Nightcrawler (A Slimecicle FF)

ONE

Charlie ate rather quickly, because he knew the faster he ate, the faster they could leave. The faster they'd walk by the all-too familiar alleyway.
   
It was around the time he'd go for his late-night runs. It wouldn't seem that he did much running; due to his geeky personality that made him famous, but he did. Every night.
  
 But not for very normal reasons. 
   
Him and some of the guys had stayed out late filming videos, so they'd stopped at WingStop to eat dinner. It was almost 10 PM at that point.
   
Charlie finished off his plate, tapping his foot repeatedly on the tile floor and constantly glancing at his watch. He'd be cutting it close. 
   
Luckily, everyone else finished, too, so they made their exit.
   
Charlie couldn't help but constantly glance around as they walked, trying to see into the shadows that weren't illuminated by the streetlamps scattered along the walkway. 
   
"Charlie, man, what's wrong with you?" Ted nudged him as they walked, his grown-out, dark brown hair falling in front of his eyes. He really needed a haircut, or at least more gel. "You look paranoid."
   
"He's looking for that one person he talked about," Schlatt snickered, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Remember? His imaginary girlfriend?"
   
Charlie rolled his eyes, adjusting his glasses and standing up straighter. "You're a dick."
   
"I didn't know you were into the mysterious type," Cooper piped up. "That is, if we’re talking about the girl in the hood?"
   
Schlatt nodded, and Charlie bit his tongue, regretting having brought up his discovery with them weeks before.
   
"Come on, anyone's mysterious if you haven't met them," Charlie muttered under his breath.
   
"How do you even know she's a girl?" Schlatt laughed and slapped a hand on Charlie's shoulder, harder than he'd probably intended. "You said she's always wearing a hood."
   
"I just know," Charlie looked down at his feet briefly, counting his steps as he walked. With how many times he'd seen her, it was obvious. Her movements and stature suggested that she was a girl. "Can we just drop it?"
   
"She's probably ugly, anyway," Schlatt continued.
   
"That would explain the hood," Cooper spoke, a smirk playing on his lips. 
   
"I never said I liked her," Charlie shot a glare at them. "It's just interesting."
   
"Is that her right there?" Schlatt pointed his finger in front of them and Charlie's eyes snapped up, but when there was nothing, they burst out laughing.
   
"Very funny," Charlie kept his gaze ahead until they passed the alleyway, and he glanced inside out of instinct.
   
She always wore all black. Probably to blend in with the shadows. Charlie had debated hundreds of times investigating the alleyway, trying to find any reason she'd be there every night, but he talked himself out of it every time. 
   
"I think it's interesting, Charlie," Travis assured him from behind them. He would always speak up when the guys started teasing too much, but Charlie didn't mind. It was what he signed up for, after all, and they were his friends. It was all in good fun. 
   
Charlie turned to Ted, who had a focused look on his face as he stared into the alleyway. Charlie noticed he'd stopped, so he stopped beside him as the others walked. 
   
He hadn't said a word. 
   
"You're quiet," He nudged him. "You good?"
   
Ted tilted his head at the darkness, but slowly nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, I just thought I saw something."
   
Charlie sighed. "That's not funny."
   
Ted looked down at him and smirked, but he shook his head. "I'm not kidding. But maybe I'm just seeing things."
   
"Maybe," Charlie frowned, turning and walking to catch up with the guys. It was odd that she wasn't there that night, but maybe Ted wasn't lying. Maybe he caught a glimpse of her.
   
"Why don't you say something to her?" Ted questioned. "You say you see her every night."
   
"Yeah, I know," He shoved his hands in his pockets. "But it's quick. One second she's there, the next she isn't. It'd be tedious to chase after her."
   
"That sounds like something out of a movie," He chuckled lightly, scratching the back of his neck. He was one of the taller ones in the group, but Charlie didn't mind being shorter than him. It made him look less scrawny, combined with the fact that he worked out a lot.
   
Charlie shrugged. "It's not a big deal. I'm sure she has her reasons."
   
"If it's not a big deal, why do you stalk her?"
   
He punched Ted's arm playfully and he laughed. 
   
"Stalking would be if I decided to follow her, which I don't. I'm just observant is all."
   
"Clearly," Ted shook his head as he looked around. "I don't know how you'd be able to spot her in this light."
   
"Boys! Keep up, we haven't got all night!" Cooper shouted from up ahead. 
   
Ted laughed and patted Charlie's shoulder as he took one last look back. Why wasn't she there? Was she alright?
   
"Let's go," He said.

*****

Charlie ended his recording at an ungodly hour, as usual, but his thoughts kept him awake. 
   
Give it a rest, Charlie. He scolded himself. Nobody else is worked up over something so small. Why should you be?
   
Honestly, he didn't know. 
   
Maybe it's because he was lonely as hell.
   
He'd been far too busy to let himself get out and have fun. Meeting people hadn't necessarily been on his to-do list, so even a glimpse of someone like her was enough to pique his interest. 
   
No, he'd never seen her face. It was always covered by her black hood. Who knows, maybe she was a guy. Just a really...feminine guy. Of course, it was wrong to assume. 

He just had a hunch.
   
Maybe she was ugly. But did he care? No. He wanted to know what she looked like, but only because he was curious, not because of anything more than that. 
   
He rubbed his face in his hands and leaned back in his chair, frustrated with himself. If he could just see her once, he'd be satisfied. He'd be able to move on.
   
Charlie glanced at his clock, which read 2:30 AM, and groaned, taking off his glasses and tossing them on the bed. He just needed to relax.
   
The empty apartment was always quiet, which added to the stress of overthinking things. He tended to do that a lot.
   
So he pushed himself to his feet and walked into the living room, turning on the stereo and slouching down onto the couch. 
   
He should have been editing videos. When he couldn't sleep, he got caught up on work. But instead, he stared out the large window in the living room, looking over the city. It always seemed so much smaller from up high.
   
Right, Charlie, that's how eyesight works.
   
He'd been better at keeping those sorts of things to himself. He used to always nerd out and explain the science behind every little thing, but as time went on he focused on not doing that. 
   
Charlie closed his eyes, listening to the soft music in an attempt to keep his thoughts at bay, but once again his brain was too loud. 
   
"Fuck," He cursed to himself. "Just go to sleep."
   
The moonlight flowed in through the window, shining down and lighting up the couch and coffee table. He debated closing the curtains, but it was a soft glow so he didn't mind it too much.
   
He shifted so that he was laying across the couch and stared up at the ceiling, fidgeting with his fingers as he listened to the music. He wondered if there was a chance she'd be out there right then, off doing God knows what. In a city that big, it would be impossible to find her. Especially if she wasn't where she normally was.
   
Charlie decided tomorrow night would be the night. He'd confront her.
   
Just one time. 
   
That's all he needed to get over it. He needed to see her face, just once, and then he'd be able to move on.
   
At least, that's what he'd hoped. 

First chapter, yay!! For all of my friends that have read some of my sideman stuff, you'll know that originally this was a concept for one of them, but I changed my mind! Also, in this series, everybody lives in LA because that's just easier.

See you later!