Luring Lyra | Creepypasta Fanmade Spin-off [COMPLETED]

3.

If Lyra's room was ever cleaned, it would be considered a blessing from the heavens. The pungent smell of burnt leaves hung in the air, dirty clothes littered the floor, and the bed was forever untidied. In a corner stood Lyra's trusty baseball bat leaned up against the wall, and another entire corner was devoted to her drum set. Hanging from a peg on the wall was a pair of boxing gloves, and boxing awards won in high school sat gathering dust in a corner of Lyra's desk. The closet was worse: it looked as though a hurricane had passed through it, and on top of the dresser in said closet sat an ashtray filled with cigarette butts.

Lyra kicked off her sneakers and flopped down on the bed, lying on her back. As she stared up at the ceiling, she let out a long exhale, her lips flapping as she did so. It was only ten minutes after six, but she was already ready to get into her pajamas. On the other hand, she knew she couldn't skip her four-hour shift at her place of work, which would be starting soon: twice a week, Lyra took two job shifts instead of one at the local gas station, and today was one of those days. She hated it, as it meant she wouldn't be home to protect Connie and Toby from Frank, but she knew she had to help support them financially.

Suddenly, Lyra's phone pinged, and she reached into her back pocket to retrieve it. It was a message from Winona, along with a selfie of her at the prison. In the picture, she was blowing a kiss.

Babygirl: Got here safe. Love ya! <3

Lyra almost smiled. It was good to hear that Winona had arrived at her destination without any troubles. The two young women had made things official three months before. Having already been friends for a few years, and with Toby dating Winona's brother Troy, they had become quite close.

Lyra paused before answering. She wanted to say that Toby had asked Lyra to tell Winona that he said hello, but that would be a lie. She wasn't even sure Toby had been talking to their boyfriend lately. Still, Troy and Toby had been dating for over two years, and Lyra wanted her brother to be happy.

Lyra: Tell your brother Toby says hi

Babygirl: Will do

Lyra: Love ya babe

After plugging her phone in to let it charge, Lyra took a quick shower and changed into a pair of jeans and her uniform shirt for work. Then she tied her hair back up in a ponytail and applied some eyeliner and mascara before packing a few things in her miniature backpack and exiting her room. She could hear Frank on a phone call in the master bedroom as she went to knock on her brother's door.

"W-what?" Toby called from inside.

Lyra opened the door and peeked her head in. Toby's bedroom was no bigger than hers, but it was cleaner. At the moment, Toby was lying on their back on the bed with his laptop open.

"I'm going to work," Lyra told her brother. "Just wanted to say goodbye. Make sure to eat enough at dinner."

"I will," Toby replied, barely looking up from their laptop.

"Okay, I love you," Lyra said.

Toby didn't respond - he didn't even look up. Trying not to think of it, Lyra closed the door and headed downstairs to fill a water bottle and pack herself a snack for later. When she entered the living room with her lunchbox and backpack, she found Connie sitting on the couch, massaging her temples as if she had a headache.

"Headed to work?" Connie guessed once she saw Lyra.

"Yeah, and I got my tazer," Lyra answered, holding up her tiny backpack.

"Call me if there's an emergency," Connie reminded her.

"I know, I know," Lyra said. "I'll be fine, Mom. I trained in boxing for years, remember?

"Just make sure to be safe till I get home; call me if you need anything."

Connie smiled almost sadly.

"You were always such an independent young lady," she said fondly. "I'm gonna miss you when you move out."

"I get it from you - but I'm not leaving till Dad does," Lyra reassured her mother, and she knelt down to kiss Connie's forehead. "Love you, Mom."

"Love you, too, sweetheart," Connie responded. "Drive safe."

Lyra was out the door a moment later. By the time she had parked her father's car at Anderson's, the gas station she worked at, she was five minutes early - right on time.

"Hey, Lyra," Lyra's boss, Maxine, said once she made her way through the door. "You know the drill by now, so, do your thing."

"Understood," Lyra said with a nod, and she took her place behind the desk as she gave Maxine a high five.

With that, Maxine retreated into the office. As Lyra placed her lunchbox and backpack under the desk, she took out her phone and started going through social media to pass the time. Smoking wasn't allowed inside the store, even though she had brought some cigarettes for her breaks, so she popped some strawberry bubblegum from the packet she brought into her mouth. When Lyra was on duty, there were never many customers, as people in town were afraid of her and whispered rumors about her amongst themselves. But there was always a handful of people who stopped by.

It wasn't too long before Lyra heard the bell dinging over the door, and she lifted her head. She wasn't surprised to see who it was.

"Hey, Mrs. Lux," Lyra greeted the customer.

The raven-haired woman lifted her head from her phone, smiling sleepily when she saw Lyra. She looked exhausted, as she always did when Lyra saw her.

"Hi, Lyra," Nathan and Crystal's mother responded. "Nice to see you."

"Anything I can help you with?" Lyra offered, and she blew a quick bubble.

"I'm just here to get some coffee before I get home," Mrs. Lux said. "Maybe some treats for the kids: it's been a long time since I got them any candy."

Lyra nodded, and Mrs. Lux went off to fill a cup of coffee from the dispenser. After stirring some milk and sugar into it, she returned to the front desk to pay. Lyra didn't have to hear a request before pulling a box of Milk Duds and a bag of Sour Patch Kids from the storage and placing them on the desk.

"You know us too well, kiddo," Mrs. Lux chuckled as she put her cup of coffee down next to the candy.

"I've known you for a fucking year, of course I'm gonna know you well," Lyra said with a cheeky grin as she scanned each item and added up the cost. "That'll be $6.99."

Mrs. Lux fumbled with her purse and fished out her wallet, which she pulled seven dollar bills from. As Lyra stored them in the cash dispenser, Mrs. Lux stuffed the candy into her purse and took her coffee.

"Have a good evening, Lyra," she said.

"You too, ma'am," Lyra answered through chewing her gum, and Mrs. Lux was out the door.

Fifteen more minutes went by before Lyra heard the the jingling of the bell again. But as she caught a glance of her new customer, her blood ran cold.