My Secret Identity

11| Watch your back

" Good evening ma'am"

" Why haven't I heard from you since last week ?"

" It's like I said ma'am, I only have access to my phone on weekends "

" How's the deal going ? "

" She noticed me staring at her few days ago "

" So ? "

" I haven't proceeded to the second stage yet "

" Why not ?? "

" You said to take it one step at a time "

" You've been laying low since the first week of this camp. So now you have just four weeks to do this because after these four weeks, they'll no longer be cadets. They'll be joining the army and navy and all the rest "

" I can take care of it ma'am "

" Oh really ? You've been saying that since and I'm tired of hearing that "

" I'm sorry ma'am I'll take care of it "

" I don't have time for hide and seek so get serious or it's coming out of your paycheck "

" Yes ma'am "

------------------------------------------------------------------------

The week was packed as usual. Training, parades, and taking care of the coffee shop. I had mixed feelings, knowing I didn't have much time as a cadet. Being a cadet was fun, and it was the only opportunity I had to get closer to Nate. He was frequent at the coffee shop and he didn't just come to flirt with me, he made me feel comfortable around him. He was very friendly and gradually, I started being more open to him. He seemed like he was getting serious because nowadays, he talked a lot to me about home... His family, and his personal life generally.

" Hey beautiful " he said with a smile on his face as he sat by me at the counter. I didn't have too many customers that afternoon for some reason. Well, that was a good thing .

" Hey handsome you seem really happy this afternoon"

" Of course I am"

" How's your best friend doing?"

" He's alright. He's improving everyday and to be honest, I'm proud of him... I've never admitted that to him though, cos I want him to keep trying harder. "

" You have a good heart "

" Yeah but I don't show that to a lot of people, only to those who are dear to me "

" What would you like to have ? "

" You " he said with a cheerful smile

" That would be dangerous " I said with a smile as well

" Why do you say so? "

" A lot of reasons "

He sat for a while longer, before leaving with a promise to come back. Just as he was leaving, I noticed the same cadet from few days ago who kept staring at me in a really creepy way. This time, he was sitting closer to the counter, but still he didn't order anything. I decided to walk up to him again.

" Sorry, you were here few days ago right ?"

" Yes "

" Well, would you like to order anything this time around?"

" I guess so "

" You should just walk up to the counter if you want to order "

" I'll take note of that "

I took his order and returned to serve him. It was a long evening at the coffee shop because there was no one to talk to. As night drew nearer, more people stated coming in and I got really busy preparing, serving and getting paid. I didn't realize the creepy guy had not left, until he walked up to the counter and said

" Even I don't understand why life has to be unfair. It's pointless telling you this anyway, but you should really watch your back "

I couldn't make anything out of what he said and I tried to think about it for a sec, but my thoughts were interrupted.

" Hey ! coffee shop what are you on about ?"

" It's nothing" I relied coldly

" Are you okay ? "

" Yeah I'm fine "

No of course I wasn't fine. Some creepy guy just said the craziest thing and even though I didn't feel like I should take it seriously, I couldn't help it.

" Do you need help ?"

" No I'm fine. Thanks "

He remained silent until the number of people in the coffee shop had reduced drastically.

" Do you have any plans after closing ?"

" No, why ?"

" You can talk to me Emma, no matter what the problem is. You can feel free with me , you can open up to me and tell me everything that's bothering you. That's why I'm here... to be a shoulder you can lean on. "

I nodded and blinked a tear away from my eyes. " Why are you so certain that something is bothering me ? "

"I haven't known you too long, but I've been with you long enough to understand how you behave when you're happy, when you're pissed off, when you're moody and when you're.. just there ... "

" You seem to have been around a lot of ladies"

" Just my mom and my sisters... "

" Are you the only son ? "

" Yes. The first and only son .. and I have three sisters "

" I always wanted to have a sister. It's just I and Garrett, my elder brother "

" Was that him ? "

" Who ? "

" The guy who kept staring at you before I left earlier"

I hesitated for a while. I really needed to talk to someone about it but it seemed like Garrett had been called upon to go to work.. it wasn't a surprise to me though. He had been home for quite a while now. What made the situation worse was the ' warning he had just given me'

" I honestly don't know who he is. But I've noticed him recently and he makes me really uncomfortable. He's always staring at me like he's ....

" Some sort of spy ? "

" I dunno, maybe and today he spoke to me. "

" What'd he say ? " He said something about life being unfair, and that I should watch my back "

" That's all ?"

" Yeah "

" Do you want me to talk to the generals about it ?"

" No. I don't think it's something serious. He hasn't said anything bad "

" So what do you want to do about it ?"

" For now, we should just.... See how things go "

" Are you sure ? "

" Yeah "

" Okay... Please keep me updated okay ?"

" Okay. "

" Don't worry about it too much, I won't let anything happen to you"

" Thanks " I replied with an air uncertainty