Saving The Robin [The Avis Venators: Book 1]

VII

-Maddie P.O.V-
The journey back home was quiet. Riley didn't talk much, and she was normally the one to strike up a conversation.
"Hey," I said, breaking the ice. "Won't they try and find you? Like, won't they come to my house?"
Riley shook her head. "They only took me being at your house as a visit. If they try to search anywhere it'll be at my uncle's. Also, my medical report states that my injury is fully supported and is currently healing. What's the point of tracking me down if there's nothing wrong with me?" She replied.
"Yeah, I guess..." I muttered. "My mum will be off work tomorrow. What are you gonna do?"
"I'll find something fun."
"Well, let's just crash at my house for now. You can rest early if you want."
"Don't you dare treat me like that or I will go insane," she said under her breath.
"Might as well speed up the bastard's work," I replied, as we walked down the driveway. I slid the key into the lock, then opened the front door.
"After you," I said, gesturing for Riley to enter.

Rilet sat herself down as soon as she got the chance.
"It's still...today, right?" She asked. I shook my head in return.
"You slept all day and night," I replied, teasing. However, she only sighed.
"Can I see your phone?" She said awkwardly. After a short silence, I nodded.
"Yeah. Sure," I said, reaching into my pocket and handing her my phone. She took it with her only available hand, and I could see her thumb instantly click on the message icon. Her eyes widened when she was the blank screen.
"No texts?" She asked, surprised.
"I know. I thought it was weird too, at first..." I began. I leaned over her shoulder, and pressed on the 'missed calls'  section. "That's when I started getting these," I finished. The stalker's number stood at the top of the list, with a four in brackets next to it. Four missed calls.
"You haven't been answering them, right?" Riley asked quickly. Her tone had gone terribly serious.
"Of course I haven't!" I replied. "What do you think 'missed' means? And do you really think I'd be that stupid?"
I noticed that she was about to reply, however my phone rang in her head causing us both to go silent. I waited as she read who it was, but due to her expression I could easily tell.
"Don't answer it," I whispered. Then I soon after questioned myself for whispering, when it was only a phone call. He could speak to us, and nothing else. We both stood completely still, until the phone stopped ringing. I let out a sigh of relief when the horrible sound was over, whereas Riley showed no means of relaxation. She was still on guard.
"Let's go upstairs," she finally said. She stood up and began walking over to the stairway, not even bothering to see if I was following her. I was, of course.
Once we were safely inside my bedroom, Riley locked the door.
"Hey, he hung up, relax-"
"He's watching us, Maddie. Just because we can't hear his voice through a phone or read his texts doesn't mean he's gone."
I fell quiet. She was supposed to have all this confidence- where is that now?
"Hey..." I muttered. "It's not that bad-"
"Shh," she whispered. I went still. I couldn't hear a thing.
"Riley, what are you-"
"The door. The door's being unlocked."
I felt my heart stop.
He's here?
N-Now? Suddenly everything became real. I was terrified. My body was shaking. I felt something touch my palm, and when I looked down I realised Riley had taken hold of my hand. Then I glanced at her face, at the big smile spread across her face. Her two dimples flashed on each cheek.
"Hey," she said. "He ain't gonna find us. Don't worry."
"B-But he's here..." I muttered, close to tears. "He's downstairs..."
Riley gripped onto my hand tighter. "It's just like a game of hide and seek," she said, her words comforting. "He was just too rude to give us a countdown."
And in that second, I laughed. She laughed with me, her face still beaming. Then we both heard the door being thrown open. I held my breath, closed my eyes, held onto her hand like she was everything I could ever need.
Then we waited. There was a short silence, then the visitor finally spoke.
"Madeleine! I'm home!"
"That voice..." I muttered, easily recognising it. I let out a huge sigh, as my breathing returned to normal. "It's my mom."

We had gone to bed stressed and tired. I needed to go to school tomorrow, even though I wasn't in the mood. Riley was still asleep when I woke up, so I let her rest. As I made my way downstairs, I was greeted with breakfast.
"Madeleine, did Riley stay here last night?" My mother asked. I nodded, then began eating.
"Wasn't she suspended? For..."
"Mom, if you're going to complain about her  and say she's not a suitable friend, at least have the courtesy to do it when she's not asleep upstairs."
My mother seemed taken aback.
"Madeleine, what's with the sudden attitude? I made you breakfast and this is the tone I get?"
"Well Mom, we can't all be happy every second, can we now?" I asked sarcastically.
"Madeleine-"
"Maddie! My name is Maddie, Mom! Or more like fucking Robin..."
"What was that?"
"It's doesn't matter. Just..." I shook my head, sighing. "Just leave me alone."

I got dressed and packed my bag in a hurry, while Riley was still sleeping. Then I checked my phone.

Don't get too stressed now, little Robin.

I switched it off, annoyed. Then I made my way downstairs and left the house, slamming the door behind me.
I was still stressed out. Everything bothered me, and I was on edge. It was extremely frustrating.
I walked into my form room in silence.
"Hey Maddie! Riley's still suspended huh?" Holly asked, laughing. Holly was my closest friend after Riley. If one of us was off, we would hang out with her. Sounds a bit like she's our plan b, but she didn't see it that way. She just hung about.
"Holly...just fuck off," I muttered.
"What's up with that attitude?" She asked.
"Why does everyone suddenly care today? Jesus fucking Christ..." I sat down and buried my head in my hands.
"Maddie..."
"Holly, just stop. Please."
She stood there in silence for a moment, then walked away with her head down.

Psychology was first. My teacher, Mr. Edison, smiled at me as I sat down.
"Maddie, have you noted down the project I set the other day? I don't think you were in, so I asked the class to message you about it."
"Well they didn't," I said, unpacking.
"Are you going to do it now then?" He added.
I sighed, then nodded.
"Fine, I'm writing it down," I replied.
"No need to get stressed, Maddie," he said in a calming tone.
"Please just start the lesson, sir," I asked.

The day dragged on like hell. I found myself staring out the window most of the time, waiting. Searching. I was scolded several times for not paying attention, but I didn't care. I was desperate to check my phone. I wondered if he could see me while I was in school. How he would get in. What he uses to spy on me. Would he need binoculars? Or does he guess what I'm doing? No, the texts are far too accurate. So how? I'm terrible at noticing things, I would never realise if I walked past the same person several times. It could by literally anyone...our only lead is that he's a male. And even that couldn't be true. It could be a really fucked up lesbian.

I walked home slowly. On the way, it began to rain. Not the thick rain that patters against the windows. It was more silent, and gentle.
I walked through the front door, my hair soaked. The first thing I noticed was Riley, laying down on the sofa. She was crying.
"Riley?" I asked quietly. She sat up and glanced directly at me, her eyes wide. Her cheeks with red, and her tears had dried on her face. She quickly rubbed her eyes, then looked away.
"S-Sorry," she muttered.
"Are you okay-"
She stood up before I could finish, and walked upstairs. My first impulse was to follow her, however I then thought it would be better to give her some space.
I made my way into the kitchen to grab something to eat. However, I stopped in my tracks when I noticed a knife, dug directly into the table.

"Riley?!" I shouted, running upstairs. I barged through my bedroom door to find her crouched in the corner. "No. We're not doing this," I added, walking over to her. "This is too serious to be keeping secrets from each other."
It took her a moment to reply.
"I hate this," she whispered. "I hate him."
"Yeah, I do too-"
"Maddie, I can't move my hand. You cut yourself. It's..." She sunk low, so that I could only see her eyes. "It's not fair." She tried to move her hand in her cast, but it only caused her to wince at the pain. "It hurts."
I found myself sitting down next to her. I sighed, then leant my head on her shoulder.
"What's with the knife?" I asked.
"I did it. I just got really angry all of a sudden. I'm sorry."
"Don't worry. I was rude to pretty much everyone today," I said.
"Why?"
I shrugged. "It's not their fault, they did nothing wrong. It's just...they're acting like everything was normal. Even though to them, it is...I don't know. But I feel better now."
"Don't get too mean- you'll be lonely at school without me," she said, laughing.
"Yeah. Riley...are you still crying?"
She nodded slowly. "Good," I replied. "Cause so am I."
Then we both sat in silence, our tears falling. Until I finally broke down. I cried into her shoulder, and she held onto me with the only hand she could use.
"I want it to stop," I muttered. "I just want it to stop."
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