Hello Neighbor: Hidden Shadows: Unofficial AFK Book

CHAPTER 2

My house is surrounded by police cars and officers. I just got finished explaining to the police what happened, in which somehow, I managed to stay calm.

   "Is that all?" Officer Leslie asks.

   "Yes," I say softly. I've now gotten to the point where I just don't feel like talking anymore. Officer Leslie walks out of the door without saying anything else.

   Right as she leaves, two faces walk into the door. My vision is partly blurry, so it's hard for me to make them out. They get closer, and I realize who I am looking at.

   "Nicky?" Maritza whispers. Her eyes immediately widen at the sight of me. My expression immediately changes to being frightened, expecting Maritza to try to fight me, or strangle me. But instead, she rushes towards me and she hugs me, which is what I least expected. I only stood there, frozen.

   "I thought you were dead." she says, tightening her grip around me. I I look up at Enzo, who still has a face of disbelief. Maritza squeezes me even tighter, which makes me feel oddly better. Enzo's eyes fill with tears, as he hugs me as well, forming some type of group hug between the three of us.

   "I'm sorry Nicky," Enzo whispers. "I really am. I was a bad friend."

   Friend. I hadn't heard the term "friend" in months. Why are they acting like this? Why is everything fine now? I don't remember seeing them like they care so much now. Or maybe they did. I can't even remember a lot of things anymore now.

   We haven't let go yet. It's like neither of them want to let go. We've gone silent for about a minute. Enzo and Maritza let go of me, both with their faces shining and moist from the shed tears.

   "Do you want to tell us where you've been this whole time," Maritza asks. Right as I'm about to not-answer, mom rushes in the living room with a cloth and a bottle of alcohol.

   "Okay, I think we can make this work," she says.

   She glances over to Enzo and Maritza.

   "You kids can wait in Nicky's room for now. He'll be up in a second." They nod. As they head upstairs to my room, Maritza and I can't seem to keep our eyes off of each other. We both kept watch straight into our eyes, until we couldn't.

   "Nicholas, this is going to hurt a lot, okay?" Mom says. I nod in response, just letting the stick in my throat sink deeper and deeper into my stomach, to the point where I'm visibly shaking now.