My eyes drop to the table, to my normal fingernails. So different from his. “I don’t know. We just met, I don’t feel safe.”
He purses his lips.You will be safe with me.
The words just came at me, unprompted. Hastily, I take my keys from the table and scramble away.
“I’m sorry, I need to go.”
The next day after class, I receive a text.
You look lovely, my sweet.
To someone else, this seems innocent—even intimate. But to meandfrom an unknown number? It leaves me unsettled. I swallow hard, watching the sky darken. New moon tonight. Which means complete darkness in my hut.
During my short commute home, I always put my earphones in. My tastes varied from the ASMR sounds of nature, to synth-techno music, to horror podcasts. Tonight, it’s the podcast that lulls me half to sleep. My mind drifts away from the random message, body heavy with exhaustion.
My forehead on the glass window, I watch as the train leaves the neon lights of the town. We’re in a tunnel now, and the darkness outside empties my vision. Zooming through the subway, something catches my attention. At the corner of my eye, two luminous violet eyes stare at me.
The sounds of the train fade, only to become a deep, seductive purr I feel in my bones. It’s the sound of a lion’s growl with slowed down tempo, lowered pitch.
I touch the glass where the eyes are. It doesn’t disappear like I first thought it would. Instead, the eyes narrow, a widesharp-toothed smile forming below them. It blinks, the violet turning to blue, then to pink.
Those eyes are like daggers, my sweet.
My lethargic body’s heart races, and I whip my head around. There’s no one behind me, just a few passengers minding their own business.
I run my hands over my face. For a hopeful second, I think it’s my friend. The thing that keeps me company in my dreams. I don’t know if seeing and hearing it is a good or bad thing if that’s the case. Maybe I’m just so lonely that I’m seeing things that aren’t there.
As soon as I step outside the walls of the station, the wind wraps around me like a cold embrace. It’s fall season, and I need to hurry if I want to keep warm. The sound of my boots crunching on the ground is all I hear until the purring begins again. I know it’s not my belly…
Walking faster, I arrive at the last stretch of my walk, and I never saw this until now. With the only light illuminating the way, the trees before the path to my hut are shaped like snarling branches coming together like an archway of sharp teeth.
The wind blows my hair forward.
Go on, come inside. You’re a brave girl.
I whirl around, wanting—no,needingto see someone is actually talking out loud. That I’m just not going crazy. I start to shiver, and it’s not from the cold.
It’s so dark…
There’s a whistle before a man walks into view. He’s so tall, I almost thought he was part of the tree. His hands are stuffed inside his leather jacket. Pulling one out, I almost expect to see a gun.
“Oh my god!” I gasp.
Mako waves, a huge grin on his face. He signals if I’m okay, and I nod furiously. I can’t believe I almost had a panic attack. I feel a little embarrassed that my fear got the best of me.
“You scared me.” I’m so relieved I could cry. So much for healing. I’m still truly just a girl afraid of the dark. “What are you doing here?”
He makes a walking motion with his fingers before pointing at me.
“You’re following me?” I should be scared, but I’m not. In fact, I’m actually thankful he followed me.
His eyes narrow every time he smiles wide. It’s endearing like he’s trying so hard not to clack his teeth together. Much like a shark. He strolls toward me, hooking his arm around mine. Immediately, a dormant fire in me sparks to life.
Gesturing toward my hut, he nudges me forward. I don’t even ask why he knows where I live. Before we can move, though, thunder rolls in. Water pelts against my skin faster only to become a full-on downpour.
I squeal as Mako and I run toward my hut. I like his silence. It’s comforting despite the fact he is basically a stranger to me. There’s no use in shaking the water off us. We’re soaked, so I turn to switch the lights on…
“Blackout.” Fuck. “You know, this is very suspicious with all the advances of technology. You’d think they’d have enough back-up—” I shut my mouth because I see Mako’s silhouette.
