AN: *spongebob narrator voice* Eight days later...

Hey hey hey, chappie 15 is up. And guess what... it's over 3K words! Woo! Typing up those long paragraphs.

I don't know if you guys actually read this... but whatever:

I DO NOT OWN HIM. THE DUDE. THAT GUY. YEAH, HIM. (you know who I'm talking about)

I actually read the reviews, so don't think your words go unnoticed. I love every single one of them :)

Chapter 15

Slenderman teleported us to my backyard and instantly disappeared to who knows where. Heather and me ran in the house before I remembered about my mother. Seeing as the house was empty, we went directly to the bathroom so I could clean myself up and stop my bloody nose. A couple minutes after the crimson current came to a close, I sat on the rim of my bathtub while Heather leaned on the counter. Now coming into the present, I notice she's biting the inside of her cheek and isn't saying anything. I trace patterns on the smooth while surface of my bathtub while she subconsciously taps her foot. I find myself tracing the Operator's symbol over and over again. I don't know what to say, but I'm going to try to say something anyway.

"So…"

"So."

I need to stop using that approach, it's seriously getting me nowhere. Let me try again.

"What exactly happened?"

"I dunno."

"Why was he getting that mad?"

"Apparently he can't stand anyone knowing a little bit of his life," She says in an accusing tone, "Even though he's totally welcome to peek into ours. Not that he has, right?"

"Um, he kind of did, but I let him."

"What?! So he did look at your life, but he wasn't letting you see his? What's up with him? Geez."

"Well, he hasn't gotten used to talking with other humans, so this must be really new to him. Uncomfortable too."

"Are you defending him? Because he was being a huge hypocrite back there. Fine, he doesn't have to show me, but at the very least he should have shown you."

"I shouldn't be barging in to his business."

"But Andrea, he has a lot of secrets hidden from us, it's like a huge mystery. We have to know what he's hiding from us, whether he likes it or not."

"Why do I get the feeling this won't end up well."

"We're dealing with a legend, a myth, a supernatural creature here. Aren't you curious at all?"

"Yeah, but-"

"No ifs, ands, or buts. It's our duty to find up what's up with this dude, alright?"

"Heather-"

"Don't leave me alone in this investigation. If you're not joining me, then I must embark on this journey alone as the detective of this case."

"It's not that dramatic."

"But in my world, it is. And in my world, I'm the queen, the drama queen. I'm royalty, it's just that not everyone can see it."

As Heather rambles on about being the ruler of her imaginary kingdom, I start thinking about my mother. She wasn't in the house when Heather and me came in. So did she go out to some place? Did she leave a note somewhere? I get up and go downstairs to see if she left any sort of indication to tell me where she went. Heather behind me complains that I'm not paying attention to her grand and important speech. When I take a look in the kitchen, I find a note left on the fridge. I look closely and read my mother's handwriting.

Andrea,

Sorry I had to go without telling you directly, but I left to the supermarket to buy some groceries. I shouldn't take very long. See you later.

Love Mom :)

I grin a little when I see my mother's lopsided drawing of a smiley face. Not only that, but also that she took the time to write out her sentences grammatically correct with the punctuation and all. Heather reads from over my shoulder, and recreates a crooked smile of her own. She touches the piece of paper and traces the deep indents of the words. My mother must press deep when she writes, because there are mini mountains and valleys. Heather mumbles something I don't quite catch, and I ask her to repeat what she said. She clears her throat before restating herself.

"My mom would put smiley faces in the notes she left for me too."

"Like this one?"

"Not exactly. She would use lines for the eyes instead of dots. Like this…"

She took a ballpoint pen she found lying around close by and draws a smiley face similar to my mother's, but like this: =)

"Hey, Heather?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you miss your mom a lot?"

"Yup. Of course I'm not crying like a maniac anymore, but even the simplest things remind me of her, like that smiley face."

"How about your dad?"

"I miss the old him, the one who was gentle and gave me hugs and still told me he loved me. Not the slob that replaced him."

"Wouldn't people become suspicious that you're not with your dad anymore?"

"Not really. First of all, most people didn't even know about me because we moved a lot, I started taking classes online instead of going to a public school. And second, he has a good reputation with his buddies and can make them believe whatever lie he spouts out, so I'm definitely gone for good. Not that I want to go back anyways."

"Uh, sorry for asking these really personal questions. Thanks for answering them, by the way."

"Don't stress yourself over it, Andrea. I know a bunch of stuff about your life right now so it's only fair I tell you about mine."

"You're such an awesome friend, you know that?"

"Well of course I do dear, don't you see, this excellence is undeniable."

Heather flips her hair as if she were a snobby chick. I giggle at her silly actions. How did I even get to have her as the awesome friend she is? Without her, I would have been lonely, despite meeting Mary. If my life were a menu, then Heather would be the sample of the craziness spice. No, she's more than just the sample; she's a whole platter, more like a whole course! The whole restaurant! For now, I need to stop with food metaphors or else my stomach would whither away at the intense hunger it's experiencing. Why am I so hungry? Doesn't really matter now, my mother said she was going to get groceries, and she's a heck of a cook. By that I mean she's a five star chef. She should seriously have her own restaurant. Throughout the whole time she hasn't cooked, deep down I really missed it and without a doubt won't take it for granted again.

"Andrea!"

"What's up Heather?"

"I'll race you."

"Race me where?"

"To the woods."

"I don't think that's a g-"

"Ready set go!"

She makes headway out the door and to Slenderman's domain. Basically, the woods, the very place where they had a fight. Is she out of her mind? She might wind up in another argument. But then again, she doesn't give a single crap about things like these. She's Heather. I sigh and begin dashing to the woods. This is a race, isn't it? She's most likely going to win, but whatever. Where's the fun in giving up so easily? I pump my legs, aiming for my maximum potential. If I at least catch up to her, I'll feel accomplished. Soon I see the school not do far from me, and my eye catches the small figure that is Heather speeding to the forest. Just a little faster and I may reach where she is. I don't just inhale, I suck in all the oxygen in my breathing space, and I don't just exhale, I blow and create a windstorm. Aggressively breathing, I look at the ground beneath my feet as I zoom ahead, feeling adrenaline spreading out in my veins. I feel like the fastest person in the world. When I look back up, a grin splits my face when I see that Heather is much closer. I give it my all, and with the last bit of my strength, I catch up and we're now running side by side. When she glances at me darting along with her, she had a face of astonishment. She didn't expect me to have a chance, and I proved her wrong.

"What the- how are you even- what?!"

"Tsk, tsk. C'mon Heather, you're going to have to try harder than that if you want to win."

"But I had a major lead! Like, a head start!"

"Sucks to suck! Maybe you'll think twice before cheating and maybe karma would be nicer to you."

"You little… argh! Come here!"

She extends her arms in an attempt to stop me, but I'm unstoppable. I sprint to my destination at the speed of light. I can hear Heather yelling behind me, spitting out profanity. I laugh even though my chest hurts, and my lungs are about to explode. I close my eyes for a second, and when I open them again, the trees are right in front of me. I swerve to dodge them and jump over rocks in my way. I give out another laugh when I just notice that I won. I still run though, as if my destination isn't just the outer edge of the woods, but somewhere inside. I easily lose myself in the setting passing by the variety of plants. Trees, leaves, rocks, ferns, moss, twigs, flowers, sprouts… the very essence of nature surrounds me.

Hello.

"Hey," I greet, slowing down, "Nice to see you again."

…Is that sarcasm?

"What? No, why would it be?"

Sorry for what happened back there.

"Don't worry about it, it wasn't your fault anyway."

It was, I shouldn't have exerted my powers like that.

"It's not like you could help it. It was just a bloody nose anyway, nothing big."

Thank you.

I cracked at the last word because I was out of breath. Man, running this much can really tire me. Wait, where's Heather? Maybe she got lost or something. I ran way ahead of her, so I have no way of knowing where could she be. I'm just going to hope she doesn't get herself in trouble. As if that's possible. I bend and place my hands on my knees as I calm my rough breathing. I can see from the corner of my eyes that Slenderman is observing my exhausted form.

Why were you running?

"I was racing Heather."

Did you win?

"Yeah! I was behind but I zoomed way ahead of her! Though now I feel like I have asthma. I lost her too."

I can bring you to her if you want to.

"Hold on, how do you know where she is?"

I have my ways.

"I'm pretty sure this isn't one of those things that you need to hide from me."

Fine… I'll tell you.

"I'm not forcing you or anything. If you're uncomfortable, you don't have to tell me."

No, it's okay.

"Okay."

Humans radiate with these waves that I can sense. It's like your sense of sight or hearing. Except it's one of my normal senses. I can sense the auras of animals too, but they're weaker.

"That's awesome. So you can sense mine right now?"

Yes.

"How's it like?"

What do you mean?

"Um, I don't know how auras look like or feel or whatever. But, can you describe them?"

It would be easier to explain if you had the same sense.

"So they vary from person to person."

Yes. You could say it's like the essence if their soul. It shows their characteristics and feelings.

"Why do you have to the mind reading thing, then?"

The aura doesn't reveal much of their intentions. For example, it may show that the person is courageous, but both evil and good people can be courageous. Same goes for feelings.

"Oh, I get it. What does mine say?"

Yours shows that you are naïve, observational, and cheerful. Not to mention you're curious, perhaps you ask a lot of questions. Which you do, at least in my experience.

"Wait, go back to that one word. Naïve, was it? Psh, I'm not naïve."

You are.

"Nuh uh!"

I should just use my extra telekinesis power and move you to that rock to prove my point.

"How would your power even prove it? Doesn't make any sense."

Exactly. You instantly believed me. I have no extra telekinesis power.

"W-what?! That's cheating. Injustices aren't tolerated by The Rules Of The Universe!"

You're just too naïve. Maybe your rules are made especially for people like you.

"What do you mean by that? People like me? Excuse me, but I'm a special person."

Indeed.

"That right there was a sarcastic tone! You bully."

If I'm a bully, I can't imagine what that Heather girl would be.

"Oh right! I totally forgot about her! In such a bad friend."

You're the bad friend?

"Geez, why do you hate Heather so much?"

I don't hate her; she's just very annoying. It's difficult to be cheery with someone who does nothing but agitate.

"You're not even the cheery type. You're more of a lonely grumpy type. And a sophisticated one at that."

Are you referring to my attire?

"Not only that, but the way you talk. You can just say 'you mean my clothes?' instead of 'art thou referrest to my attire?'"

I didn't say it like that.

"You're missing my point here. I'm not saying you speak old English, it's the formal way you talk."

Does it bother you so?

"Well, not really. In fact, I find it kind of funny."

You find my speech amusing?

"Yeah. It reminds me of my dad."

I will take that as a compliment.

"You better. If I compare you with my dad in any way, that's saying something."

I'll keep that in mind.

"So… let's go to Heather."

Okay.

"But wait! Before you go there, I'm going to try to scare her."

I don't believe you can do that.

"Thank you so much for supporting me."

If I couldn't scare her, then you can't.

"But this would be better planned out. You can even help me."

I will just teleport you there, but that's it.

"How about… you teleport me on a branch of a tree right next to her. Higher than her line of sight, but not too high. Then, I'll jump over her and maybe scream, and that way I'll definitely scare the crap out of her!"

Don't you have quite the eccentric mind. I can do that, but you're on your own with your little mission.

"Alrighty-o, let's do this, yo!"

What's that even supposed to mean?

"I'm just saying let's go. Nothing too complicated."

I didn't even send anything to you.

"Ha! Andrea the psycho psychic strikes again!"

…I'll just take you there now.

"Ok."

He uses his extraterrestrial abilities to bring me to Heather's location. Heather is crouched on the ground, blocking me from seeing what exactly is she doing. Slenderman takes out his obsidian tendrils and moves me on a branch behind Heather, and a bit high as I requested. I steady myself when his tentacles release their hold on me, balancing myself on the branch. I shuffle myself in a positron closer to my unsuspecting friend, keeping my hand on the trunk of the tree to support me. I bend my knees slightly in preparation to spring myself. When I was about to go in action, Heather just starts cracking up out of nowhere. She rolls around on the earth, getting a red leaf stuck in her hair, contrasting with the blond pigment.

"I can't hold it in anymore!" Heather giggles, "Andrea, no offense my good friend, but you're so bad at being sneaky!"

"Huh?!" I shout, "That's not legit! I'm supposed to be invisible!"

"Invisible, yes. Inaudible, NOPE!"

"I wasn't that loud."

"SNAP CRACKLE POP!"

"You're exaggerating."

"Negative, m'am."

"Whatever."

"Where's Mr. Sophisticated Slendy Sir?"

"Uh, I don't know. He just dropped me off here."

"SLENDY! BAE~! WHERE YOU AT?!"

"He won't answ-"

"Shh! SSSLLLEEENN-"

What do you want you insolent human?!

Slenderman arrives along with his grumpy I-hate-the-world attitude. Heather puts on a face of pure happiness, the exact opposite of how Slenderman feels. She prances about, saying how much she missed him and how they shouldn't fight anymore. Something about making a treaty or an alliance or something. Slenderman's head tilts at various angles, following Heather's frantic movements. She makes exaggerated hand gestures to make whatever idea she's trying to demonstrate be clear. I'm not even paying attention to what they're saying, just the hilarious image of their interaction.

I can imagine myself ten years from now, remembering the funny times we had together, including this scene. I have no idea if this close knitted group would still be together a decade in the future. I hope so, but life just throws the most random surprises, it's bothersome. But in the moment right now, it's so heart warming to think back to memories like these. It makes me grin from ear to ear.

But when I take a second look at the scene, I compare Slenderman with my father once again. Not only that, but I compare Heather with me. And just like that, the comical display becomes a cherished reenactment of my father and me. A familiar memory comes up when I was little, and my father just gave me a princess kit for my birthday. It had stuff like a tiara and a wand and all kind of girly stuff. I had put on the pink plastic crown, dancing around my father, who had a makeshift crown of his own. He was supposed to be the king and I was the princess. He took my hand and kissed it, being the gentlemanly father he was. I look at my hand in the present, tracing over the knuckles, the nostalgia washing over me. The same hand that waved the matching pink plastic magic wand.

Abra cadabra, my smile disappears.