Chapter 3
She turned her head slowly and looked out the window. The sky had turned overcast and gray as if a storm was coming. The weather was mirroring her emotions.
She didn't see anything out the window but the blue curtains were covering half of it. The tapping didn't stop. She got up slowly and moved over to the window. She ripped the curtain away from the window in one quick movement.
A tree branch. The wind was blowing a branch against the window. The wind howled and suddenly the rain started. It came down in sheets, pummeling the ground. Alissa watched the rain for a moment. The steady rain drops calmed her down slowly. She had always liked the rain, it seemed so peaceful to her.
Alissa sat down on her bed and looked around her room. She used to feel so safe in here. It was really the only place she felt like nothing could happen to her. At least until last year.
Last year had been her junior year. She had been happy and carefree when school first started. She had lots of friends and was an honour student. She felt nothing could touch her. Then the notes started coming. At first she thought they were just a joke but they didn't stop coming. She was flattered at first. She thought she had a secret admirer. Even Natalie thought that was romantic. But someone knew her locker combination. She would find flowers in her locker in the morning and chocolates on her doorstep at night. It was like this person had nothing better to do than bring her gifts.
No one knew who it could be. She had never seen anyone hanging around her locker or her house. No one else ever saw anything. And she asked all the people with their lockers near hers. After a month she was desperate to find out who this person was. Secret admirers wanted to be found out. Didn't they?
Then one of the notes told her to meet him at the bleachers at five o'clock on a Saturday. She was uncomfortable going by herself so she asked Tyson to go with her. She had heard the horror stories of girls going to meet friends form the Internet and never being seen again.
She and Tyson waited at the bleachers for an hour but no one came. Alissa was finally sick of this joke. Now it was just beginning to be a waste of time. Tyson told her in had to be a joke and she agreed. What else could it be?
The presents stopped coming for awhile and then they started up again, full force. She found dead roses in her locker this time. The notes were crumpled up and stained with something that looked like blood. They weren't sweet notes anymore, they were threatening. They said she was going to die soon and that he was going to pay.
When she found the dead squirrel in her locker one day, she had finally had enough. It was just scary now. She went to the principal but he couldn't do anything. She changed her lock but the notes didn't stop.
Then one day she finally saw her stalker. He was watching her from the parking lot. He was holding a bouquet of dead tulips. She knew it was him because the flowers were wrapped in purple tissue paper, the same as her previous bouquets.
He had stringy black hair and he wore only black clothing. Alissa was very frightened. She asked Tyson to walk her home every day after that and even told her parents what was going on, but Vincent never approached her, the notes continued and the dead flowers but it never went beyond that and the occasional dead animal outside her house.
Nothing could be proved and the police said Vincent wasn't posing an immediate physical threat so there was nothing they could do.
Alissa became to scared to stay home alone so Natalie was over constantly. She wasn't afraid of Vincent and thought Alissa was overreacting. At least she did until one night when they were alone in Alissa's house. Their was a storm outside and they were in the basement, watching a romantic movie. The power went out a few times and then stayed out. Alissa was terrified. She kept hearing banging noises upstairs, but Natalie told her it was just the storm, it had to be.
Then came the footsteps. Alissa's family was away for the night. They weren't home. Who could have been walking around up there if not Vincent?
Natalie and Alissa ran from the house through the door that came out of the laundry room. They ran through the rain, all the way to Tyson's house. They called the police and the house was searched, no one was there.
"Alissa!" Mrs. Norman called. She jumped out of her reverie in surprise. She shook her head slightly to get the memories out. She hated remembering what had happened. But the memories were so vivid; it was so hard to forget.
"Yeah?" she called back.
"I'm going to pick up Jeremy from school," she called.
Alissa's heart started thumping at the thought of being alone in the house but she pushed her fear out of her mind and called back, "Okay,"
She heard her mother leave the house and drive away.
Vincent's face flashed in her mind and she shuddered.
"Stop it," she scolded herself. But how could she stop it? She had a reason to be afraid. The notes were starting again. Who was sending them? Did the notes have anything to do with Tyson's broken skateboard?
She knew when the threatening notes had started. Right after she had waiting with Tyson to meet her "secret admirer".
Vincent told her later that everything would have worked out if she hadn't brought Tyson to their meeting. He was jealous of Tyson. He had threatened to kill Tyson as well as Alissa. The two incidents had to be related. But how? Was Vincent alive or was something else going on?
Who would send her threatening notes? Who would wants to scare her like this.
Natalie was the prime suspect. She had been different lately. Always avoiding her and acting like she was too good to hang out with her. But would her best friend really do something like this? Was she capable of something as malicious as this?
There was only one way to find out.
She turned her head slowly and looked out the window. The sky had turned overcast and gray as if a storm was coming. The weather was mirroring her emotions.
She didn't see anything out the window but the blue curtains were covering half of it. The tapping didn't stop. She got up slowly and moved over to the window. She ripped the curtain away from the window in one quick movement.
A tree branch. The wind was blowing a branch against the window. The wind howled and suddenly the rain started. It came down in sheets, pummeling the ground. Alissa watched the rain for a moment. The steady rain drops calmed her down slowly. She had always liked the rain, it seemed so peaceful to her.
Alissa sat down on her bed and looked around her room. She used to feel so safe in here. It was really the only place she felt like nothing could happen to her. At least until last year.
Last year had been her junior year. She had been happy and carefree when school first started. She had lots of friends and was an honour student. She felt nothing could touch her. Then the notes started coming. At first she thought they were just a joke but they didn't stop coming. She was flattered at first. She thought she had a secret admirer. Even Natalie thought that was romantic. But someone knew her locker combination. She would find flowers in her locker in the morning and chocolates on her doorstep at night. It was like this person had nothing better to do than bring her gifts.
No one knew who it could be. She had never seen anyone hanging around her locker or her house. No one else ever saw anything. And she asked all the people with their lockers near hers. After a month she was desperate to find out who this person was. Secret admirers wanted to be found out. Didn't they?
Then one of the notes told her to meet him at the bleachers at five o'clock on a Saturday. She was uncomfortable going by herself so she asked Tyson to go with her. She had heard the horror stories of girls going to meet friends form the Internet and never being seen again.
She and Tyson waited at the bleachers for an hour but no one came. Alissa was finally sick of this joke. Now it was just beginning to be a waste of time. Tyson told her in had to be a joke and she agreed. What else could it be?
The presents stopped coming for awhile and then they started up again, full force. She found dead roses in her locker this time. The notes were crumpled up and stained with something that looked like blood. They weren't sweet notes anymore, they were threatening. They said she was going to die soon and that he was going to pay.
When she found the dead squirrel in her locker one day, she had finally had enough. It was just scary now. She went to the principal but he couldn't do anything. She changed her lock but the notes didn't stop.
Then one day she finally saw her stalker. He was watching her from the parking lot. He was holding a bouquet of dead tulips. She knew it was him because the flowers were wrapped in purple tissue paper, the same as her previous bouquets.
He had stringy black hair and he wore only black clothing. Alissa was very frightened. She asked Tyson to walk her home every day after that and even told her parents what was going on, but Vincent never approached her, the notes continued and the dead flowers but it never went beyond that and the occasional dead animal outside her house.
Nothing could be proved and the police said Vincent wasn't posing an immediate physical threat so there was nothing they could do.
Alissa became to scared to stay home alone so Natalie was over constantly. She wasn't afraid of Vincent and thought Alissa was overreacting. At least she did until one night when they were alone in Alissa's house. Their was a storm outside and they were in the basement, watching a romantic movie. The power went out a few times and then stayed out. Alissa was terrified. She kept hearing banging noises upstairs, but Natalie told her it was just the storm, it had to be.
Then came the footsteps. Alissa's family was away for the night. They weren't home. Who could have been walking around up there if not Vincent?
Natalie and Alissa ran from the house through the door that came out of the laundry room. They ran through the rain, all the way to Tyson's house. They called the police and the house was searched, no one was there.
"Alissa!" Mrs. Norman called. She jumped out of her reverie in surprise. She shook her head slightly to get the memories out. She hated remembering what had happened. But the memories were so vivid; it was so hard to forget.
"Yeah?" she called back.
"I'm going to pick up Jeremy from school," she called.
Alissa's heart started thumping at the thought of being alone in the house but she pushed her fear out of her mind and called back, "Okay,"
She heard her mother leave the house and drive away.
Vincent's face flashed in her mind and she shuddered.
"Stop it," she scolded herself. But how could she stop it? She had a reason to be afraid. The notes were starting again. Who was sending them? Did the notes have anything to do with Tyson's broken skateboard?
She knew when the threatening notes had started. Right after she had waiting with Tyson to meet her "secret admirer".
Vincent told her later that everything would have worked out if she hadn't brought Tyson to their meeting. He was jealous of Tyson. He had threatened to kill Tyson as well as Alissa. The two incidents had to be related. But how? Was Vincent alive or was something else going on?
Who would send her threatening notes? Who would wants to scare her like this.
Natalie was the prime suspect. She had been different lately. Always avoiding her and acting like she was too good to hang out with her. But would her best friend really do something like this? Was she capable of something as malicious as this?
There was only one way to find out.