Part 8
Juliana remained where she was, still clutching the phone to her ear, chilled to the bone. It should have been impossible. He *couldn't* have been able to find her so fast...
But he head. Then she focused on the words. ~I'm coming for you Serefina~. That wasn't her name. She'd used lots of names throughout her lifetime, but she was sure Serefina hadn't been one of them.
So maybe the call had been a wrong number and wasn't meant for her. No matter how false that sounded, Juliana hung up, letting herself believe that. All a mistake. She turned and started to walk away when the phone rang again.
She stopped dead, not moving, not answering. She waited for the caller to give up, assuming no one was home. But the caller was patient. He waited a long time. Finally, Juliana darted forward, snatched the receiver and waited.
"Uh, Juliana?" a male voice on the end of the line said. "It's Brandon. We met at lunch."
"Did you just call?" Juliana demanded.
"No. Why? Did something happen?" His surprise and concern were genuine.
"I got a prank call a minute ago, that's all," she muttered, then paused. "How did you get my number?"
"Hacked into the school computer system," he answered casually.
Juliana couldn't help a small smile. She had to admit, she was impressed.
"Listen, I was just wondering if you wanted to get a burger or something to eat later."
Juliana almost said no, since human food did her no good. Why waste her time and money? On second thought, it was *normal*, and right now normal was what she longed for most. "Sure, I'd like that," she said brightly.
"I can show you around afterwards," he offered. "I thought the girls were going to show you this afternoon, but they said you collapsed. Are you okay?"
Juliana frowned, her light-hearted mood fading. "I'm fine," she said shortly. She didn't want to talk to anyone about the vision yet, and certainly not with him. She didn't know who he might blab to.
"I'll pick you up around seven, okay?"
"Sure. See you."
"Bye."
Juliana put the phone down and glanced around. Shadows were lengthening on the floor, and the house was growing dark and lonely. She found herself actually looking forward to going out later. Running and hiding had left her very little time for people the last hundred years or so.
It had been so long since she had had friends, been part of a crowd and enjoyed life. She wanted to be able to stay here. It was a nice place, and so what if the people were a little weird? At least they were trying to be friendly and including her.
She sighed and curled up on her couch, wondering what normal people did when they came home from school. She would learn to adapt as time went by.
* * *
Juliana remained where she was, still clutching the phone to her ear, chilled to the bone. It should have been impossible. He *couldn't* have been able to find her so fast...
But he head. Then she focused on the words. ~I'm coming for you Serefina~. That wasn't her name. She'd used lots of names throughout her lifetime, but she was sure Serefina hadn't been one of them.
So maybe the call had been a wrong number and wasn't meant for her. No matter how false that sounded, Juliana hung up, letting herself believe that. All a mistake. She turned and started to walk away when the phone rang again.
She stopped dead, not moving, not answering. She waited for the caller to give up, assuming no one was home. But the caller was patient. He waited a long time. Finally, Juliana darted forward, snatched the receiver and waited.
"Uh, Juliana?" a male voice on the end of the line said. "It's Brandon. We met at lunch."
"Did you just call?" Juliana demanded.
"No. Why? Did something happen?" His surprise and concern were genuine.
"I got a prank call a minute ago, that's all," she muttered, then paused. "How did you get my number?"
"Hacked into the school computer system," he answered casually.
Juliana couldn't help a small smile. She had to admit, she was impressed.
"Listen, I was just wondering if you wanted to get a burger or something to eat later."
Juliana almost said no, since human food did her no good. Why waste her time and money? On second thought, it was *normal*, and right now normal was what she longed for most. "Sure, I'd like that," she said brightly.
"I can show you around afterwards," he offered. "I thought the girls were going to show you this afternoon, but they said you collapsed. Are you okay?"
Juliana frowned, her light-hearted mood fading. "I'm fine," she said shortly. She didn't want to talk to anyone about the vision yet, and certainly not with him. She didn't know who he might blab to.
"I'll pick you up around seven, okay?"
"Sure. See you."
"Bye."
Juliana put the phone down and glanced around. Shadows were lengthening on the floor, and the house was growing dark and lonely. She found herself actually looking forward to going out later. Running and hiding had left her very little time for people the last hundred years or so.
It had been so long since she had had friends, been part of a crowd and enjoyed life. She wanted to be able to stay here. It was a nice place, and so what if the people were a little weird? At least they were trying to be friendly and including her.
She sighed and curled up on her couch, wondering what normal people did when they came home from school. She would learn to adapt as time went by.
* * *