SOMETHING ROAMS THE NIGHT...

TWO

"Gotcha!" the person behind the mask said. He let out a hysterical laugh.

"Oh my God, Ezra!" I pulled the hideous clown mask off his face. "What were you thinking?"

"Sorry," he chuckled, and then stopped when I gave him a glare. "I'm sorry, Haley."

"Whatever," I mumbled, beginning to walk away from my best friend. "How long have you been following me?"

"The whole time," he said, a wide smile on his face. "I wanted to make sure you got home safe."

"Oh, that's very nice of you," I rolled my eyes. My heart was still beating fast, plus I was fuming, which tripled its rate. "It's not funny, Ezra. I could have had a heart attack."

"I saw you leave early. The party wasn't over yet, Hale," he said. "Why'd you leave?"

"Curfew," I said curtly. "I've got to walk a long way home."

"I'll walk with you," he tossed the mask into the street. "I got that for free," he said when he saw my expression.

We walked in silence for quite some time. I was still angry, but I knew it wouldn't last for long. After all, Ezra was the one friend I liked to hang out with. With him I could be myself and not feel embarassed about it.

"So, what's with this curfew thing?" he broke the silence.

"My parents...They said I had to be home by sunset. Family rule," I replied.

"Huh," he ran a hand through his brown hair.

"My mother tells me all these stories, you know...About these things that come out only when it's dark..."

"Yeah, the things that roam the night...My mother talks about it all the time," he said, then looked at me with his blue-green eyes. "Do you believe?"

"I don't know. Not seeing means not believing, I guess," I shrugged.

"Huh," Ezra said again. He was acting weird, as if he knew something I didn't.

"Do you?" I asked him.

"Yes," he said, a serious expression on his face.

"I've seen them."