“I’m just saying that I’m confused. She told me not to be at school at night. It doesn’t make sense. It’s not like she ever gave me a chance to apologize for that other thing either.”

Derek sighed. “Yeah, but…”

I interceded. “No buts! I can’t read her mind. Yes, I need to ask more questions and that’s on me. But there are two sides of this.”

As our discussion went on, we were unaware that two shadows had been following us since we left the college. We had gotten a little distracted.

I hate drama.

“So what do you think I should do, Derek?”

“I dunno, man. Maybe give her some space to chill?”

Completely oblivious to the black tendrils reaching out to us in the darkness of the night, we were at the shadows’ mercy.

Because leave it to me to get so entirely focused on a conversation that I don’t notice anything going on around me.

All of a sudden, we were grabbed. It was nothing like I had ever seen- or not seen on this case- in my life. I didn’t even have time to panic. Shocked, I just stayed there like a limp rag not knowing what to do. We were both held in the air with these whatever they are dangling us like mice. To my horror, the cement beneath is starting cracking wide open. Looking around, I tried to find anything that could help. I looked over at Derek and his head was sideways. It was too dark to make out if he was still alive. Thrashing about, I tried to wiggle out of this thing’s grasp.

Then, out of nowhere, there came a bright light buzzing past me right at the creature, knocking it back and releasing it’s grip on me and Derek. The ground closed up just in time for me to fall down- hard- on the cement.

In front of me was my girlfriend with a very annoyed look on her face. She crossed her arms in front of her and her hip tilted to the side. “Maybe next time you’ll listen to me when I tell you not to walk here at night.”