by Ivy Blake
I allowed myself to take a deep breath now that Steven’s attention was firmly on his phone. I looked down the road knowing Mom could be miles away by now. I prayed that she had a solid plan to keep as far away from Steven as possible.
“I’m going to do homework,” I said after a moment, realising that Steven had forgotten I was there for once, directing his anger to his little screen.
“What do you want, a trophy?” he spat, briefly shooting daggers my way. I didn’t say anything but crept away quietly even though I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs before I bashed his head in. When I got to my room, I pulled out my phone to see if my mom had said anything. One unread message.
I’m sorry.
I shot one straight back to her.
Surely I can just come there when he’s at work?
I watched the little cloud pop up and disappear as Mom typed out her message. After a minute or so her, the cloud was replaced with a text.
It’s too dangerous.
Tears were in my eyes and my chest felt heavy with lead as I typed out a paragraph convincing her that I could find a way, pleading her to tell me where she was. I sent the message but I kept getting notified that it couldn’t be delivered. Mom had either turned her phone off or blocked me. What the hell did she expect me to do? There was no way I could just stay here. I didn’t know when I’d next talk to her. There was no way to know how long Steven would buy the story that she was at a conference. I needed to figure out my own plan before the jig was up. I hated to admit it, but I knew that this was one thing I couldn’t do by myself.
Chapter Fifteen
Megan
I checked my phone after gym class to see if Austin had said anything. My heart lifted as I saw that I had one unread message.
I’m sorting out some shit at the moment,will explain soon.
Nothing more, nothing less. This was all that I had from him since he’d left my house in a hurry after we kissed. While I’d been frustrated that we hadn’t been able to take things further (I also had to admit that I was annoyed at myself for how turned on I’d gotten while we were still fully clothed) I was more concerned with whatever was causing him to have such a panicked expression on his face. There had been no time for questions, not time to digest what had happened between us or what that meant for us before he had been out the door and running down the street towards his house.
Austin’s house stood out because it was by far the nicest one on the street, and that was saying something seeing as the competition was already so high. Every time I glimpsed it, I couldn’t help but wonder what went on there. Where did Austin come from? I was interested to see what the king of Valley High was like when no one was watching. I started typing a message then deleted what I’d written, starting fresh again. I did this a few times, unsure of what to say, finally settling on something simple and not too intense:
No worries.
I thought about putting a little kiss at the end, but since Austin hadn’t, I didn’t want to scare him off by seeming too keen or anything, so sent the message before I could change my mind.
I jumped into the shower and got changed into my school uniform. As I smoothed down the lapels of my blazer, Sophie popped up beside me, a big, friendly grin on her face. I was still so grateful that our friendship hadn’t fizzled out and that we were hanging out more frequently at school.
“Wanna go off campus for lunch?” she asked.
“I didn’t know we could,” I said truthfully.
“It’s a senior privilege, but it’s pretty easy to get away with, even if you’re not a senior,” Sophie said with a wink. “Let’s go, I know a great vegan place- you wouldn’t even be able to tell it’s not meat!”
We put our bags in our lockers and walked around to the front of the school where there were taxis picking up some students for their lunch break.
“We’ll walk, it’s much nicer,” said Sophie.
“Will we get back in time?” I asked her, worried to get into any trouble that might go on my school record. She laughed at me light-heartedly.
“You worry too much, there’s plenty of time.” She looped her arm through mine and led me down a path I’d noticed each morning that I hadn’t realised led to town.
“I love walking this way because it’s so calm and look how pretty it is.” Sophie gestured at the trees and the massive houses situated on the path, both were pretty impressive.
“I bet it looks amazing in Spring,” I said as I appreciated the view.
“Just you wait!” she exclaimed. It was really cute how Sophie got really passionate about the small things, it was one of the things that had made me warm to her.
“So, you’ve been here a few weeks now- how are you finding Valley High?”
“That feels like a loaded question,” I said with a laugh as my memories from the last few weeks rushed through my mind. A lot had happened in such a short space of time, it actually made me feel like I’d been here a lot longer than the calendar said.
“I’m just curious because we don’t really have that many new people. Most people that go to Valley High were born here.”
“Oh I could tell that from a mile away,’ I said sarcastically. “Honestly, I think Valley High is definitely growing on me.”
“Are you talking about the school or are you really talking about Austin?” Sophie waggled her eyebrows as she pushed open the café door.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I said playfully, trying my best to keep a smile off my face. But it was impossible.
“You’re the worst liar, Megan,” said Sophie as we sat down at our table. I laughed, thinking of how Austin had said the same to me not too long ago. Sophie’s face suddenly went serious.
“I know I’ve said some shit about him, but you’re my friend and I just want to look out for you, okay?” I nodded and she smiled at me. “What’s happening with you guys now? I can barely keep up!”
I looked up from my menu and blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
“We’ve kissed a few times,” I said, feeling like a middle schooler talking about her crush.
“Damn, you guys are practically married then,” Sophie teased. “Ooh you should try that! It’s amazing.” She pointed to a spot on my menu, I was already overwhelmed by the sheer volume of things on there that I was relieved to have someone make the decision for me.
“Can I take your order?” The waitress beamed at us as she stood with her pen and notepad. Sophie listed off our meals, topping it off with some drinks and desserts that I hadn’t come around to selecting. When I tried to interject, Sophie stopped me with a kindly raised hand and a genuine smile.
“It’s my treat,” she said , confirming the order with the waitress before sending her away. “Sorry, correct me if I’m wrong, but I swear you were hating his guts like literally yesterday, right?”
I cringed internally, but I’m sure it came across my face as I digested what Sophie was saying. She was right, it didn’t make sense at all.
“I won’t lie to you,” I said slowly, “it’s really confusing but it just keeps happening.” I shrugged my shoulders.
“How do you feel about him?” I allowed my eyes to roam around the café, taking in its chic and modern décor. A few students from our year walked in and took their own seats as they chatted amongst themselves. “Earth to Megan?”
“Oh!” I blushed as I realised I was avoiding Sophie’s question. I brought my finger to my lip as I thought back to Austin grabbing it with his teeth. Butterflies invaded my stomach as I reminded myself of his passionate kisses and his big, strong body pressed against mine. I felt so giddy, like I wasn’t myself.
“I think I kinda like him,” I said sheepishly, almost scared to say the words out loud, unsure of how they were going to be received. The waiter brought our drinks to the table and Sophie took a long sip of hers, nodding slowly as she did so.
“You like Austin Hunter?”
“Shh,” I hissed, not
wanting to be overheard by the other students, who definitely looked like the type to spread any gossip they picked up. “Yeah, I think so. Is that crazy?”
Sophie quirked her eyebrow and smirked. “You want my honest answer?”
“Please.”
“I just don’t understand how you can fancy the guy who’s been an absolute dick to you and given you hell since you got here. Do you?”
“I mean everyone can be horrible sometimes. I can be pretty shitty y’know,” I said, suddenly becoming defensive.
“Not everyone is the spawn of Satan though,” Sophie shot back, but her voice wasn’t malicious. “I’m, just worried about you, Megan. I’ve seen how easily that guy can ruin your day. She sighed. “Look, I just don’t want you to get hurt, that’s all.”
“Why do you assume that he’s going to hurt me?” I chuckled bitterly. “Do you think I’m not good enough for him or something?”
“No, of course not, Megan! That’s not what I’m saying at all!” exclaimed Sophie. We both went quiet as our food arrived. It smelt so fucking good and I knew it would be delicious but my stomach had started to form knots at Sophie’s comment.
“You can’t blame me for being suspicious. I’ve seen and heard things. You know Austin’s never had a girlfriend-”
“As far as you know,” I snapped before getting back to my senses. “I mean, no one said anything about being boyfriend or girlfriend anyway, I just told you we kissed.”
“And that you like him,” Sophie sang as she dipped her fries in ketchup.
“Fine, arrest me,” I said holding my hands up in surrender, “I’m just as confused as you, so please go easy on me.”
“Like I said, just be careful,” Sophie said, her eyes serious.
“I can take care of myself,” I said, more cold than I intended.
“That advice applies to this whole town,” Sophie chuckled, “you really can’t be too careful around here.”
“What do you mean?” I asked before biting into my food. It melted in my mouth and I wanted to sing with joy at the magnificent mix of flavours. The school food was amazing but this was on a different level.
“You and your sister might be impressed by status and looks- ”
“Are you calling us superficial?” I shot back, a I little offended. “It’s not like we sat down and hatched a plan together to go after them. Besides, I think Lola’s moved onto someone else, I don’t remember the last time she brought up Ross.”
Sophie shook her head. “I don’t think you’re superficial at all, but I can imagine how easy it is to get distracted by appearances, especially since you guys are still pretty new here.” She took a big bite of her food , her eyes rolling back ion her head as she savoured each bite before she swallowed.
“Take this from someone who’s lived here for a long time. There are a lot of people here with a lot of dark secrets, so you watch your back.” Sophie’s face had turned serious, her expression sending shivers down my spine as I thought about the man who’d been lurking in the shadows and stalking me ever since I’d arrived. Since I hadn’t had any luck speaking with Lola about it, I thought it might be worth bringing it up to Sophie since she seemed to have a good idea about the type of people that lived around here.
“Can I tell you something? It’s a bit weird though, but I’m not quite sure if I’m being paranoid or not,’ I said.
“What is it?” Sophie’s eyes widened. I looked around to see if anyone’s attention was on us, briefly catching our waitress’s eye before lowering my voice so that only Sophie could hear.
“I think I have a stalker,” I whispered.
“What?” said Sophie, her voice rising above mine.
“Shhh,” I warned her and she apologised before gesturing for me to continue.
“I’ve been noticing this guy following me but I don’t know what he wants,” I said slowly.
“I’ve seen him at school, outside my house-“
“Has he tried to say anything to you?” Sophie cut me off, her voice laced with worry. I shook my head.
“He hasn’t said anything, no communication at all. He just stands there. I tried to get close to him once-”
“Megan, he could be dangerous!” exclaimed Sophie.
“I know, but I wanted answers!” I said defensively. “He ran away before I could see his face or ask anything. It’s just fucking weird.”
“How old do you think he is?”
“No clue,” I said truthfully.
“But definitely a man?”
“I’m pretty confident about that, yeah.”
“Does anyone else know? Have you told the police?”
“I tried to tell Lola but she didn’t believe me and I wasn’t sure how serious it was so I haven’t reported it either.”
That was only half true. I hated police stations in general, mostly because I found them to be scary places but I hated making a big deal out of nothing even more. I always felt guilty afterwards for being an inconvenience.
“We’re going to the station to file a report, you can’t keep this to yourself. What if he tries to hurt you?” Sophie’s worried voice evoked more worry in my chest. I’d woken up a couple nights from dreams about encounters with my stalker, but I’d still been too nervous to take it any further.
“I don’t know what I’d even say. I don’t really know what he looks like, no one else has seen him so what if they just think I’m crazy. And he hasn’t actually tried to do anything…”
“But he might, and that’s why we need to report it,” said Sophie firmly.
‘You’re right,” I said, as I finally came to terms with the fact that my stalker could not only hurt me, but the people I loved like Mom and Lola if I didn’t do something about him.
“Do you mind coming with me?” I asked nervously.
“Of course, we can go after school if you want?”
“After tutoring, sure.”
“Of course, tutoring,” Sophie said sarcastically, putting all the emphasis on the last word. I rolled my eyes and finished my meal, trying not to dwell on the fact that I hadn’t heard from Austin all day. had no choice but to be patient until he was ready to fill me in on whatever the hell was going on. Sophie had warned me that people around here had dark secrets- was Austin one of them?
“You sure it’s not just going to be a hot make-out session in the library?” Sophie teased, her voice snapping me back to reality.
“I promise I’ll keep it PG-13,” I said playfully, even though deep down I worried about whether Austin would show up or not. Now that I’d come clean about him to Sophie, I weirdly felt more anxious about the whole thing. I knew that she saw his no-shows as a sign that he didn’t care about me, and there was no way to prove to her otherwise.
“I don’t think Austin will take too kindly to that idea!” I laughed with Sophie, however her comment pricked at the back of my brain. As she scrolled through her phone, I allowed my mind to wander. How public was he about his sex life that even Sophie seemed to have an idea about his tendencies? Was she speaking from experience or was she just assuming? Maybe I was dumb for caring so much, there was no real reason for me to be mad about anything that happened before I met the guy. Besides, it’s not even like I’d publicly staked a claim for Austin anyway. I felt like I didn’t have the right to feel some type of way about these things. My heart suddenly dropped.