Chapter 6 Ali
Ali
Monday, I tried to watch the people around me in hopes of finding some clue as to who might be the unknown stalker.
I moved through the halls, trying to be stealthy.
Each time I stopped at my locker, I would take a little longer than usual, peeping around the door to scan the surrounding area to see if anyone was watching me.
At lunch, I sat with my back to the wall at my usual table, pretending to eat while scanning the cafeteria.
Evan was seated across from me, trying to make conversation with me and our friends.
It was mostly basketball players and cheerleaders, people we saw all the time.
None of them gave me the ick, and there wasn’t a single one of them who would dare cross any kind of line with me.
They’d all met Sixx, who came to the games that I cheered at.
Being on the receiving end of his cold stare was enough warning for even the stupidest boy to heed.
It was while I was shoving a chip into my mouth that I finally felt the prickle of unease.
I absently played with the torn edge of the yellow bag of salty goodness, popping the occasional piece of chocolate into my mouth with another chip.
My skin began to crawl, the sensation of being watched hard to ignore.
Slowly, I leaned forward, pretending to listen to whatever Neo and Ophelia were whispering about.
I didn’t hear a single word, though, my eyes skimming over the crowd until they collided with…
All the food I’d forced down rebelled and started to climb into the back of my throat. Without thinking, I reached out blindly, grabbing the first cold drink my fingers grazed, and I began to chug the bottle of water in hopes of keeping the contents of my stomach from making a reappearance.
“You good?” Evan asked, giving me a weird look as I finally lowered the bottle and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.
Heartbeat thundering, stomach tossing, I shifted my gaze away from my friend and did my best not to look back in the direction of those eyes.
No. Please no. For once in my life, I didn’t want to be right about something. But I was. I knew I was. There was no use denying it any longer.
A text pinged on my phone. Fingers shaking, I glanced down at the screen. So did Evan. I snatched it up before he could read the message, tilting the device toward me.
Unknown: You look beautiful today.
More texts came in quicker than I could delete them.
Unknown: I want an up-close look at my favorite freckle.
Unknown: I can’t wait to taste it.
Unknown: See you in class.
Number one on my to-do list could be crossed off now, but instead of shortening the list, all it had done was make it longer.
Because now I had to figure out how to get Mr. Gaviria fired.
“Ali?” I yelped and nearly dropped my phone when Evan touched my arm. His aquamarine eyes narrowed, his dimples completely disappearing. “You look sick.”
“Yeah,” I said, my voice sounding weak to my ears. Sweat dotted my brow, my hands shook a little more than they had been moments before, and I was fighting not to puke in a big way. “I just want to go home.”
He glanced at the time on his phone. “Lunch will be over in ten minutes, but I can be late for my next class if you want me to drive you home.”
“Please,” I choked out, not caring that I was running away from the situation, still hiding from the reality of what was going on.
But there was no way I could stay when I’d just confirmed that my teacher was the creeper who wouldn’t leave me alone.
I wanted to go home, crawl into bed, and hold on to my pillow that still had Sixx’s hoodie covering it.
No, I wanted to hold on to Sixx.
That prickle of unease intensified, and like a magnet, my gaze was drawn back to Mr. Gaviria, who was standing by one of the exits. He didn’t normally have lunch duty, which meant he was there for only one reason I could think of. Me.
Evan stood, picking up his tray and my own. “Come on, Ali,” he said gently.
On shaking legs, I stood and followed him.
When he dumped our trash and placed the tray in the return window, I grabbed hold of his polo shirt.
All his clothes were tailored to fit his ever-growing, giant body.
His brow scrunched at the action, but he put his hand on my back and guided me toward the exit.
Walking beside him always made me feel like a doll.
I was slightly above average in height, but compared to Evan, everyone was short.
Seeing the door, I almost jerked. Mr. Gaviria had moved in front of it, blocking our way. Fear and disgust were not a good combination when my stomach was already in distress. I clutched at my friend, the boy who was the closest thing I had to a brother, knowing he would protect me…
If he knew he needed to protect me.
Which he didn’t.
Fumbling with my phone, I deleted the four new texts that had come in while Evan was emptying our trays. Mr. Gaviria said something to Evan I didn’t hear because the blood was whooshing through my ears too loudly. I felt dizzy and nauseated, my vision barely clear enough to see where I was walking.
Keeping my head ducked while Evan laughed and answered whatever question his assistant basketball coach asked, I texted my boyfriend.
Me: Not feeling well. Going home early. I miss you so much.
A reply came instantly.
Sixx: I’m leaving now.
I didn’t argue about him skipping school, didn’t tell him that I was going to be okay. Instead, I held on to Evan’s shirt even tighter and tugged, silently begging him to end his chat and get me out of there.
“Catch you later, Coach,” Evan called, walking away with me close to his side.
Without looking back, I held my phone to my chest with my free hand, my entire body shuddering to the point my teeth began to chatter.
“Maybe you should see a doctor,” he muttered when we got to the student parking lot. Opening the passenger door, he had to untangle my fingers from his shirt before I got into the Range Rover. “Fasten your seat belt.”
As I did, I chanced a glance at my phone screen and nearly emptied my stomach when I saw more texts from Unknown.
I gulped, deleting them without reading a single word and putting my phone back on Do Not Disturb.
I’d clicked the option off earlier that morning because I wasn’t sure who might need to reach me with Abi’s surprise return home.
Thankfully, the drive to my house was quick. Evan pulled into the driveway, his kind eyes skimming over me with concern. “You want me to stay?”
I kinda did, but I knew that would only cause more trouble. My parents would already have questions about my being home early. And Sixx was on his way. There was no way I could handle them growling at each other with how sick and vulnerable I felt.
“Abi’s here. So is Hayat,” I reminded him, forcing a grim smile. “It’s probably just a virus. I’ll be fine by tomorrow. Don’t risk getting yourself sick more than you already have. Th-thanks for the ride, Ev.”
“Feel better. Call if you need anything.”
All I could do was nod as I hurried out and then up to the front door. Using my key, I let myself in. Dad wasn’t home, but Mom was. She took one look at me and sent me to bed.
“Is there something going around school?” she asked, following me up the stairs.
“Probably.” It was school. Something was always making the rounds.
“I have some anti-nausea meds from last time. Get comfortable while I grab them.”
I paused at my bedroom door, glancing at my sister’s shut door. “How is Abi?”
Mom’s shoulders dropped. “She says she was stressed and homesick and everything built until she imploded. But I don’t know… It feels like I’m missing something.”
You are, Mom. You are. I’m right here and I’m not okay. I’m not okay. I’m sick from the stress. From the fear. See me. Please. See it and ask all the questions. Please, I need you.
Blinking back tears, I shoved that voice deeper, blocking out the scared little girl who needed her mom so desperately, and gave her a tired shrug.
She reached out, brushing a few locks of hair away from my face. Her blue eyes searched, her brow puckering. “I’m glad you came home. You need some rest. I’ll be right back with the meds, sweetheart.”
“Thanks, Mom.” I took a step into my room. “And heads up, Sixx might show up. I told him I wasn’t feeling well.”
Her snort of amusement almost made me smile. “Baby, I would be more shocked if he didn’t show up. Now, get to bed. You look like you’re going to pass out.”