Leilani handed her final customer their food, before sighing in relief. She had a 12 hour shift, today, and to say she was exhausted was an understatement. It left her wishing she hadn't agreed to help her friend start her own restaurant as soon as they got out of highschool. Gianni was cool and all, but issuing Lei a 12 hour shift almost every-other day was beginning to cause lots of stress. The pay was nowhere near what anyone needed.
It did help Ivy and Lei survive, which is what she assumed was all that's important. Ivy Hayes is the very kind lady who adopted her after her parents died. She never liked to think of Ivy as a mother, more as a best friend. Gianni was her closest friend, that was her age, but nobody can compare to the comfort she felt when in the presence of Ivy.
She walked over to the door and flipped the sign over so it read "Closed". Luckily, the restaurant was only a walk-in, so there were no tables to clean or much of anything to do. She liked it that way. She walked to the kitchen in the back and saw Jesper was washing the last of the dishes.
They exchanged a single smile as Lei turns back around and walks outside. Gianni is usually her ride home, but today Gianni left early. Leaving her stranded. She sighed and began walking in the direction of her house. She kicked the rocks with the toe of her shoe. She could call Ivy, but it's better not to disturb her with her work. A truck pulled up beside her and slowed to her speed.
"Nerine?" a stranger's voice asked. Her head snapped in the direction of the truck. She didn't recognize the stranger. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. How did he know her name?
"I recognized you from the papers." the stranger's voice came again. Something didn't seem right to Lei, almost as if he wasn't real. Her name hadn't been in the papers since 4th grade for the winning the national spelling bee. Lei pushes that thought to the back of her mind.
"Can I give you a ride?"
"No." she says, almost too fast. She can see red lights going off like crazy. She shouldn't trust him, but it felt like her mind was set on it. He did know her name, and seemed genuinely concerned.
"Nerine, come on. Just get in the car." the stranger said, urgently. His head looked around and focused back on her. She played the sentence over in her mind. Nerine, come on. Just get in the car. Something seemed wrong about the sentence. He used her name almost as if he was unsure. Nerine. That was her name, wasn't it? Nerine. That's funny. Why do people call her Lei, if her name is Nerine?
"I'm taking you to your house, come on." He said, and suddenly he seemed familiar. Her mind danced with an unfamiliar haze.
"Oh! You're Tom! How have you been?" Lei asked and she climbed into the passenger side. As soon as she got into the truck, her mind was out of it's haze and her mind was sharp as ever.
"Who are you and why are you calling me Nerine?" she said, scooting closer to the door. How could she have been so manipulated? It's almost like he was making her think that he was telling the truth. Tom's hands clutched onto the steering-wheel and he swore.
"Okay, fine. You caught me. I'm only a beginner, so cut me a little slack please." he nearly barked at her. Her mind raced with dozens of thoughts. Only a beginner in kidnapping?!
"Before you jump out of the truck, thus killing yourself, could you give me a moment to explain?" Tom said, in a tone that was a lot nicer. Lei was convinced she wasn't going to like what he said, but it can't hurt to listen to what he says, can it?
"I'm not Tom, I'm Jian. I was just altering you reality to get you to come with me. I lost concentration for a split second because I couldn't remember your name. Causing me to loose track of your thoughts. It happens." Jian said and Leilani felt even more on edge. How can you just change someone's thoughts with such ease?
