.

"How about the mall?" suggested Khalil.

"What can you possibly think of in such a noisy place?" I asked annoyingly, as we were trying to figure out where to go and plan for Liz's bday and so far there's none.

"Good point!" he said, tossing a berry inside his mouth, "You next!"

"The Park?" I suggested another location, for the millionth time.

"Okay, okay. Um, which one?" he said narrowing his eyes, seemingly interested.

"Central Park?"

"Done!" he said hoarsely, "I like the slides in the park." he snickered.

Liz and I never got a chance to talk much about the Dummy here, but everytime I cant fail to notice the tint of redness on his nose whenever he gets excited, its not that obvious at first sight but if you notice only close enough. Not gonna lie, it wants me to cackle, but diverting the gaze worked for me just fine. His looks are definitely impressive and I would say its the excellent genes, who can tolerate an excessively proud beauty!

We decided to have breakfast from the takeaways and set a plan at the park. He drove another car today, a jeep. Cause the other one was taken by Amara. In the span of fifteen minutes, we reached the destination, where the park was surrounded with cafes and stores.

"Lemme go get a coffee first." I say him, leaning to the back seat to pick my purse.

"Ah! A classic bitch. Cant function without coffee, can ya?" He smiled goofily at me, when he triggered the wrong bitch at the wrong time.

"Say that again and I'll make you regret it." I returned his silly smile at him, rudely.

"A classic bitch, double check!" He squealed annoyingly.

Thoroughly annoyed, I drag my purse from behind and unapologetically hit his face with it, blowing his head away with a followed squeal of agony.

"Ouch!"

"Yeah, now you know when not to mess with a bitch." I snickered at his face, when he groaned in pain.

Taking our orders, we walked to the centre of the park, with either sides having slides and swings.

"So do you wanna play first or plan?" says Khalil, sipping his tea.

"What are you, five?" I replied.

"Aye, you don't need to be five to play those."

"You are equal the weight of ten of those tiny children, you are gonna cause a rampage."

"Rampage it is." he said, jumping up from the grass. "Come on." I look at him for a straight minute and he comes up with a reasoning, "Its so early in the freaking morning that all the kids are in their sweet dreams, so come lets play before those minions decide to wake up and rein the world."

I chuckle at him, while he aggressively pulls me up by my arm. "Did I not tell you not to do this?" I nudge his arm.

"Cant remember." he shrugged.

"I'm so gonna regret this." We jump into the sand.

"You're so not gonna regret it!" he chuckled.

We were obviously too huge for the slides and they did creak a lot, but I cant deny that we did have fun and I couldn't stop laughing at ourselves. He invented a game of his own, where one becomes the chaser and the other has to escape but only through the ride, if you step on the sand you just drown. And I was as competitive as he was, but I underestimated his stealth so apparently, he won.

Exhausted we came back to the grass and laid under the shade of the tree. After heavy breathing of couple of minutes we could catch our breaths.

"That was a good one!" I said.

"Told ya!" he huffed back. "Lemme go get some water from the car." he stood and jogged his way to the car.

The change of scenarios between me and Khalil were drastic but now I'm glad we met him. Maybe I am just too paranoid of letting people in my life- thinking they all got agendas to fulfill, but maybe they don't. Maybe meeting Khalil and Amara was destined for me afterall.

"Hey, catch!" Khalil threw the bottle at me from afar, and being caught off guard I missed it. "That was close!"

"Only if I had seen you coming." I replied.

"You were deadass looking at my direction." he said sitting beside and gulping down water.

"I was lost in thoughts."

"What thoughts?" He asked.

"You remember what I said about not liking Amara?" I said, flipping the bottle on the grass to avoid eye contact.

"Yep, you think she's a snitch."

"I didn't say that! I just need time to get along with her, she seems fine." I looked at him to see his reaction, but his gaze was fixed at the road.

Now he seemed lost in thoughts, a smirk formed on his face and as though some nostalgic memory had struck him, his eyes sparkled.

I lightly nudged his arm, "Yo, dummy."

He snapped into reality and straightened his back, "Uh I guess you'll like her, if you try spending more time with her. She might seem a bit tough but her core his soft." He looked at me staring at him. "Just like you!" he said, booping my nose.

"Whatever." I hit his hand forth and he chuckles. "You don't ever talk about your friends from that day, or even about Amara until she showed up again."

"I have chosen not to associate myself with them anymore." he replied, folding his legs.

"What do you mean? Why?" I shift myself to a position more comfortable to read his face.

"I'm not proud of things that I've done in my early life, nor the friends that I made alongside. And they weren't the friends who bring the real out of me. You guys do, and hence I know what real friends are." he looked at me bobbing his head, agreeing to his own statement.

"They didn't seem too friendly."

"Oh you bet!" he chuckled.

"You still like Liz?" I said it lower than a whisper, but he was all ears and he responded.

"Where did that come from?" he tilted his head and narrowed his eyes with a smirk displayed.

"I..uh..just wanted to know if you guys together or something?" I asked.

"No, no. I just figured how lame that sounds, heh."

"So you don't like her."

"I do, but things like this take time and I haven't even known her properly. She's so much more to a person."

"Aren't we all?"

"Yeah, but some people create the desperation to be known and understood." he sighed, "You wont tell her all this, will ya?"

"Um, I guess not." I felt very distant to her lately and everything about her changes every instance, which makes me feel as though I don't know her enough currently, like 'does she even like him back?', 'is she tryna act cool and take it slow, or otherwise?' I just didn't know.

"You two gonna figure this out, I'd like to believe. Plus, shouldn't you be spending more time with her?"

"And what, plan her bday with her?" he jerked his head, "Hah, don't worry I wont mess anything up. I know what she means to you."

"Hm, you better be a man of your word." he chuckled. "Now, what was the plan?"

The next two hours we were busy- arranging, buying and planning for her big day, which was just our tiny circle and none other because Liz wouldn't bother kicking them out howsoever.

I got occasional calls from Amara and Liz to check up on me and I came up with lies in case they reached home and didn't find me. Khalil on the other hand, decided to ignore the calls to depict he was sincerely 'busy' doing his business.

"Liz is too smart, I don't want her to outsmart us in this situation. Hence we lie, that we aren't together and the same for not taking our home location for a party." I explain him while walking back to the car with supplies.

"Come on now, we aren't together-together." He nudged my arm, making all the silly faces.

"Don't flatter yourself, bitch." I nudged him harder, when he almost tripped over the pavement.

"Okay bitch." he snickered, dashing his head behind to get his hair out of his face.

We dropped off the supplies and cleaned all of the possible evidences from his car when we reached my place.

"They aren't home yet." I say, checking the surroundings for the trace of his other car. "Do you wanna come in?"

"I don't know, is your stalker home too?"    

"What?" A rush of adrenaline went across my body and I immediately turned too self-conscious. "No, what do you mean?"

"Jokes, Faye. Chill." he turned me towards the door and pushed me until the door. "Open up, lets chat!"

I let him in first and reluctantly watch around my neighborhood for any sight of a stranger. But there was none. I read the two letters from him but he didn't seem anything dangerous, but you can never be too cautious. I don't know if he saw me today or worse case scenario, what might he has perceived of me and Khalil, if he did see us.

"You still have his letter? Did you read them?" Khalil asked, seating himself on the floor and proceeds to turn on the TV.

"Why do you care?" I harshly reply, when his head tilts towards me.

"Okay, I'm sorry." he says raising his hands in defeat.

"Ugh, no. I'm sorry." I flipped off my shoes and walked into the living room, sitting on the couch. "I wasn't expecting you to bring him up and when you did, I freaked out a little."

"Why? He wont do nothing." He says, putting his chin on my knee.

"How do you know that?" I shake my knee when he takes his head up again.

"Uh, because if he were to do anything he would've done already."

"Maybe he's looking for a better situation." I rest my back on the couch and look at him.

"Or maybe, you're just too paranoid." He says, turning his head behind for an instance and turned back to the television.

I sighed heavily, "I read two of his letters." I admitted, and he dropped the remote on the table and turned 360 to keep his head on the couch.

"What did it say?" he whispered.

"You don't have to whisper, dummy!"

"I know. I was just creating tension." he said in his normal voice, "Whatever, continue."

"It said that he saw me and how he felt, that's it."

"Hmm? That's all? What about the rest, how many were there?" He asked confusingly.

"Three more."

"Read it." he suggested.

"No." I replied, doubting my own response, "No." I said assuredly.

"Come on, I wont snitch." he looked at me with his pleading eyes, "Plus we got time to kill until the ladies return."

"Okay, just one!"

"Or two, or three, you never know. Just bring them in."

"Fine, I'll get it." I agreed.

"Meanwhile, lemme get some snaaacks!"

"Ugh, a classic bitch." I sighed, while he laughed to the kitchen.

I don't know what the rest of them said, I didn't want to be embarrassed near Khalil. Well he seemed totally off-judgment mode but I still cant. I took the box along with me to the room where he sat on the couch a little too excited.

"I don't wanna do this." I turn back around feeling the guilt of bringing up this topic.

"No, no, what happened?" he hopped quickly to my direction and forcibly turned me around again. "Don't retreat, remember you're a bitch, you got this."

"Oh wow, I'm so motivated." I said dully.

"Come on." He groaned loudly. Annoyingly loud.

"Okay, shut up!"

We went back to the couch and he showed the decency of being normal.

"22/10/2020, The School of Architects
I couldn't resist it, I made my friend search for the school you go to. And I swear not be a creep, but this is the last- I promise. It was too crowded, perfect for my disguise, but today I wasn't afraid of getting caught. Today I desperately wanted you to look at me and even if you said nothing, I would be the happiest. I didn't want to hide behind a bunch of boys to stay out of your radar and it felt good.
But its not my day, it never is, and it isn't your fault you didn't catch my presence in the crowd of people all alike. I ain't specialty, but you are- and I could see you in and through the crowd.
I wouldn't mind being the shade craving its source of light. Here's your picture anxiously looking at the schedule. ;)"

Khalil picked up the following polaroid and gave it an intense look.

I looked him intently, waiting for a response of any sort.

"Damn, I got the same polaroid films." he spoke up.

"Khalil, what the heck?" I hit his hand and he drops it, so I pick it up and toss it inside without giving a look.

"I'm kidding." He said, holding my forearm to fix me to my place. "I think the guy's not a creep, he's just a simp. And just so you know, he might've seen you a couple of times and if he has no freaking guts to show up, he certainly doesn't have any to harm you."

I sigh, knowing not what to do or think.

"Faye, he is not dangerous. I assure you that." he rubbed my hand, "When was the first letter dated, assuming he wrote dates in this one, he must've written in all of them."

"15th October."

"Its been more than a month." He said seriously, "Don't drive yourself crazy over some simp. Chillax."

"I need to see him. I have so many questions." My voice quivers saying that and I was certainly sure my eyes teared up a bit, but I avoided his eyes anyway, blinking away my tears.

I didn't wanna know why he liked me, how he knew me, what made him sneak up on me, or even why he took pictures of me without my consent. The desire of being the one always on guard to help others was at my bay, I felt his need, his longing and it may seem crazy but I wanna know why he regarded me as someone he believes to harmonize.

"You will." Khalil said conformingly, "When the stars align, and the universe spells works- you will." he chuckled.

I laughed at the illustration of his words. He definitely didn't miss the tears.

"Whatever." I whispered.

"Whatever." He repeated louder, "I guess that's enough for today."

His phone suddenly chimes and he picks up eventually, "Hey Liz, what's up ladybug?"

I couldn't quite comprehend the distant chattering on his phone and he talked for a while, as I wiped my eyes dry and put everything into the box.

"Okay, take care then." He sighed. "You okay staying the night alone?"

"What?"

"Liz said that Amara insisted on her to stay the night at her place, and she couldn't deny." He said, spinning his phone between his fingers.

"Why didn't she call me?" I check my phone to see if its dead, it wasn't.

He didn't say anything and simply shrugged.

"Yeah, no I don't think it'll be a problem. I can stay alone." I assure him.

"You realise you said 'yeah and no' in the same sentence." he said, teasingly.

"Don't be a bitch." I said.

"Eh, its a specialty, like you." he winked and chuckled as I roll my eyes at his reference to the remark.

****

Khalil left after a while he made sure I was okay to be left alone. And I have been on my bed, staring at the school polaroid since the last hour. I didn't read the rest of the two, but eventually I'll have to.

It was Liz's bday in two days and I've never felt so left alone since my last breakup, when I didn't have her around. She was getting closer to Amara and I shouldn't mind it, but I do anyway.

I jolted around the mattress not being comfy at my position, when suddenly my phone rang and I picked up instantly without reading the contact name.

"Hello?" There was no answer, "Who is it?" I pull the phone to my face and see the phone number, which surprisingly was an unknown contact number. After a long silence from either sides, my mind convinces me that it must be definitely the stalker. "Is it you?" I whisper, when the phone disconnects abruptly.

Was it him?

____________________________

do you think it was the stalker? and how do you feel about him? I feel he's sort of a mysterious type!