"Dammit," I mumbled under my breath, and then buried my face into my pillow. I could feel Claudia's hand rubbing gently on my back. Isn't it funny how people your age can seem so much older sometimes? "I just want this to stop. it's just so annoying." I sat up, throwing the letter among all of the rest. "I mean, I know that nothing's coming of it, but I just want it all to go away."

"Then, tell the police, sweetie. It's a criminal offense, what they're doing," Claudia said. She was the one with all of the common sense, of course. I was the one that was nuts.

"And then, what? And then, everyone knows that I told the police, rumors get started, things get blown out of proportion..." I looked at Claudia shaking her head in disagreement, and stretched out on my bed. It was no use convincing The Sane One.

For months, now, since the start of school in September, I had been getting hate letters. Death threats. Just all around not nice stuff, sent to my home address. My parents don't get home untila few hours after me, and I'm an only child, so I'm the only one that's seen them. School is bad enough as it is without even more nasty rumors being spread around. Besides, no one had actually done anything since the letters started, so I'm not worried like I was in the beginning. The only thing that evven possibly made me want to reconsider not telling anyone was the concern in Claudia's deep brown eyes, her motherly presence seeming to want me to take care of myself, invoking a spirit in me only she could summon.

"In my eyes, Keira, you're already blowing things way out of proportion... and yet, you still manage to keep things on a scale that they shouldn't be-one that's too small for them. Death threats, Keira? Death threats?" Claudia said, her eyebrows raised, looking at me like I was unbelievable, like I was just a little kid again. "Seriously, I mean, come on."

It was easy for her to say. She was beautfiul. She was talented. She was the smartest person I knew. On top of that, everyone loved her, but how couldn't anyone love her? The only thing about her was that she was my friend, and I wasn't half as popular as she was. People only knew me because I hung out with her, but no one knew my name, or little details like how many pets I have, or my favorite soda. That kind of stuff was confidential for Claudia. She knew everything about me, and we both wanted to keep it that way. Somehow, though, I knew, that if I went to the police with these letters, all of that would change. Either people would get to know my name because of rumors, and I would get about half as popular as Claudia in a good way, or people would spread nasty rumors about it, and I would get half as popular in a bad way. I wasn't willing to take the risk. High school was short.

I took a deep breath, pulling out the latest letter again.

Dearest little Keira,

Roses are red.

Violets are blue.

I'm hoping to see you dead

Soon.

Love,

You know who

Hideously corny, and badly written, but it still put a shiver down my spine the first time I read it. I don't think it was the poem itself, but the reality. To me, anyway, I feel like there really is someone out there that wants me dead, and I can't even fathom who they are, or what I'd ever done to them. The worst case scenario that haunted me was if, since I had absolutely no clue who it was, was if one day they did get to me... and there were no suspects. I'd be the subject of the perfect crime. I'd be the victim from the perfect criminal-one that is unknown.

"Okay, okay, Claude, I'll strike a deal with you," I said. She turned to me, interested, her eyebrows raised again in only the way she could. Her lips pursed together delicately, and I smiled for a second. I had a wonderful best friend, and a pretty good life. I couldn't take this all for granted and let this all go to waste, when it's easily preventable-and in a secretive way, too. "We'll find the little bitch ourselves."