Author's Note: To Scarlet-Moonlightshhh! Lol. ;) Just kidding. 'Tis sappy and pathetically predictable, but the fun is the in between stuff, now isn't it ;) hehe.

Also, I might be rushing it and stuff, but honestly, this fic has been giving me problems since I ended the first one, so if I don't get it down and out as I think of things and have that inspiration flowing, it won't ever get done. lol. Trust me...I've learned by now. lol.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

3.

Steven waited for nearly an hour, sitting like a fool at a table inside the restaurant, constantly telling the waiters that he'd wait to order because he expected someone else to join him. He tried Lex's cell phone, but there was no answer. He called the office and got the same result. It wasn't like Lex to do this to him; he idly wondered if it was him all together and she decided she wanted nothing to do with him. Then again, she'd be the type to tell that to his face. He was worried. Something happened to her and he didn't have the slightest clue as to what.

Finally, he got up and walked out, asking if he owed anything for taking up space and having three glasses of water. When they just old him not to do it again, he walked out and onto the street. Cars passed slowly, people walked back and forth, but Lex was nowhere in sight, like he had hoped she'd be, perhaps waiting for him to walk. He headed to his car paralleled parked across the street. Before he opened his door he gave a quick look around to see if he saw the black BMW Lex drove sitting anywhere. He let out a sigh and got into the car, turning the engine on and inched his way out of the spot.

He hadn't thought of her apartment. Actually, he felt stupid not to have called there before. He dialed the number on his phone and held it to his ear, his arm resting on the edge of the door where the window started. It rang four times and finally the answering machine picked up with the familiar, "Hi, you've reached Lex. Leave me a message."

"Lex, it's Steven," he said into the phone, hoping she'd pick up. "Lex, I'm worried about you. I don't care if you decided to not go to dinner, but just let me know you're okay….please, Love?" He gave up and hit the button to end the call.

He headed a few blocks down to where they worked. He wondered if there was some possibility that she was still in the office and just didn't answer the phone. He hoped that was the case….She just lost track of time; yes, that had to be the reason.

He parked his car in the back lot of the small brick building and headed up the back entrance. Larry the guard was there to see him come in. "Hey there, Mr. Whiting," Larry greeted.

"Evening, Larry," Steven replied graciously. "Hey, have you seen Lex?"

Larry tilted his hat back on his round head a bit. "Sure. She left here about, oh, two hours ago I think."

"Two hours ago?"

"Yeah. I figured she was heading home or something. It was about time I thought."

Steven was shocked. If Lex wasn't here….then maybe she had gone home? He thanked the guard again and headed back to the car. He'd drive for only five minutes before arriving at the small apartment complex Lex called home. He jogged up the several flights of stairs until he was on her floor. Two doors down, he stood at her door and rang the bell. He waited for any sort of sounds to come from within.

Nothing; it was completely silent. He fumbled with his key ring for the spare key she had given him in case of emergencies—he could only hope she was there and completely out of it; being drunk out of her head would be the only excuse at this point.

He opened the door in a rush and jumped in. His eyes gazed over the dark and empty open rooms. The only lights on was a small lamp in the living room and the stove light in the kitchen. Otherwise, there was no sign of life.

"Lex?" He called and received no answer. He began to feel very nervous. He had no idea what to do or even think now. It was starting to drive him insane with worry.

He headed over to the phone and called her cell again. No answer, just the voicemail which he had already left two messages. He caught sight of the blinking light on the answering machine. He pressed it and heard his own voice from minutes ago.

Steven ran his fingers through his thin brown hair and looked around for answers. The only thing he could do was call the cops—maybe she had been hurt and they knew something.

"911, how can I help you?" a woman's voice asked after he dialed the number.

"I'd like to report a missing person…or find out if there's any record of someone being injured in the past two hours?"

"May I have your name, sir?"

"Steven Whiting," he replied. "Look, I can't find my girlfriend. I think she may be in some sort of trouble."

"Well, Mr. Whiting, what's her name?"

"Lex…err…Alexa Woods."

"Can you give me a description?"

Steven sighed and thought quickly. "She's about five-foot-five, black hair, brown skin and eyes, fair build….ummm…"

"Do you know where she was when you last saw her?"

"I talked to her on the phone—she was at work."

"Did you try calling her after?"

"Yes! I called the office, her house, her cell phone—" He was starting to panic.

"Take deep breaths, Mr. Whiting," the lady said. "Now did you have a fight with her recently where she wouldn't answer your calls?"

"N-no," Steven replied, trying to calm himself. "She was going to meet me for dinner about an hour and a half ago. She's not one to just leave me hanging like that."

"Where are you calling from now?"

"Her apartment," he said. "I thought maybe she'd be here and asleep."

"And there's no sign of break in?"

Steven hadn't thought of that. He looked around and saw nothing out of place or broken. "No."

"Okay, I'm going to send a police unit out to your location. Stay where you are and the police will knock on the door when they get there. Do you want to stay on the line until then?"

"No….thanks." He hung up the phone and paced the room for a moment, cordless phone still clutched in his hand. He was nervous and worried….that was mildly putting it.

Steven turned around and rested the phone on the countertop of the kitchen island. The sound of a creaking floor made him turn on his heels sharply, thinking the cops had arrived. Then his logical side jumped in and told him that that was really soon, unless they just happened to be around the corner.

He headed over to the door and looked through the peephole to see an empty hall. "You're getting yourself all worked up, Steve," he told himself. When he turned around, however, his heart skipped several beats; the balcony door was ajar.

Steven was not a brave person, by no means. In fact, he remembered several instances in his youth when he was afraid of his own shadow—it was just something he could never get over. He wondered if that's why he admired Lex at certain points; she was everything he wasn't and he loved her for it.

"Hello?" he called out sheepishly, eyes searching the room. He slowly made his way over to the door and looked out onto the balcony, even looking up as if someone could be perched on the outside wall.

"You paranoid idiot," he snapped at himself, though it was mixed with a small laugh. He closed the door and made sure it was locked before turning around with a sigh.

His eyes widened. His thought he felt his heart stop this time. Something was moving…a silhouette of some kind that distorted the room wherever it went….Steven realized that he wasn't alone.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

AN: Wow….how terrible is this one? It's so….silly. lol. This one is short and you may ask why I bothered to cut it off, and yes…a cliffhanger. I did it again. A terrible one at that…So predictable. Sorry 'bout that, but I'm in it for the humor ;) What amazes me is that I'm getting it all out in one night like this! Well, maybe not all of it, but three chapters already? I really do need to get a life :)