Ten

I tried not to cringe. I’ve never been on date before and I wasn’t planning on going to one anytime soon. I'd only embarrass myself. I didn't have anything nice I could wear and besides I could never go with such depressing her. That's why I always pinned it in a messy bun. “I don’t want to go on a date mom and besides Benjamin just broke up with his girlfriend, I heard it from some girls in passing.”

She smiled. “Honey, I’m not encouraging you to hang out with boys but I think you need to go out, once.”

I just laughed. “Can you please pass me salt and pepper?”

When she handed them to me she mumbled. “I hear he’s a gentleman.”

“Mom,” my neck burned all the way up to my cheek. “We are so not having this conversation.” I seasoned with salt, pepper and paprika.

She laughed. “I could give you some tips.”

“Mom!”

“Fine fine.” She set the table while I went to change. When I was in the bedroom I closed the curtains and changed to my pyjamas. The persistent nagging of being watched wouldn’t go away.

I tried to welcome sleep but couldn’t. I don’t know how long I lay on my side agitated and restless. I had a dreamless sleep that night.

I woke up to the deafening sound of my alarm clock. I groaned and tried to roll over but I couldn’t. I felt strong arms holding me hostage against a firm body. It took a second for me to realise that my head wasn’t pressed up against my pillow but instead on a chest. My ears picked up the sound of a heartbeat. Double tap pause tap. The sound was beautiful, mesmerising. I snuggled further into the body and then the realisation that this shouldn’t be happening hit me.

I was supposed to be with Zack and my brother shouldn’t feel so strong, there shouldn’t be a warm body next to me, and I shouldn’t be cuddling into a stranger. My eyes flew wide open against the starling darkness and I screamed my lungs out. It was only a matter of seconds before mom opened the door and asked, “Not so loud, some of us are trying to sleep.”

By that time I was on the floor, crawling backwards, away from the bed with fear rocking my body with stabbing daggers.

Janice quickly turned on the lights and my eyes bulged as I noticed it was just mom, a sleeping Zack and I in the room. No matter how hard I tried to convince myself that I must have imaged someone else in my room, I knew with every fibre in my body that it was all real. I hadn’t imagined it.

“Were you having a bad dream?”

I nodded. What else could I do? I couldn’t possibly say I felt a presence on my bed, that I was imagining things. It had to be Benjamin. He probably was sending a sign. He was scaring me.

Janice shifted awkwardly from foot to foot and suddenly pushed me against her chest, a second later she was half a foot away from me. “It’s okay. It’s all over now.”

“Thanks,” I mumbled awkwardly.

She smiled weakly at me and closed the door behind her.

I padded to the bed and ran my hand over the spot that the stranger had been laying in, it was still warm. I found a strand of black hair on my pillow and relief washed over me. At least I wasn’t losing my mind.

I was nervous the whole day. I found it hard to concentrate. Benjamin could see that something was wrong. He kept looking at me with probing eyes. After school I ran to the entrance and scanned the parking lot. I wanted to be absolutely certain I was alone. I wasn’t sure why I was acting like this, why paranoia gripped me. Whoever the owner of the black hair was, had come into my house with the doors and windows locked, and had left the same way. I was sure if he wanted to find me, he would.

I had imagined it. That was the only logical reason. It wasn’t like there were people with magical or supernatural powers out there. The thought of Benjamin froze my stuttering heart.

I made it home in record time. I’ve never walked so fast in my life before. When I was in the safety of my bedroom I called my uncle. He answered in the first ring.

“Beth!”

He sounded out of breath.

“Were you exercising?” I knew the answer before I even asked the question.

“What, of course not.” he sounded outraged.

I laughed. “Did you finally propose to Ms. Scott?”

It was silent for a couple of minutes and then a sigh. “I don’t think that’s going to happen, angel.”

I could picture him lying on his couch, with his pot belly pale and jelly like peeking under his shirt. I smiled sadly.

“I miss you so much.”

“Oh baby, but I miss you more.” He laughed nervously. “Jessica moved out.”

“Why?”

“Apparently I don’t take her seriously. I always talk about other women when she’s around.”

“Yeah, apparently,” I smiled and walked over to my computer. I logged on and stared at the blank screen. I was debating whether to send Jessica an email or not. I knew what my uncle wasn’t telling me. The other woman in his life was me and not taking her seriously had something to do with him refusing to cut me out of his life for good. Jessica thought I was Uncle Miles’s child seeing as she’d never met my mother.

“Beth, you can’t control the way people feel.”

Ugh, he knew me so well, “I wasn’t-”

“You can’t fool me kiddo.”

“When are you coming to visit?”

He laughed humourlessly. “I’ll check my schedule. You and Zack should come visit.”

“I hope you are taking your medication as prescribed.”

“With the annoying alarm clock set on every device I own, that’s a little impossible don’t you think?” I smiled. “I can’t seem to get rid of the one on my phone.”

“I knew you’d try that.”

“Do you have to be so over protective?”

My grin widened, “When it comes to my favourite uncle then yes.”

“I thought I was your only uncle.” Uncle Miles was trying to lose weight and the nutritionist had prescribed some weight loss pills but my uncle usually took too many. In his defence – he believed if he upped the dose he’d lose weight faster. But he refused to lay off the food. He ate too much, his diet unhealthy.

I rolled my eyes. “Mom said Hi.”

He didn’t answer. He didn’t have to. They didn’t bother to hide their dislike for each other.

“Hey kid, I have to go,” He sounded stressed. “I’m meeting Michael and Thomas at the pub in half an hour.”

“I hope they won’t allow you to drink.”

“So it’s a crime to have some soda?” the smile was evident in his voice.

“Ugh. You know what I mean.” I wanted to remind him he was obese but he hated the subject, I tried to avoid it.

He laughed as the click sounded signalling the end of the call. Zack and I had some chicken noodles with tea for supper. We went to bed early. I didn’t want to be awake if the stranger decided to come tonight.