@spritelylaci Itâd been a quiet night. Luke and Aiden had left about two hours ago, saying they were going to go to the gym and then grab a bite to eat with some of their football friends, leaving Laci home alone while they were gone. Her parents hadnât been home all week, but Laci didnât mind. It meant that she got to eat out of the tub of ice cream and no one could judge her for it.
With Project Runway streaming on the television in the living room, her favorite candle filling the room with the smell of coconut, and a tub of strawberry ice-cream sitting over her blanket-covered lap, Laci figured sheâd pass out in the living room long before she even got to the end of the season. Itâd been a long time since she was able to stay up late and binge watch her favorite shows.
Her phone dinged, and she glanced down to see that it was Aiden, letting her know that they had just finished up at the gym. They were going to shower and then head over to the burger joint. A small smile spread across her lipsâbeing with Aiden was a whole different experience for her. On one hand, she got to brag that she was dating a college football player (which came with perks around school), but on the other hand she got to be the girlfriend of one of the sweetest guys she had ever met. Aiden really and truly treated Laci like a princess, and she was always a swooning mess around him. She texted him back with the thumbs up emoji and a smile, telling him that she may be passed out by the time the two of them got back.
At the same time she hit send on her phone, she got another incoming text message, this time from a kid in her class. His name was Noah, and heâd been bugging Laci for a few weeks now. She had told Aiden that she blocked his number, but in all reality Laci didnât have the heart to do so. Noah and her had been partners in biology, and Laci had made a comment about prom season, and asked if he was planning on taking anyone.
âNo.â He had said.
âOh why not? Youâre cuteâIâm sure there are plenty of girls who would love to have you sweep them off their feet.â
She almost regretted being nice to him, because now he just wouldnât leave her alone. He would wait for her outside of biology, and it seemed like he knew her class schedule, too, because he was always around when periods let out and Laci exited a class she didnât even have with him. Aiden was upset when Laci told him how weird the boy had been acting, but she hadnât mentioned that Noahâs number wasnât blocked nor did she mention that her teacher had yet to move her seat away from himâbecause she hadnât said anything, yet.
Laci wanted to believe that the boy had good intentions, and was merely looking for friends. And yet sheâd be lying if she said she wasnât a little afraid of him. Ever since she had given him her number, for project reasons, things had been happening at the house. She caught someone peeping into her bedroom window while she was changing, and Luke had caught someone jumping over their backyard fence in the dead of night. Many a time she had called Aiden and had asked him to come over and spend the night, because she felt so much safer with him around.
Her heart skipped a beat when she opened up Noahâs message to find that it was a picture of her. A picture of her sitting on the couch, eating a tub of ice cream. Laciâs mouth ran dry, and she immediately sat up and put the ice cream on the coffee table, texting Noah: What the hell?
A message came in within a few seconds: You looked lonely.
She was slightly shaking now, but still Laci made herself get up, sliding her phone into her back pocket before making her way over to the front door, making sure that the lock was in place. It was. There was only one window that overlooked where she was sitting, and the blinds had yet to be turned to close as that was something someone did before everyone went to sleep. Now Laci was regretting it. She crept up to the window and peered out, not seeing anything or anyone, just the street lights and the occasional car that drove down the street. She licked her lips and stepped back from the window, trying to still her beating heart.
âWant some company?â
Laci yelped in surprise as hands reached out and grabbed onto her arms tenderly, and she could feel her heart thumping so hard in her chest that she thought for sure it was going to leap through her ribcage. âNoah? W-what are you doing here? How did you get in?â
She cringed as she felt the boy rest his head in the crook of her neck, âIâm here to spend time with you, beautiful. We never see each other anymore. I miss my baby.â
âNoahâstop. Iâm not your baby..â She muttered quietly, wetting her lips again and trying to get her breathing under control. âYou need to leave..this isnât okay.â
Noahâs grip on her arms tightened, and Laci heard him exhale in her ear, âCome on, Laci. Donât be like that. I know we had a fight and everything but you know I love you. You know I didnât mean it.â
Fight? Laci had absolutely no idea what Noah was talking about. The only conclusion she could come to was that he was delusional, making up scenarios that never really happened in order to satiate his desire to be with her. Yeah. That was it. The girl said nothing, but she did struggle when Noah began pulling her backwards past the couch and into the hallway. So much so, in fact, that Noah wrapped his arms around her waist and actually lifted her from the ground. âNoahâstop! Put me down!â Laci screamed, beginning to thrash around and try to twist away from her grip. âPlease!â
Noah barged into her bedroom and tossed Laci onto the floor, leaving the girl to begin sobbing quietly as he paced the room, taking turns between looking at her and gazing around the room at all the pictures she had. There were a few of her and her parents, more of her and Luke, but there were also some of her and Aiden. One of which sat proudly on her nightstand, where Laci was kissing Aidenâs cheek and the blond boy was grinning wildly. She had taken it in Croatia, when she had made her feelings known for the boy.
Seeing Noah occupied gave the crying girl an opportunity to quietly take out her phone and unlock it, dialing Aidenâs number and turning the volume way down before slipping it back into her pocket, praying that the call actually went through. Laci swallowed thickly and looked up at the boy, watching as anger began to spread across his face before he tossed the frame onto the floor.
The glass shattered, and Noah turned to her with a horrified look on his face, âIs this where youâve been?â He shouted, making his way over to her. Laci screamed as he grabbed onto her hair and yanked her onto her knees, âYouâve been cheating on me with him?!â
âPlease, Noah, let go of me, youâre hurting me.â She whimpered, holding onto his wrist to try and ease the tension that was being delievered to her scalp.
âNo!â He shouted, tugging on her hair again. Laci cried out in pain. âNo youâre hurting me, Laci! I thought what we had was special! I thought you loved me! Havenât I done everything for you? Iâve bought you flowers, brought you chocolates, hell I brought you tampons when you started your period because you are my girlfriend and I love you!â The palm of his hand came fast and hard against her cheek, and Laci was fully aware of the stinging sensation on her skin. She tried not to wince.
She was full on sobbing now, realizing that no matter how many times she told Noah that they werenât together it wouldnât work. Laci feared reminding him once more would only anger him further, and she didnât even want to think about what heâd do if she brought up Aiden. Noah let go of her hair, leaving Laci to shrink against the side of her bed, quietly begging him to leave, to leave her alone. âI do l-love you,â she mumbled, looking up at the boy with tears in her eyes and a few running down her face. âI love you more than life itself. You know this.â Her heart ached with every word, but if the call went through she was giving Aiden time to call the police, or something, because she knew her calling the police wouldnât work. Theyâd call back immediately after she hung up, and sheâd be found out. âYou know I love you⊠Aiden coerced me. He tricked me. I love you, Noah, and no one else.â
The redheaded boy crouched down in front of her, and when he tenderly turned her face towards him she had to fight the urge to turn away. âI know he did. And I know youâd do anything for me.â He offered a small smile to the girl, âWhich is why I want you to call Aiden and tell him that you never want to see him again. Tell him you hate his guts. Do whatever you have to do to get him to leave you alone.â Noah reached up and caressed Laciâs cheek with his hand, not noticing how she turned away from his touch.
She didnât know what came over her, really. Whether it was pure anger, or it was her fight or flight reaction finally kicking in, Laci lashed out. She snapped at his hand, biting just above his wrist and kicking at him as he pulled his hand away in pain. Laci was on her feet in seconds, tearing open her bedroom door and rushing down the hallway, feeling her heart race in her chest as if it were about to burst through her rib cage.
There was a glimmer of hope, really, because if she could get out of the house then maybe she could get in her car. Or run down the street. Or something. She just needed to get away from Noah.
But that hope was shattered when she was practically tackled from behind, and both she and Noah went sprawling across the ground as they fought. Laci was kicking and scratching and screaming, trying her best to get away from him, while he was doing everything in his power to keep her pinned against the ground. âStop fighting me, Laci!â he shouted at her, grabbing onto her shoulders the first chance he got and shaking her violently.
Her head and back slammed against the ground so hard that she lost her breath at the same time she went dizzy. Gasping for breath while struggling to see straight put her in an extremely vulnerable position, and Noah was quick to straddle her, smacking her across the face again, this time making her nose bleed from the impact. âWhy!?â He screamed in her face. âWhy do you do this to me?! Iâm just trying to love you, Laci!â
He crawled off of her and hoisted her onto her knees, not caring that she was sobbing again. âPlease, Noah,â she croaked. âPlease, let me go. Let me goâ andâ and we can be together, I promise.â He wrapped his arms around her in a hug, and rubbed her back in what she assumed was supposed to be a soothing motion. However, she wasnât paying attention to him. She was looking around her desperately, trying to find another way out of her predicament.
The candle.
It remained lit on the coffee table, and Laci could see a puddle of hot wax sitting around the wick. Itâd be a bit of a stretch, but it would definitely give her time to run. So, when Noah pulled her onto her feet and tried to lead her back into her room, she lunged for the candle and was quick to pivot and throw the wax onto his face.
The boy screamed in pain, shoving Laci in the opposite direction as he wiped at his face, and she barely missed the edge of the coffee table as she went down. The candle landed on the carpet, and it only took a few seconds for her to begin to smell burning carpet, and a few more for her to gather her bearings and prepare to get up and run.
âYou bitch!â Noah screamed, reaching down and grabbing onto her ankle as she began to pull herself up to run away. And she couldnât help the scream of terror when she wiggled just enough to catch the glint of Noahâs pocket knife in the now-growing fire light.
He lunged towards her, leaving Laci time to roll away and shove herself to her feet. âHelp!â She screamed, coughing as the smoke began to furl around the corners of the room and invade her lungs.
Noah was quick, though, and he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Laci again, pulling her away from the door. She felt the pain before she knew what happened, and the metallic taste of blood began to bubble up in the back of her throat. Taking in a deep, shaky breath, Laci slowly looked down to see Noahâs pocket knife lodged in her lower stomach.
There was nothing she was feeling at this point besides surprise. The smoke, which was full on choking Noah and pouring out of every open crack it could find, wasnât bothering her. And the fact that Noah was lowering her onto her back on the ground wasnât bothering her either. She was stabbed in the gut, and that was the only thing that her mind was able to register. Laci was aware that Noah was freaking out and apologizing, placing his hands on her face and wiping her sweaty hair from her forehead. She didnât care.
With a small grimace, Laci dislodged the knife from her stomach, taking no time and no pleasure in plunging it into Noahâs throat, where his neck met his shoulder. A rain of blood ran down her arm and coated her pajamas, but she didnât care. The redheaded boy fell off to the side, and Laci, with a hand firmly pressed to her bleeding stomach, began to crawl towards the front door.
If you asked her how she managed to do it, sheâd tell you she didnât know. She couldnât remember much about it, just that she was bleeding and desperate to get out of the house before she either suffocated or bled to death. She wasnât sure how she was able to pull open the door, or stand on her own two feet, but Laci had made it out the front door and a few steps down the walkway, almost crying in relief when she saw police officers and firefighters and paramedics lining her street. She couldnât make it more than a few steps though before she fell onto her knees on the pavement, the world going a bit fuzzy as her blood dripped onto the concrete and pain surged through her body.
If you asked the paramedics, they would say that she was lucky to make it out alive. The smoke alone should have killed her, nevermind the stab wound. But it had missed her vital organs, and she was a tough cookie they said. They had her patched up and on breathing treatments within five hours. She was going to be okay, and Noah wasnât going to bother her anymore.
