another

nine

My feet carried me fast up the winding stairs. The darkness of the dimmed upstairs heightened my intense anxiety, and as soon as I reached the top I clumsily explored the walls for a switch. I blindly fumbled down the corridor, begging for my eyes to adjust to the blackness. Suddenly, I felt a large hand wrap around my bicep and pull me inside a room. I was met with a familiar face.

Jasper stared down at me, his body two inches from the tip of my nose. We were close inside this small, cramped space. His breath became my breath. I parted my lips to speak, but his hand locked over my mouth before I could make a sound. My eyes flew open at the abrupt contact, as I tried to squirm my way out from his hold. He spun me around and pulled me against his chest, his hand never losing his position overtop my mouth. I breathed heavily as he pressed an ear against the wooden door. We stayed like this for a heated, claustrophobic moment, before he sighed and let his hand drop.

I instantly pushed myself as far away as I could get from him, but my back hit against a wall. Where were we? It appeared to be a closet. What was going on? "Jasper--"

"Be quiet," he whispered, the heat of his breath fanning across my face.

"What are you doing?" My voice was small and filled with fear. It crept into my eyes as worried tears began to blur my vision.

"I'm not gonna do anything to you." He stated bluntly, voice still hushed. He stared into my soul. "What did you say to Luke?"

"About what?" I sighed, mentally drained. My panic had started to subside, but the terror was ever present.

"About us. About what you saw...about what I said." He clarified. He appeared as unsettled as I was, only he was more advanced at keeping it hidden.

"Nothing, I've been too afraid to even speak to him, and to you." I felt a flush of confidence distract me from the horror of my life.

He bit his lip. "Yeah? Maybe you should be."

"What does that mean? Why can't you just tell me what's going on?" I begged.

"Not here, not now." He responded. I wanted to yell at him for his aggrivating mystery, but somehow in the back of my mind I was thankful for his lessened adoration for me, that I now truly believed was an act. A good act. Too good. He dragged his hand down his face. "We're gonna have to sneak out tonight."

"I'm not going anywhere with you." I firmly declared. I didn't want to be alone with this creep any longer. I reached for the door knob, but he stopped me by entrapping my fingers with his own. They tangled with mine. I was filled with disgust. "Don't touch me!" I screamed under my breath. He let go. I reached for the door again but he pressed his entire body weight against the exit, hovering overtop me. We were too close.

"Don't you want answers?" He questioned me angrily, lifting his hands into the air.

"No, I want to go home. I want to be as far away from here as possible. I need to call the police or do something! I can't let my best friend rot in that psycho's basement while I lose my mind three billion miles away because you want to mess with my head!" I was completely winded by the end of my rant before I realized what I just said. Mandy. I told him, even though I was given strict instruction not to mention a single thing to anyone or else Mandy would die. What if my phone was tapped? What if that guy heard? What if he was slicing her throat that very moment? Oh my God, what had I done? What had I done? 

"What?" He gawked, eyes wide and filled with uncertainty. "What the...literal fuck are you talking about?"

"Forget I said anything." I tried to shove him away, but he wouldn't budge.