Aggro - CoraLee June Page 0,14

that wholly consumed me. My heart panged as more movement in the shrubs spurred me forward.

“Breeze! Stop. It’s just a wild pig,” Chase yelled. I guess they finally noticed that I was moving away from their bickering. Wild pigs were common in this area. They were known for tearing up farms and fighting with pet dogs. They were a nasty sort of animal, and I was trained at a young age to avoid them.

But what was it doing? The loud voices of the guys would have surely scared it off.

I kept walking. Walking. One step. Two steps. Branches crunched beneath my feet. My fingers trembled. My eyes widened as I slowly approached the wild animal and shoved thick branches to the side for a better view.

And then, my world stopped.

The first thing I saw was blood. So much blood. It coated the pig’s fur. It watered the dirt with its thick, curdled, crimson stain. The pig’s mouth was filled with flesh. Pale legs that were stiff and too still were perched beneath it.

I screamed. The terror bubbled up my throat and past my teeth like an exorcism. It rattled the trees. It spooked the wild pig. My legs shook as I tumbled forward to the grotesque and gory scene in front of me.

Violet.

She was dead.

Intestines like snakes were scattered around her. Violet’s body was mangled and her face lifeless. Her eyes were opened and glassy, her mouth parted with foam coating her lips. She looked like she’d been picked apart with sharp teeth. Flies swarmed her stiff body, and the smell, oh God, the smell. I covered my mouth as I fell to the ground. Mud and blood and leaves clung to my skin as I screamed and screamed and screamed and screamed.

Dear Diary,

Today, he asked me what kind of girl I was. I thought it was an odd question. He knew me better than most. He knew what my tongue tasted like after I ate chocolate. He knew that I screamed his name when I came. He knew that my favorite thing to do was fuck on rainy afternoons. All the other details weren’t important. I was the kind of girl that loved to spill secrets with my body, and he was a willing listener.

XOXO,

Violet

Two weeks had passed since I found Violet’s body. Two agonizing, painful weeks. I couldn’t sleep without picturing the wild pig devouring her body. I couldn’t eat without tasting blood on my tongue. I couldn’t move without thinking of her stiff body.

Today, we were laying her to rest. I chose a simple black dress and a pair of equally simple black shoes from my closet. I twisted my hair into a bun and didn’t bother with makeup. What was the point? I’d just cry it off. I checked my appearance in the full-length mirror that hung on my bedroom wall. I found that I had been replaced with a lifeless and hollow shell of a girl. My normally sun-kissed skin and rosy cheeks had been replaced with a gaunt, pale face whose eyes were blackened from lack of sleep. I had lost enough weight that my dress was baggy, and my legs looked skeletal in my reflection. Violet would have a field day with my appearance. She was always pestering me to wear her clothes or put on eyeliner.

Oh, Violet.

She wouldn’t be here to nag me about my unfashionable dress. She wouldn’t be honking her horn in my driveway, telling me to stop being a hermit and leave the house for once. She was gone. Gone for good.

It had been two long weeks of police interviews and endless questions from the media. I repeated the words about finding Violet enough times that I was starting to be numb to them. I didn’t cry every single time anymore, only every second or third time. It felt like an endless cycle.

The medical examiner ruled Violet’s death a homicide. It had taken her a while because the pig had done a lot of damage. She hadn’t released the exact cause of death yet because she was still investigating. It made mourning for her even more painful. I wanted answers, but every bit of information was like spoon-feeding us single grains of rice. The police were working tirelessly to find leads. They had to track down everyone at the party and get their accounts of the evening. Since most of us were minors, the red tape was exhausting. I had a feeling it would be a long time before