Philophobic : Tyler Galpin

17: The Truth Hurts

Friday night, October 16th

[victoria's pov]

After leaving Wednesday stuck in the dorm with Xavier, I thought it'd be best to not sleep over in her dorm tonight if I valued my life–which I did to a certain degree. My mother was busy–apparently–and expecting me to take my usual ride who she didn't know was Tyler.

But we haven't spoken.

So I set off on foot with Shank in my bag. I left the grounds with a shortcut through the woods before I found myself on the paved road again. Walking would probably take me about forty-five minutes, which I usually didn't mind but it was getting dark out. But nothing happened in Jericho except for monster attacks... so of all the people in Jericho, I don't expect to be on its agenda tonight.

It was slightly drizzling, which I thought was the perfect weather to walk in. Plus, the roads were empty so it wasn't as threatening even as the sun was setting.

As I imagined the conversation between Xavier and Wednesday right now, I couldn't help but grin. Thank goodness it was a Friday so I wouldn't have to face her for another three days.

A light from behind me cast a shadow on the pavement as I continued walking. I turned around and saw a silhouette of a car approaching and moved my feet onto the damp grass. And let me say, wet Converses are not the most comfortable feeling in the world.

To my surprise, the car slowed down beside me and I realized immediately that it was Tyler's car. He rolled down the passenger window and I heard his voice.

"I figured you were still at school," Tyler said, ducking enough so he could see me as his car slowly followed me along the road. "Glad I ran into you though."

"Yeah, I had something to take care of," I answered plainly.

The last thing I wanted was to talk to Tyler right now–at least I think it was. I longed for things to go back to normal, but I was annoyed by him already. By the fact that he reassured I was no problem, but became exactly that at the end of the day. If he'd left me alone in the beginning and just watched, he'd know that I could take care of myself just fine.

It was like that until he came along.

And when I decided to involve myself in Rowan's killer mysteries.

"There's a storm moving in," Tyler informed me. "Get in the car."

"There's no need for that," I replied, ignoring his gaze as I continued down the road.

I imagined Tyler furrowed his brows. "What're you talking about-? Are you still upset with me?"

"No," I said, unsure of the answer myself. But then, I added, "I'd just hate to be an inconvenience."

Tyler sucked his teeth before speaking again. "Listen, I never said that. I never meant to sound that way either."

"Just go home, Tyler," I said with annoyance.

"I'm not leaving until you get in the car."

A feeling of irritation was rising in me as I continued to avoid his eyes. The moter of his car was quietly filling our silence as he refused to leave me astray. I could feel the battle of our determination to win each other over as the rain fell a little heavier than the next drop.

"Victoria," Tyler began. "I didn't mean to get mad at you like that. You just had me worried."

"Stop pretending like you care, Tyler," I said, irritation becoming more clear. "You- you're not responsible for me. I don't need your help like everyone else so for your information, I can take care of myself just fine!"