Criminal

Chapter 2

I awoke to the piercing glare of sunlight streaming through my bedroom window, my head throbbing in time with the relentless pounding of my heart. Groaning, I glanced at the clock and cursed under my breath - I was late for class, again.

Dragging myself out of bed, I stumbled towards the kitchen where Sarah and Rachel were already up, sipping on coffee and nibbling on brunch. But it wasn't their cheerful greetings that caught my attention - it was the bouquet of roses sitting on the table, their vibrant red petals a stark contrast to the dull ache in my head.

"Who are those from?" I asked, my voice tinged with annoyance. As my friends exchanged knowing glances, Sarah handed me a small envelope that had been tucked among the flowers.

"They're from you," Rachel said with a mischievous grin. "Well, from someone anonymous, at least."

Confused, I opened the envelope and pulled out a piece of paper, my heart sinking as I read the words scrawled across it in elegant script. "Next time you let someone touch them, they'll be swimming with the sharks."

A chill ran down my spine as I remembered the stranger I had danced with last night, his hands wandering where they shouldn't have been, his eyes gleaming with a dangerous hunger. But how had he known about the scars that I had worked so hard to hide?

My friends exchanged worried glances as I struggled to make sense of the note, my mind racing with fear and confusion. Who was this anonymous sender, and what did they want from me? And more importantly, how had they found out about the scars that I had kept hidden from everyone?

As I tried to push aside the rising  sense of panic, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched, that every move I made was being scrutinized by unseen eyes. Was this some sick joke, or was there a real threat lurking in the shadows?

Unable to ignore the knot of fear tightening in my chest, I forced myself to focus on the present. But as I joined my friends at the table, their concerned expressions mirrored my own unease.

"What are you going to do?" Sarah asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

I shook my head, my thoughts spinning in a whirlwind of confusion and fear. "I don't know," I admitted, the weight of the note heavy in my hands.

As I sat there, reeling from the shock of the anonymous note, my friends launched into a lively conversation about the guys they had hooked up with at the bar last night. Normally, their gossip was a welcome distraction from the stresses of daily life, but today it only served to fuel my growing sense of unease.

"You should have seen the size of his dick," Rachel laughed, her voice tinged with triumph. "It was like a damn cocktail wiener!"

Sarah snorted in agreement, her eyes bright with mischief. "I know, right? And he kept trying to act all macho, like he was the man or something."

As they continued to swap stories, their laughter growing louder and more raucous by the minute, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of disgust. Was this really how they saw men - as nothing more than disposable conquests, their worth measured by the size of their manhood? It was a stark reminder of just how shallow and superficial the dating scene could be.

But as much as their conversation made me uncomfortable, it also served as a welcome distraction from my own troubles. For a brief moment, I could forget about the ominous note and lose myself in the familiar banter of friendship.

"So, what about you, Ava?" Rachel asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. "Did you meet anyone interesting last night?"

I hesitated, unsure of how much to reveal. But as I glanced at the bouquet of roses sitting on the table, a shiver ran down my spine. "I danced with someone," I admitted reluctantly, my voice barely above a whisper. "But it wasn't anything serious."

Sarah raised an eyebrow, her expression filled with skepticism. "Come on, Ava," Sarah urged, her voice laced with mischief. "Spill the tea. We won't judge."

I sighed, knowing there was no escaping their relentless curiosity. "Well, there was this guy," I began, my cheeks flushing with embarrassment. "He was tall, with dark hair and piercing eyes. We danced for a while, but then he got a bit... handsy."

Rachel's eyes widened with interest. "Ooh, sounds spicy," she teased. "Did he make a move?"

I shook my head, feeling a knot of unease forming in the pit of my stomach. "No, not really," I admitted, my mind flashing back to the note and the chilling words it contained. "But he did say something strange before he left."

"What did he say?" Sarah asked, leaning in closer.

"I... I'd rather not say," I stammered, feeling a blush creeping up my cheeks. The memory of his whispered words sent a shiver down my spine, and I couldn't bring myself to repeat them out loud.

But my friends were relentless in their pursuit of gossip, their eyes burning with curiosity. "Come on, Ava, you can't leave us hanging like this," Rachel urged, her voice filled with excitement.

Taking a deep breath, I braced myself for their reaction. "He... he wanted to take things further," I confessed, my voice barely above a whisper. "But I... I wasn't ready."

Sarah's eyes widened in surprise, her mouth forming a perfect 'o' of astonishment. "Wait, you mean... you're still a virgin?" she exclaimed, her voice tinged with disbelief.

I nodded, feeling a mixture of embarrassment and apprehension wash over me. "Yeah," I admitted, my cheeks burning with embarrassment. "I guess I just haven't found the right person yet."

Rachel's expression softened, her eyes filled with understanding. "Hey, there's nothing wrong with that," she reassured me, her voice gentle. "You'll know when the time is right."

But despite her words of comfort, I couldn't shake the feeling of unease that lingered in the back of my mind. The note, the mysterious stranger at the bar - it was all too much to process at once. And as I glanced around at my friends, their faces blurred by the haze of uncertainty, I couldn't help but wonder if I would ever find the answers I was searching for.