I thought, as every pair of eyes in a mile's radius stuck to me as soon as I exited the building.

I could feel their gaze and hear their whispers as I crossed my arms over my chest and walked through the rain toward my dorm. By now, I was used to being gossiped about, but it angered me that, once again, I came out as the villain.

Sidney has probably told her preppy little boyfriend and idiot friend of hers that I had attacked her for no reason.

Yes, I admit I wanted to spill her guts to the ground and fantasized about it a lot, but it wasn't unprovoked. Even years after our mother's death, she was finding ways to make me feel like an outsider.

Opening my dorm room door, I blinked, seeing Tara jump in fright. "Hey-," she said almost awkwardly, more awkward than usual. "I- uh, put your flowers in a vase," she motions to the colored flowers sitting in a mason jar beside my bed.

"Thanks," I mumbled, throwing my bag into the corner of my half of the room, kicking off my boots, and sitting on the edge of my bed, wet from the rain. "You should keep them thought. I'll only end up killing them".

Tara is silent as I stop to think about my wrong choice of words. I could tell she already knew about what had happened. It's not unusual for her to be fidgety, but I could practically feel her anxiety from here.

"I wasn't gonna hurt her," I say over my shoulder, which was a lie. Not that Tara knew that, but I didn't want my roommate to be afraid of me, especially since I kinda liked her.

"Did you want to?" Glancing in her direction, I said nothing as we locked eyes. Her face was void of any judgment or fear. It was like she was staring through me and into my soul.

I just blinked, turning back to face the wall as I sat on my bed, listening to her getting off her bed and rummaging around the room. It sounded like she was packing a bag.

"Willow wants me to go stay with her for a few days, she, um, heard from Sidney what you did," I let out a small snort. Of course, she did. "but I won't go if you need someone to talk to or just be around?".

Slowly getting up from my bed, I silently walked over to the mason jar and stroked my finger against one of the colorful flowers. Picking up the bouquet, I handed them to Tara. "Give these to Willow. I'm sure she'll enjoy them more than I do."

Opening the door with my free hand, I motioned for Tara to go as I helped her out with her bag before closing it behind her as she tried to say something that almost sounded like an apology.

Leaning my head against the door, I let out a shaky sigh hearing the soft shuffle of Tara's footsteps leaving the dorm.

Turning my back and sliding to the floor, I placed my head on my knees again, sitting in the welcomed silence. Every now and then, I felt like I was being watched, but when I looked up and out the window, I couldn't see anyone.

I let out a small sob I didn't know I was holding in as I started thinking about how unfair everything was.

Life is truly un-fucking-fair.

Sidney was probably all tucked up in her dorm room right now, ready to put on the show of a lifetime to anyone who would listen, and they'll believe her; people always do.

She's going to be a great actress one day, but I'll always be the crazy one. The one has been blamed, mistreated, or pushed aside for most of her life.

The one who lost her marbles and had to be sectioned in a mental hospital only to leave and try her hand at normalcy, destined to fail due to the other half of her.

I should have gone with Roman, begged him to take me too all those years ago. Wherever he went, I should have followed instead. Now I'm stuck in this cycle of unjust.

Angry tears rolled down my cheeks as I continued to sit with my head against my knees, feeling totally lost and alone, but there was one person I could always count on.

Stumbling over to the phone table, I sat on the floor by the phone decorated with Wiccan stickers and dialed a number I had quickly memorized.

Just hearing Sue's voice was enough to open the floodgates that were the emotions I tried to keep hidden. I don't think she knew what to do when she answered the phone so cheerily, only to get a sobbing teenage girl on the other end.

Honestly, I didn't even understand what I was saying myself at this point; I just let it all out. Telling Sue how Dr. Myers let Sidney in on their session, and I lost control and attacked my sister. Now everyone probably thinks I'm some kind of murderous loose canon.

I broke down completely; this wasn't a situation I had considered when considering all the endings after my appointment. I wasn't being taken back to Westin Hills, but somehow this felt just as bad.

It felt so unfair, and I don't think I could spend the next two years at Windsor especially being so close to my sister again. I wanted to leave, I tried my hand at normality, and it fucking sucked.

"I want to leave. Please come get me," I whimpered down the phone crying as I curled into myself. "You said I could come live with you. I can't do this".

"Kat, shh. Listen to me, Kat," I heard Sue's voice cutting through my meltdown, sounding confident but slightly confused. "Listen to me, sweet girl, go sleep, okay?. Go to bed, and I'll fix this."

I hiccuped as I clutched the phone in my hand. "Okay, I can do that," I whispered, nodding as my lip trembled. "But you'll come get me, right? Tomorrow?.

Sue sighed sadly. "Don't let this setback knock you. I know you're stronger than that. If you wake up tomorrow still feeling the same, then you know I'll come get you, and you can come to stay with me, you know that".

"Promise?" I beg, sounding like a scared little girl, which I guess, in some cases, I was. If Dr. Myers was seeing this right now, she might say something about my 'inner child.'

"I promise you, my sweet girl," Sue swore in her usual no-bullshit tone, which made me smile. "Go to sleep now. I'll talk to you tomorrow. I love you".

"I love you too," I sniff before saying goodbye to her and putting the phone down.

Running my hands through my still-wet hair, I pushed myself up from the floor to do as Sue told me to. I doubted anything would change after a few hours of sleep, but I would still do as she said.

Laying in my bed, not even bothering to change or remove the wet, uncomfortable jeans, I covered myself with my blanket, staring out the window, almost dissociating again.

Frowning at a flash of white in the black darkness, I blink, sitting up, but it's gone when I open my eyes again. Sighing, I lay back against my pillow, thinking deeply, even if Sue did manage to fix this, maybe this life wasn't for me.

Chapter Text

Sue felt like a one-woman army as her shoes tapped against the floors of Westin Hills as she stormed her way toward Dr. Myers's office. Katherine may not have been her biological daughter, but she was still her child, and she felt like a momma bear on a rampage.

She knocks on the door but doesn't wait to be called in as she lets herself in, seeing the psychiatrist sitting at her desk.

"Sue?" The blonde doctor says, seemingly confused by the other woman's barging into her office, seemingly unprovoked, especially with the upset expression on her face. "Can I help you?"

"I just had a phone call with Kat; she's sobbing. She told me everything that happened and wants to drop out of college." It was taking everything Sue had not to shake the psychiatrist.

"Now, I may not be a doctor, but I do know that allowing other people into a patient's session without prior agreement is unethical, Pamela," Sue says, stepping into the office and closing the door behind her.

"It's worse when it's someone that you know is a trigger for Kat. You know she can't stand to be around Sidney much right now," The grey-haired woman explained, rightly pissed off. "Kat is begging for me to collect her in the morning. I told her she was welcome to come live with me."

"No, you're correct, Sue. You're not a doctor, so how I treat a patient is strictly between me and them." Pamela Myers says with a narrowing of her eyes.

"Can't be that hard when you load all your other patients off on other doctors." Sue hisses as Pamela's eyes narrow briefly, but the grey-haired woman continues. "You think I didn't know or would see the amount of sessions or time you spent with Kat?"

"Katherine is a special case; she needed more time and care to come back from her trauma." Dr. Myers says professionally with a straight back, "My sessions with her were completely for her benefit, to help her acclimatize her back to society."

The doctor narrows her eyes again at the older woman. "Though I do find your close relationship with her fascinating. For someone who has terrible mother issues, she certainly let you in quickly."

Sue couldn't say anything as the two were pretty much toe-to-toe now, but she managed to think of something. "I'm going to see her tomorrow, and if she wants to leave Windsor, she can. She'll always have a home with me."

The two women glare at each other for a moment before Sue turns and walks out of the office, thinking of things she could have said or better retorts she could have made.

She stomps into the staff break room, muttering as she angrily makes a coffee. "That woman drives me insane," Sue sighs, shaking her head.

The other nurses she's friends frown in concern as Sue, who is usually calm and composed, sits with them, clearly distressed. The only times they've seen her like this have been when Katerine had escaped or hurt someone.

Seeing their look of anticipation, Sue elaborates, "Pamela." They all quickly nod knowingly. Dr. Myers wasn't exactly everyone's favorite on the staff and frequently rubbed people the wrong way.

"Don't get me started on her." Another nurse says, rolling her eyes, "I had to change my entire shift around because she had made some last-minute plans with her adopted son."

"I know what you mean for someone who only started working here less than two years ago. She certainly makes herself known," A male orderly scoffed as he shook his head.

"How long had it been now?" Sue asks, rubbing her face. She has never met someone who just rubbed her the wrong way and irked her without even trying.

"About a year and ten months?" The staff member in charge of the work rota says, drinking her coffee. "I remember when she first got here, she was so demanding about which floor and patients she wanted to see."

Sue sighed as she calmly drank her coffee. "If I never had to see that woman again, it would be too soon. I'd rather be on my deathbed than have to speak to her again."

Hours later, Sue walks into her house tiredly, kicking off her shoes with a groan from her painful feet. Not once did she think sore feet would be the bane of her existence while learning to be a nurse when she was younger.

She picks up her phone and leaves a quick voicemail to Kat, wanting her to know she's thinking of her. "Hey, Kiddo, it's me. I'll be with you first thing in the morning, and we can sort all this shit out. Until then, give em' hell, okay? Love ya."

Walking into her bedroom, she frowns, seeing her curtains swaying in the wind. For a second, she wonders if she forgot to close the window; she'd forgotten worse things before.

Moving to the window, she closes it before seeing a glint shine on the glass; she turns and screams just in time to see the black figure and white face with a knife high above their head before it is slashed down.

The grey-haired woman gasps in pain as she's stabbed over and over. Her last thoughts were of Kat and how much this would devastate her. Sue tried to fight back, but it was all for nothing, and she was getting tired.

The black figure slashes at the woman before dropping her to the floor, wiping her blood off the blade with his cloak, and leaves the home as if he was never there.

Chapter Text

Life and nature mocked me. Any other time, I could sleep (with the help of strong meds), but today, I awoke to a bird perched on the windowsill of my window that I don't remember opening.

I woke up only hours after falling asleep, still a complete mess. Since then, I've been pacing next to the phone, waiting to hear Sue's voice telling me she was coming for me.

When I'm with her, I'll be able to rest again.

Only no phone call came, and no messages either. I picked up the phone, checking the dial tone to see if it was still there, and that pesky noise greeted me. I placed it back down, sitting on the floor beside it.

I know that sometimes, being a nurse makes Sue busy. She's probably dealing with a patient, and she'll call back when she can. However, she would never ignore or forget about me on purpose.

I'd even taken a shower since falling asleep in my wet clothes yesterday, thinking that maybe time was moving slower because I was so focused on it.

My bags were already packed and sitting on my bed. I knew Sue would try to talk me into staying, and I wasn't usually a quitter, but this—it just wasn't good for me.

Being this close to my sister was dangerous; I'd probably kill her myself.

I was probably being dramatic, but I left what happened two years ago behind me and wanted to start fresh. I wanted to avoid people staring at me like a lab experiment, but that was probably wishful thinking.

Leaving Mickey and even Cici behind was the only negative of dropping out, but it's not like I would never see them again.

Right now, I just want to be with the only person who makes me truly feel better, so I stayed sitting by the phone, willing it to ring.

Back at the facility, Dr. Myers stood at the front of the conference room, her posture as rigid as the tension in the air. The staff, a mix of nurses and other personnel, had gathered quickly at her request, sensing that something was terribly wrong.

The usual hum of chatter was absent; instead, a heavy silence filled the room as everyone waited for Dr. Myers to speak.

She took a deep breath, scanning the faces before her. They had all grown accustomed to the everyday challenges of their work, but nothing like this.

"I have some very unfortunate news to share," Dr. Myers began, her voice calm but edged with sorrow. "This morning, Sue was found in her apartment. It appears she was the victim of a robbery gone wrong."

Gasps rippled through the room, and shocked expressions met her words. Dr. Myers paused, giving them a moment to process. Her gaze was steady, projecting an air of authority and control, but her demeanor had a calculated calmness.

"The police are investigating the incident," she said, "but from what they've gathered so far, it seems clear that this was a tragic accident—a robbery that ended in tragedy."

The staff members absorbed her words in stunned silence. Sue's death was a heavy blow to the entire team. She had been well-liked by everyone, and they all appreciated her no-bullshit attitude.

A nurse in the front of the group, her face pale, raised her hand tentatively. "Dr. Myers, what about Kat? Who's going to tell her about Sue?"

Dr. Myers's expression tightened almost imperceptibly at the mention of Kat. She knew how close Kat and Sue had been, and the potential fallout of the news was not something she could ignore.

The news would undoubtedly be devastating to the troubled girl.

"No one is to tell Kat," Dr. Myers said, her voice firm, brooking no argument. "Kat's mental state is still fragile. The shock of this could trigger a severe relapse, and we cannot afford to take that risk. The last thing she needs is more trauma."

The room fell into a stunned silence. The nurses exchanged uneasy glances, their concern for Kat evident, but they all respected Dr. Myers. As the lead psychiatrist, her decisions carried weight, and her authority was rarely questioned.

Yet, a lingering discomfort was under the surface—an unspoken understanding that this wasn't right.

Sensing the unease, Dr. Myers straightened her posture and slightly softened her tone. "I know this is difficult for all of us. Sue was not just a colleague but a friend. But we have to focus on our work and the well-being of our patients. We will handle this together, as a team."

With that, she ended the meeting, leaving the staff to disperse, still murmuring among themselves. As they left, Dr. Myers remained behind, her expression unreadable.

Chapter Text

Dully moving my lunch around my plate, I barely listened as Randy excitedly chatted about something. I could hear the static noise of the other students around us. My sister and Hallie were sat on the table next to us as Sidney's boy toy walked over, sitting close, and wrapped an arm around her neck.

I had waited for a call that hadn't come, and when I called up the facility, the staff had been cagey before patching me through to Dr Myers, who cared less about getting me in touch with Sue and more about wanting to talk about me.

My mood was low, and my threshold for snapping at people was even lower.

As I raise my eyes to tell Randy to be quiet, I hear muffled yells and disgruntled shouts before a heavy-breathing Mickey all but tackles the table as he sits next to me, gently placing his camera down.

I frown, but my heart flutters as he squishes my face and smacks a kiss to my cheek that somewhat lifts my mood. "Hey baby," He says as I hear a scoff from the dark-skinned girl on the next table.

"Hi," I mumble as I continue to push my food around my plate. "What's got you acting like a Chihuahua on drugs?" I ask as I take a sip of my water and finally glance at him.

"I got them all," Mickey says with a grin. "I had to do a few favors and plead with Jamie at the movie store, but I got us all seven Freddy movies!" He says, taking the stack of movies from his bag.

Blinking, I give him a small huff of laughter, seeing how happy this made him since we had been talking about this for a while, that we get all the movies and have a marathon.

"I picked up all your favorites, too; no girl of mine is gonna sit through a movie marathon without her Dr Pepper and snacks," Mickey says sarcastically but with a knowing smirk on his face.

Another scoff comes from Hallie as she turns to face us, well, more like to face Mickey, and she gives him a look. "So I guess the rest of us aren't invited to this little movie thing, huh?"

Mickey scratches the back of his head as he glances at Hallie. "ahh... yeah.. this is kind of our thing. So... no?" He says slowly as she crosses her arms and bites on her cheek.

"I'm sure Kat doesn't mind us joining in, right... Kat?" Hallie says sharply, trying to put me on the spot after sharing a look with my sister. It was clear she was jealous, but I didn't care.

"I'd rather go to a gyno appointment with Freddy Kruger and his glove as my doctor," I say dryly as both Mickey and Randy laugh, the latter spraying his soda at the girls by accident as they scream.

Quickly picking up his bag and camera, Mickey wraps his hand around my wrist, pulling me with him as he runs towards my dorm, as the screaming in the cafeteria doesn't stop.

We both stood in the doorway of my room after I unlocked it as I realized something. "How did you know which was my dorm?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow at him.

He laughs and rubs the back of his neck as he flushes pink and stutters a little. "Uh... I asked Randy a while ago. Is that okay?" I just nodded slowly as he grinned. "So I was thinking you might wanna do that movie marathon now; it might cheer you up."

"Cheer me up?" I ask, gazing at him and wondering how he knew that I needed cheering up in the first place.

"Come on, Kat. I know you by now. I can see it written all over your face when you're upset," Mickey says, rubbing my arms and moving them to wrap around his neck as he holds my hips. "so what's going on?"

I just sigh, laying my head on his chest. "Just a lot of stuff is going on right now, I can't-... I don't feel in control, and I hate that. After everything that's happened, I hate it when I feel like things are slipping through my fingers.

"Nothing has ever been simple in my life, but there was a time when things felt okay, and I had this-... friend. He cared for me, protected me, and I felt like the safest little girl in the world," I whisper, playing with my necklace from Roman.

"What happened?" Mickey questions quietly as he holds me, swaying side to side softly as if he doesn't even realize he's doing it.

"He left," I answer, my throat feeling dry. "He went to do some work, and I never saw him again. I probably wouldn't even be able to pick him out in a crowd anymore. I just wish-... I'd give anything to have him back."

The blond nods as he rubs my back, sighing softly, "Yeah, well, you have me now too. I'm here, and I'll protect you to the very end," He says, his voice gravelly as he comforts me.

I smile, not even bothering to think of the undertones that sentence had as I think about my brother. "I just wish I knew where he was. That he's alive, like even some little sign that he's out there and he's okay."

A knock on my dorm door breaks through our soft, comforting silence as I frown, glancing at the offending wood. I wasn't expecting anyone today. Sidney and Hallie wouldn't dare turn up, and Cici was out doing sorority stuff today.

Dropping my grip on Mickey, I walk over and open the door; my stomach tightens as I see Dr Myers on the other side. "What the hell are you doing here?" I ask, narrowing my eyes at her.

"Katherine." She smiles at me and glances into the room where Mickey is. I was still upset at her for our last session, and I'm more annoyed now that she's dropping in like this without okaying it with me or Sue. "Can we talk? Privately."

"No, whatever you have to say can be said in front of Mickey," I say to her, leaving the door open and walking into my room, standing by my boyfriend as Dr Myers follows, her eyes roaming my living space.

"Katherine. Kat. I really think-" Dr. Myers starts, but she frowns, crossing her arms in front of her as she sees my unmoving expression, and her face softens as she looks at me. "Okay, I have some bad news..."

My mind goes fuzzy as static fills my ears as I'm barely listening to her telling me that Sue was gone, that she'd died.

She's dead.

Killed.

An intruder.

Robbery gone wrong.

My scream filled the dorm as my legs buckled, and Mickey caught me as I dragged him down with me, just screaming and sobbing for Sue. My words don't make sense; nothing makes sense. This is all wrong.

Dr Myers manages to push her way in between Mickey and me as she cradles me like a mother would. Like Sue would. I just sob and cling to the woman as my mind feels like static on a broken tv.

Broken.

Chapter Text

Hours turned into days since I had been told about Sue's death, the painful screams that erupted from me, and the burning bile that arose in my throat as I tried to make sense of everything.

Dr. Myers had made a comment about taking me back to the facility before Mickey swooped in with a protective glare. They'd talked, but I heard nothing but the blood rushing to my ears.

She was gone.

How can someone just be gone?

I knew her home would still be there, her belongings waiting for an owner who would never again be back to use them. I bet it's silent in her home right now, like in anticipation of her arrival.

But she's gone.

Mickey couldn't do anything with me; I wouldn't move, nor would I talk. He was just as lost as I was - I heard him talking with someone, but I didn't know who until the soft face of Cici stepped in, and the two of them gently took me to Omega Beta Zeta.

Apparently, the privacy of the sorority house is what I needed. So there I lay, day in and day out, staring at the same window, my head lying against the pink fluffy pillow as my best friend took care of me.

I felt numb with all the death that I had been surrounded by; you would think this would be easier for me - but it wasn't. This pain was the worst... I can imagine this is how my sister felt when mom died.

This is similar to how I felt when Billy and Stu died.

I hadn't prepared myself for this.

Meeting Sue and trying not to let her in back when I was at Westin Hills feels like a lifetime ago; she had become part of my life, my 'everything.' Losing her had only crossed my mind a few times, but she was able to push those thoughts away with a smile.

She'd always be here; that's what she told me. So, over time, those words became gospel to me. I had Sue; she wasn't going anywhere. I let my guard down—and now she was gone.

I knew if she looking down at me right now, she'd kick my ass for letting myself become a shell for her, that she'd be here right now swatting my butt and making me go outside and touch grass.

So, with that, I sit up.

I rub my face, looking around, feeling guilty for wasting away in Cici's room, letting her take care of my body while I was checked out. She'd curl around me at night, whispering things to me as if speaking to someone in a coma.

Hearing the door open, I glance up at the blonde, who freezes before her lips curl gently. "There you are," She says gently as she closes the door before moving around the room with efficiency as if she were worried I'd 'switch off' again.

I feel something hit me in the face as I sluggishly grab at the bright pink towel she's thrown; she stands in front of me, hands on hips, with a nod, "No offense, you're my best friend, but you stink. I still love you through."

Letting out a small puff of laughter, I let her help me into a shower, and even with the offer of helping to wash, I just smiled slightly, telling her to get out, "We're close, Cic, but we're not that fucking close."

Cici just laughs as she walks to the door. "Tell that to us spooning every night. If I hear a bang, I'm storming back in here. Whether you're naked or not," She threatens lightly, leaving me to my shower.

Slowly but surely, coming back to my consciousness, I used all of Cici's overly sweet-smelling products as I scrubbed the grime and sadness of my skin, though no amount of scrubbing could erase grief.

Wrapping myself in her towel, I shakily go out and see her making the bed, fresh sheets, and everything. Guilt and grief seem to be my current state of being right now.

"I know you probably want to-... rot again. But I'm saying no. I put some clothes over there. It's not you, I know, but it's the only non-girly stuff I have," My best friend says, motioning to the clothes, and I smile softly, taking them with a slight lean into her on the way past.

Soon, I was dressed and semi-fed, with the only thing I could stomach. Poor Dawnie didn't know whether to scream or hug me when she saw us down in the kitchen.

I let her do the latter for a very brief moment.

Sitting on Cici's bed once again, I sigh, looking at my friend who was at her vanity, carefully patting her face as I watch her do her makeup for the day. "So-... I know all this quietness isn't just because I was a vegetable for a few days."

Cici snorts softly at my dark humor as she gives a small sigh. "Me and Ted broke up," she says so quietly that I almost miss it. "We're not together anymore".

Getting up, I nudge her over on her chair and sit with her, feeling more guilty that she was going through a breakup, and I went semi-comatose, leaving her to be my caretaker.

Though if I knew Cici and Ted, they'd be back together before the week is up. Still, I was nothing if not a supportive best friend. "It's okay, babe, he's an idiot," I say gently, knowing we've been here before.

"Maybe it's me? I mean, I do nag him a lot-..." Cici starts as she cuddles into me, and that alone is enough to get back some of the fire I'd lost upon Sue's death.

"Hell no, Ted's a moron. You're an angel who deserves to be treated like a queen." I said, tucking a strand of her blonde hair. "And if Ted doesn't do that, then maybe he's not the one? Hell, even I could be a boyfriend than him-"

Before Cici can reply, her radio that had been playing softly cuts off as the news comes in "-no leads on the death of Susan Taylor, who had been brutally killed in her home. Authorities say-..."

Blood rushed to my ears, and I felt my breathing pick up before Cici grabbed my face. "Kat? KAT!" she yelled, tapping me, and my eyes locked onto hers as she sighed in relief.

I watch the blonde stand and shut off the radio before turning to me. "You know what we need?" She says softly as my eyes roam over her face, and a memory slowly comes to the forefront of my mind. "A heartbreak milkshake..."

Letting out a teary laugh, I stand with a nod. "Only if we can get extra cream," I rasp back her words to her from the last time we did this. That feels like a lifetime ago.

"Duh. Who gets a heartbreak milkshake with no cream?" she repeats softly, as I smile, knowing she's echoing the words I had said back then, as she hugs me. "We'll be okay." I promise"

Holding hands with Cici, I let her guide me through campus; I feel like a baby deer trying to navigate its way. Everything felt different now, like some of the colors of the world had been stolen.

As we were walking, I felt her stop with a gasp, and I followed her gaze to see Ted with some other girl. Shithead had moved on fast, perhaps too fast, or maybe he'd been with this girl longer than Cici had known.

The blonde had clearly had the same train of thought as I had; leaving my side for a moment, I watched as she stormed toward Ted. He and his buddies listened to what she was yelling about as they laughed mockingly.

My heart hurt for her as I watched this car crash happen, seeing her cry and point at the girl who at least had the audacity to look away chastised, but then Ted grabbed Cici's arms and pushed her before grabbing her back and shaking the sobbing blonde.

Before I knew what I was doing, I was moving toward him, grabbing the back of his shirt. I ripped him away from my friend. The grief of losing Sue and anger of seeing him manhandle Cici showed on my face with a deadly glare - Ted quickly stood back as he realized who had stopped him.

My reputation had preceded me from both two years ago and everything I've done since being here at Windsor.

"Stay the fuck away from her, touch her again and I'll take your fucking hands and get them stuffed and then mounted for the shelf in my room as a trophy. Do you understand me?" My tone was quiet, yet it conveyed everything Ted needed to hear as he nodded rapidly.

I gently pull Cici away with me as we walk towards a quiet area of the quad; she stares at me as if I've hung the moon. "You did that for me? No one's ever threatened anyone for me before."

"Maybe someone should. I told you, Cice, you deserve someone who would move mountains-" Before I can finish my sentence, her mouth is on mine, though I don't register, it through the shock.

"Kat?" I hear, and Cici pulls away with a shocked gasp as she covers her mouth, and we both turn to see a confused Mickey watching us dubiously.

"I'm so sorry, I..." Cici apologizes to me and then Mickey as more tears go down her cheeks. "I didn't think- I wouldn't. I'm sorry-" She cries before running.

My boyfriend walks closer to me as he holds his video camera; I feel his hand on my waist, but I assume the darkness in his eyes is just from what just happened. "What the hell was that?"

Glancing in the direction of where Cici had run off, I frown in both confusion and sadness. "I have no idea."

Chapter Text

The walk back to my dorm felt like trudging through quicksand, each step heavier than the last. Cici's tear-streaked face haunted me, her impulsive kiss still burning on my lips, and Mickey's confused stare seared into my memory.

What the hell had just happened?

My best friend had run off sobbing, and I didn't even really understand why. My head throbbed, my heart ached, and the hollow pit in my chest where Sue used to live grew deeper with every breath.

I reached my dorm door, my shoes scuffing against the worn linoleum of the hallway. Something caught my eye, a splash of color against the drab floor.  A bouquet of flowers, their petals stark against the tiles, lay in front of my door. The same ones again, they're starting to feel like a bad omen.

My stomach twisted. I knelt, my fingers brushing the soft blooms, and found a small card tucked between the stems. "Sorry for your loss," it read in neat, impersonal script.

No name. No clue who left them. The gesture felt like a punch, a reminder of the gaping wound Sue's death had carved into me.

I clutched the flowers, their cloying scent filling my nose, and fumbled with my keys as I gently pushed open the door, dropping the bouquet on my desk, where the petals scattered like tears.

Kicking off my shoes, I flick on the TV for some noise, anything to drown out the darkness in my mind, the thoughts long forgotten and feelings I didn't want to acknowledge.

The screen flared to life, and I froze.

There she was. Sue's face, her warm smile frozen in a photo, plastered across the news. The anchor's voice cut through the haze in my mind.

"...local nurse Susan Taylor, found dead in her home last night. Initially reported as a tragic accident during a break-in, new evidence suggests her death may have been a deliberate act of murder..."

The room spun. My knees buckled, and I stumbled to the window, shoving it open as bile rose in my throat. I leaned out, the cool night air hitting my face, and vomited onto the grass below.

My sobs came hard and fast, tearing through me as I gripped the windowsill. Murdered. Not an accident. Not a random intruder. Someone had taken her from me—my Sue, the only person who'd ever made me feel like I wasn't broken beyond repair.

I don't know how long I sat there, shaking, tears mixing with the mess I'd made. The TV droned on, speculating about suspects, motives, and connections to the recent campus attacks.

My mind raced. Was this because of me? Because of what happened back in Woodsboro? The memories of blood, screams, and the twisted plan clawed at me, threatening to pull me back into the darkness that had landed me in the psych ward for two years.

A sharp knock at the door snapped me out of it. I wiped my face with my sleeve, my heart pounding. "Who is it?" I called, my voice raw.

"It's me," Sidney's voice came, clipped and tense.

I groaned inwardly. Of course. My twin sister, the golden child, is here to make my day even worse.

I shuffled to the door and opened it, not bothering to hide my red-rimmed eyes or the mess I was. Sidney stood there, arms crossed, her dark hair pulled back, her face a mix of anger and something else... concern, maybe? But that couldn't be right. Sidney doesn't show concern for me, not anymore.

"What do you want?" I asked, leaning against the doorframe, too tired to fight but braced for it anyway.

She pushed past me into the room, her eyes scanning the scattered lilies, the blaring TV. "I heard about Sue," she said, her tone sharp. "And I saw you out there with Cici, making a scene. But you're here crying over her? You never shed a tear for Mom, Kat. Not one. And now you're falling apart over some nurse?"

Her words hit like a slap, but I didn't have the energy to snap back. I just stared at her, my chest tight, my hands trembling. Normally, I'd be screaming, throwing every ounce of venom I had at her for daring to bring up Mom—Maureen Prescott, the woman who'd loved Sidney best and left me in the shadows. But now? I was empty. Hollowed out.

"Say something!" Sidney demanded, stepping closer. Her voice cracked, and I realized she was shaking too. "You're always ready to fight, Kat. Always. So why are you just standing there? Why aren't you yelling at me?"

I walked back into my room and sank onto my bed, my legs giving out. The TV's glow cast harsh shadows across the room, and Sue's face flickered on the screen again. I swallowed hard, my voice barely a whisper. "They think she was murdered, Sid. Not an accident. Murdered."

Sidney's eyes widened, and for once, she didn't have a comeback. She glanced at the TV, then back at me, her expression softening. She sat down beside me, keeping a careful distance, like she was afraid I'd shatter if she got too close. "Kat... I didn't know."

I laughed, a bitter, broken sound. "Yeah, well, you wouldn't. You don't know me. You never did."

"That's not fair," she said, but there was no heat in it. She sounded... tired. As if she were carrying her own ghosts. "I know we've never been close, but you're my baby sister. I care about you."

I snorted, but it lacked conviction. "You care about Dad. You care about not upsetting him. That's why you're here, isn't it? To make sure I don't spiral again and make things hard for him?"

Sidney flinched, and I hated how much I enjoyed it. She leaned forward, her hands clasped tightly in her lap. "That's not true. I'm worried about you, Kat. I remember what happened after Woodsboro, how you... how you ended up in that place. I don't want you to go back there. Mentally or otherwise."

Her words cut deeper than I expected.

I looked away, my throat tight. "Sue was my family," I said, my voice breaking. "She was there when I was at my lowest, when I couldn't even get out of bed without wanting to scream. She didn't judge me, didn't compare me to you, didn't make me feel like I was less. She was my mom, Sid, in every way that mattered. And now she's gone."

Sidney was quiet for a long moment, and when she spoke, her voice was softer than I'd ever heard it. "I didn't know she meant that much to you. I... I'm sorry. I was so caught up in my own stuff, Mom's death, the trial, all of it, that I didn't see how much you were hurting even after all this time. I should've tried harder."

I blinked, tears spilling over again. Sidney apologizing was new. Unsettling, I kinda hated it... "You were Mom's favorite," I said, the words slipping out before I could stop them. "You always were. I hated her for it, even after she was gone. But Sue... she chose me. And now someone took her away."

Sidney reached out, hesitating before resting a hand on my arm. "We can't change the past, Kat. But we're still here. Both of us. And Dad... he loves us both, you know that. He'd hate to see us tearing each other apart."

I nodded, wiping my eyes. "I don't want to fight anymore either," I admitted. "Not with you. Not when everything's falling apart. When I can't-..."

Sidney gave a small, sad smile. "For Dad's sake, at least, can we just... try to be civil? Not hate each other?"

"Yeah. We can try. For Dad." I whisper, curling my arms around my knees, which were to my chest. "I can't promise I won't be snappy or mean, but... I'll try."

We sat there in silence, the TV's hum filling the space between us. It wasn't a perfect reconciliation, too much history, too many scars but it was a start.

For the first time in years, I didn't feel completely alone with Sidney in the room. But the weight of Sue's death, the possibility of her murder, pressed down on me. And somewhere, deep in my gut, I couldn't shake the feeling that this was only the beginning.

The lilies on my desk seemed to stare at me, their "sorry for your loss" card a cruel mockery. Who had left them? And why did it feel like they knew more about Sue's death than I did?