YOU

YOU HEARD THE STORY ON THE NEWS. A girl and a boy went into the woods. The girl carried a picnic basket. The boy wore bright yellow running shoes. They weren’t planning to be out past dark, but the sky was pitch black when the girl found her way back, without the picnic basket and without the boy. The boy was discovered the next morning, floating facedown in Claymore Creek, his yellow running shoes obscured by hazy water.

You heard that it was a tragedy, that the boy had his entire life in front of him. That he was returning to Princeton on a swimming scholarship. Mark the Shark, his pool nickname. Soon enough, you’ll be going to his funeral with everybody else.

You’ve been following her online. Maybe you knew the suspicion was bound to trail her like a cape. After all, there are plenty of holes in her story. But there are holes in everyone else’s version, too.

Maybe you know her—you might have gone to a party with her. She liked those. Or maybe you just stalked her on Instagram and saw all the selfies, her #nofilter face, all lipstick and electric-blue eyes. Maybe she was a bitch to you once. (She probably was a bitch to you once, and maybe you deserved it.)

But now you’re going to learn all sides of this story. You’ll find out what really happened, from the people who know and love her, and from those who know her but wish they didn’t. Here lie the facts. Once you have them, you’ll be equipped to decide for yourself. Guilty or not guilty. If you think she did it, you’ll wonder if she’s going to get away with it.

If you think she didn’t, you’ll wonder why she was in the woods that late at all.