Page 20 of Done Waiting

I hope someone finds you, Katie Michaels.

Resuming my run, I spot a few more posters hung on trees along this trail that leads to a lake. I was planning on heading there and doing a lap around it, but now… An uneasy feeling rips through me and I look around. It feels like I’m being watched, yet I see no one. I have no idea if it’s my stalker or someone else. Although I saw him earlier at the ice cream shop, he could have gone anywhere after leaving there.

Maybe it’s whoever took Katie.

Goosebumps cover my skin. Turning around, I sprint along the trail, my eyes on the ground beneath my feet so I don’t trip over a rock or root, running like someone is chasing me, despite the burn in my lungs and ache in my thighs.

Once I’m out of the woods, my heart rate and breathing slow slightly. I slow, daring to look over my shoulder, but see no one.

It’s just your imagination.

I continue running until I reach my front door, then hurry inside, slamming and locking it behind me. I’m not sure why, but I feel compelled to go to my room and look outside the window, but I find myself running up the steps and over to the window where I caught my first glimpse of his smiling face.

There’s no one there.

A laugh bursts out of me, shaking my head at my silliness. Rubbing my hand over my sweaty brow, I head to the bathroom to shower and wash the sweat and unease away.

Once in the bathroom, I flip on the light switch, not comfortable with the shadows in the room right now. After stripping out of my clothes, I wrap a towel around myself, turning on some music. Thoughts of Ben start to creep up again,so I turn the volume up louder, grinning as “Poison” by Alice Cooper plays. One of my dad’s favorite songs.

As I’m gathering my hair into a messy bun, I step toward the basket of hair ties. My gaze moves to the window, my head turning to see the rosebush my dad planted for me when I was a kid. My movements still, all the blood draining from my face, as I see the guy in a hoodie and leather jacket standing beside it.My stalker.The guy I saw at the ice cream shop earlier, and I swear he’s the guy who outside my window just this morning.

I stare at him and oddly enough, it appears he’s gazing right at me.

As if they have a mind of their own, my feet carry me to the window, my eyes never leaving his. My fear turns into… something I don’t want to acknowledge as he plucks a red rose from the bush, holding it up toward me like someone making a toast with their glass.

What the hell?

Anger washes over me.Who the hell does this guy think he is?What is he doing in my mom’s yard?

He winks at me and mouths four words to me. “You look beautiful today.”

I try to convince myself my pounding heart is because a strange man is standing near my rosebush, plucking… oh hell, he just pulled off another one. My pulse pounds in my ears as his smile widens.Goddamn, why is this man so fucking attractive?The dimple in his left cheek is my undoing, a groan escaping me. Biting my lip, I back away from myself, scared of what I’m feeling.

Get control of yourself. You have a boyfriend.

My traitorous brain starts singing Ben’s faults, a stabbing pain cutting through my heart with each thought. No, stop it. You need to give Ben the benefit of the doubt and stop all this… nonsense.

Spinning around, I reach inside the shower, angrily turning the water on. Then I step inside, turning the water to cold to cool my flushed skin.

After my shower, I put on a pair of pajamas, a bittersweet smile on my lips. My dad gave me these last Christmas and told me to keep them here, so whenever I came over for our ritual Christmas eve movie fest, I could wear them when we exchanged one present and opened our stockings. These pajamas, a pair of fluffy socks, and a Halloween movie were inside the box he gave me to open.

Feeling comforted, I head downstairs but freeze when I hear the doorbell ring. My heartbeat races as I slowly approach the door. Craning my neck, I peer out through the glass in the door, but don’t see anyone. I remain unconvinced as I move toward the window beside the door, leaning over and hesitantly peering out, my gaze bouncing around rapidly. But no one is there.

From across the street, I see the UPS truck. I exhale, releasing a nervous laugh.It’s just a package being dropped off.

Certain it’s something for my mom, I pull open the door and gasp when I look at what lies in front of the door. A dozen red roses, looking every bit like the ones from my rosebush, are beautifully arranged on the porch. My gaze looks up, darting around, but I don’t see anyone.

Stepping outside, I stoop down, my hands shaking as I swoop up the flowers. As I stand with them, a folded note falls out.

Swallowing hard, I bend down, picking it up. My heart pounds inside my chest and my breath hitches when I read the words written in block handwriting.My condolences over the loss of your father. I hope these put a smile on your face, although their beauty pales in comparison to you.

My gaze darts around again, but I don’t see anyone.

Even though I should be creeped out, a smile blooms across my face as I breathe in their aroma. I’m certain the guy in thehoodie, who I refer to as my stalker, plucked them and left them for me.

I should be creeped out. Instead, I’m touched by this unexpected gift, especially the note. Hurrying back inside, I shut and lock the door and then head to the kitchen. Grabbing a vase from beneath the sink, I fill it, then artfully display the roses inside. I don’t want my mom to see these and ask questions, so I take them upstairs, setting them on the nightstand beside the bed. She seldom comes into my room, except for the night I disappeared from the gathering she held for my dad.

Guilt hits me square in the chest when my phone beeps, and I see a text from Ben, thanking me for going with him for ice cream earlier. I text back, my reply brief as my hands shake from the feelings of disloyalty coursing through me.

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