The girl next door

(6)

I ran. I ran as fast as I could. Once I reached my house, I opened the door and ran inside. I locked the door behind me right away. I knew what she was capable of so I locked all the windows too. I locked the windows and closed the curtains. I did that to all the windows and doors in the house. My parents were at work, so they weren't home. That's when I heard it.

Bang!

I jumped at the sound and called Arabella right away. When she picked up, I heard her voice. "Don't bother calling her. She's already gone."

She hung up. I felt the tears fall. I stood up straight.

She was near. I could sense her. 

"I know you're here." I called out. "Show yourself! Fight me like the tough girl you claim to be!"

I heard the doorknob rattle.

The door slowly opened.

Delilah.

"You." I said. "Me." she said. She took out a gun, "You will love me again." she said. "I would rather die." I said. "That can be arranged." she said. She pointed the gun at me. "Now," she said. "You have a choice to make. Either love me, or join your girlfriend and brother."

"I-I-" I said.

"Times up!" 

Bang!

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I sat up straight in my bed. Sweat dripping down my face. I looked at the clock. 7:00 am. I got up and got ready for school. It's Tuesday. My parents are coming home today. 

***

Once I got to school, I immediately found Sebastian. "Sebastian!" I called. I ran over to him. "Hey Paige." he said. "Everything okay?"

I shook my head. "No." I said. "Last night, I had a dream. About her."

I took out my phone and called Arabella. Pick up. Pick up!

"Hello?"

"Arabella!" I said. "Thank god you're okay!"

"Paige? What's going on?"

"Where are you?"

"I'm on my way to school. Why? What happened?"

"I'm just making sure you're safe."

"If this is about Delilah, I'm fine. I haven't seen her."

"How do you know? You don't know what she looks like! You could have spoken to her and didn't even know!"

"I'm fine. I'm almost at school. I'll see you when I get there."

"All right. I love you. Be safe."

"I love you too."

Once I hung up, I turned to Sebastian. "She's fine." he said. "There's no need to worry."

I nodded. "But I'm still scared. What if she comes back? What if she kills her? What if she kills you? What if she kills all of us?"

"That won't happen." 

"You don't know that! I know her better than you! She would kill all of us until I love her! I'd rather die than be with her again!"

"Calm down, Paige. How would she come back? After she got out, she was put under a lot of security. There is no way she would be able to leave her house without people knowing."

"But still! It's worrying!"

People were looking at us now. "Let's go inside. People are looking." Sebastian said. I nodded, following him. 

***

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Arabella's pov

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I was about a block away from the school. I just hung up with Paige. She was very worried. That Delilah girl sounded really messed up. I'm glad I wasn't around to deal with her then. But what Paige was saying worried me. What if she does come back? I'm starting to be aware of my surroundings. The school was now in view. Before I entered, a girl stopped me. She had long, brown hair that went down to her waist, big brown eyes that lit up when she saw me. Her lips were so big and red. "Are you Arabella?" she asked me. "N-No." I told her. "I'm Paige's sister." she said. "She never mentioned a sister." I told her. "We were never really close." She said. "Anyway, I was looking for her. Do you happen to know where she is?"

"She's sick today." I lied. "I stopped by her house before I came here."

"That's too bad." she said, her bottom lip sticking out. "Well, I have to go." I said. I was about to run ahead of her, but she grabbed my arm. "Let me go!" I yelled. "Can you bring me to her house?" She asked. "No!" I said. I managed to free myself from her grasp. I ran inside the school and spotted Paige and Sebastian right away. I ran over to them. 

"Arabella?" Paige asked. "Are you okay?"

"I-I-" I said. "I ran into a girl. I don't know who she was, but she was looking for you. She said that she was your sister."

"I don't have a sister." she said. "Exactly! I knew she wasn't your sister, so I ran away from her."

"Delilah." Paige said. 

"I thought it was her! She really wanted to see her. I didn't let her."

"I'm just glad you're okay." Paige said. "Did she do anything to you?"

"All she did was grab my arm, but that's it. She has a strong grip." I said, rubbing my arm. 

"We can't let history repeat itself." She said. "No one else has to die."

"Agreed." Sebastian said. I put my hand out. Sebastian put his on top of it. Paige put her's on top of his. "We're going to stop her once and for all." I said. "And no one will be left behind."