The men were loading my things into the car when Sofi came up behind me, her hands wrapped around a big photo frame of us. This was a beautiful piece; she gifted me this today and insisted I hang it in my new house.
"Elena, tell this guy to keep this safe," Sofi said, eyeing the movers with suspicion. "I mean, look how cute we look in this picture. I'm gonna kill these guys if they ruin it."
I laughed. "Okay, Sofi, chill. Let's do one thing, we'll take this with us in our car."
"Yes, a bang idea! I'll put it in the car." She smiled, carefully placing the frame in the back seat.
Aunt Maria came over and hugged me tightly. "Darling, my precious, you're going to start fresh. I pray for you to have a cherishing life. And yes, darling, feel free to come over anytime."
I hugged her back, feeling a lump form in my throat. "Aunt Maria, thank you so much. You were with me when my world was falling apart. You loved me like your own child and gave me mouth-watering cookies. God, I'm going to miss that. And you can come anytime you want; my doors are wide open for you."
"I will, my dear, I'll try to visit you soon."
"Come today with us, Auntie. I want to show you the balcony they made."
"I've got orders to fulfill today, but I'll visit you surely tomorrow."
"Okay, I'll be going then." I hugged her again, feeling a mix of excitement and sadness.
I was driving the car, with Sofi in the passenger seat. We were following the truck with my belongings.
Sofi broke the silence, "Elena, do you think it's really professional? I mean, babe, look how they're taking care of each and everything of yours. I'm saying, the boss might seem to be in love with you," she teased.
"Sofi, shut up. It's just part of the agreement they had with my father. And besides, I'm going to find a job now. No doubt my father's checks are more than enough for my needs, but I want to earn for myself."
"Babe, chill. We both will try at some café. For the fact, we'll gossip there too."
"Sofi, we need a job, not a topic," I laughed.
She joined in, but then asked, "Hey Elena, tomorrow the business tycoon Enzo Moritti is coming to college? I heard he's going to be a guest for tomorrow's college function."
"Yeah, I heard that too. He's going to hire some interns as well for his company."
I said, "Can we apply? I mean, the opportunity is right in front of our eyes."
She looked at me thoughtfully. "Actually, we can. Besides, our internship is starting next month. But babe, he has so many businesses. God knows in which he would put us."
I didn't say anything, but my thoughts drifted to Enzo, the business tycoon of Italy. I wanted to work with his design company.
I drove quietly, and when we reached my new place, the men were already unloading my things.
We entered the house, and I was amazed at how perfectly everything was set up. The curtains, the furniture-it was all good. I didn't need to clean or arrange anything; everything was perfectly placed. The men put the boxes down on the floor and left.
Sofi plopped down on the sofa and pulled out a champagne bottle.
"Sofi, no way you bought this."
"Bitch, you're back in your home after months! I'm staying with you tonight, and what made you think I wouldn't celebrate this?" she said, grinning. "Come on, let's set up the things, then we'll have a PJ party."
As we were setting up my closet, the doorbell rang. I got downstairs and opened the door to find a kid holding a gift box and some flowers.
"Noah! How are you, darling? You seem bigger than the last time."
"Miss Elena, I'm now a big boy," he said proudly.
"Of course you are, cutie."
"Miss Elena, these are for you. That uncle sent them for you," he pointed towards the guy.
Again, the same creepy hooded man. I looked in his direction, took the gift and flowers, and said, "Noah, thank you so much, darling, for this." He smiled and ran back to the creepy man.
I went inside. "Sofi, come down!"
She came down, "What, Elena? Why are you shouting?"
"Oh my god, I mean that guy knows I've moved out, and guess what, Sofi? He's right outside. He sent these flowers and gift through a kid."
She went to the window and started to look at him. "That guy?"
"Yes, that guy."
"Elena?"
"Emm?"
"He's hot, bro. I mean, I know he's a creep stalker, but look at his body, girl. He's hot."
She was right, he was hot though.
Sofi went into the kitchen. "Elena, you want a coffee?"
"Yes, Sofia."
I sat by the window and watched him. He was surrounded by kids, giving them ice creams. The kids were happy, and he seemed to have a bond with Noah. The sight of the hooded man around kids with ice cream was something that made my heart flutter.
Suddenly, Noah seemed to be running towards my door again, this time his hands full of ice creams. He knocked on the door, and I opened it.
Noah handed me the ice creams, saying, "That uncle sent these for you."
"Thank you, Noah baby." He then left.
Sofi came out of the kitchen with coffee mugs. "Elena, I know he's a creep, but his gestures are cute today. I mean, aww, see the variety of ice creams he sent."
"Shut up and get some spoons from the kitchen. Let's eat ice cream; I was already craving it."
She smirked at me and went to get the spoon
We finished setting up the closets and other things around 8:00pm. Sofi went to take a shower while i ordered food. I sat down on sofa and was scrolling through movies. Sofi came downstairs in her pajamas and plopped down besides me.
"BITCH, where's the food? I'm hungry."
"It's on the way,bro"
"Ok , lets watch a movie. Have you picked one?"
"No, they all seem boring."
Sofi looked at me with a grin. "Ok , lets talk."
"Talk? about what."
"Your creepy stalker, dumbass."
"No way, why would we talk about him?"
"Because he's hot ." She replied casually.
"Sofi, you are insane."
"Hey, tell me you don't find him hot?"
I stared at her ,then replied, "NO."
(FUCKING LIES, he's hot.)
"You're lying. I can tell by our eyes."
"Okay, fine, he's hot. I accept that . But he's still a stalker."
"Babe, trust me . I have a felling he's not dangerous for you. I mean ,if he was, he could have raped you a long ago."
She was right. He hadn't done anything harmful until now. Except for the fact that he killed that man. I hadn't told sofi about his messages or that he was the one who killed the guy. I'll tell her when time is right.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang, and Sofi went. It was food delivery boy.
"I'll bring the cutlery ,wait," i said, getting up from the couch.
I came back and saw Sofi holding a not.
"What's that, Sofi?"
"A note from your admirer."
"My admirer?"
Sofi corrected herself, "Oh, i mean your stalker."
She handed me the note, It read : "Enjoy your dinner, TESORO. Don't get over drunk as you've college tomorrow."
I looked at Sofi, but she was already waiting for my response.
"How did he know we are going to get drunk?"
"Maybe he guessed. IDK. Lets not think about it. Come on ,let's eat dinner."
We ate dinner, Sofi poured us drinks, and we talked a lot. We gossiped about our classmates and reminisced about the days when we were kids, remembering the good times . It felt good
As it was already 12am , i said, " Sofi, let's sleep now. We have college tomorrow."
She replied, "Yeah, your admirer said the same. Come on , lets sleep."
I laughed and headed towards my room.
***
It was almost 2:00 am, but I wasn't able to sleep. Some sort of strange feeling was flooding through my heart. I went out to the balcony and sat down, looking at the sky. It was beautiful. For no reason, tears started falling down my cheeks. I didn't try to stop them; I just let them flow. After a few seconds, I found myself sobbing, crying hard.
I didn't know why, but I felt strange. I was missing my parents, but there was another feeling that was making me cry. Suddenly, my phone buzzed. I picked it up to check who had texted me at this hour.
UNKNOWN: WHY ARE YOU AWAKE AT THIS HOUR?
I looked around and found him leaning against a car, staring at me with his phone in his hands.
ME: I CAN'T SLEEP, THAT'S WHY.
UNKNOWN: MISSING YOUR PARENTS?
ME: MAYBE, BUT THERE'S SOMETHING ELSE I'M FEELING. IT'S STRANGE, I DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M EVEN FEELING.
UNKNOWN: DO YOU WANT SOMETHING? CRAVING FOR SOMETHING?
ME: NO, I JUST DON'T KNOW WHY I'M FEELING THIS WAY. I WANT TO CRY.
UNKNOWN: TESORO, PLEASE DON'T. SEEING YOU CRYING MAKES MY HEART SHRINK. TELL ME IF I CAN HELP YOU IN ANY WAY.
I stared at his message for a moment, feeling a strange mix of emotions. Why was I even talking to him? But somehow, it felt good to text him, to see him staring at me.
ME: WHO ARE YOU? AND WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?
UNKNOWN: I WANT YOU, BABY. WHO I AM, I'LL LET YOU KNOW WHEN THE TIME COMES.
ME: WHY ARE YOU HERE AT THIS HOUR? I MEAN, YOU CAN'T GET ANYTHING.
UNKNOWN: IF I CAN GET A GLIMPSE OF YOU BY STANDING HERE FOR HOURS, I CAN DO THAT FOR DAYS.
ME: YOU SHOULD GO HOME.
UNKNOWN: ARE YOU CONCERNED FOR ME?
ME: NO, SCREW YOU. BE THERE, STAND THERE FOR THE WHOLE NIGHT. IT'S NOT GOING TO AFFECT ME.
UNKNOWN: YOU LOOK ADORABLE WHEN YOU'RE ANGRY, MY LITTLE ANGRY BIRD. GO GET SOME SLEEP. YOU HAVE COLLEGE TOMORROW.
I felt irritated by his text. I looked at him, showed him the middle finger, and went inside to try to get some sleep.
As I slipped back into bed, the silence of the room enveloped me, broken only by the soft rustle of the sheets. My mind was a whirlwind of questions about the mysterious man who had been watching me. Who was he? Why was he stalking me? What did he look like? What was his name?
With each unanswered question, my restlessness grew. Despite my exhaustion, sleep eluded me, leaving me to toss and turn in the darkness, grappling with the unsettling uncertainty that had taken hold of me.
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