The Spring Break Suffocator

the email

Living in a small town is boring. Nothing ever happens. Well, almost nothing.

Ms. Harriet's cat drug a raccoon into the library and scared poor Mrs. Rita. I was studying for my history test with Justin when it happened. Justin is my childhood friend. We've done everything together.

We egged Johnny Flannigan's car in the 10th grade because he hits his girlfriend, Jen. We skipped school in the 7th grade to smoke some weed his dad left lying around the garage. We even stole my dad's motorcycle and drove to the nearest city 30 miles away so we could play laser tag when we were freshman.

Now, we're seniors in high school and we still do everything together. We've stayed out all night camping out under the bridge in Duncan County because we were sick of the pressure our families were putting on us.

Now we're here. In 5th period Trigonometry class, listening to our teacher talk about something about how to measure the angle of a triangle. I'm going to college to be a crime scene investigator. What does triangles have to do with solving crimes?

The bell rings to dismiss us from class for Spring Break. I'm not doing anything special this year. Usually, my family goes on grand vacations for spring break. This year, they're going to Rome, Italy. I opted out of going because I wanted to stay home this year. I want to enjoy being home before I go to Maryville University.

I'm walking home when I feel my phone vibrate.

MOM: Hey sweetie! We're boarding the plane now! We'll text you when we land in ROME⛵️

I smiled and texted a quick reply back. I unlock my house and close the door behind me, making sure to lock it right back. I hang my backpack on the rack by the door.

I go upstairs and open my laptop to watch a movie before getting a shower and making dinner. As soon as I log in, I notice a notification from my email. Assuming it's from Maryville, I click the notification.

FROM: unknown
TO: gianna.wren@hotmail.com
RE: hello

hello gianna. you don't know me, but i know you. i know your family is away to rome for the week. i know your friends are all on vacation for their final spring break before college. i know you're home alone right now watching "scream" for the hundredth time. i can't wait to introduce myself to you, but until then, i plan on having a little fun with this town. have a good shower.

All of a sudden, I hear a banging on my door. I jump at the sudden noise, cursing at whoever is intruding on my peace. I peek out my bedroom window and see a familiar grey bike in the driveway.

"Seriously Justin?" I mumble as I stumble out of bed to unlock the door for him. He greets me with a smile and take-out from our favorite Chinese restaurant. I roll my eyes and step aside to let him in.

"What's up with the long face? I thought you'd be excited to see your favorite person ever." Justin asks.

"You didn't have to bang on the door like a madman either, oh favorite one." I retorted.

He smiles at me. "Someone has to keep you on your toes."

We sit down in the living room and eat our dinner while watching YouTube videos. Justin hangs out for another hour before hugging me and riding home.

I cleaned up and went upstairs to get a shower. I never mentioned to Justin about the weird email because I knew it had to be some weirdo trying to get off on scaring someone. I showered and got ready for bed. After turning a show to sleep to on, I snuggled up in my bed and fell into the best sleep I've ever had.

What I didn't know, was that that was going to be the last time I slept during spring break.