2 months ago...

I waved goodbye to my newly found friend, Derek just before he drove off.

Just before unlocking the door to my house, I glanced down to my outfit and slightly cringed.

Derek and I just went to a football game that my school's team was participating in. To be frank, I've been at Crown Heights since I arrived here for sixth grade, and to this day, I still didn't understand the big deal about football.

My orange and green outfit didn't compliment me at all, and I started to wonder how Derek even managed to make me wear such hideous clothing.

Suddenly, I began to hear shouts going on inside my house, and my eyebrows furrow. My dad's home?

Unlocking the door, I quickly removed my key out of the lock before opening the door, to reveal my father pacing back and forth as he's shouting to the person on the other line.

He noticed me standing by the front of the house, staring at him curiously, and he mumbled a quick goodbye before shutting off his phone, resting it on the kitchen table behind him once he has done so.

"What's going on dad?" I slowly asked as I made my way to the kitchen.

He sighed as I dropped my bag onto the kitchen counter. "Sweetie, come sit down," seriousness was laced in his voice, and I turned back, giving him a small frown.

Taking a seat on the bar stool, I twisted the seat so it's facing him.

"A few years ago, I thought I closed one of my cases, but it opened up again this week," he slowly explained, and I waited for him to continue.

He sighed when he noticed I had nothing to say. "It's back in Creaks Hill, Amanda."

My eyes widened, and my heart thumped rapidly against my chest.

"Creaks Hill?" I slowly asked, wishing I heard it wrong.

Dad slowly nodded. "After you finish your semester, we're going to head back there," he closed his eyes, almost painfully, at the thought of going back there.

Tears threatened to leave my eyes, but I shoved them down. I replaced my sadness with anger.

But I can't help but be enveloped in the past.

"Tyler!"

One name, but can cause every reaction.

A tear trailed down my check, and I viciously swiped it away.

"I'm gonna make some dumplings for dinner tonight. It'll be ready soon," dad informed me, and I slowly nodded, staying in my spot.

"Go, sweetie. I'll see you for dinner," he smiled warmly, and I manipulated my best smile before going upstairs.

Once I made it to my light blue bedroom, I took a seat on the edge of my bed.

Without thinking twice, I flew across the room and opened up my dresser drawer to pull out a photo of me and Tyler.

Since the age of four years old, Tyler and I have been inseparable. Even when I didn't I knew what love was, I knew I loved him. Looking back at it now, I did.

Thinking back to the last time I saw him, it gave me a reaction I hoped I'd never feel again.

Going back home gave me a list of pros and cons organized in my head.

Pros included that I would be getting closure. Cons... I don't think I can handle being in an environment that reminded me of him.

Lying back on my bed, I pressed the photo against my chest and sighed.

Tyler... are you really dead, or alive?

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