The morning light spread slowly across the college courtyard, brushing the wet grass with silver. The air smelled of rain and fresh earth quiet, peaceful but Detective Marla Greene knew better.
Peace didn't belong here anymore. Not after Emily Hayes.
She stood by the baseball diamond, boots sinking slightly into the damp soil. From a distance, it looked like any other college field neat, ordinary. But she could feel the tension in the air, the kind that lingers after something terrible happens.
Emily's last known location.
Greene jotted down a few names in her notebook: Liam. Noah. Coach Daniels.
Someone in that group wasn't telling her everything.
By the time the cafeteria opened, the campus was buzzing. Students whispered between bites of cereal and swipes of coffee cups.
"They questioned Liam again."
"Detective came back this morning."
"Someone said Emily was working on something big before she disappeared."
None of it was confirmed, but gossip was faster than fact and far more cruel.
At a corner table, Noah sat alone, earbuds in but no music playing. He was watching the door. Waiting.
Liam didn't show up for breakfast. Again.
When Noah finally returned to their shared dorm room, the air was thick with that same unspoken heaviness. Liam was sitting at his desk, staring blankly at his laptop screen. The blinds were drawn tight, shutting out the sunlight.
"You skipped class," Noah said, dropping his bag.
"Wasn't feeling it," Liam muttered.
"You've been 'not feeling it' for two weeks, man."
Liam didn't respond.
Noah studied him for a moment. There were dark circles under his eyes, his hair unwashed, the kind of exhaustion that sleep couldn't fix.
"You know," Noah said carefully, "people are starting to talk. About you."
Liam's jaw tightened. "Let them."
"They're saying you were the last person to see her."
Liam's chair creaked as he turned. "You believe that?"
Noah hesitated, then shook his head. "I don't want to. But you've been acting weird, bro. You don't eat, you barely talk, and you flinch every time someone mentions her name."
Liam laughed under his breath sharp and humorless. "Maybe I'm just tired of hearing about her."
"That's not it," Noah said quietly. "It's something else. You've been different since that night."
Liam stood suddenly, knocking his chair back. "You don't know what you're talking about."
Noah didn't move. "Then tell me what I am talking about."
Silence. The air between them felt like glass ready to crack.
Finally, Liam muttered, "I didn't do anything."
Noah sighed, rubbing his temples. "Then start acting like it, man. Because right now, everyone's watching."
He left the room without another word.
When the door shut, Liam sank back into his chair, heart pounding. His reflection in the dark laptop screen stared back pale, hollow-eyed, almost unfamiliar.
He whispered to himself, "You're fine. You're fine."
But his voice trembled.
That afternoon, Detective Greene sat across from the campus security chief. The steady whir of the ceiling fan filled the silence.
"You said the system glitched the night Emily disappeared," she said, pen tapping the edge of her notebook. "How long was the camera down?"
"About forty minutes," the chief replied. "It happens sometimes after heavy rain."
"Convenient," Greene said flatly. "Who has access to reset the feeds?"
"Only IT and athletics maintenance."
"Then I'll need their names. And the logs."
The chief frowned. "You think this was deliberate?"
Greene pocketed her notepad. "I don't believe in coincidence."
That evening, Liam sat on the dorm steps outside his building. The sky was deep orange fading to gray. A group of students passed by, laughing, their words drifting on the wind fragments of normal life that felt painfully far away.
He watched them until they disappeared around the corner. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. The screen lit up with dozens of unread messages. None from Emily, of course. Just reporters, classmates, even strangers online.
He deleted them all.
Noah's voice startled him. "You should turn that thing off before it eats you alive."
Liam looked up. Noah was holding two cups of coffee. He offered one. "Peace offering."
Liam took it, murmuring a thanks.
They sat in silence for a while, watching the campus lights flicker on.
"You know," Noah said quietly, "I get why you're freaking out. But you can't keep doing this. Locking yourself away. It's not helping."
Liam stared into his cup. "You don't understand."
"Then make me," Noah said. "Because whatever's eating you it's showing. And if the cops notice, they'll tear you apart."
Liam's throat tightened. "Noah… if I told you something, would you keep it between us?"
Noah looked at him sharply. "Depends on what it is."
Liam hesitated his lips parting as if to speak but then the sound of sirens echoed faintly from somewhere near the campus gate. He froze.
"Forget it," he said quickly, standing up. "It's nothing."
Noah frowned. "Liam"
"Just drop it, okay?"
He walked off toward the dorms, shoulders stiff, coffee cup still half full.
Noah sat there, staring after him. Something in his gut twisted. He'd seen people hide stress before after bad games, breakups, exams but this wasn't that. This was something darker. Something that didn't want to be found.
That night, Detective Greene sat in her car outside the dorm parking lot, flipping through her notes,scanning through every evidence she has gathered over the time during the investigation.
She hit record on her voice memo.
"From present observations,possible connection between missing student and controlled materials linked to athletics facility is under investigation.Next step confirm if any students had prior conduct issues ."
She switched the recorder off and looked up at the rows of lit dorm windows. In one of them second floor, left corner a figure paced back and forth.
Liam.
Even from a distance, she could tell he was restless.
She wrote one last line in her notebook before closing it:
Keep eyes on Liam. Check roommate Noah for inconsistencies.