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Oh my God. I glance around my surroundings, suddenly feeling very panicked and unsafe. The streets are practically empty, just a few random cars parked up a bit farther. No other people to hear me if something was to happen.
My mind starts to race through what I just read. Some fucking creep is in his car watching me? Whoever this is knows what I'm wearing, but any number of people from the party could just be messing with me. They all know what character I'm dressed as. I look up the street and see the flashing neon sign of a twenty-four-hour diner that would be as safe a place as any right now. So I make a run for it, not stopping until I have burst through the front door.
The waitress behind the counter gives me a look. "Sorry," I say, feeling silly to have caused a scene, bursting in here.
She returns to what she's doing when she realizes I'm nothing to worry about.
The place is pretty deserted, and I'm not surprised. I make my way to a booth and slump down in the vinyl seat, trying to catch my breath. My heart is beating so hard I can feel my pulse throbbing through my body.
Shit. Who can I call? I don't want to keep walking home alone. It's late and I'm freaking the fuck out. My family have already driven home, and the girls have gone their own ways. I could call them, but all of us would be over the legal alcohol limit to drive and I don't want to worry them.
I remember what Brad said to me the day I got scared when the lights went out at the soccer field. He offered me his number, so I could call if I was ever worried. Well, I'm fucking worried. Without another thought about it, I hit dial and pray he picks up.
"Hello?" His sleepy voice comes through the phone. Shit, I feel stupid and guilty as soon as he answers. Maybe I should just hang up and think of another way to get home.
"I'm so sorry, did I wake you?" I ask, knowing I did.
"Andy, is that you? What's wrong?" he mutters, his voice now sounding panicked.
"It's probably nothing, but I'm a bit freaked out. I think someone might be watching me."
I can hear movement through the phone, sounds like him throwing on clothes or something. "Where are you?" he demands.
"At some fifties diner on 119th Street."
"Okay, stay there, I'll be there in five." He disconnects the call, and I wonder if that spur-of-the-moment decision was the right one. But right now, I don't care. I'm scared that some creep is stalking me, just like what Brad said had happened to his friend. And for whatever reason, he is the only one I want to come and save me.
Brad
I hurry through the door to the diner and glance around the room for her. She's in a booth toward the back near the jukebox. My anxiety washes away when her eyes connect with mine and I know she's safe. The sight of her surprises me a little. She's wearing a Wonder Woman costume… I think. I can see relief wash over her pretty features, knowing I'm here.
I'm not sure what's appropriate right now, but I don't really care. I slide straight in next to her, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her toward me. She buries her head against my chest. "I'm so sorry to wake you up, I just got really freaked out." I feel the shake in her hands and hear the fear in her voice, no sign of the overconfident sassy girl I know. She's really thrown by whatever happened tonight.
"Hey, hey, it's okay. I told you to call me if you needed me." She pulls back to look at me and I take her hands in mine, trying to stop the way they're shaking.
She offers me a weak smile. "Do you want a coffee or something to eat? It's on me for getting you out of bed."
"Nah, I'm good. Really, don't worry about it, Andy. I told you to call me if you needed me and I meant it," I say, reassuring her.
"You can have some of my pie. I thought I wanted it but I'm feeling too yucky to eat it." She slides it toward me. It looks good, and she's barely touched it, so I dig in.
"So what happened tonight?" I don't want to push her, but I want to know what's going on so I can help her. It was bad enough for her to call.
She nibbles on her bottom lip nervously. "This." She hands her phone over to me with the message thread already up.
I scroll through from the start. The hairs stand up on the back of my neck as I read through. I can see why she's scared. She was walking alone late at night, and this is some creepy shit. I feel irritated that she put herself in danger in the first place. After what we talked about the other week, I thought she would have been more careful. "Why were you walking home alone? Where are the other girls you live with?"
"They all ended up going home with guys for the night. It was my party, so I didn't want to leave till the very end. I thought I would be okay. I do stuff like this all the time."
"Is it your birthday?" I feel like I should have known that about her. But really, how much do we know about each other?
"Yes. Twenty-four." She smiles for the first time since I got here.
Wow, twenty-four. She's so young. When I'm with her, I forget just how young she is. "Happy birthday! So that explains the costume."
She glances down at what she's wearing like she'd forgotten she was dressed as a superhero. "Oh, this old thing? This is just my usual when I go out." She giggles.
"It should be, you look amazing."
