Chapter Text
The car rolled slowly through the streets of an unwelcoming, empty Jericho, the townspeople already dreading the return of the monsters that lived in their town.
The sheriff office looked lively, the police cars parked outside and the lights shining through the windows. She wondered if Sheriff Galpin was inside and how he was doing after the events from three months ago. She knew that he had been offered the position of mayor, but ultimately rejected it to stay as head of the police. A respectable decision, she decided. Whoever wanted to run Jericho must be a sick individual.
The new mayor’s face was plastered across the town as they drove, with signs in the front yards of many houses welcoming him to their community. Jason Smith was his name, an average looking, middle-aged white man. He looked like the kind of person you would expect to run a town like this.
As they drove past the dreary setting, Wednesday couldn’t help but linger on the view of the coffee shop she used to visit so often. She would admit that she had missed her free daily espresso, but no part of her could stand to enter through those doors ever again after what happened last time.
Her thoughts often drifted to that night, the night she was betrayed by the one person she allowed herself to trust. It only solidified her belief that she was destined to be alone. She reprimanded herself every time she would think about him, but that didn’t stop it from happening. All. The. Time.
“Darling, why do you seem so down? Aren’t you excited to see your friends again?” Morticia asked, leaning her head on her husband’s shoulder. The sight of the happy couple didn’t help.
”I am. It’s the excruciatingly long drive sitting directly across from you two that makes me want to throw myself off the bell tower as soon as I arrive.” Wednesday replied, turning her head from the window and narrowing her eyes at the lovebirds.
“What happened to that lover boy of yours?” Gomez asked, frowning at his pessimistic daughter. “I thought we liked him.”
”He was not my lover boy. He was only a friend, and as I’ve told you countless times, I do not wish to speak about any of my time here at Nevermore.” She can’t help but feel uncomfortable at her usage of the word “was”. Her parents definitely noticed that she hadn’t denied liking him, but thankfully, they respected her enough not to press the issue any further.
They stayed silent the rest of the drive, admiring the town they spent their youth in. Pugsley sat quietly beside his sister. The boy had grown about four inches over the break, allowing him to surpass his sister in height. He was big enough now that Wednesday hoped he could take down the annoying pests at his school on his own, but she doubted he lacked the courage to do so.
Dark grey clouds loomed over the dungeonesque style building. The school was busy, and the courtyards filled with families tearfully parting goodbye. Usually, this sight would make Wednesday smile, but today she just felt off, like something bad was going to happen at any time.
When the car arrived, Wednesday stepped out and allowed her brother and father to carry her luggage upstairs while she said goodbye to her mother. Thing was in her backpack, along with her phone, which Thing had taken over as his own when Wednesday tried to throw it out the window. She grabbed the last of her things and headed upstairs, allowing Gomez and Puglsey to give her a quick pat on the shoulder goodbye before they left.
When Wednesday opened the door to her room, the familiar pink and yellow decorations greeted her, along with a very excited Enid Sinclair. The blonde squealed as she wrapped her arms around her best friend, and Wednesday gave her a quick pat with one hand as a compromise.
“Oh my god! I am so happy we’re back! Thing and I were texting literally all night about plans for this year. Homecoming is only one month away, so we have to go into town A S A P to get dresses. I’m thinking of being on the committee this year, and I really want you to join! It would be such a good way to meet new people!” Enid rambled, skipping over to her bed to sit. “Speaking of people, have you talked to Xavier yet?”
This was clearly supposed to insinuate something as Enid wiggled her eyebrows, but Wednesday was not going to play into this at 12pm in the afternoon on her first day.
”Have you seen Ajax?” She asked, changing the subject. Truthfully, she didn’t care, but she learned that having friends meant attempting to listen to their frivolous interests.
“Twice already. He and Xavier are roommates, actually. They asked if we could sit together in the dining hall for opening ceremony tonight.” Enid smiled at her hopefully. “I know you aren’t into him like that, but he’s so into you. You can at least be friends!”
Enid was right; she owed him for getting him imprisoned. “He and I have potential for a friendship, if he pleases.”
That answer seemed to satisfy her, as Enid squealed once more before turning to finish unpacking her stuffed animals. Wednesday joined her in unpacking, placing her typewriter on her desk before turning to make her bed.
As she lifted the pillow to put her bedsheets on, she found a small note folded under it. As she unfolded it, the realization set in that it was probably from her stalker.
There had been no more strange messages during break, most likely because Thing was now in control of her phone. A surge of excitement rushed through her and she motioned for Thing to come read.
Welcome back to Nevermore. Sleep with one eye open. I’ll be watching.
“Well that was unimpressive. How stereotypical.” Wednesday muttered, sticking the note in her bedside drawer. Thing stared at the note for a minute, attempting to analyze it for any clues, but it was typed on a computer and printed. He closed the drawer shut at the same time as someone knocked on the door.
”Wednesday, can you grab the door for me? I don’t want Ajax to see me until my hair is done!” Enid called out from her desk, half her hair curled.
She sighed and stood up, walking to the door. She would never understand Enid’s obsession with what she looked like, but as she wore the same braids every day, she understood she had no right to speak on it. Her hand had just grasped the doorknob when everything suddenly faded to black.
Light poured through her vision as she recognized her own hand on the doorknob, pulling it open. She was met face to face with an unexpected visitor, who was covered in blood with torn clothing. She saw her arm reach out to him, turning his face to the side so she could see the giant scratch across his cheek.
“Who hurt you?” She asked, her voice low and filled with the same rage she felt when somebody attacked Thing. He looked around frantically, before resting his eyes on her and taking a deep breath. She wasn’t getting an answer. “What’s going on?”
“I know who it is,” whispers the disheveled boy, who Wednesday recognizes as her ex-boyfriend (and attempted murderer) Tyler Galpin, who reaches out to wrap his cold, bloody hands around her own. Her face twists in confusion, about to move to the side to allow him in.
Wednesday doesn’t know what disturbs her more: the fact that he’s holding her hands, or the dart that flies into his neck before he can say anything more. She lets out a panicked scream stepping into the hallway to see who it was. She catches a glimpse of a figure in black running before turning her attention to Tyler, who was lying unconscious on the floor, his breathing getting more shallow by the second.