Chasing a Broken Butterfly

Chapter 11:

I've just said goodbye to my mom as she left to work. I'm heading upstairs to my room to lay down in my bed when I realize I forgot to turn the kitchen lights off.

"Lacey, stay on your mat. I'll be right back," I instruct my dog.

I walk back down the stairs and I'm about to turn the lights off when I notice the kitchen window is open. I move over to close it. No sooner than it's closed, my phone starts buzzing from my back pocket. I pull it out and glance at the number flashing across the screen.

There is no number.

It just says Unknown Caller.

I hesitate for a moment before I decide to answer it and immediately press the speaker button.

"Hello?" My voice falters a bit.

There's dead silence on the other end.

"Hello?" I repeat. Maybe whoever is on the other line didn't hear me the first time.

I'm greeted once more with silence.

I stare at my phone and see that the call is still going. I'm about to ask who's calling when the call ends as abruptly as it started. Whoever was on the other line just hung up on me. I scrunch my eyebrows in confusion. Maybe they just dialed the wrong number. Happens all the time to people. Right?

I let out an exasperated sigh and shove my phone back into my pocket. I head to turn off the lights and make my way upstairs back to my room. I'm halfway up the stairs when the living room behind me is suddenly washed in white from the backyard porch lights.

I whip my head around and stand frozen in the middle of the stairs, my left hand clenched on the wooden railway. I don't notice that I'm holding my breath in until I make the decision to go back downstairs into the living room and peer out the curtains. With every step I take, I swear my heart beat rises and my hands become more clammy.

When I reach the heavy draperies, I pull the curtain back just enough to allow me to peek through one eye. The bright porch light is a little blinding compared to the darkness of the living room, so it takes my eyes a minute to adjust. I don't see anything though. Just the usual patio furniture and the gigantic trees in the back.

I shake my head. I'm getting worked up for nothing. it's obvious that the damn lights aren't working correctly, so even the wind is probably setting it off. I mentally smack myself in the head for not thinking of that earlier. Of course it's probably broken! I'll just have to tell my mom tomorrow and find someone to come fix it. Problem solved.

I let the curtain fall from my fingers and pad back toward the stairs. Once I make it to my room, I close the door behind me and lock it.

I change out of my day clothes into purple, cotton shorts with polar bears printed on them and an oversized, faded white t-shirt. Not the cutest pajamas, but they're comfortable.

I walk over to my window and lock it before I head to my bed and get under the covers. it's only the beginning of September and I already sleep with 3 blankets. I'm a cold person...as in I get cold extremely easy.

I reach over to my bedside table to turn off the lamp, place my phone down on it, and lay back down on my pillow. I lay there for what seems like only a few minutes, staring up at the ceiling when my room is lit up by my phone's backlight.

I turn over on my left side to face my night table and grab my phone. I squint for a few seconds before reading a text from Mikey.

"I'm picking you up tomorrow for school because you're gonna be my date at The Diner after school"