My Shining Light

Chapter 48

"Unbelievable," muttered Lucy as she inspected the scalded skin under her clothes. It was painful to touch so she pulled her shirt off to stop it brushing against her.

She looked down at the top in her hands. There was no way she could salvage it. Not only was it splattered with brown coffee stains, but it was also fully drenched in cold water from when she sprayed herself in a mad hurry. It was completely see-through now. Not a good look.

She shivered. "Great, just great," she said to herself in the bathroom mirror. "Now you're burning hot and freezing cold at the same time!"

"Who are you talking to?" said Aera as she walked into the bathroom. Her eyes scanned over Lucy standing shirtless at the sink. "Got your text. What's the emergency? You spill something on your clothes? Ooh, your skin's all red."

"Hello to you too," scowled Lucy, trying to rub off the makeup smudged under her eyes.

"You're making it worse. Here," said Aera, handing her a wipe from her handbag.

"Thanks," said Lucy. She reached into her own handbag and pulled out her car keys. "Lucky I drove today. Can you please do me a favour and grab the bag of clothes from my boot? I don't know what's in there, just bring the whole bag. It's black."

"Got it. You look cold so I'll be quick. But sit in the stall until I get back. Don't want you scaring the students," said Aera, raising her eyebrows at Lucy's pink bra.

"Ha, true," said Lucy, moving into the toilet cubicle.

Just before she shut the door, Aera put a hand out to stop it from closing. "And by the way. You didn't reply to any of my messages last night! When I get back you've got to tell me all about where you disappeared to, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," said Lucy, waving her away. She wasn't in the mood for this chat. Talking about the stalker was the last thing she wanted to do right now. She hung her bag up on the hook of the door and sat on the lid of the toilet seat, hugging her knees to her chest. It felt good to close her eyes for a minute.

As she waited, she began plotting how she was going to manage the Xenaz situation. Then she heard footsteps enter the bathroom. Aera wore heels so she knew it wasn't her. Perhaps it was just a student? No, the voice was too mature.

"Argh, I lost her!" cried the voice, followed by a murmur coming from a phone.

"I don't know, she ran off somewhere..." the voice continued.

Lucy always felt awkward when listening in to other people's conversations. She was about to put her feet back on the floor and reach for earphones from her handbag when she heard the person drop something. The loud clang made her stop mid-motion, her feet hung frozen in the air. A Swiss army knife spun under the door of the cubicle, the sharp blade fully extended.

Lucy silently gasped and stayed as still as possible.

"Whoops I dropped the knife. I honestly think I'm not game enough to use it!" the voice cried. Then a hand appeared beneath the door and scrounged around until it grasped the handle.

"You get her though, make her pay..."

Lucy heard the person playing with the knife, flicking it back and forth, in and out of its case. She shuddered. This person seemed dangerous. She tried to get a glimpse of her through the crack in the door but to no avail. She needed to be able to identify them if they were intending to hurt somebody, even if it was someone else wielding the knife. The only problem was that she was too terrified to move lest she be discovered. She could laugh at the Xenaz when they hurt her. Those girls didn't intimidate her. But brutal violence? Even the threat of it paralysed her with fear.

"Okay I'm leaving, won't be a minute," said the voice, moving so she was standing directly outside Lucy's cubicle.

Lucy's heart was beating loudly in her chest. She gripped her knees tightly, trying not to make a sound.

What was this person doing? Was she going to try and open the door?

She held her breath as the person took another step closer, then noticed that the feet were facing away from the cubicle. Finally she clicked. This person wasn't facing the door but facing the mirror on the opposite wall, checking herself out.

She heaved a sigh of relief and looked down. The person's shoes were visible just under the door. They were tan leather flats, like ballet shoes. Lucy may not have been able to see the person but she could at least identify those shoes.