Evelyn never liked coffee. Well, not the plain coffee anyway. No matter how much sugar she seemed to add, it was always too bitter. She always thought coffee to be a representative of life for they had many similarities. Life had to be dealt with, no matter how bitter as the outcome was always delightful.

And today, she needed the coffee since she could not stay focused on her own.

She sat alone by the circular table all alone, waiting for company. She barely ever went to the cafe just one block away from her apartment but that day seemed to be an exception. Ever since she heard the news from Noah, her eyes wouldn't shut. She listened to calming music and watched boring videos, hoping it would drive her to sleep. Hell, she even listened to infuriating podcasts but that only worsened the situation for she had one more thing to think about.

Guilt hit her with strong force from every direction but she couldn't deny it; she was hoping that Noah wasn't the prosecutor. 

The minute she found out, she needed more than a few seconds to collect herself. She couldn't believe that they were going to face each other in court for a case this huge. Even after she told him about it, he seemed indifferent more than anything. To him, it was just another case and it didn't matter if they were against each other. 

Normally, that would have reassured Evelyn but not in this case. She hated that she couldn't do the same and she hated that this had such a huge effect on her. 

She always regarded herself as someone who could balance her relationships and profession but she knew it wouldn't be the case. How long would it take before Noah fought over her morals during the case? How long before she would argue with him for going against her in front of people? It was part of the job but that didn't mean that their quarrels could be controlled.

She took little sips from the cup of coffee when she got the message on her phone. She was here. Evelyn put her phone down with relief for Andrea didn't delay too much. Evelyn had a long day ahead as it was.

Evelyn got up from the chair and extended her hand forwards when she saw her approach. Andrea was exactly how she'd imagined her to be- a tall brunette who took every step with confidence. She reached for Evelyn's palm and shook it subtly as they both took their seats.

"I'm glad you agreed to see me," Evelyn said, pushing her cup of coffee aside.

"How could I deny?" Andrea asked as she picked up the menu from the table.

"I'm Evelyn Turner, Mr.Coleman's lawyer," she introduced.

"I know, you mentioned in the e-mail. What is it that you wanted?" Andrea asked.

"Mr.Coleman informed me that you were there when the fire started. He wasn't able to get into the details since he was quite shaken up. I was hoping to hear from you," Evelyn replied, unsure if Andrea had what she needed.

"I'm an open book," Andrea said nonchalantly.

"Can you recount the events of Saturday, seventeenth September?" Evelyn asked.

"Let's see. I was waiting in the chemistry lab because Levi told me he'd be there soon. I was waiting for five minutes, I guess, I'm not really sure. He shows up with a cigarette, which wasn't new so I didn't bother. I'm sure he filled you in on this part so I won't bother but after a few minutes, I wanted to smoke too. He offered them to me and we went back to what we were doing. We didn't even realize that the lighter had fallen. Next thing we knew, the room was on fire and we fled," Andrea said, her mind deep in her thoughts. Evelyn couldn't be sure if she was trying to remember the events accurately or if she was trying to sell a believable story.

But, there was something that stuck out to her. There was a possibility that she was way over her head and was making a big deal out of nothing. However, it was something and so she wrote it down. 

Levi asked Andrea to come to the chemistry lab.

"Why were you in school?" Evelyn asked, glossing over her suspicion for the moment.

"I had a rehearsal for a play happening next week. All the students from the play were there," Andrea said. 

"What play is it?" Evelyn asked, curious.

"Oh, it's nothing well known. It's just a short story, I guess, about a fire accident from years ago. And no, this isn't some sick hint towards the fire that followed, this accident actually did happen years ago," Andrea said. 

"What sort of play can you make out of that?" Evelyn asked. It wasn't like reading the news about this accident was suitable for a university play.

"It was supposed to be about what that girl was thinking when it happened, what lead to it, you know, that kind of stuff," Andrea said, "and in case you're wondering, no, I don't know who that girl is. The papers never mentioned it. I guess they were paid to keep their mouth shut."

Andrea didn't know who it was but Evelyn had a feeling she did. She couldn't be sure though.

"Well, what happened in the end?" Evelyn asked. She didn't know why she was getting into such detail about a mere play but her gut told her it was important. She couldn't shake off the feeling that maybe, this could be about her scandal. It seemed like it so far. No mention of her name or family, enough money to censor the media, and of course, the fire.

"Turned out she was innocent," Andrea said, distrust in her voice, "but I mean, the outcomes aren't always fair, are they?"

Evelyn was taken aback. It had been twenty years, surely people wouldn't be suspecting it now. She glanced at Andrea and sighed. She couldn't do anything against Evelyn, not when it had been buried for so long. But that wasn't what bothered her. The way Andrea spoke, it made her wonder if there was more she wasn't giving up.

"Is there anything else?" Andrea asked, snapping Evelyn back from her thoughts.

"Yes. There are two things," Evelyn said, "even if the lighter fell to the ground, there's no way it would catch on fire out of the blue if there weren't any flammable substances underneath. Was there any liquid spilled on the ground?" 

"I wish I could give you a definitive answer but I'm not sure. There is a possibility because it doesn't make sense otherwise but I hadn't noticed," Andrea responded.

"Alright. One last thing," Evelyn said. When Levi had told her that he knew nothing about the cameras in the chemistry lab, he sounded sincere. However, Evelyn wasn't sure anymore.

"Was the chemistry lab a famous make-out spot? Did people go there often?" Evelyn asked.

"No, not that I know of," Andrea said.

"Why did Mr.Coleman want to meet you there?" Evelyn asked.

"I'm afraid you're going to ask him that," Andrea replied with a chuckle.

"Weren't you curious? Surely there are better spots than a classroom," Evelyn said.

"I just assumed it was because of the cameras. It looked broken to me," Andrea said.

Evelyn felt something tug on her chest and she wasn't sure why. Was it that he lied again or was it that she was naive enough to believe him? Either way, the pull was too hard and too sudden than she would have preferred. It wasn't right to get so involved in a case anyway.

"Thank you so much for your time, I really appreciate it," Evelyn managed to say as she drew a wide smile on her face. 

"My pleasure," Andrea said but her face showed otherwise. 

Andrea left Evelyn all to herself again and she checked her watch. She still had an hour before her meeting with Levi. An hour until she got the detail for the house arrest. She grabbed the cup of coffee which she had pushed aside when Andrea had come and stirred it. It had become cold and somehow, that made the coffee a lot less bitter.

She looked at the cup and sighed. Perhaps if she gave Levi more time, he would try and be honest around her. She shook her head in annoyance and told herself that she was doing Levi a favor, not the other way around.

She thought about everything Andrea had told her. 

1. Levi didn't stumble into her in the chemistry lab, he had planned to go there beforehand.

2. It probably wasn't relevant, but they were doing a play on an actual fire that happened years ago which was extremely weird.

3. The cameras looked broken so there was no way Levi couldn't have known about it.

Ever since her first, proper meeting with Levi, she knew there was more to the story and Andrea was more involved than Levi made it seem. Now, she didn't know how much further to look. 

One of them was lying, perhaps even both of them together. Levi didn't seem like the scared and innocent boy she thought he was only a day ago and Andrea wasn't a nobody in the story. They were hiding something big and she needed to get Levi to speak up.

Her reputation was on the line and she needed to think fast. There was not a lot she could say for certain but there was something that was spelled out, loud and clear.

One of them hadn't stuck to the story.