pǝʍolloɟ ɓuıǝq ɯ, I

CHAPTER 3

"I'm sorry you went through that" Emily apologized. She gave you a reassuring smile and a small pat on your back. "But, I don't think you're crazy! I believe you a hundred percent!". Emily pulled on her pigtails, a rather hard yank. "Trust me! When I first saw the doll I was terrified I was going crazy!".

You sipped on your smoothie and thought for a minute. "Hey" you cut in. "Could you...tell me what you saw? Only if you're comfortable, that is!". Emily nodded and proceeded to tell you everything.

"It happened a couple of days ago." she started. "I was working at the children's toy shop when I noticed a little girl walk in. She was by herself and...you don't usually see that. I think she looked around eight. She had brown hair and pigtails. Like mine!" Emily pointed. "Her eyes were weirdly..large..like....doll like almost. They were pretty. Green. She had....I think a pink dress on but she didn't have shoes. She was also wearing a mask. Like one of those...nurse ones. But it was really cute! It had a hello kitty design! I love Hello kitty! I really wanted to"

"Emily." you cut in.

"Sorry. Okay anyways she walked in and something just didn't feel right. I wanted to ask her if she was lost but the sense of overwhelming fear filled me. That's when the smell of rotting meat hit me. It was gross. I looked out the window and she was just standing there. Then when I looked back to where the little girl was and she was gone! The doll started walking herself to the store but she looked animated. I just-".

You looked down to catch Emily's handshaking. Tears began to mark her flushed cheeks. "I was so scared. The smell was so overwhelming. The way her bones cracked. I just ran out the back of the store and called the police. I didn't go back in until they searched the whole place. They didn't believe me. Neither did my boss but he let me go home early".

"It's okay Emily. You don't have to continue anymore." you insisted. Emily was sniffing, wiping each tear with her sleeve. The restaurant bell rang again. You both looked over to see a hooded figure. "Hi! Welcome to Mary's smoothies! How can I help you?".

"A berry blast smoothie. Small." a male muttered. His voice was rough. You would say he was around six feet. His medium-length brown hair was neatly brushed to the side. The more you looked at him, the more you thought of him as attractive. You noticed he had a couple of scars on his face. His chocolate eyes meet yours, a cheeky smirk played onto his face.

"Alright, sir! That's going to be four dollars and ten cents. " The male handed over a ten and told her to keep the change. He stood to the side to wait for his drink, glancing once and a while to your way. "(Y/N) " Emily whispered. Her voice shook. "I don't have a good feeling about him". You chuckled. "Is he making you nervous, Emily?". She looked at you dead in the eye. Oh. She's serious. "Alright, sir! Here's your order! Enjoy!" Kala exclaimed. The man nodded and gave you one last glance before leaving.

Emily suddenly started to violently shake. "E-Emily?" you asked. Emily tugged at her apron, ripping it off then tugging at her work shirt. This caught the attention of Kala, who rushed over to see what was the matter. Emily kneeled on the floor and began to cough up blood. She looked up at you, fear and hopelessness in her eyes. "Call 911! " you screamed. Kala nodded and rushed to the phone. "Emily! Emily, can you breathe? Does it hurt?". She fell to the ground, blood rushing out of her nose. You felt so hopeless. There was nothing you could do except monitor the poor girl. She would make eye contact, as if desperately trying to communicate with you. "An ambulance is coming! " Kala said. "Just monitor Emily, lay her on her side!". Fuck. You couldn't bear the thought of watching someone else die. You did just as Kala instructed and waited for someone to arrive.

Minutes later, paramedics arrived and ushered you to move away. You slowly backed away as you watched them carry Emily away. "Sweetheart" Kala spoke up. "It's okay now. Emily's going somewhere safe. You should head home. Maybe it's best if you call someone to pick you up".

You thought for a moment. Lupe was probably at Brittney's party. You could call Erin, but that seemed a bit weird. You had a couple of other friends on your contact list, but you didn't have the energy to explain the situation. "It's okay Mrs. Kala" you assured me. "I live six minutes from here. Besides, I think I need to take a walk". You thanked Kala for the help and walked out. The door rang as you slowly made your way onto concrete sidewalks. That's when you saw him.

He was staring at the police cars that surrounded the store. "Poor girl," he spoke out. "I hope she's okay". He turned to face your shaken state. "My name's Tim."