Unknown Caller

-1-

Laurent stood outside the primary school with his eyelids closed, breathing in the scent of wet leaves and tangy earth the wind carried through the cobblestone streets of Paris. 

The cold breeze had a way of moving his hair, tousling his afro into even more buoyant curls. 

Only weeks ago the air had been warm and the trees outside the school had been a luscious green, but now the avenue was lit up in hues of scarlet and gold and the concrete sidewalk was adorned by their beauty while the trees stood naked in the frozen air.

Laurent toyed with the car keys of his BMW as he leaned against the parked vehicle, waiting for the ring that would announce the ending of yet another school day and the start of what he hoped to be a nice Friday afternoon spent with his daughter. 

Even dressed in a sweater and a plaid wool jacket, Laurent felt the cold nipping away at his fingers, letting him know that a new season was around the corner. 

His senses were tuned to what was happening around him. He was hyper-focused on the lady crossing the lot behind him and the guy with the take-away bag on his left, who kept shooting him curious glances while pretending to be busy on his phone. He had been on-edge all day and he couldn't put his finger on why. It wasn't the fact that he got stared at by strangers because as much as Laurent hated the attention sometimes, he had gotten used to it by now.

But today just felt off on a whole different level.

The night before, Laurent had gotten woken at four A.M. to the sound of his phone ringing. And before he had had a chance to pick up, the phone had gone quiet. The number had been suppressed and Laurent had laid awake for the rest of the night, wondering who the hell would want to speak to him in the middle of the night.

Larry had told him not to sweat it, that it was probably just someone from a call center trying to sell him a new tariff. 

But Laurent just couldn't shake the ominous feeling. 

Just as he ran through the various possibilities in his head, his phone vibrated in his pocket and he pulled it out to unsurprisingly find a text from Larry. 

"Did you steal my blue sweater?" 

Laurent smiled a little to himself as he glanced down his torso at the undoubtedly stolen piece of clothing. 

"You still have the pants I asked you to return three months ago." 

"They were my pants before you took em." 

"Whatever. I'm keepin' the sweater."

"Bitch." 

Laurent smiled and looked up at the children playing on the school playground. Some of them were on bikes and big-wheel scooters, going over the earthen loop and sending mud flying in satisfying arcs behind them. When he and Larry were young, they never managed to not get dirt on their clothes, no matter how hard they tried. Back then the streets had been their playground. In between tree-houses, old garages and gym halls, the winding streets of Sarcelles had been their private obstacle course. Even now the aroma of car engines and soggy leaves transported him back to those days, to the laughter he and Larry had shared. 

The memories were Laurent's anchor at all times, no matter what was going on in his life. When things became difficult, Laurent allowed the flood of their past wash him away, bringing happiness and a distant sense of longing for their childhood. For easier times, despite the poverty.

The school bell rang and pulled Laurent out of his thoughts. 

He straightened up, a smile spreading on his lips as he spotted a familiar face in between the other children. His daughter's grin was gap-toothed and innocent and whatever sense of dread Laurent had felt throughout the day was instantly banished by her happiness. 

She crossed the distance in no time and practically threw himself at him and Laurent lifted her off the ground with an exaggerated groan, before planting kisses all over her hair and face until she threw her hands up in defeat and started squirming in his hold. 

"Dad, stooop," she complained, even though she clearly loved it. "People are watching."

Laurent smiled at the way she batted her lashes, the tips of her ears turning a bright red at the public display of affection. 'Just like Larry', Laurent thought with no small amount of affection as he slowly set her down and gave her unruly hair a ruffle. "Let 'em watch." 

She rounded the car and slipped into the passenger side while Laurent settled behind the wheel and put the keys into the ignition. 

"How was school?" he asked, waiting for her to put her seatbelt on before he started pulling out of the lot. "Did you have fun with your friends?"

His phone started buzzing again and Laurent's heart skipped a beat, a sudden sense of unease overcoming him. He slowly dug his phone out and froze when he looked at the screen.

Unknown Caller. 

Laurent stared at the words for a moment, heart thrashing wildly in his chest. 

"Dad?" Maelina asked, a small frown wrinkling her forehead and Laurent's skin crawled with unease. "Aren't you going to pick up?" 

Swiping the green button, he raised the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

For second, Laurent thought there was nobody on the other end, but then he heard someone's breath on the other end of the line. Inhale. Exhale. Just someone's breathing, slow and deliberate like out of some fucking horror movie. Laurent pressed the phone closer to his ears, straining to make out a voice as every fear he'd anticipated all day long suddenly resurfaced to the forefront of his mind. "Who is this?"

Inhale. 

Exhale. 

Silence.

"I swear to god, if this is some sort of joke, I'll--" 

"Soon," a strangely metallic voice said through the speaker. "You'll know me soon enough."

Sweat exploded across the back of his neck as the words sank into his brain. And then a metallic beeping blurted through the speaker, signaled that the caller had hung up on him.

Laurent pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it unblinkingly. 

"Daddy?" Maelina asked, unintentionally picking up on his anxiety. She looked like she was about to cry and Laurent instantly stashed his phone away before turning to face her. 

"It's okay, ma grande," he said, cupping the side of her face and swiping his trembling thumb over her cheek. "Just a couple of kids playing a prank on your dad. Don't worry. Okay?"

The frown eased up a bit but only slightly. It was difficult to calm her when she got scared or upset, just like with Larry. But even knowing that, Laurent had a hard time keeping a tremor out of his voice. His words came out too quickly as he tried and failed to pull himself together. 

"Are you ready to eat? I'm ready to eat. What do you say we grab ourselves a couple of happy meals from MacDo?" 

She gave him a reluctant little nod and Laurent forced himself to smile before leaning over to press another kiss to the crown of her head. 

His heart was still beating a mile a minute in his chest and the thought of food turned his stomach, but right now he just needed them anywhere else but at this parking lot. It felt tainted somehow and Laurent's skin was crawling with the idea of someone looking at them from a hidden vantage point in the distance. He let out a shaky breath. "Let's go."

With a last glance around, Laurent settled back into his seat, put the gear into drive and stomped his foot on the gas.