monster ; it.

V

"I'm not afraid of you," I told Penny.

Penny looked down at his feet and back up at me. "You should be," he shook his head.

Looking down, I saw that I had a cut from a piece of sharp rock from when I was running away from Henry. Wincing quickly, I stepped back down on it, my sandal's leather pressing against it.

"How did you find me?" I asked, blocking out what I had just discovered. Many questions raced through my mind.

Penny's eyes darted to mine, his light green spheres filled with answers. "I knew where you were," he responded plainly.

"How?" I asked, images of Henry Bowers filling in my mind. His smirk, the way he looked at me, his eyes filled with that blue lust that never seemed to go away.

Penny hesitated before finally managing to spill the truth, or what I assumed was the truth. "I've been following you for a while now."

My eyebrows furrowed together. "For how long? How long is a while?"

Penny swallowed, his face turning into a shade of pink, that white color fading away. "A few years."

Years.

"Are you hiding from anyone?"

"Yes."

"Who?"

Penny frowned, as he looked at the floor in frustration. "Everyone."

His eyes turned again, to its emerald color.

I swallowed hard, feeling my throat dry. "How old are you?" I worked up the courage to ask. Penny looked up at me in surprise, his face calming down once he saw my dazed face.

His lips parted. "Nineteen."

There was no response coming from my mouth. I stood there, defining his rare features in my head. He was back to a human; the soft skin, the eyes, the skinned jawline. He was gorgeous. I had forgotten how to breathe just because of the way he did the simplest things.

Yet he was a monster.

But yet, he was more than that.

"What are you thinking?" Penny snapped me out of my thoughts, as I looked up at him. There it was again; the look. The look that drove me crazy. Here I am again, fantasizing over someone I hadn't seen in seven years.

"Why are you like this?" I asked, his face becoming straight and his frown disappearing.

Penny looked at the floor, fiddling with the hem of his black shirt. "I'll be sure to tell you," Penny kept his eyes away from mine. "Later."

He looked up at me, soon walking towards a wall, feeling the markings that people had carved into the metal.

I scowled. "What do you mean later?" I asked harshly, my voice was raising. "I haven't seen you in seven years, and there's going to be a later?"

Penny turned around, the same frown returning to his face. His hand dropped from the wall, clinching to his side as he hung his head back. "You should leave soon. Your father might get worried," he calmed his temper.

I shook my head, stepping backward. "I'll never see you again," I murmured. I brushed the hair out of my face, waiting for him to say something.

He smirked, shaking his head as if I had just tried entertaining him. "I never left, Ariana." his weak smile stayed on his face.

"What do you mean?"

"I always looked out for you. There was not a single time when I wasn't making sure you were safe," he explained. "And I promise you that I will remain to keep you safe."

I felt my stomach turn upside down from his words. I smiled a little and him in the eyes. After a few seconds had passed, I felt myself getting lightheaded. I put my hand on my forehead and struggled to keep my balance.

The room started spinning.

"I don't feel good," I told him.

Penny's facial expression remained emotionless as my legs gave out and I fell into his arms. He gripped his arms around me and put his hand over my head to keep my head from drifting off. It felt like two bricks were making my eyes shut, and it was working. They both closed, and I couldn't comprehend what was happening to me.

Cling, cling. My alarm clock went off.

I snapped out of my trance, my body shifting awake as my eyes widened in response. I was now sitting in bed, sweat dripping from my forehead and down my neck. My breathing was heavy as I looked around the room for something. Anything.

My body soon started to settle and my eyes had gotten used to the light that was shining through my white curtains. Sighing, I got out of bed and walked over to my drawer. looking into the mirror above my desk, I looked nothing like I was happy. My outfit was dry, and there was nothing unusual with my appearance other than the obvious dullness.

I thought about the dream I had last night. It was all a dream. It seemed so surreal to me that I forgot that it was just my imagination coming to life again. I found it strange how my brain thought about an imaginary friend after seven years of having forgotten about him. I contemplated the words on why I suddenly remembered him.

I continued to think about him. I got dressed later than I was supposed to; brushed my hair from its knots, and brushed my teeth. I didn't eat breakfast, yet again I never liked breakfast. Walking downstairs quirky, I stopped in front of the front door, grabbing my flip-flops that had been set on the rug. My dad wasn't here, and out of everywhere; I thought he'd at least stay home with a killer hangover.

I sat down on the couch, setting my foot on my knee, taking the flip-flop and putting it on. When I put the shoe on my left foot, I felt a burning sensation coming from the center of my heel. I cautiously looked at the back of my aching foot. There was a large cut that went from the top of my heel to the bottom of it.

➢➢➢

The dream was real... oh no.

Quote of the Day: "They don't know that we know they know we know." Phoebe Buffay