I hurriedly looked to check if somebody's behind me. I was right; someone's walking behind me, around five feet away. In my panic, I was only able to see the pants and the black sneakers. But it doesn't mean that the person's following me, right? Maybe he or she is just heading towards the same direction.
I continued walking without changing my pace. I can't let him or her feel that I'm scared right now. If this person is really following me, I should not let him or her know where I live. I rocked my brain for a plan. A few steps away is a corner to another street that I can take to veer away from my building. Not much people pass through this street. If the person behind me isn't following me, there's a very low chance that he or she will walk this street. I just need to be sure that I am not being followed.
I turned to the street, my senses heightened for anyone following me. The street is surpisingly very quiet tonight. The stores are closed and not much vehicles are passing through. My heart started beating faster as I turned my head to look behind me. I quickly turned my head forward again when I saw the same pants and shoes as before. This time, I saw a glimpse of his or her upper clothes - black jacket and a white shirt underneath.
I focused my brain on the situation and calmed my nerves. I am being stalked. I can't lead the suspect to my building, at the same time, I have to go somewhere crowded. Somebody has to know about my situation. I urged my brain to think fastly. I discreetly pulled my phone from my pocket and proceeded to type a message, '911. Saint st, going to 4th st'. I typed Andrei's name on the recipient. I held the phone close to my body and made sure that only my eyes moved.
After a few steps, I decided to call Andrei. I could not talk but if anything goes wrong he could hear immediately. I lowered the phone to my belly area, still holding it close to my body. I continued my pace, determined to reach the end of the street so that I could take a turn again and walk to an area where there are people. With the footsteps I hear and my instinct, I could tell that the person is walking much closer behind me now. I walked faster to widen the gap and to reach the other street but my legs are turning jelly. Also, the street suddenly seemed longer than usual that I just want to cry of fear already.
"Stop walking," the person suddenly said. She, it's a she.
I stopped at the sound of her voice but immediately went back to my senses and started walking again. She's not someone I know. Her voice did not sound familiar. I checked my phone and saw that Andrei answered the call. I reminded myself to breathe.
"I said stop," she said then pulled my bag back which halted my movement. She held me by the back of my head, pulling my hair tightly. She stood close to me, my back against her front, her face close to the side of my head. She's several inches taller than me. Through my peripheral vision, I saw that she's wearing a black mask that covers the tip of her nose and her mouth, and a black cap. There's no way I could recognize her in this view.
I breathed heavily, my heart pounding. Suddenly, I felt a pressure on the right side of my abdominal area. It felt sharp, like a knife. Just a little movement and it might pierce through my skin. I tried to look at what she's holding against me - an ice pick. The first thought that came to my mind was that I wish Andrei will not just come anymore. The suspect is armed and one of us might get hurt if he comes to rescue me. Fine, he may come but with several other people or maybe with the police.
"Hiraya Valdez," she said, giving emphasis on each syllable of my name, and sending chills down my spine.
"What do you need?" I said with a shaky voice. "You can have my wallet and my phone, just don't hurt me.
I heard her snicker. She probably does not need my valuables. What does she need from me?! Oh god, please not my body or my life.
"I need you.." she said, then pulled my hair even tighter. It's so tight my fragile hair might all fall out, but I'm more concerned about the ice pick against me. "... to stay away from Kurt."
My brows furrowed. Could she be one of her fans? When did the issue become this much for a person to aim an ice pick at me? Did she know that a person could die from an ice pick? I could get an internal hemorrhage. I might need to undergo surgical exploration due to bleeding, and die from it.
"Who... who are you?" I asked. Oh shit. I could have just said 'okay I will stay away from him' then she'd let me go and I'd be able to run. How could I afford to ask who she is in this situation?
"You don't need to know," she whispered in my ear which sent goosebumps through my body.
Okay, she does not want to be known. Of course, right, she's holding an ice pick against me which threatens my life. Why would she introduce herself, Raya?!
Well, I know she knows some things about me, like the area where I live. Maybe she knows my exact address so there's no use for me turning to this street after all. She knew I was in the coffee shop. Has she been waiting for me to come out? What other facts does she know about me?!
I learned muay thai before. I could turn around quickly and kick the hell out of her. I could also punch her mandible and send her unconscious. But she's holding my hair too tight and one single wrong move and the ice pick will pierce through my abdomen.
"I know many things about you, Raya. I know where you live, where you study, who your friends are, where your mom and sister stay and work. I know your schedule, Raya," she told me in a slow manner, making sure I hear every word she says. "I also know that you are ruining careers by what you are doing - Kurt's, Lexi's, and their teams."
That's not true. They still have projects lined up for them, well, at least for Kurt. He has upcoming commercials and guestings. There's no way his career is affected by the issue. Or is he just not letting me know that something is wrong?
"Many of us know that you privately talk to and see Kurt. It's just not me, Raya. Many eyes are on you watching your every move. No matter how hard you try to hide, we will always find you."
At this point, I'm sure she's not really going to shoot that ice pick in me. This is all just a threat to my life, my friends' and my family's. I concentrated on not triggering her any more than she already is. This shall pass. She's going to leave me alone soon.
"Raya!" Somebody suddenly screamed my name. I flinched at the sudden movement of the ice pick aimed at me. The woman was surprised by the sudden call of my name that the hand holding the ice pick shook.
I looked ahead of me, and saw Andrei standing by the end of the street holding his phone to his ear. Did he hear everything she said? He slowly walked to us, with calculated movements.
"Remember what I said," she whispered again before letting my hair go and walking away. I breathed in as soon as the ice pick's pressure was removed.
Once the woman was away, Andrei ran towards me.
"Raya, what was that?!" He whispered angrily at me. He steadied me, holding both of my arms.
I could not answer him. I could not move any part of my body from shock.
Andrei hugged me close to his body, rubbing my back. "It's okay now. I'm here, Raya." He hugged me for I don't know how many seconds, then told me, "We have to go somewhere safe for now." He took a step away from me and turned my back. He walked close to me while holding me by my shoulders.
My brain decided to stop functioning and clouded my thoughts. We walked to 5th street, past my building.
"Sleep at our place for tonight," he said. Andrei stays with three other batchmates of ours. I go frequently at their place to chill but I've never stayed overnight. I could not say any word right now. I was just letting him lead me. I just want to go somewhere safe.
We entered his building and now waiting for the elevator. He clicked the button and stood beside me.
I still could not believe that I just received a threat. My mind and body are in a state of shock that I could not feel anything.
We went in the elevator. We were both silent throughout the ride. When we got to this floor, he let me go out first then he followed me. My feet, like they have their own lives, automatically walked towards his unit. When we reached his door, he immediately reached for the key from his pocket.
My mind and body suddenly lighted up, like I was awakened from a deep sleep. The feelings came rushing in, tears flooding my eyes. I reach for his hand which is about to turn the key in the door lock. I looked at Andrei with tears flowing on my face. He withdrew the key from the door and hugged me. He buried my face on his chest as I cried silently against it. After some time, my sobs became heavier, I was already making sounds. He pulled out from me and I covered my face with my hands. He took my right wrist and pulled me toward the fire exit. When he closed the door, I gave what my body needed and bawled my eyes out. He bear hugged me again with me still covering my face. I could not suppress my loud sobs any more and Andrei was there to let me, let it all out.
I don't know how long we stood like that. When I kind of finished crying loudly, we sat on the stairs. I was still sobbing every now and then.
"Did you hear everything?" I asked Andrei in between sobs.
"Yes," he answered while nodding. "You were pretty cool earlier, you know? You were able to text me in that situation."
"Adrenaline rush," I replied.
"And there I was, running without a plan," he said. We both laughed recalling the situation.
"Did you see that she had an ice pick aimed at me?"
"Shit. She did?!" He asked with widened eyes.
I nodded my head smiling, but with tears falling.
"Shit shit shit. I'm sorry. I was not thinking earlier. Shit, she could have hurt you when I suddenly appeared. Shit, I should have called the cops."
"I was praying you will come with the cops and not alone. I was afraid you'd get hurt because of me."
He brushed his hands through his hair. "I did not think she was armed. I was really nervous when you texted me that so I just darted to Saint street."
He pulled me into a side hug while we were sitting, and let my head rest on his shoulder.
"I didn't know what to do, Andrei," I said. "But when she started talking, I knew she was not out there to hurt me. She was just threatening me so I kind of just waited for her to finish."
"You looked so calm. Nobody would really think she's aiming an ice pick at you."
"I was not calm. My spirit just decided to leave my body to save itself." We both laughed. I laughed until I cried again.
We just sat there until I ran out of tears. It felt so good that Andrei did not pressure me to talk or anything. Just his mere presence sent relief already.
"You sleep at my place for tonight," he said as I wipe the tears away from my face. Starting now, you can't go out alone anymore okay? At least until there's no threat anymore."
He stood and offered his hand to me. I grabbed it and helped myself to stand. I removed my hand and dusted my pants off as I follow him out to the hallway and into their unit.
Thank God Rex was the only one in their unit and he's already sleeping. The other guys are on duty at the hospital. I put my bag in a chair and went to the bathroom.
"I'll just wash my face," I said. Andrei answered with a smile.
I entered the bathroom and closed the door behind me. I looked at myself in the mirror, and as expected my eyes are puffing out. I opened the faucet and splashed water onto my face. The cold water felt really nice against my skin. Since I do not have a towel, I left the bathroom with my wet face.
I found Andrei fixing his bed. "You go sleep on my bed. It could clear your mind," he said.
"How about you? Where will you sleep?"
"There are two other empty beds. I'll make up my mind later."
I smiled at him and went to his bed. I removed my shoes and lied. I hugged one of his pillows and closed my eyes.