Chapter 14

Chapter 14

The school halls felt even more crowded than usual today.

Voices bounced off the lockers.

Laughter echoed down the corridors.

Books slammed shut.

Shoes squeaked across the floors.

But somehow, I felt like I was walking through it all in slow motion.

Invisible.

Distant.

Like there was a glass wall between me and everyone else.

I tightened my grip on the straps of my backpack and kept moving, weaving through the crowds without really seeing anyone.

Just survive today, I told myself.

Just make it through.

---

Classes blurred together.

History.

Literature.

Math.

I sat at the back of each room, head down, pretending to take notes.

But my mind was somewhere else.

Flipping through flashes of memories I couldn’t fully grasp.

Hearing Alex’s voice in the back of my mind.

Feeling the weight of secrets pressing down on my chest.

At lunch, I met Lena at our usual table.

She was already there, scrolling through her phone with a frustrated look on her face.

“Mike again?” I asked softly as I sat down.

She nodded, not even looking up.

“He's mad I didn't answer his call during third period.”

I sighed.

“Lena... you were in class.”

“I know,” she muttered.

“He doesn’t care.”

I wanted to say more.

Wanted to tell her to break up with him already.

But I knew she wasn’t ready.

Not yet.

So instead, I unwrapped my sandwich and sat there, keeping her company.

Sometimes being there was the only thing you could do.

---

After lunch, the day dragged even slower.

By the time the final bell rang, my head was pounding.

I gathered my things slowly, letting most of the students clear out before I headed to my locker.

I didn’t want to deal with the noise.

The stares.

The whispers.

I just wanted to go home.

As I walked outside toward the parking lot, I tucked my hands into the pockets of my hoodie, my head low.

That’s when I felt it.

That prickling sensation again.

The one that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

I glanced up, scanning the parking lot.

And my heart almost stopped.

Rick.

Standing by the fence.

Leaning casually against it, hands in his jacket pockets, a baseball cap pulled low over his eyes.

But I knew it was him.

Even from across the lot.

Even without seeing his face fully.

I knew.

He wasn’t doing anything.

Wasn’t talking to anyone.

Wasn’t holding a sign or a phone.

Just... standing there.

Watching.

Waiting.

And even though he didn’t move, even though he didn’t call out to me, I knew he had seen me too.

Our eyes met for a split second.

And then he turned and walked away, disappearing around the corner.

Like he had never been there.

---

I stood frozen for a moment, my heart hammering in my chest.

What was he doing here?

He didn’t go to my school.

He didn’t live anywhere near here.

There was no reason for him to be here.

Unless... he was following me.

Unless... he was watching.

The thought made my stomach twist painfully.

I tightened my hoodie around myself and hurried to the bus stop without looking back.

---

The ride home felt longer than usual.

I kept glancing out the window, half-expecting to see Rick’s face in every car that passed.

But there was nothing.

Just the usual grey streets and tired-looking houses blurring past.

I hugged my backpack tighter to my chest and tried to breathe.

I needed to stay calm.

I needed to think.

Panic wouldn’t help.

---

When I got home, the house was quiet.

Mom was still at work.

Chris wouldn’t be home for another hour.

I dropped my bag by the door and headed straight upstairs.

Locking my bedroom door behind me, I sat on the floor and pulled out my notebook.

I opened to a fresh page and wrote carefully:

"Rick spotted at school parking lot. No reason for him to be there. Watching me."

"Trust no one."

I stared at the words for a long time.

Trust no one.

It felt dramatic.

Paranoid.

But deep down, I knew it was true.

I had been too open.

Too trusting.

Telling Lena everything.

Letting Rick into my life so easily.

Not questioning the small things.

Not questioning enough.

That had to change.

Starting now.

---

I pulled out another sheet of paper and wrote a list.

People I could trust.

At the top, I wrote Mom.

Then paused.

Could I trust her?

I loved her.

But if this was bigger than me — if it involved secret experiments, memory manipulation, things people weren’t supposed to know — would she even believe me?

Or would she just think I was crazy?

Slowly, I crossed out her name.

Next, I wrote Chris.

But he was just a kid.

Innocent.

Vulnerable.

I couldn’t drag him into this.

I crossed out his name too.

Then I wrote Lena.

And this time, my heart hurt a little more.

Because I trusted her.

With everything.

But she had Mike.

And if Mike was controlling her...

Could he get to her?

Could he get information through her?

I didn’t want to believe it.

But I had to be careful.

I crossed out Lena’s name, tears stinging my eyes.

Finally, I sat back and looked at the page.

Empty.

No one.

No one I could fully trust.

Not with this.

Not with the truth.

---

I closed the notebook and hugged it to my chest.

It was a lonely feeling.

Knowing you were on your own.

But it was better than being betrayed.

Better than putting the people I loved in danger.

---

The rest of the evening passed slowly.

Chris came home, loud and happy, talking about some soccer game he wanted to join.

I smiled and nodded in all the right places, helping him with his homework and heating up frozen pizza for dinner.

Mom called around seven, apologizing for working late again.

I told her it was fine.

Everything was fine.

It had to be.

Dad came home after dark, grumbling about traffic and taxes and how teenagers today didn’t know how lucky they were.

I sat through dinner, nodding at the right moments, laughing when Chris made a dumb joke.

Pretending.

Pretending everything was normal.

Pretending I wasn’t falling apart inside.

---

Later that night, lying in bed, I stared at the ceiling.

The cracks above me looked like a map.

A map leading somewhere I hadn’t found yet.

Somewhere I needed to go.

I pulled my blanket tighter around me and closed my eyes.

I couldn’t trust anyone.

I couldn’t tell anyone.

But I could still fight.

I could still find the truth.

Piece by piece.

Step by step.

I wasn’t giving up.

Not now.

Not ever.