The Darkness Within Read Free Page A

there wasn’t even a hint of a smile on his face anymore. His expression was blank of all emotion, and after seeing his face I turned back to face forward. Once again I felt uncomfortable under his gaze.
    When we reached the street, I heard the front door close, and I risked another glance at the house. One of the curtains in the front window was pulled aside, and an ominous feeling settled over me as I realized David was watching us from inside his house.

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
Chapter Three
     
    Rattling Suspicion
     
    “How hot is he, on a scale from one to ten?” Adriana asked, her brown eyes squinted slightly in thought. Her dark hair was straightened and hung to just above her shoulders. In the bright sunlight the pink stripe in her hair seemed lighter than usual.
    I scrunched my nose up at her question, not wanting to continue this conversation. I made the mistake of telling her my mom thought David was hot and now she wouldn’t drop it. We’d been having the same discussion since we first started walking home from school and now we were nearing my house, a few blocks away, and were still on the same topic. “He’s cute for an older guy, but I don’t know, something about him is a little unsettling. He gives me the creeps.”
    Adrianna scoffed. “So, what, you’re afraid of hot, older guys now?” She raised one of her perfectly plucked eyebrows and gave me a dubious look.
    “No, but I’m not into guys who are old enough to be my father. Besides, he’s probably older than my mom. That’s gross.”
    “Then why does he give you the creeps?” she asked, repeating my words and staring at me sideways.
    I shrugged, not really sure what it was about him that made me uneasy. I just knew there was something. “I don’t know. He stared at me. It was weird.”
    Adrianna rolled her eyes, tucking the pink hair, which was bouncing in her face as she walked, behind her ear. “ Yeah , because that’s a good reason to think someone is creepy.” The sarcasm in her tone was hard to miss.
    I raised an eyebrow at her and frowned. She, of all people, was the last person who could patronize me about thinking someone was a little strange. “Oh, so the fact that Ben stares at from across the cafeteria isn’t why you think he’s weird?” I questioned, watching her expression change in a matter of seconds.
    Adrianna shrugged, glancing down at her feet. “Ben is different. I can’t explain it. He just makes me feel nervous sometimes,” she murmured.
    I nodded slowly, not understanding her reservations about Ben. Ben Rollins was two years older than us and still in our same grade. He had a huge crush on Adrianna and everyone knew it. He didn’t do much to hide it either. Ben was a nice enough guy, who never did or said anything that made me think otherwise. He liked to hang around Adrianna and I at school, flirting shamelessly with her. Sure, it could get annoying at times, but it was harmless. Secretly I think Adrianna enjoyed the attention, but as soon as Ben would leave she would sigh in relief. I didn’t get it.
    “Well, that’s the same way I feel about David so far. He stared at me and I got weirded out. That’s the best I can explain it,” I replied, changing the subject and hoping her mood would return to normal. “You’ll see,” I assured her, picking up my speed a little.
    Adrianna grabbed my arm and pulled me to a stop. “ You’ll see ?” she questioned, repeating my words, all thoughts of Ben being cast aside. “Wait, are you implying I’ll get to meet him?” Her eyes were wide with excitement.
    I furrowed my eyebrows at her question. “ Yeah , he’s my neighbor for goodness sake. I wouldn’t be surprised if you talked to him on more than one occasion considering how often you’re at my house.”
    Adrianna squealed, clapping her hands and bouncing up and down on her toes. “Awesome. Now I really hope he’s hot or all this excitement will go to waste.”
    I rolled my eyes as we