Red Sweater Tom

An Explanation

You sit on your couch, stunned at what Tom has just told you. You're sitting there staring down at your orange juice that is sitting on the coffee table in front of you.
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You feel the couch sink next you and an arm gently wraps around you, pulling you out of your thoughts, but you still feel dazed.
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"Are you okay? You're shaking? Y/n, relax. It's gonna all be fine. Y/N! Look at me!" Tom's worried voice snaps you out of your mind completely and you look at him. He puts both of his large hands on either side of your cheeks, forcing you to hold eye contact with him. "I promise it'll all be okay. I won't let anyone hurt you."
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"What about you though, Tom? What. About. You?" You pause between each word to provide emphasis.
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"I'll be fine, too. We both will be fine," Tom let's go of your face and puts his elbow on his knee and rests his head on his hand.
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"Tell me again," you say, wanting to hear the story again now that you've snapped out of it.
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"I don't think that's a good idea. You were zoned out for almost 5 minutes straight," Tom says, unsure.
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"I snapped out of it! I need to hear it again. I want to help,"
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"Okay, okay... I got a call from a blocked number three weeks ago. It was the day you and I ordered Chinese and you thought I was a burglar," he smiles at the memory of that night.
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You smile too, thinking of the burn...the almost kiss... ~focus, y/n, focus~ You look at Tom, waiting for him to continue.
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"It was a blocked number. But I answered it anyways because I thought only the people that were okay having my number had it. Turns out, I was wrong," Tom sighs and and squeezes the bridge of his nose as if he's getting a headache and shuts his eyes for just a moment. "It was a voice I didn't recognize. He started telling me that I better watch out for my "little friend," and I knew he meant you. I tried to ask him what he wanted, but I didn't give into it too much. I figured it was just someone trying to mess with me, trying to play a trick on me. So I just blew it off and stuck with my regular routine."
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"I knew something was up that night!!" You say triumphantly. He gives you a serious look and you remind yourself to focus again.
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"Anyways, that following day he called me again. Right after you tried on that green dress and before we decided to go. I answered the phone, but before I could even say hello he spoke. It's like he knew I grabbed my phone. It's like he saw me. And what he said confirmed it. He said 'wow, she sure does look beautiful in Loki colors, doesn't she?' Then he started laughing and I hung up the phone before he could say anything else, I knew right at that moment that this wasn't just a harmless prank..." He puts his face in both his hands and just sits there for a minute. You put your hand on the top of his back and rub small circles to try to comfort him.
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"So that's why you didn't talk to me for like... 3 days?" You say trying to remember.
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"Yeah, I wanted to keep some distance to see if that'd do anything. He called me again the morning we had our argument. He told me that he liked your outfit and that it looks like you got the afternoon off work. I jumped to conclusions thinking he took you... That's why I was so worried and was determined to get a hold of you. I didn't consider any other possibility other than him taking you. Then I found you and we had our argument. After that I went home and he called me again. He said 'nice try, but you can't fool me that easily. Spending a few days apart doesn't prove to me that you don't care about her anymore, I'm no fool. The second you thought something was wrong, you ran to save her' That's when I decided that if I was going to distance myself from you, I had to go all out."
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"So what happened during that 2 and a half weeks? Did he call you again?" You ask, needing more.
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"Yeah. He called me multiple times. Each time telling me something about you. What you were wearing that day, how your hair was done, if you were late to work, that kind of stuff. I stopped answering after the first few but then I started getting texts and voicemails. Then, on Friday, I got a picture. It was you on a jog. But it looked like it was getting dark, it looked like it was almost night time. I got worried again and thought he may have taken you when you were running Thursday night. I finally had had enough and when he called me Friday night, I told him I was going to call the cops. He told me that if I did, bad things would happen. Not only to you and me, but my other friends. My family. Everyone that means anything to me would be ripped from my life. I had a complete breakdown. I needed some time to think so I turned my phone and went... Well you know where I went..." He trails off.
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For some reason, whenever Tom needs time to himself, he finds comfort in an old abandoned theatre not far out of the city. It's hidden by many trees so it's a good place to go for peace and quiet. Whenever I can't get a hold of him, I almost always can count on finding him there. "So why did you call me last night then? After almost 3 weeks...I don't understand why you gave in then."
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"Honestly.... I needed you. You're my best friend, y/n. You're the one person I can always go to. I needed you to help me figure this guy out. I couldn't do it on my own. Why would I continue to stay away from you and not have you in my life and still get phone calls from him every single day, when I could see you and we could try to figure it out? Calling you was probably the best decision I've made throughout this whole thing," he says with the most honest look on his face.
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"Don't worry, Tom, we are going to figure this out. Together."
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~end part 11~