"A-a-a-and done." Ryan said happily. It was six days before his 16th birthday. He'd just finished emailing his last invite to his party. His party was going to be July 1st; three days before his actual birthday on July 4th. Ryan decided to do it like this because the previous year he tried to have his party on his actual birthday but it didn't really work out. Suddenly he sees he just received an email. It was a Happy Birthday message from someone but he didn't recognize the address. "What's this, or better yet who's this?" he pondered to himself "Welp only way to find out. I'll just email them and ask...probably just someone I know emailing me for the first anyway. "thanks" he typed "so, who are you anyway?" A few minutes later a response showed up. "You know who i am." It read "We will meet soon."

Unable to think of a response Ryan shut down his computer. "That was awkward." He thought to himself aloud.

That night he lay awake wondering what the cryptic message could be. Was it real? Was it a prank? What the hell is going on? He stay thinking until he finally was able to find sleep. The next day Ryan awoke to the sound of his alarm and his bedroom t.v. blaring.

"Ugh turn that crap down Immanuel." he grumbled.

"Shut up and go back to sleep." Ryan's seventeen year-old brother responded dejectedly. "You always complaining about something when you get up. Why don't you try not being so pissy about everything every morning. Like-" He continued on talking but Ryan, always quick to lose interest in things he didn't find interesting, had stopped listening. He began to check his emails hoping he'd received any clue as to who was sending him the cryptic messages.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?!" Immanuel asked incredulously.

"No, why would even assum i'd been listening to you bitch and moan for ten minutes about nothing. The minute you continued complaining like a female was the minute your argument became invalid and irrelevant." Ryan took great pride in the shock that passed over his brother's face. He looked as if he'd been slapped.

"What did you say to me you little shit?" He said menacingly, " What did you just say? You snotty sonofa-"

"What was that?" Suddenly interrupted by the voice of their mother, Immanuel froze mid sentence. "Now I know you weren't about to or already cursing in my house." She said , Immanuel stuttered out a response;

"Uhh.. no why… would you say… umm no."

"Yeah that's what I thought you said." She said dismissively. "And get ready we're leaving soon."

"Leaving where?" Immanuel asked.

"The mall." Their mother responded. "We still have to get stuff for your brothers party."

"I guess." Immanuel replied slightly annoyed that his mother was paying so much attention to his little brother's sixteenth birthday when all she did for him was a trip to Applebee's and a movie.

"And I'm going out really quickly to pick up a few things so get your brothers ready by the time I get back."

"Ok." they said in unison.

Later that day at the mall Ryan and his younger (and frankly his favorite brother to hang out with) brother Tre were checking out clothes at the Hollister store. Ryan was checking out a red shirt with a white Hollister symbol it was a plain shirt but it matched a KD what thes that he wanted to get also.

" I think I want this and the blue ripped jeans" he said to no one in particular.

"Interesting," said a voice suddenly behind him. Ryan whipped around unaware anyone had been behind him. Upon doing so he saw a girl who looked to be about his age. She looked to be of Asian descent, but anything beyond that his guess would have been as good as anyone's.

"Hehe" she giggled. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"Pfft I wasn't startled just uhh surprised" he lied. "I'm Ryan" Ryan introduced himself.

"Jessica" she replied curtly. As she looked him over a large man with a Super Mario mustache hobbled over.

"Jessica come over here and stop flirting with that boy!" He bellowed with a thick accent. Though Ryan couldn't exactly think of what kind of accent it was. Jessica sighed,

"Parents right" Ryan said jokingly.

"Right except that's my older brother" she replied

"Uhh ok then your a lot younger than he is huh?"

"Yeah it would seem so wouldn't it?" When Jessica said this she laughed a bit. Ryan wondered about this. Why is she laughing at that? He wondered. What's so funny?

"I bet you're kinda wondering why I laughed at that huh?" Jessica inquired as if reading his mind.

"Uhh..yeah kinda." he admitted "What are you a mind reader or something?"

"Something like that…" she retorted mysteriously. Ryan thought to himself so a mystery girl huh? Well then, shit just got interesting. Out loud though he said

"So my birthday is in a couple of days and I was wondering if I could possibly expect you to show up?" He expected a smile a show that she would definitely be there, but she just looked confused.

"You just invite random girls you just met to your birthday party? I took you for someone who was a little more cautious than that."

"Nah dont worry about it I got this I'm just taking a chance to get to know you better." He smiled "If shit goes down I'm pretty sure I can handle it."

"'If shit goes down' huh?" Jessica smiled "Ok bet i'll be there."

"Jessica! NOW! Mom and dad are waiting in the car." her brother interrupted.

"Oh shit; bye I guess. Oh here's my number call me text me whatever so I'll know where to go." She hurried off toward her brother.

As she left Ryan couldn't help but to check out that ass.

"Nice, not really big, but, it's round and fat enough to be noticed...just my type." Ryan took note on lots of things but didn't really comment out loud much a quiet guy usually he vowed to become a more dynamic individual once he turned sixteen. He was pretty short for his age at 5'6 while other kids, specifically the boys, his age were going on 6 feet tall. He was usually the type to blend into the background and although he had "a lot" of "popular" friends he usually fell into their shadow. Girls they noticed him but didn't really take much interest in him so he didn't really think of himself as a good-looking guy. Sure adults said he was handsome; like his mom said it often, but so did other adults; but he didn't take much stock into what they said. After all, they weren't girls his age who were willing to go out with him now were they? Thats not saying he's never had a girlfriend but usually his relationships didn't last very long. He was short, has a gap in his teeth, (though he begs his mom for braces his mom refused to get them for him,) embarrassing acne on his face, and sometimes he knew he wasn't the freshest smelling flower in the garden. Though he did have "redeeming qualities" as his mom liked to say such as he had large dark hazel eyes, long curly hair that he preferred to keep in a mohawk, a nice build as well with a six pack formed pecs and he was pretty multi-talented.

As Ryan was thinking about his encounter with Jessica his brother interrupted his thoughts.

"Hey we gotta get a CD burned for the music at your party." Tre said.

"Right I'll be right there bro just let me pay for these clothes. I'll catch up. And you know my party is going to be mostly Eminem anyway so start there and we can get the rest when I get there." He picked up his clothing and started toward the cashier.

Once he'd paid for the clothes, Ryan started to leave when he noticed for the first time a man watching him. He looked kind of strange with a long trench coat and red lensed glasses covering his eyes. And then he smiled revealing a dazzling white smile with a perfect row of teeth nothing out of the ordinary, except the fact that the man stood in direct path of sunlight spilling through the window of the mall's entrance, yet was completely shrouded in shadows. It was as if the light were avoiding touching the man as if he were unable to be touched by anything but darkness.

Hey! Thanx for reading my book I really would like some reviews on it to help me

enhance my craft. Good and Bad reviews are welcome just if it's bad take it easy on me I'm fairly new to this

Thank you all -D. Hunter