Chapter 15
It seemed that nothing in my life was going to go right at the moment. The whole house had been woken by the phone ringing at just after three in the morning. It transpired that my mom’s dad had been taken into hospital with suspected pneumonia. He’d been battling a cough last time he came down to visit us for mine and Alex’s birthday. My parents had instantly packed a bag and headed there for a couple of days to help my nanna out. Though Alex and I both asked to go with them, they refused because we had school and insisted that they would only be gone a couple of days. I hadn’t really gone back to sleep after my nanna had phoned, so by the time morning came around my eyes were stinging with tiredness.
What made it worse was that I didn’t know what to do with myself all day. Usually my weekends were filled by Luke, Luke, and more Luke. But this weekend I would have to amuse myself for a change. I wallowed all morning, sitting around, watching TV, and picking at junk food just to have something to distract myself from the fact that I missed Luke so much it was actually painful.
When I could stand the boredom no longer, I decided to go for a nice long walk. I pulled on a pair of boots and one of Luke’s hooded sweatshirts, grabbed a tennis ball, and then Chester and I headed off for a stroll in the field near my house.
By the time I got home I was exhausted and covered in mud but at least I had killed an hour and a half from my weekend. Just as I raised my key to the lock to open the door, it sprang open and Alex almost walked into me as he was about to step out. He had a gym bag slung over his shoulder so I didn’t bother asking where he was going.
“Jeez, Maisie, you scared me,” he scolded, shaking his head in disapproval. “Were you waiting outside the door until I came along, just so you could frighten the shit out of me?”
I nodded, rolling my eyes. “Of course I was. Scaring you is the highlight of my day.”
“Whatever.” He smiled before stepping to the side and waving me into the house. “Moving on to more pleasant matters, I’m going to Katherine’s after I’ve been to the gym so don’t wait up for me.” His voice was almost bragging as he strutted up the driveway and unlocked his car. “Oh, and you got a FedEx delivery while you were out. I put it in your room,” he called, before climbing in and starting the engine a second later.
I glanced sceptically over my shoulder, wondering who had sent it and what it was. It was probably a belated gift for my birthday from my surrogate aunt Rachel, my mom’s best friend; her and her husband Tom were always late with the gifts. “Okay, see ya,” I called, watching as Alex pulled out of the drive. Once I was alone I headed to the kitchen, grabbing a soda and a packet of chips, before trudging up to my room. A rectangular white FedEx box sat on my bed, about the side of a shoe box. I frowned, but decided to go for a shower and change clothes first because of I was covered in mud and grass.
After a refreshing shower, I pulled my wet hair up into a ponytail and slipped on some fresh sweatpants and a tank top. I sat next to the box and picked it up curiously. There was no return label on it. It was light in weight, and something rolled inside as I moved it and set it on my lap, grabbed the tab and tore it open.
As I opened it and lifted the lid I recoiled at the contents. Inside was a stuffed brown bear, but someone had hacked off its head so that the white fluffy stuffing was all over the bottom of the box. The head rolled around as I jerked in shock. The disembodied object rolled over to me and I cringed when I saw that the eyes were missing so more stuffing leaked out of the holes making it look menacing. “What the hell?” I hissed, dropping the box on my bed, not wanting to touch it anymore. I could see two other objects in the box too, a white lily that was withered, the petals were crinkled and browning at the edges. The other item in there I wasn’t even sure I wanted to see. It was a red envelope with the letter M written on it in big black pen.
I gulped. My heart was starting to beat too fast in my chest as my fingers hesitantly reached out for it. Being careful not to touch any of the stuffing that lined the inside of the box, I picked up the note. I slowly lifted the flap on the envelope and pulled out the folded up sheet of red paper. I winced because there was that old fashioned typewriter writing again inside it again. Different words this time though:
You’re next
My eyes flicked back to the box again, seeing the mutilated bear. Next? What the heck does that mean? My eyes widened as my hand flew up to cover my mouth as the penny dropped. Before I knew what I was doing I was on my feet and across the other side of the room as my pulse quickened and fear gripped my stomach. You’re next…
Whoever had sent this knew where I lived. My mouth went dry as my chest tightened. I suddenly became aware of every single sound outside my window as my imagination started to run away with me. The creak of branches of the old tree in our front yard made me jump a mile into the air. Why would someone start this hate campaign against me? Why would someone send me this? Did someone seriously want to hurt me? First my locker, then notebook, then the flowers, and the note with the petal that was pushed into my locker, and now they were sending me a decapitated stuffed bear? The only person I could think of was Sandy, but she wasn’t this unhinged, surely. And if it wasn’t her, then who did send it? I had no idea.
Suddenly the door to my room creaked open and I literally screamed like a three year old girl, clutching above my heart as my eyes widened in horror, expecting to see some knife wielding maniac come to pull my eyes out. You’re next… The words of the old fashioned typed writing swam before my eyes as I just stood there, frozen against the wall, easy pickens for whatever psycho wanted to hurt me.
But it wasn’t a psycho that strutted into my room. Chester, my dog, froze when I screamed, looking up at me with wide eyes as he stepped through the door. I blew out a big breath, not even realising that I was holding it in. I closed my eyes as he came over, licking my clenched fist in greeting.
“Oh God, get a grip of yourself, Maisie,” I scolded, shaking my head at myself. But I couldn’t calm my breathing as my eyes settled on the package on the bed. Someone was trying to scare me, that was all. No one was really going to hurt me. It was just Sandy or someone that found it amusing to frighten me to death. I was being stupid, I knew that, but at the same time I couldn’t shake the fear that nestled in the pit of my stomach. All I kept thinking was that I was alone in the house. I needed to rectify that situation quickly.
I took a couple of hesitant steps towards the box again and grabbed my cell phone from the bed where I’d tossed it before going into the shower. Hitting speed dial one, I put it to my ear and waited.
“Hey, baby,” Luke greeted, sounding ridiculously eager to hear from me.
At the sound of his voice, my fear loosened marginally. His voice wrapped around me like silk, covering me and seeming to take away some of the anguish I felt inside. “Hi. Luke, please can you come round and hang out?” I asked, noticing that my voice shook as I spoke.
“Come round? Is everything okay?”
I nodded, not wanting to tell him about the parcel or the hate campaign that someone seemed intent on keeping up. I didn’t want to talk about it with him, he would go crazy and get all mad because someone was upsetting me, but the thing is I had no clue who was sending it. My only suspect was Sandy, but I wasn’t convinced she had the gall to go as far as sending me something like that in the mail. Whoever was doing it was trying to get a huge reaction, to frighten me and make me upset. Well, I wasn’t giving anyone the satisfaction of seeing me upset. I’d talk to Charlotte and Beth about it tomorrow, but Luke would just wade in with his temper and make everything worse in the long run, so I decided to keep it from him for now. If something else came then I’d tell him and just let him go all protective caveman on me, but for now I wanted to put that off as long as possible.
“Everything’s fine,” I lied. “I just want to hang out, that’s all. Maybe watch a movie?”
I could already hear him moving around in the background, probably getting ready to come
over. “Movie sounds great. I’ll be there in five.”
I smiled weakly, closing my eyes because I knew I would feel better with Luke in the house. He always made me feel better and took care of me. “See you then.” I disconnected the call and looked down at the box on my bed, knowing I needed to hide it from Luke. I couldn’t just throw it away though like I did with the flowers, Charlotte would probably want to see it once I told her about it. So I’d have to hide it somewhere for now.
Not wanting to touch it again, I used my cell phone and carefully closed the lid of the box with it before lifting it distastefully and heading over to my closet and pushing it onto the shelf at the top. Once it was in I slammed the closet door and leant against it, feeling my eyes prickle with tears.
Just what had I done to make someone do that? I was a nice person, I was kind to everyone, I never bitched about anyone behind their backs or anything like that. So just what had made someone send me a murdered teddy bear with a note saying I was next?
A knocking on the door downstairs made me practically jump out of my skin as I whimpered and held my breath. I didn’t move. They knocked again, and I chewed on my lip. How long had I been standing there musing over why someone would send me something? Would that be Luke, or was it the person who sent it to me in the first place? My cell phone suddenly started vibrating in my hand. I gasped in shock and looked down to see Luke’s smiling face on my screen with his number glowing underneath.
I answered it quickly, not moving from the spot. “Hi.”
“Hey, you gonna answer your door or what?” he asked, laughing quietly.
I felt the tension leave my body because he was here. I must have been thinking about it longer than I thought and time had passed by without me realising it. I practically ran to the door, throwing it open to see him standing there, smiling the beautiful smile that I loved so much.
“Were you in the shower or something? What took you so-” Before he had a chance to finish his sentence, I threw myself at him, wrapping my arms around him tightly as I pressed my face into the side of his neck, breathing him in. His body stiffened as he wrapped his arms around me in return. “Maisie, what the?” he asked breathlessly.
I sighed contentedly and stepped impossibly closer. Everything about Luke was comforting, from the way his arms fitted around me, to his warmth, right down to his familiar scent that filled my lungs. It felt so nice just being held by him that I didn’t ever want to move. There was no denying the fact that I just needed Luke right now, what with everything going on he felt like some sort of safety blanket. My feelings for Luke hadn’t diminished at all I realised.
I fought back tears as I pressed myself even closer to him, squeezing him and letting his smell surround me. “I just missed you, that’s all,” I whispered. That was only half of the truth, I had missed him, but the relief that he was here was what made me lose my composure and hug him like he was the only thing keeping me on this earth.
His lips pressed to my temple. “I missed you too. I’m not used to not seeing you at the weekend.” He grinned that dazzling smile, flashing me a row of perfectly white straight teeth. His hand moved up to the back of my neck, stroking at my hairline lightly with his thumb. My skin prickled as I unconsciously whimpered because I’d always loved it when he did that. Luke just fitted me so perfectly; everything he did made me melt inside, even just the way his arms wrapped around me made my whole body sag in contentment. I needed him whether I wanted to admit it or not.
I reluctantly pulled back, looking up at him gratefully because he made everything better. All the panic and fear that I’d felt moments before were gone as soon as I looked into his big brown eyes. He smiled down at me, his expression hopeful and purely happy. I felt a smile pull at the corners of my mouth too just because I always had to return his smiles, it was just something in me that reacted without my permission. Even after what he’d done with Sandy, I still had to smile at the boy, it was crazy really. They say that you never really fall out of love. Looking at Luke I knew that saying was true, I would always love him.
“Thanks for coming over,” I muttered, not pulling out of his embrace yet because I was enjoying his closeness too much.
He bent his head, his nose tracing up the side of mine, making my breathing falter at the intimacy of the move. But he didn’t kiss me like I was expecting; instead he pulled his head away and smiled at me tenderly. “Of course I’d come over. I just hope you’re not gonna make me watch some crappy chick flick,” he replied, laughing quietly. I laughed too, letting the last of the tension leave my body as my hand slipped into his before giving him a little tug towards the lounge, just eager to cuddle up against him on the sofa like we always used to on a Saturday afternoon. Hopefully he’d stay until Alex got home from hanging out with his newest bed buddy, and then I wouldn’t have to be on my own in the house with that box.
Chapter 16
On Sunday morning I decided to call Charlotte and Beth and see if they wanted to come over. I needed to tell someone about the package I was sent. I couldn’t keep bottling it up inside, it would fester and eventually drive me crazy. I couldn’t tell my parents, brother, or Luke because I knew they would go mad, insist on calling the police, and would make such a huge deal out of it that Sandy would end up winning. No, instead I was going to pretend like nothing had happened, hold my head up high and smile as if she wasn’t important enough to me to bother me. I figured that would have more of an effect than anything else, she obviously wanted a reaction, and there was no way I was giving her another one.
They both arrived together just after eleven, giggling about something as they let themselves into my house as usual. Luckily for Charlotte, my brother wasn’t awake yet because usually as soon as she stepped foot in the house he’d be showing off and trying to get into her pants. It was sickening really.
Charlotte grinned, flopping onto the sofa next to me as we exchanged greetings.
I stood up and nodded towards the door. “Let’s go to my room and listen to some music or something.”
They both instantly stood and followed me out and up the stairs. With each step that I took I felt my apprehension build. I was a little nervous telling them about the box. What if they thought it was more than a joke too? That would kind of make it more real for me. When we got to my room I stepped to the side and let them both pass me as I chewed on my lip wondering if I should just keep it to myself and pretend that it never even got sent in the first place.
They both flopped down on my bed; Beth immediately grabbed my book from the nightstand, flicking through it absentmindedly. I took a deep breath and decided to get it out there and see what they thought about it.
“Um, so there’s actually a reason I called you both to come over,” I started, wincing as I looked at my closed closet door, not really wanting to touch the box again but knowing I was going to have to. That caught their attention immediately.
Charlotte narrowed her eyes at me. “Please tell me you’re not getting back with Luke.”
I smiled weakly. Clearly they had no idea what I was about to say. “It’s not about Luke, well, actually it kind of is, but it isn’t,” I mumbled.
Beth’s forehead creased with a frown. “You’re making even less sense than usual.”
I laughed humourlessly and closed the door, leaning against it and closing my eyes. “I know. It’s a long story.” They both sat there watching me intently as I spoke and told them all about the deep breathing phone calls, the note that I found in my locker, the scribbling on my notebook, and the flowers. Charlotte’s body was tensing up like a snake ready to pounce on its victim. Beth’s mouth was wide, as were her eyes. I swallowed the lump that was forming in my throat as I knew it was time to tell them about the last thing, the weirdest thing, the box that I’d been sent yesterday.
“And then I got this sent to me yesterday,” I muttered, pulling open the closet and grabbing the box that I’d stored there. I plopped it on the bed between the two girls, chewi
ng on my lip, waiting for them to open it and look.
Charlotte’s hand shot out, flipping the lid. “What the hell?” she cried, frowning down at the contents distastefully. “Someone FedEx’d you a murdered teddy bear and a dead flower? That’s twisted!”
I nodded as Beth immediately pulled the box to her, closing it and examining the packaging that I’d stored with it in my cupboard. “Who sent it? There’s no return address,” she observed, looking over the front of it again.
I ground my teeth in frustration. “Sandy.” She was the only one that would have a grudge against me.
Beth frowned. “How do you know that? It could be anyone.” Charlotte flipped open the box again, reaching in and pulling out the note, reading it with wide eyes before she passed it to Beth. “Wow.”
I shrugged and slumped down to the floor, sitting cross-legged and watching them. “It has to be her, who else could it be? She’s just trying to scare me; she’s trying to get a reaction as payback for me calling her a dirty tramp at the party. She’s a freak.”
Suddenly Beth put the box down and shook her head. “We shouldn’t be touching this. It’ll be contaminated with our fingerprints now.” She set it on the side, looking at it worriedly. “You have called the police, haven’t you?”
Okay, I knew this was coming. “Er, no. I’m not going to, and I don’t want anyone else to know either. She’s just doing it to make me look like an idiot, so I’m not giving her the satisfaction.” I lifted my chin confidently. I wasn’t going to the police, not over a beheaded teddy bear and a couple of prank phone calls, I’d get laughed right out of there.
Beth’s lips pressed into a hard, disapproving line. “Maisie, this is serious, what if it’s not her sending it? What if it’s not a joke? You have to tell the police.”
I flinched; I refused to think about that scenario. “It is her,” I assured them. “I don’t want a load of people to know about it, but I needed to tell someone. I definitely don’t want Alex or Luke to know about this, they’ll go all caveman on me and insist that I don’t go anywhere alone, you know what they’re both like.”
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