Page 27 of Twisted Little Thing

CHAPTER X

Nicky

"Yes?"

I hold my breath.

Yes? Who says hello like that on the phone? Especially when it's an anonymous number? It could be him, but I am not entirely sure.

I am sitting at the kitchen table, being observed by Yuka's overly curious eyes and ears while she holds her hand above her mouth to quiet herself. My hand tightens around the phone as if I was trying to crush it, pressing it against my ear with excessive force.

He's still there. I can hear him breathing.

Say more, my mind begs. I need to be sure.

A few more moments of awkward silence follow, before he finally adds something.

"Nicky? Is that you?"

Fuck!

I hastily remove the phone from my ear and try to end the call by uncontrollably pushing on the touch screen. These damn touch screens! Nervousness takes over and turns me into a trembling mess as I try to hit the red symbol that would let me escape into the safe haven of anonymity. Instead, the phone slips out of my hand and drops to the floor – with the call still connected.

Yuka yelps and giggles in surprise as I dive after my phone, unable to prevent a bunch of panicky curses to escape my mouth. I finally get a hold of it and manage to end the call.

"Fuck!" I yell, now sitting on the floor at Yuka's feet.

Of course, she is having a great time with this. She bursts out laughing, almost falling off her chair as she tries to help me get back up on my feet.

"Oh my God, Nicky!" she cries. "That was awesome!"

I actually had broken into a sweat. My cheeks are flushed and my heart is racing like a mad animal.

"Damn," I say, continuing my barrage of cursing.

How old am I again? I am acting like a stupid teenager. And I didn’t even behave like that when I was still in high school.

"So, I assume that really was him?" Yuka asks, still laughing at my unfortunate behavior.

I nod. My hands are trembling like a leaf.

"Yes," I utter. "It was him..."

Yuka's eyes are glowing with excitement. "What did he say?"

I look at her, still trying to gather myself.

"Yes," I reply. "He said 'Yes'. And then he said my name."

"Oh, damn, Nicky!" Yuka exclaims, unable to contain her excitement. "So he knew it was you?"

"Maybe," I stammer. "Well, I'm pretty sure he knew after that little stunt... and after you started giggling."

"Hey," Yuka objects. "Don't blame me, girl. You were the one who who opted to be a chicken.

I know she's right. I sink bank into my chair and let out a desperate sigh.

"Well, this went great," I mumble.

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