Candies and Sticks

Part Three

[Grown up Riley on the right!

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PART THREE

“That guy is still following you, kid,” Nicky half-whispered, half-snickered, as he plopped himself beside me on the cafeteria table. It was already our lunchtime by now. And ever since this morning, I developed this headache I all blamed to two people.

“Don’t remind me…” I groaned, dropping my forehead on the table. The noise filling the whole cafeteria wasn’t helping me, either. “Help me, Nicky…”

Being the amazing brother that he was to me, he laughed his heart out. “In yo’ face!”

I tilted my head so I could face him, looking at him flatly. “Seriously?”

“But I always wanted to say that!”

“You're so… ugh! If you have nothing nice to say, just… don’t open your mouth at all!”

“I’ll tell Mum you're talking back to me.”

“I’ll tell Dad you have porn magazines under your bed.”

Like I expected, he covered my mouth, looking everywhere to see if anyone else heard our conversation. Fortunately for him, no one else did. “How did you know that?!”

Now it was my turn to laugh at him. “I didn’t. But you're not denying it, aside from the fact that you look guilty, so it is safe to say you just proved me right.” I shook my head, chuckling. “Really, Nicky? Really?”

“Shut it!”

“If it helps you sleep at night, then fine.”

I chuckled as he kept pouting like a child. I swore I was more like the older brother to him than he was to me. As I scanned the whole cafeteria though, my dilemma went back to me like a huge rock knocking me out cold.

That guy, whose name I still didn’t know, was still staring at me from where he was sitting. He was alone in his table because for one, he looked like he would eat anyone who would dare get near him, alive and whole. And two, the way he was staring at me was enough to say he had no any other business to be here.

When I said before that two people were the reason for my headache, it was because of Greg, too. For some reason, he was doing the same thing like that guy. As if watching me that intently would give them answers to whatever question they had in mind.

“He's not a transfer student,” Nicky suddenly said, cutting my thinking. “That guy, I mean.”

“Are non-students allowed to wander here in Delta?”

“Well, seeing that no one is stopping him, then yes. Besides, I saw him heading towards the main office, so maybe he asked for permission or something. I don't know.” He shrugged.

“When I told you before that I want to know what it feels like to have a stalker, I take it back now.”

Nicky chuckled. “He's classified as a stalker to you already?”

“What the fuck ever. And what's the problem with Greg? He's being weird.”

“Ah, that idiot. He never listens to me…” he muttered, seemingly not intending for me to hear. But since there was almost no gap between us, I did. “Anyways, you talk to Greg. I’ll set that guy straight.”

“Wow. How easy. In case you forgot, dear brother, Greg isn't exactly nice when you're not around.”

“It looks to me like he has something to tell you.”