"I had some extra work to finish up, but I missed my bus, and uh… I realized you hadn't left sooo… help a buddy out?"
I sighed, grabbing my keys. "Come on."
We talked as we walked down the stairs, and in no time we were back at the car. Ellie was laughing when suddenly fell silent.
"Ellie, are you okay?"
"Elizabeth… do we know that guy?"
I turned to where she was staring, only to see a shadowy figure staring back at us. Suddenly, let out a shriek as he pointed at us. I quickly sped away from the weirdo. Despite pretending not to care, I was panicking. After all, that guy was like some killer from a horror movie, who wouldn't be freaked out by that? I pulled into an old parking lot a few blocks away from Ellie's house. After a few uneventful minutes, I decided to drive Ellie home. I hadn't realized until then, but Ellie had been dead silent the entire time, and she was never quiet. That's how I knew she was terrified. Before she got out to enter her home, I talked to her.
"Eliza, I know that guy must've creeped you out, but I'm sure it'll be fine."
Despite my words, I could tell she was still scared. "Tell you what," I sighed, "if you get scared, call me, no matter the time, I'll help any way I can."
She smiled genuinely, before barely whispering out a single word.
I smiled until she closed the door to her house, then started driving home. Stars above, she must be absolutely terrified, I wondered if she would even sleep tonight. I stumbled into my house, exhausted from the day, and especially from the last forty minutes. I didn't even bother changing clothes before flopping into bed. I was out before I even hit the pillow.
In the morning, I awoke, grumbling to myself. I grabbed my phone to check the time, and my heart stopped. I had completely forgotten my promise to Ellie, and there were 18 missed calls. I quickly dialed her number, but she never answered. I kept trying, terrified that I might've just ruined our relationship by sleeping like a rock, but the results were the same. I checked my messages, hoping that she would answer me there, but when I looked, I was surprised to find she had sent a message around the time she tried to call me;
"E, PLZ PICK UP. HE'S HERE, I DON'T KNOW WHAT 2 DO. HE'S AT MY WINDOW."
