Shadows and Picket Fences

Chapter 4

Phoebe wakes up to the slam of the front door and lots of excited chatter. She wakes up and goes to the bathroom, horrified to see her face in a disaster.

"What happened yesterday?" Phoebe asks herself, but she can not come up with the answers in her head. She shrugs off the thought, getting ready.

"Look! Who's up?" Stella squeals.

"Oh! Hey Stella!" Phoebe greets her.

"Morning Kat..." She stops her words as Kate darts toward the kitchen, surprising Stella.

" What happened to her?"

"No clue. Hold up, I'll check."

" Hey Kate, Are you okay?"

" STAY AWAY FROM ME YOU FREAK!" Kate Shouts.

" What happened? Can you tell me?"

"Don't act like you don't remember."

" I don't." Phoebe reptiles are confused.

" Drop your innocence!"

" What's going on?" Stella asks.

" Stella, stay away from Phoebe. She is a fucking monster." Kate accuses.

" What? Why are you saying that?" Stella asks.

" Last night, she walked into the kitchen with mascara all over her face, and her eyes rolled back. She doesn't even reply when I talk to her, and then she has this weird smile as she walks back into her room."

Stella is scared listening to this.

" I was sleepwalking. I guess. I used to do that a lot as a kid." Phoebe reasons. " I am sorry if you got spooked. Nobody usually sees me when I am like that. I am sorry."

" Oh! See Kate, you were scared for nothing." Stella says with a smile. " Okay! Let's go Study now, Pheebs. We got a mid-term coming in a month."

Kate sighs in relief and smiles at Phoebe, and they go to study together with the boys.

Ryan greets them as they sit down to study. Zach is very tense for an unknown reason, and Phoebe sees this. Zach feels her eyes on him and smiles at her. As they continued studying, Phoebe felt a sudden switch in her emotions. She was smiling a few minutes ago, but now she feels as though she wants to sit and cry. She gives a fake excuse and leaves.

Phoebe carelessly walks back to the dorms. Her vision is blurry by the tears that are burning her eyes. A car honks loudly in front of her, but she dodges and continues to avoid the chatter. She feels as though the world is suddenly judging her. She feels like a misfit. Everything kept hidden behind the wall seemed open to the world-like skin. The walk from the study hall to the dorms felt long and exhausting. As if the world had just shut down, everything seemed to be at a standstill. She stumbles into the dorm room and haphazardly crashes into her room. She feels vulnerable to the world and every piece of her out to the rest of the world.

Vulnerability is sometimes known to be powerful, but for her, it makes her weak. She feels sucked into the black hole again, finding herself back in the cold apartment with six floor-to-ceiling windows, a door behind her, and a stairway in front of her. She feels a familiar rattle on the floor. She knows that IT is here again, like every time, but she can never get used to the aura and the force that pulls her into oblivion and burns her skin. She desperately climbs the staircase until she slips and falls to the depth of IT's realm.

All the crying makes her exhausted. As she comes out, she doesn't remember why she is back. Phoebe calls Stella.

"Hey."

"Hey. Where are you?"

"Huh?"

"We have been waiting for you. We are going for Lunch.'

"Oh. Alright. I'll be there in a bit."

" Alright girl. We'll wait for you, hurry up."

" Why did you leave so suddenly?"

"I don't know."

" Is everything okay?"

"Did you guys notice me gone?"

"Ofc we did. Why do you ask?"

"It's just I have never really had anyone pay attention to me before. Anyway, what did I miss?"

" Nothing much. We were discussing what to eat." Rebecca chimed in.

Zach is just observing the hint of bleeding mascara on Phoebe's face. He wants to know what's wrong with her but also knows there is no point in asking her. She looks all fine from the outside, but he knows she is a mess.