The Fallen

Amirèe

The sun was setting, splattering the horizon with portraits of orange and purple clouds. Most of the other students had went home already, except for the athletes like me. Track practice had ended later than usual, and I was completely on edge, jumping at every sound, from the engine of a car to the gentle chirping of a cricket.

Plenty of girls had gone missing over the last few days, and each missing girl turned up dead by morning. I would have felt better if Dennis or Matt had walked with me, but Matt lived in a different direction, and Dennis's younger sister was sick, so he rushed straight home after school. I was left alone with my thoughts, and that was terrifying.

I wasn't a big girl, so someone could easily snatch me. Everyone in town tended to mind their business as well, so even if I screamed there was no guarantee somebody would help. Of course, I could run fast, but I was sore and tired from practice. If someone wanted to kidnap me, now would be the perfect time.

Just as I was contemplating jogging home, my phone shrilled and vibrated loudly, nearly giving me a hard attack. Digging it out of my pocket, I looked at the screen to see it was my best friend, Dennis.

"What's up?"

"Hey Mirèe, I'm sorry I couldn't walk you." He sounded tired, but his voice was as calm as ever.

"I'm fine, take care of your sister."

"No, you're not, it's dark and girls are dying. I feel terrible not bringing you home like I usually do." he argued. "It's not safe to be out alone, especially not right now."

"I can handle myself, I'm not a kid. You're worrying about the wrong person anyway. How's Emmy feeling?" I changed the subject. Having him worrying about me was making me even more uneasy, and I didn't need to be anymore paranoid.

"You mean the reason I had to leave you by yourself? She's sick." He spoke sourly. "I don't see why she can't get her lazy ass up herself and make a bowl of soup, all she has to do is put it in the microwave."

"Maybe she just loves her older brother." I laughed. "Don't be so hard on her. She just wants attention from you."

"She needs to grow up. Emmy is ten years old. I was taking care of her by myself when I was a kid. I mean I made dinner, cleaned the house, the whole nine yards!" He complained. "She could at least make herself a bowl of soup."

"You've always spoiled her, give credit where it's due."

"Okay, so maybe it's my fault, but still, she needs to grow up." He sighed. "Or at least learn how to make soup."

"You're a mess you know that? The other day you were complaining about her growing up too fast, now she's not growing up fast enough?"

"You have a little brother, it's different, so you wouldn't understand." He sighed again, what a drama queen.

"No, I know what you mean. Sometimes I still feel like Corey is five, then I remember he's almost eleven. I kind of miss having him run a round with a pacifier in his mouth." I could clearly remember the day when my mom brought him home from the hospital. He had been wrapped in a soft faux fur blanket. His eyes were pointed and glaring, and his mouth was set in a stony line, but when you tickled his stomach, his laughs were plentiful and heartwarming. When he saw something interesting, his smile was so bright you thought you would melt. He was adorable, and wore that same expression to this day, glaring at the world, but when he smiled it was bright and beautiful. My baby brother never changed, and I loved that about him.

"Well, at least you don't have to worry about a bunch of boys coming on to him when he gets in high school." I couldn't help but smile. I could easily imagine Dennis threatening every boy that looked at his sister.