Seated in the dining room were you, Sidney, and Tatum. The three of you are dressed and ready to make do with the school day. Milk had already been set on the table as Ms. Riley grabbed the cereal. It was only the beginning of the week, but all you could look forward to was for the weekdays to pass by.

The T.V propped on the kitchen counter, facing the dining table, was turned on and broadcasting a news station.

"Sidney and Y/N Prescott, who escaped a vicious attack last night, are the children of Maureen Prescott, who was brutally killed last year when convicted Cotton Weary broke into their home and savagely raped and tortured the deceased. Cotton Weary is currently awaiting appeal for the death sentence handed down after the young Sidney testified against him. She was the key witness in the state's case against the..."

Dewey heard enough and turned off the television before the news anchor could continue. With the anniversary of your mother's death, he didn't think the two of you should be subjected to more media of the like. Especially after your encounter with Gale Weathers just last night.

Tatum chewed on her lip as Dewey joined the three of you, sitting at the table.

"It's never gonna stop, is it?" Sidney says, nervously laughing.

"Billy was released. His cellular bill was clean. He didn't make those calls," Dewey informs. "We're checking every cellular account in the county. Any calls made to either of you or Casey Becker are being cross-referenced. It's gonna take some time, but we'll find him."

Tatum weakly punches Sid's shoulder in an attempt to cheer her up, "Okay?"

Dewey's car sirens played as he drove all three of you to school. It was obnoxious and garnered the attention of nearly everyone around. At least you and Sid didn't have to ride the bus and be bombarded by questions and concern. Everything had been strangely reminiscent of last year. The long, drawn-out hours spent at the police station. All of the reporters that had swarmed to you and Sidney for an exclusive interview. All of the knowing stares in any public setting. All of the hushed whispers in the school hallways. All of the awkward sympathetic speeches from adults.

You can't quite pinpoint when things started going back to normal and when people started treating your family as human beings instead of a spectacle. Strange to think it's practically been a year since your mother's passing. You didn't want to go through another year of your family, including you, being in the limelight yet outcasted.

You all step out of the car, hoping for a regular school day just like any other.

"Don't worry, kids, it's school. You're safe here."

Immediately after Dewey states that a reporter comes up to Sid, shoving a microphone in her face. "So, how does it feel to almost be brutally butchered?"

Dewey shields you and Sid away from the reporter, giving the three of you a chance to flee the situation. "Hey! Hey, now leave them alone."

"People wanna know. They have the right to know! How does it feel?" The reporter retaliates, calling out to you and Sid while Dewey holds her back.

"They just want to get an education. Turn that thing off."

Sid spots the Top Story news van and stops in her tracks. She lifts both your and Tatum's wrist to draw the attention of both of you. Tatum looks between her limp wrist and Sidney, confused. "What?"

Sid continues to eye the van, "Just a sec." She spares a glance towards you two and makes her way towards the van. Not liking where this is going, you join her and flash Tatum a lop-sided smile. Tatum rolls her eyes and seems to walk off.

You and Sid approach Gale. She sat in the passenger seat with the door wide open. Gale had been touching up her make-up, staring at her reflection in her compact mirror. Upon seeing you and Sidney, she raises her pointer finger. "Stop right there."

Sid puts her hands up in defense, "I'm not here to fight." You shrug, "I'm not the one who punched you last night." Sidney glares at you, "I just need to talk."

Gale gestures to her cameraman, "Kenny, camera. Now." She practically jumps at the chance to get an exclusive interview.

"Off the record. No camera," You state.

"Forget it," Gale quips.

Sidney begs, "Please? You owe me."

"I owe you shit."

"You owe our mother!"

At that, Gale puts out her hand in front of Kenny to stop him from going on-air. "Your mother's murder was last year's hottest court case. Somebody was gonna write about it." She tries to justify herself.

"Right. And it had to be you with all your lies and bullshit theories," You interject.

Gale shook her head in disbelief. "What is your problem? You got what you wanted. Cotton Weary's in jail. They're gonna gas him. A book is not gonna change that."

There's a moment of painful silence.

"Do you still think he's innocent?" Sid asks.

"Your testimony put him away. It doesn't really matter what I think."

You scoff, "During the trial, you did nothing but call Sid a liar."

Gale nods, "I think she falsely identified him, yes."

Sid tilts her head, "Have you talked to Cotton?" She asks Gale.

"Many times."

"And has his story changed?" You inquire.

"Not one word," Gale claims. "He admits to having sex with your mother, but that's all."

Sid shakes her head, "He's lying. She never would've touched him. He raped her, and then...he butchered her. Her blood was all over his coat."

Gale continues to defend Cotton. "He was drunk that night. He left his coat at your house after your mother seduced him."

"I saw him leave wearing it," Sid insists.

"No, you saw someone leave wearing that coat." The school bell rings. "The same someone who planted it in Cotton's car, framing him."

Sidney hesitates, "No, Cotton murdered our mother."

"You're not so sure anymore, are you?" Gale speculates.

If it hadn't been Cotton, then who could it possibly be? Were Ghostface's words merely a farce, or was there some truth behind it?

Tatum steps in not wanting the situation to escalate. "Nice welt, sweetie," The blonde teen referred to Gale's bruised cheek. "Let's go," She says tugging Sid's arm.

Gale ignores her, having realized something, "The killer's still on the loose, isn't he?"

You and Sid allow Tatum to pull you away from the conversation. "I'm sorry I mangled your face," Sid apologizes, not wanting to feed into Gale's conspiracies.

Gale snaps at Kenny, "Sidney, don't go."

You snap your neck to her, "Just stop, all right?" The three of you walk into the school already plenty late.

Gale turns to Kenny with a smile, thrilled at her revelation. "Jesus Christ! An innocent man on death row, a killer still on the loose. Kenny, tell me I'm dreaming."

"You wanna go live?" Kenny offers.

"No, no, no. Not so fast. We don't have anything concrete."

"This is huge, you can't just sit on it."

"I know. That's why we need proof. If I'm right I could save a man's life." Kenny smiles at Gale's humanity. "Do you know what that could do for my book sales?" His face drops.

Students walk up and down the hallways. Most were still roaming the halls with their friends, waiting for the bell to ring again. By the time the three of you got to your lockers, Stu had been waiting by Tatum's. By complete chance, you and Sid had lockers on the same row. You stuff a few books into your locker before locking it shut. Tatum still had hers open, which Stu was peering in. Sid seemed flustered from earlier and hurriedly put away her textbooks.

"This is a mistake. I shouldn't be here," Sid voiced. She shut her locker, putting the lock back on.

Tatum took the lollipop out of her mouth, "I want you to meet me here after class, okay, Sid?"

Sid agrees and turns to you. "Are you gonna be alright?"

"Hm? No, yeah. I'll be fine, don't worry about me. I'm not the one who was attacked last night and punched a reporter in the face."

She punches your shoulder, "It could've just as easily been you. You got lucky. The killer probably didn't know you were home."

"Thank god he was," Tatum chimed in. During their sleepover, Sid recalled to Tatum how the two of you narrowly escaped Billy last night.

Stu grabs a mirror from inside Tatum's locker, inspecting his forehead. His forehead was still tender from Casey hitting him with the phone the other night. A bruise never formed because the Ghostface mask protected his skin, but he could never be too sure. He couldn't say the same for his body. Last night's tussle with Sid wound up Stu with many bruises littering his precious skin. I mean, what?

"Hey, I haven't seen Billy around," You brought up. "Is he really pissed?" Sid asks Stu.

At the mention of his partner, Stu put down the mirror. "Oh, you mean after you branded him the Candyman? No, his heart's broken. Ow!" He whines when Tatum punches him for his words. "Stu!"

A scream echoes from the end of the hall, making everyone's neck turn. Some hooligan dressed in a Ghostface costume sprinted down the hall, waving his hands around like a maniac. Stu found the whole thing entertaining and laughed to himself, sticking out his tongue. Under different circumstances, you would've reacted similarly if not for the fact that your sister almost died the night before.

Meanwhile, Sidney's blood was boiling. How could someone else her age be messing around and having fun while she was attacked last night? Not to mention the death of Casey and Steve two nights ago.

"Why are they doing this?" Sid said, clearly appalled by their behavior.

"I don't wanna stay and find out. I'll meet you guys for lunch. Stay safe, alright?" You run off to class by yourself.

Stu turns to Sid with a big smile, "Are you kidding me? Look at this place it's like Christmas."

Tatum lightly pushes Stu, "Stupidity leak," and whacks his already sensitive forehead with her lollipop.

Confused and upset, Sid sped off to her own class. Tatum called out to her, but Sid's mind was made up. She doesn't get very far as she bumped into Billy at the top of the staircase. "Jesus, shit!"

"It's just me," Billy reassures. Sid pushes him back, drawing her hand to her head. "Woah, Woah, Woah, Woah. You still think it's me."

Sid shook her head, "No. No, I-I don't. It's just...somebody was there, Billy. Someone tried to kill me."

"I know, I know. The cops said I scared him away. It wasn't me, Sid."

"I know. He called me again last night at Tatum's house," Sid's voice shook.

"You see? It couldn't have been me. I was in jail, remember?" Billy puts up his dirtied hand. His fingertips were stained from black ink when they got his fingerprints.

Sid and Billy were the only ones left standing in the hall. Everyone else was in their classroom.

"I'm so sorry, please understand."

Billy takes a step closer, "Understand, what? That I have a girlfriend that would rather accuse me of being a psychotic killer than touch me?"

Sid tilts her head, "You know that's not true."

"Then what is it?"

"What...is it? Billy, I was attacked and nearly filleted last night!"

"I mean between us. You haven't been the same since..." He taps his foot, "Since your mother died."

"Is your brain leaking? My mom was killed. I can't believe you're bringing this up!"

"No, it's been a year."

"Tomorrow! One year tomorrow."

"I know. I think it's time you got over that. I mean, when my mom left my dad, I accepted it. It's the way it is. She's not coming back."

Tears threatened to fall from Sid's eyes. "Your parents split up. This is not the same thing. Your mom left town. She's not lying in a coffin somewhere."

"Okay, okay. Okay, I'm sorry. It's a bad analogy. But look at your brother, he seems like he's doing fine. It's just that...I want my girlfriend back."

Having heard enough, Sidney started walking away.

"Sid."

"Billy, I am sorry if my traumatized life is an inconvenience to you and your perfect existence." Sid walked faster to the bathrooms.

"What? What are you...nobody said that. Sid!"

She couldn't believe her boyfriend of two years would say those things to her. How could he be so concerned over intimacy in a time like this? She could've died, but that seemed to be the least of Billy's concerns.