Chapter one- Night Out

17-year-old Claire goes to a restaurant to have dinner with her boyfriend Jack. What happens makes her angry and upset. On the way home, she is stalked.

 

Chapter one

 

I cast a hopeful glance at the reflection of my back in my bedroom mirror and sighed loudly. Nothing I ever did would hide the aggressive and deep burns overwhelmingly covering my back. I used a whole jar of expensive liquid foundation to attempt to conceal some of their drastically horrifying appearance and as I continued to stare at my reflection, all that seemed to do was sharpen their appearance in contrast to what little unburnt skin was left.

I don’t even want to remember how I got those burns to begin with. It sickened me to just think about it. I turned to face the mirror and grimaced as I wriggled into my favourite jeans and threw on a sweater that had been sitting at the bottom of my closet for a few years.

My room wasn’t much. A wooden bed lay in the middle, with the sheets not done, as usual. On one end of the room were my study table, silently gathering dust, and a relatively large window that took up a third of the wall. On the other side was the door, nothing interesting there. My closet and mirror were directly in front of my bed against the wall. Midnight blue was my favourite colour, so I made sure my parents had most of the furniture in the room that way. Apart from that was a cordless phone, a bedside lamp and an alarm clock propped on my bedside table.

Shoved to a corner of the room was a small book shelf that was free with the exception of a single book. My parents hoped that I would start reading but I wasn’t the type of person that would open up a book and read, especially those popular fantasy love stories. I tried it once and ended up feeling a hollow emptiness where my heart was supposed to be because I knew back then that someone like me would never be loved. The one with the ‘freaky eyes’, they called me. So I shoved the book in the corner of the bottom shelf and left it to rot.

Recently however, things were playing out quite well. I was off to see my two-month boyfriend Jack in a well-to-do restaurant, about a twenty minute walk from home. That was after he announced it to the whole class during fifth period.

We’ve kissed a couple of times, but every time his hand slipped up to the bare skin of my back, I felt a strong urge to pull away. I don’t know why but I think it’s because I’m ashamed of the burns. He doesn’t know of course, nor does anyone else for that matter. I couldn’t even bring myself to tell my best friend, Kate, whom I’ve known for about six months. I’d rather be buried under rocks than let somebody find out. Hell, I’d rather die- and that’s something big -than let anybody find out.

I shrugged, knowing that I would never tell anyone about the sickening burns, let alone actually show them. Imagine that on top of the freaky eyes. One look and they would turn away for certain. I laughed hysterically at the thought of seeing their horrified faces and then clamped my mouth shut. This was no time for day-nightmaring.

I analysed the image of my face in the mirror. An oval face surrounded by soft curls of dark hair that reached midway between my shoulders and waist, an average nose and lips that parted to reveal a perfect set of teeth, and a fair complexion. Yeh, that kind of sounds pretty but not when it came to my eyes. Eyes that were large and black. Eyes with sapphire blue pupils that dilated when I became angry. Eyes that dissolved any contacts I applied to hide them. Eyes that were ‘freaky’.  That’s how my eyes looked like.

I dabbed on a little foundation, checked my bedside clock, 7:45 pm, I was going to be a few minutes late, grabbed my purse and sprinted out of the room, tying my hair with my favourite band as I skipped down the winding staircase.

My parents were away on a week’s vacation to Hawaii, so they wouldn’t bother enquiring me about my out-of-the-ordinary excitement. I used school and exams as an excuse not to go with them and they swallowed it. I just wanted them to be alone and have fun together, without having to worry about me. I slipped into my sneakers and entered the darkness of the night.

The atmosphere outside was delightful. There was a soft breeze that made me shiver slightly. The half moon shone brightly in the distance, illuminating the slabs of concrete beneath my feet. The leaves of trees were rustling slightly and there was occasional chirping of birds. A bat passed overhead as I made my way up the side walk, towards the restaurant. It was a wonderful night for walking, although the piercing quietness, apart from the scrunch of my sneakers, was quite eerie. Still, I loved it.

The neighbourhood was a silent one even though it was still early. Most parents would be putting their little ones to sleep for school tomorrow. I was in my last year of high school and to be honest, I couldn’t wait to finish and be done with it. I didn’t see the point in doing mathematical calculations when I knew I’d never have much use for numbers after I finished my yearly exam.

I was dreading school tomorrow. Jack promised the whole class on Friday, that he would tell them how our date tonight turned out. That was Jack, a boy open to almost everything, he was almost vulnerable.

I was standing outside the restaurant now, admiring its wonderful architecture. The glass walls arched perfectly, supporting the restaurant’s name, “Night Out”, which was encircled by shimmering lights.

Couples were already sitting together outside, picking at their food but more interested in staring into each others’ eyes or holding hands. You could already see the impenetrable love and connection deep in their eyes. I looked around to see whether Jack was on one of the tables waiting for me but I couldn’t see him anywhere, so he must be sitting inside. I casually opened the door and looked around.

The place was very warm and romantic. Crimson-coloured candles were set on tables and dim lights hung overhead, slightly illuminating the room. I scent of sweet lavender was heavy. There weren’t so many people inside but nevertheless, I was going to have a wonderful time with Jack. And I was so very sure until I looked around to see where he was and froze against the wall.

Squashed in a near-invisible side of the restaurant was Jack, with his hands and mouth, quite obviously and passionately, all over Alana. I could see their figures glued to each other against the wall with such intensity that I expected the wall to collapse under their heat. I fought hard to stay still. My heart felt like it was being forcefully ripped out of its’ cage and replaced by a time bomb set to go off at any second. Jack, my Jack, my supposed boyfriend, was over there kissing someone else that was not me. I swallowed back tears of dismay.

I was standing there for a whole two minutes staring at them intently, when Alana’s head tipped sideways to expose Jack to her neck and our eyes locked. I could tell she was enjoying him. Slowly and deliberately she smiled. A wicked and seductive smile that made her face glow with irresistible beauty. My eyes bored into hers and I made sure my face held no expression whilst under that my anger was rising.

I heard a deep moan from Jack, who was oblivious to current circumstances, and was about to throw up, disgusted. Alana whispered something short in his ears and he came to a horrible still.

He turned around slowly, his normally mopped hair disheveled against the perfect features of his face. His green eyes were looking at me hesitantly. I still did not move. My eyes tightened on his. No discernable expression on my face. He carefully detached himself from Alana’s secure grip and took a step forward, cautious, as if I were a time bomb set to go off in a few seconds- which was funny because that’s how I actually felt- and it was his job to disarm it or run away.

Of course, he chose to disarm it.

“Claire,” he whispered breathlessly. Oh obviously, I wasn’t expecting him to sound guilty or even upset. He had just been kissing another girl for, say, ten minutes. I could see his chest rising and falling quickly. On second thought, it was probably more than ten minutes.

He was edging closer now, Alana following him quietly, playing the all-innocent girl. I noticed some heads turn in our direction but that didn’t bother me. I was focused on Jack, watching him as he got closer. I didn’t dare move an inch.

“Claire,” he repeated, now less than a metre away. Alana was still there and I could see from the corner of my eyesight that she slowly, delicately and so very deliberately clutched his hand, as if she knew and deeply felt he needed her support.

He reached out his other free hand to touch my face and I shifted aggressively to one side. “Don’t,” I hissed in a dangerous low voice, “don’t you dare.”

“Claire, I’m sorry, I- she came, I didn’t mean to, it just happened. She was just there and then she came and I- I didn’t think. She just- we just- I’m sorry.” His hand dropped and I could hear a little resentment in his voice but I was far more than certain that this was not going to end nicely.

He could tell that I wasn’t going to speak, so he opened his mouth again but I stopped him. “Next time you decide to end a relationship with someone, tell them before you put your mouth on another girl.” My voice was low and clear. In reality, I wanted to run outside and cry and cry and huddle up in a little corner and not exist. That’s the type of person I was. I couldn’t fight my feelings, especially since the burns but I couldn’t show both of them my weakness, especially Alana. I couldn’t show them how much it hurt. It would be all over the front news.

“End – relationship,” he croaked, “Claire, I’m – I didn’t mean to –” he broke off with a look of resentment on his face. But right now that look meant nothing to me. He opened his mouth to say something else, unaware that it was doing him no good, but it was Alana who broke in.

“Claire,” she said, her voice as pleasant and innocent as ever, “Jack really didn’t mean to kiss me in front of you like that. I mean –” she corrected herself, “he was meant to end it with you beforehand but you just came in at the wrong time.” My eyes shifted to her blue ones. She didn’t seem to notice my stillness and continued speaking.

“You don’t give him enough of yourself,” she smiled slightly, her eyes glinting, “I mean you don’t even let him kiss you properly. As soon as he touches your back you move away as if he was carrying some infectious disease, or who knows maybe you’re the one carrying it. At least I let him do that and a bit more. And it’s hard for him to maintain a happy relationship with a freak-eyed. I mean could you imagine what his parents would say? ” She twisted her blond curls with a sly smirk on her face.

“Claire,” Jack said again, his voice growing just a little more comfortable. That’s it. I had to get out of here. If I stayed one minute longer, I was sure the bomb planted in me would explode. Alana just had to bring my back into the picture. It wasn’t enough that I had to silently suffer through its restrictions every day.

“Goodbye Jack,” I said, my voice dull with pain. I turned around, but not before I saw the triumphant grin Alana gave me, and pushed open the door.

“Claire,” said Jack, again. That’s all he seemed to be able to say.

“Leave her, she’ll get over it,” whispered Alana to him.

I walked out of the restaurant trying so hard to keep my pace as normal and comfortable as possible. I passed by a couple kissing almost ferociously. Oh, the love there was definite, so much it made my lungs pound painfully against my ribs.

Love my a*s, I thought viciously. I was never going to think about dating anyone again. Trying to love. Trying to be loved. That didn’t happen to people like me, ever! I realised that tears had welled in my eyes and were threatening to escape. I wiped them abruptly.

I’ve always had a weakness in containing my emotions. I hated people seeing my vulnerable side. It made me feel helpless. I hated feeling helpless because it made me angry. And angry made my eyes go super-freaky!

And my burns! The hell with my burns! They deprived me of everything. Backless dresses, tops, bikinis. The biggest thing they deprived me from was love. Sincere love. And that really hurt.

I rounded a corner, five minutes from home. Thank goodness my parents weren’t coming back till Friday. They were so excited when I told them about Jack so if they asked me how he was, I’d just have to make up a reason for our sudden break-up.

I silently promised myself that I was never going to come close to a guy again. Sure, I was seventeen and my eighteenth birthday was next Saturday but that didn’t mean I had to be attached to someone.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I wasn’t aware of a soft noise behind me. A very faint tapping noise and it was coming closer. I whipped my head around and the noise stopped. I scanned my surroundings but there was nothing there, just trees. The wind had subsided, so there was no pleasant noise of leaves rustling. The birds had gone still, it appeared, and even had disappeared. The half moon lay obscured by thick masses of clouds.

I shook my head. I was definitely thinking too much. I should get home and sort my head out, maybe have something proper to eat, seeing as “Night Out” didn’t do it. I flipped my head back to walk and froze for the second time that evening.

From behind the trees, I saw two shadows approaching. Could a break-up really have that much effect on a person? But I wasn’t imagining anything. The shadows approached slowly with stealth, revealing two men. They were both wearing faded jeans and dark tops. I could see the dark-haired one smiling triumphantly. The other blond one was more cautious following him. And they were both staring directly at me.

I panicked but couldn’t make my legs move. I had to get away, I knew that. But if I ran they would easily catch up. All images of Jack and Alana on the wall were wiped clear from my mind. I could hear my heart drumming against my chest. The fight or flight principle wasn’t doing me any good. I was not running and there was no way I was going to be able to fight them.

I took a step back, then took a few more, my hands clutching the air behind me for support. I had never taken taekwondo or karate classes and had no self defence strategies except for what naturally came to a person. My backward steps were getting quicker, more urgent, my eyes never detaching from their figures.

They were close now, a few metres, maybe even less, and my brain, which apparently seemed deformed, hadn’t come up with any form of solution. I took a deep breath as I prepared for what was to come, not that I had any clue what they wanted from me.

And then the whole of my back went smash, right into something.

It was hard and strong. I didn’t even think twice. I whipped my body away so quickly but my hair tie got stuck and I felt it slip off. I moved back and was astonished to see it hanging in midair, that I temporarily forgot the two men following me. I blinked again and it was gone.

I looked back to the two men. The dark-haired one’s smile grew wider, more confident. The one behind him, however, suddenly stopped, looking around wildly.

“Tom,” he said, obviously referring to his companion, “I think –”

Something aggressively knocked the man named Tom to the gravel floor and it seemed to me that he lost consciousness. I had no clue what just happened but that was all my mind needed to start working again.

Run, it said, and I sprinted down the pavement hardly breathing. It was a stupid idea but my mind failed to be a little more creative. I could hear the blond one running behind me, snarling wildly. I was running home and he was going to catch up with me. I didn’t know where else to go. I could feel myself panic but I didn’t dare look around. Once I was inside the house, I would call the police and they would deal with it.

I was still running when I heard a heavy thud. My body turned around of its own accord and I saw the blonde man on the floor, unconscious like the other one. Hell, I thought, what just happened? The air! No, the air can’t have that much power. It’s impossible. I actually bumped into something that’s not there. I stood there for a few more seconds as if waiting for something to knock me down and then shook my head and ran all the way back home.

Once I had securely locked the front door then double bolted the wooden door, I heated some of yesterday’s lasagna, swallowed it in chunks that hurt my throat and went to rest on my bed.

My heart rate was almost back to normal as I tried to gather my scattered thoughts from somewhere inside my brain. Boyfriends do not kiss other girls, people do not follow other people and scare the s**t out of them and the air does not knock people unconscious. Well, apparently, I was just about losing my good old mind.

I took a deep breath. Just think, I thought to myself, just think. I was so tired I didn’t remember drifting off to sleep, without doing the thinking.

Author's Note

Criticism please

Reviews

[DiggeyEleven]

I like where this is going, just watch out for punctuation and your wording sometimes. For instance:

Shoved to a corner of the room was a small book shelf that was free with the exception of a single book. My parents hoped that I would start reading but I wasn't the type of person that would open up a book and read, especially those popular fantasy love stories

It feels a bit too wordy, like you can cut it down a bit to sound more like:

Shoved in the corner of my room was a small book that that carried a single book. My parent hoped that I would start reading, but I wasn't a reader, especially fantasy love stories.

That paragraph where you describe you room I feel was unnecessary to. Understand that all rooms are pretty much the same, describe only what is truly important and things that you really want the reader to take in. Sorry to be critical right away but I really did like the story, I could really feel Claire's pain the restaurant, it was my favorite scene because I just about wanted to slap her boyfriend and that female. Dig deep inside, grab that passion you used for that scene and do it again. So over all, great story with just a few hiccups here and there. And remember describe what you want your reader to see, and don't describe anything that is not important, your reader is smart, they themselves will imagine certain things if necessary, what you want to do is paint an image of the rest.

Hope I helped :)