Don't Turn Around

There was a buzz at school the next day. Everyone was talking about recent stories in local newspapers and on morning news shows about the discovery of Shizuko’s body. Police had given very little information, so students were curious to know if the death was a suicide, an accident or possibly murder.

Not more than an hour into instruction, Sayuri, Hana, Nami and Aika were pulled from their classes. A pair of detectives had come to their school, and they were looking for answers that would lead them to who was responsible for Shizuko’s death.

Hana was first to be questioned.

“How close were you to this Shizuko girl?” asked Detective Yamamoto.

“I wasn’t close to her at all,” replied a defiant Hana. “I didn’t even know her. I have enough friends. I don’t need any more than what I already have.”

“Really? Then how do you explain why the janitor told us he saw you and your friends leaving school with her?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” replied Hana. “We didn’t go anywhere with her. She might have been leaving school at the same time as us, but that doesn’t mean we were hanging out with her. Besides, what does the janitor know? He’s so old he can barely see. But he can see well enough to get excited whenever a pretty girl walks by him. It’s him you should be investigating, not me.”

“He did say something about not having his glasses on when he saw the girls,” said Detective Tamaki. “He might have been mistaken.”

“You know, I have a daughter about your age,” said Yamamoto. “She has a good life. She’s pretty, has lots of friends and gets good grades in school. No one has a bad thing to say about her. I don’t know what I would do if I found out someone was bullying her.” He then leaned in toward Hana. “Could you imagine what I would do?”

The smell of cigarettes hit Hana’s nose like a slap in the face.

“From what I’ve been told, this Shizuko girl wasn’t very popular. That probably would have made her an easy target for bullies.”

“This is harassment,” exclaimed Hana. “You can’t blame this on me. I didn’t do anything. If you keep up with this line of questioning, I’ll tell my dad to hire a lawyer. He’ll sue you and the city for everything you’re worth.”

“This one has a lot of fire,” said Yamamoto.

“Please understand where we’re coming from,” said Tamaki. “We have to cover all our bases to make sure we don’t miss anything. We’re not saying you or your friends had anything to do with this. We just want to know if you know anything.”

“None of us knows anything,” said Hana. “When you ask the others, they’ll tell you the same. So you shouldn’t even bother wasting your breath. She probably just killed herself. You said it yourself. She didn’t have any friends.”

“Suicide?” asked Yamamoto. “We’ve been seeing a lot of those lately. People are always looking for the easy way out.” He then pulled out a cigarette and lit it.

“Smoking isn’t allowed on school grounds,” said Hana.

After taking a puff, Yamamoto grinned, showing his teeth that had been yellowed from years of his bad habit. “We’ll just let this be our little secret, okay,” he said. “I’m sure a girl like you is good at keeping secrets.”

After school, the girls met up in an empty classroom.

“So, everyone stuck with the story,” said Hana, staring out the window. “I told you there was nothing they could do to us if we all just stuck together.”

“Is it over?” asked Nami. “Are the police done with us?”

“It’s never over with them. So be careful what you say. They could have microphones hidden everywhere. I’m sure they’ll wiretap our phones. And if you ever see someone watching you from the shadows, it’s probably them.”

“I don’t want to live like that,” said Nami.

“Well, that’s too bad,” said Hana. “That’s what happens when you’re a criminal.”

“Stop trying to scare her,” said Sayuri. “She’s been through enough.”

“Don’t worry about it, Nami-chan,” said Aika. “The worst is over. There’s nothing that they can do to us. So cheer up, okay.”

“Really?” asked Nami.

Aika gave her friend a nod and a smile.

“I don’t know about the rest of you, but all this talk has made me hungry,” said Hana. “Aika, treat me to sushi.” When making the request, Hana had used a much friendlier tone. It was something that neither Aika nor Nami had ever picked up on. But Sayuri always noticed how friendly Hana became when she wanted something.

“Okay,” replied Aika.

“Are you coming . . . Nami?” asked Hana. Though she had posed the question to Nami, Hana had been looking at Sayuri when she asked it.

“Yeah, I’m coming,” replied Nami, a faint smile upon her face. “Can you wait for me out front? I have something I need to do first.”

“Okay, but don’t be too long,” said Aika.

When Hana and Aika were out of the room, Nami asked a very startling question. “Sayuri-chan, do you believe after a person dies, they might be able to come back?”

Sayuri was taken aback by what had just been asked. “Why?” she asked. “Did you see something?” When Nami failed to make eye contact, Sayuri knew something was wrong. “What did you see? Did you see her? Did you see Shizuko? Tell me if you did?”

Nami’s cell phone rang. “Yes,” she answered.

“Hey, Nami, if you’re not coming, then we’re going without you,” said Hana.

“I’ll be right there,” said Nami before having Hana abruptly hang up on her. “I have to go now, Sayuri-chan.”

“Wait, what were you going to tell me?”

There was a very poor excuse for a smile upon Nami’s face. “It was nothing,” she replied. “Don’t worry about it, okay. Like Aika-chan said, the worst is over.” And with that, Nami quickly gathered her things and took her leave.

“Nami,” said Sayuri. “I saw her, too.” Unfortunately for Sayuri, Nami was already out of the room by the time she had made her confession.