Chapter Fifteen
Von
“S o, did you need anything else?” I ask him curiously. My left hand is on the back of the door, ready to slam it shut in his face at the first sign of a false move.
His eyes bore into mine, burning with such an intensity that I’m scared my soul will become scorched from them.
Then a smile appears on his lips. He shakes his head, chuckles, and glances away for a second before looking at me again.
“Just be sure she gets home tonight,” he says in a gravely tone before he cracks his neck, then turns and walks away.
I linger in the doorway as I watch him head toward his pickup truck that’s still parked a few houses away.
He pulls the door open and eases himself in a little slowly, but I’m assuming that’s because of age and nothing else.
When he turns his vehicle on, I shake my head and finally close the door. Jocelyn’s probably wondering what’s taking so long. Not to mention, I want to finish my food; I think as I turn and walk back toward the living room.
But when I get there, it’s empty.
There’s no Jocelyn, no little girl that kind of looks like her in a weird way.
Not even the dish that held my pancakes or the fork I used to eat them with.
Nothing.
Almost as if no one had ever been here at all.
Why did she leave without telling me?
It’s a thought that stayed with me long after I sat down in her recliner to train my eyes on the world outside.
Is she coming back?
I run a hand down my face as I clear my throat and get comfortable.
I wanted to go home, but I guess this will have to do until Jocelyn comes back.