Light as a Feather

Chapter Twenty-Four

        "Wow, that's a long time to be sick!" Esmie said to Annabelle at lunch the next day. It was a Friday, and Annabelle was exhausted. She hadn't slept much the night before, admittedly, because she had been worrying about Tyler. When she had walked into her first period class, she had expected to see him in his seat, messing with a pencil or doodling on a piece of paper, as usual. But his chair was empty, and when Annabelle saw that, she felt empty, too, for some reason. 

        "I know," Annabelle answered. Since she had been "sick," she had an excuse to be tired. 

        "Have you seen Tyler?" Esmie asked as she took a bite of her ham sandwich.        

        "No. Have you?" Annabelle said, hoping to gain some information. 

        "Nuh-uh. But he was gone around the same time as you. Except that he's gone today, too," Esmie answered, looking at her. 

        "Oh, well. I don't know where he is," Annabelle said, and that was the truth. She suspected he was at home, but how would she know? 

        "Oh, you missed a bunch of drama with the Prissy Posse the other day. Seriously, Alicia was all up in Casey's grill, and..." Esmie was saying more, but Annabelle wasn't really listening. After thinking about Tyler for a while, she decided that she'd go to visit his house after school that day. What else did she have to lose? "Annabelle?" Esmie said, her deep eyes searching her face. 

        Annabelle snapped back to attention. "I'm sorry, Esmie. I've got a lot on my mind." 

        Esmie smiled knowingly. "Are you really okay, Annabelle?" Her eyes were soft, staring at her kindly. 

        "I... I'm just really distracted right now," she answered truthfully. 

        Esmie nodded, and accepted the answer. "Do you wanna come over to my house later? I have a bunch of new sketchbooks I can show you. And a trampoline." She winked. 

        "It depends on where you live, but yeah, that sounds fun." 

        "Perfect. Here's my address..." she said. She ripped a corner of a piece of notebook paper out and scribbled her address on it. She gave it to her just as the bell rang for them to go to class. Annabelle stuck it in her pocket and went to her next class, oddly hoping that Tyler would be there.  

                                                                                        *****

        After school, Annabelle walked into the mansion and immediately checked her phone, hoping to have an answer from Uncle Leo about the painting. Her face fell when she realized that he hadn't called or texted her. She threw her backpack on her bed and walked downstairs to find her mother. 

        Her mom was eating something at the table. "Hi, honey," she said. "How was school?"

        "Exhausting," Annabelle said, searching the cupboards for some chips or candy. "Mom, can I walk over to my friend's house?" 

        "You made a friend?" her mom asked. She sounded surprised. 

        Annabelle rolled her eyes. "Yes, mom. I am capable of being social." 

        Her mother grinned and said, "Well, I can drive you, if you want." 

        "No, she only lives about two blocks away. I can walk there." And she also wanted to make a stop at Tyler's house. She shut the cupboard she had been looking in and opened a drawer. 

        "Well, okay. Yes, you may go. But I want you back in time for dinner. And if you need me to come pick you up, just call, and I'll come get you."

        "Okay. Hey, where's dad?" 

        Her mom gestured to the couch. "You just passed him. He's sitting on the couch, reading a book." From the couch, her dad rose a hand. She could see the back of his head, which was bent over the pages of a paperback. No wonder she hadn't noticed him. When her father read, he was a still statue, completely centered on the book. It was a skill that she envied. 

        "Well, okay. See you later," she said. She walked over and hugged her mom tightly, and then went out the door, making sure her phone was in her pocket. Instead of turning left towards Esmie's house, she went right, to Tyler's. She walked up the front steps, breathing heavily. Why was she nervous? She was checking on a friend to make sure he was okay. True, she was attracted to the friend, and they had kissed before, but still. At the moment, he wasn't much more than a friend. Who she liked. She tried to abandon the feelings, and stepped up to the door.

        Her knuckles hesitated before they knocked on the door, but Annabelle finally did it. A breeze passed through, and she found herself wishing that she had a cardigan or jacket. She folded her arms over her chest. An older woman slowly opened the door a crack. She looked kind enough. Her hair was  stripped with gray and white and was curled nicely. The wrinkles on her skin told Annabelle that she was old, but not ancient. "Hello," the woman said. "What can we help you with?" She said it firmly, but not unkindly. 

        "Hi, um... is Tyler here?" 

        The woman perked up a little when she said his name. "He's got a bit of a stomach bug," she explained. "He's been in bed ever since last night. Maybe try tomorrow?" 

        "Oh, thank you," Annabelle said, feeling relieved. He was just a little sick. Nothing major. She felt like a fool. She smiled at the woman and began to walk down the steps. 

        "Should I take a message?" the lady asked.

       Annabelle turned halfway around, one foot towards her house, and one foot facing the woman. "Oh, no thanks," Annabelle said. "I was just... making sure he was okay." She smiled and turned away, hearing the door close behind her. She began to walk down the street. Now that she knew Tyler was fine, she was happy. Joyous, even.

        Annabelle continued to walk down the street. She was glad that she was wearing dark blue jeans and not a dress because the breeze was getting a little bit stronger and colder. There were a few clouds in the distance, but they weren't gray, at least, not yet. Annabelle hoped it would rain. As she kept walking, she passed an assortment of nice, large houses. Some of them were as big as hers. 

        She went on, but with each step, she felt as if she were being watched. She stopped more than once and looked around, feeling an eerie sense of foreboding, but nothing happened. She only shivered and went on. She couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her. She began to walk a little faster.

        Out of nowhere, there was suddenly a whooshing noise that resembled a gun. She felt a pain in her neck, around her shoulder. She turned her eyes  down to look, and was horrified. There was a dart in her neck. There was. A dart. In her neck. She began to breathe more deeply, and turned around, and ran. She pulled out the dart in the process, hoping it wouldn't kill her, or anything. A rush of adrenaline coursed through her body. She had gotten pretty far down the street, and had been almost to Esmie's house, but she still kept running, her shoes thudding on the concrete. Her breath became more spread out, and she felt even more tired than she had been before. But she didn't stop. She knew that she couldn't. 

        At one point, she tripped and fell. She could feel her knee scrape the sidewalk, and she cried out in pain when her elbow and arm followed. She tried to get up, but found that she was too tired. She simply couldn't. She tried to scream, and she did, but Annabelle knew that it wasn't very loud. Tears ran down her face as she tried again, but that scream was worse than the last. As she felt herself drifting away, she thought, I can't die. I won't. 

        The last thing she saw before her eyes fluttered shut was a large, black blob moving towards her.