Beloved (Book Five)

Chapter 8: Frat Boy on the Floor

While someone dialed the police, I examined the body. The body occurred last night around midnight or so. Before Michael is alive, he has been taking a walk.

His sandals are covered in dirt and bits of grass. I leaned close then smelled his mouth. Intoxicated, I thought to myself, rolling my eyes. These Frat boys worshipped beer as if they were kryptonite.

"Hey," a girl shrieked. "What are you doing?" I took out my phone and took a couple of pictures of the body. I need to give them to Ben as soon as I have the chance. I caught something shiny around the victim's finger.

Lifting my phone, I zoomed the image of the ring then snapped the photo. As much as I wanted to take out my gloves and inspect the ring, I didn't want to get the police involved in my business.

And speaking of the police, two cops showed up out of the blue and examined the corpse. One of the cops had black hair and a handsome smile while the other one had sandy blond hair.

They both wore police uniforms, black sunglasses, and looked nineteen. "Everyone get back to the campus," the cop with the black hair shouted. "There is nothing to see here."

Everyone left the police to do their business, except for me. The cop with the blond hair looked at me. "Miss," he sighed. "We want you to go back to your-" "His name is Michael," I interrupted. His buddy looked at me with a confused look on his face.

"The Fraternity guy's name," I responded. "His name is Michael." "How do you know this guy?" he asked. "I threw my punch at his face," I shrugged. "He tried to drug me."

"Does he have any friends or enemies?" the cop with the black hair asked. "I think he has friends," I said. "I don't know if he has any enemies-" "Cole?" the cop with the sandy blond hair said. It took me minutes before I figured out that I was talking to Jason.

"Hey Jason," I exclaimed. "How are you doing?" His friend slapped Jason on the shoulder then told him that he is going to go and get something from the vehicle. As soon as he left, Jason scratched his head. "You look different since last I saw you," he chuckled. "How is your mom holding up?" I asked.

The last time I checked, the Clarks have been off the radar ever since the death of Kim. Mr. Clark is spending another hour in jail while Jason lived with his mother for the past few weeks. Jason let out a sigh. "Still grieving over Kim, how are you doing?"

"Fine," I insisted. "I took a couple of pictures of the corpse. I'll send them to Ben and ask if he can spot anything strange." "Alright," he shrugged. "Good luck." "Same with you," I said. Walking back to my room door, I caught Madison staring at me with curious eyes.

"How's your brunch with the girls?" I asked. "It was good," she answered. "Who is that cop? Is he your boyfriend?" "Nope," I answered, sliding the key card into the slot before opening it. "He's all yours."

I sat back down on my chair then finished the remains of my typed homework. Curious, Madison peeked over my shoulder and peered at my phone charm. "Spencer Hastings?" she murmured to herself. "Luke bought it for me," I explained. "Along with the Nancy Drew and Sherlock Holmes charms."

"Why did he buy all three of them?" Madison asked. "He didn't know which one I liked the most," I replied. I smiled whenever I mentioned Ben's old name. "What happened between you two?" she asked suddenly. I gave her a questionable look. "You never mention Luke or did anything fun," she replied.

"We took a break," I sighed as I went back to my essay. "We couldn't stand the thought of the stupid long distance relationship so we ended it." Madison looked as if I had slapped her. "Haven't you moved on, maybe get another boyfriend?" she suggested.

"I have no time for romance," I stated. But still, Madison persisted. "Every girl has a time for romance," she whined. "Every fairytale says so." I bit my lip to prevent myself from screaming at her. Fairytale romance isn't real, to me, they are just endless pages of scraps lying in the dirt, hoping to be buried in the sand.

"Even if there is a slight chance of true love," I grumbled. "My mom wouldn't be dating online weirdos, and my father wouldn't be a cheating spouse." Madison stared at me in shock. "Your father cheated on your mom?" she gasped.

Without a word, I grabbed my laptop, backpack, and phone then stormed out of the room. As I reached into the cafeteria, I slipped my computer into my backpack then dialed Ben's number. "Hey Ben," I said weakly. "How are you doing in Harvard?" "Fine," he answered. "I heard there was a body in Princeton."

"Yeah," I said, rubbing my eyes. "Are you okay?" Ben asked. "Did you take any pictures?" "Yeah," I answered, typing on my phone. "I took pictures of the guy and the ring. I need you to see if you can find anything strange when you have time." "Okay," Ben sighed. "But you sound like an old lady, what's bothering you?"

"I explained things about my crappy father to Madison." I said. "You know you can talk to me about these things," Ben reminded. "You're right," I yawned. "I just feel tired, that's all." "I have the pictures," Ben said. "I'll call or text you to see if I find anything."

"Okay," I smiled. "Goodbye." "Later," he answered. "Wait," I began. "There's something I need to tell you." "What is it?" Ben asked. "I went to my first Frat party last week," I said. "A couple of guys were hitting on me, but I told them that I wasn't interested.

"Same thing for me, except girls were flirting with me." Ben replied. "You went to a Frat party?" I asked in amazement. "Technically, my friend Jacob made me go to the party." "Did you make any friends?" I asked.

"Other than my guidance counselor," Ben sighed. "Nope." "When I have some time," I began. "Do you want to hang out with me?" "Sure," Ben answered. "Call me if you need anything, okay?" "Yeah," I said. "Goodbye."

"Just remember Cole," Ben replied. "The great game is on." After I hang up the phone, I went back to my empty table then finished my Science essay. All of a sudden, I felt guilty for running out of my room like a maniac.

Even though Madison was a pain in the neck, I still care for her sometimes. After I turned my laptop off, I stuffed it in my bag then headed back to my room. "Hey Madison," I sighed, closing the door. I wanted to apologize, but when I saw her on my bed, I instantly became annoyed.

"Are you calmed down?" Madison asked ardently. "Get out of my bed," I said. She reluctantly hopped out of my covers then sat patiently in her chair, taking off her makeup. "I want to say that I am sorry," I responded. "For yelling at you."

She wiped the mascara away from her face then looked at me. I'm "Whatever," she shrugged. "That doesn't bother me anymore." I let out a relieved sigh and was about to go back to my bed until someone knocked on my door.