"What do you think of this one?", Daisy asks me for what I think is probably the fifth time now.

          The perfect graduation dress. That's what she's searching so tirelessly for. We've been to almost five different boutiques now and in each one, we make absolutely no progress. I can't believe Daisy's about to graduate. I guess it's like they al-ways say, time flies when you're being stalked by a psychopath. They do say that, don't they?

          "Nai?", Daisy speaks up, snapping me out of my empty trance

          "Sorry", I shake my head and let out a small sigh. ...uh...it's great"

          "You said that the last four dresses I tried on", she rolls her eyes

          "...well they're all great dresses"

         Honestly, I dont even know why were here. Daisy could literally graduate in old shorts and a crop top and still be the most gorgeous girl their as long as she wears her killer confidence. She looks good in whatever she puts on.

          "Okay", she says as she sits down besides me. "What's going on? Ever since you came back, you've been on some weird like, spaced out trip or something"

          "It's just...he's a whole stranger Daisy. I mean, you should've been there. You should've seen the way Anitta talked about him. It was like she just saw a ghost", I mumble. "She was terrified of him. And all this time—I just mean—shouldn't I be terrified too?"

          "What do you mean?"

          "I mean, he doesn't terrify me. Jeffery Maxwell doesn't terrify me. Neither does Xavier Grayson or...whoever the hell else he might be. I just... I think that's weird. Like, do I enjoy being in this position? Am I even really a victim despite feel-ing like this?"

         "...we can't help the things we feel Nai. You cant be that hard on yourself ", she comforts, "the only thing that matters is that we know he's a bad guy, and now we have people to back us up. We've got him..."

          "Not exactly..."

          "What do you mean?"

         "I still need to get...evidence", I swallow. "So.. I was thinking of sneaking into his house"

          She raises her brows. "Woah, are you out of your mind? That's way too dangerous...I'm not letting you do that"

         "Look, if I don't do it, no one will and sooner or later, one of us is gonna get hurt by him...seriously hurt. I mean, for all we know, he might have a bunch of dead bodies piling up like trophies in his basement"

          A pause. "You can't do that Nai. We'll think of something else, there's gotta be another way to find evidence...but, I can't let you do that. I've been a terrible friend to you and I'm not gonna make that mistake again"

          "What do you mean by again?", I ask her. We already went through this. I forgive you for leaving me that night. Thats behind us

          Daisy stands up quickly and sighs. She starts to chew nervously at her bottom lip and I can tell that she's hiding something from me. "Daisy?", I ask for a second time, "what do you mean by again?"

          "... it's nothing, okay? Let's just...go home", she murmurs under her breath

          "No, Daisy! What the hell are you hiding from me? If you have something to tell me then just go ahead and say it"

          A thick blanket of awkward silence covers the atmosphere suddenly and for a moment, I've never seen Daisy so pale and so lifeless. Whatever it is she's hiding from me, I'm not sure I'll be able to stomach.

         "...look, I... theres no way I could ever justify myself for this. And, I will never ever forgive myself—"

        "What did you do Daisy?", I interrupt her mid-sentence

        "...that...that night I wasnt thinking straight. I—

         DaisyWhat. Did. You. Do?, I interrupt for a second time

         when you slept with Mr. Grayson—that night at the party—", she pauses. "Chase drugged the soda that you drank a while before you got to the party...with ecstasy and... well...I... I knew"

          The knife of betrayal sat precariously on my skin, soft enough to pierce through my back. This is what it feels like to be betrayed by someone that you trusted? How dare she? How dare she call herself my friend? And how dare she call her-self a woman? I stay still in front of her, still in utter shock.

          "Please tell me you're lying. Tell me this is a joke right now", I murmur and she remains quiet

         "I... I was roofied. No, I was drugged, and you knew about it?", I stand. "...and on top of that, you left me at that party all by myself Daisy. Do you realize all of the things that could've happened to me? Do you understand that there are people out there that would have taken advantage of me? I... I trusted you Daisy. You're supposed to be my friend and you completely and totally put my life in danger.

          I know, she says under her breath

          Well then why did you do it?, I ask rhetorically. You've completely de-structed every boundary of loyalty that was ever there between us...."

          "I. Im sorry Nailea. I really am", she whispers

          " I don't think I can be friends with someone who would do something like that to me", I say before picking up my bag and leaving the store

          Burning rage dripped from my pores like a lethal poison, screeching a demanded release. It was like a volcano erupting inside me. I have never felt so be-trayed in my life. And I never thought I ever would. Most especially not by Daisy. I pull out my phone and call the one person that I'm certain I can trust. The one person that's always there to rescue me when I need him most. I call Kayden.

#

          "Are you sure you wanna do this?", Kayden asks me with both his hands rest-ing on his steering wheel. "I mean, what if he comes back? Then what?"

          "...that's why you're here...if he comes back, distract him", I say

          I sigh deeply before walking out of Kaydens car. I walk stealthily to the back entrance of Mr. Graysons house. It's locked but I was prepared for this. I pull out a universal key that I picked up at some shady pawn shop earlier when shopping with...I don't even wanna say her name right now.

          I manage to open the door and I creep into the house swiftly. I gulp as I'm overcome with the sudden absence of brightness that the house envelopes me in. I make my way up the stairs and tiptoe into the bedroom. Ah, the bittersweet memory.

          There isn't an ounce of clutter in the room. Everything is neatly and precisely placed. But of course, that doesnt surprise me. I know that if I move anything, he'll notice. I have to be exact, and precise. I have to take my time.

I quickly peek through the drawers and the closet. 

          I stalk over to the closet where his suits are all pressed and drenched in the familiar scent that is Xavier Grayson...urgh, I mean...Jeffery Maxwell. As I push through the suits individually, I notice a secret door.

What are you hiding in there Mr. Grayson?

          I shove the suits out of the way and squeeze into the dark space. I stop in the shadows and search for a light switch. I pull out my phone and turn on the flashlight to help me see. As I point the light towards the walls, I realize that there are pictures of me plastered all over the walls. Some of me sleeping some of my face some of me naked and even some of all three.

          My body stiffens at the sight and I feel my muscles becoming completely sol-id and numb. In a dizzy rush of shock, I step back and feel my back press against the wall. It was like ripples through the ceramic tile floors, traveling from right under my feet all the way up through my veins and resting at the top of my chest.

         But even then, quite possibly the most unsettling and worrying thing about it was; it was appealing to me. I close my eyes and focus on my breath. You need to calm down Nailea. Just focus, I tell myself.

        I look around further and suddenly notice a trunk seated in the centre of the small room. I place my phone beside me as I kneel over the trunk and try to open it. I remove the lid and there I see my bra, the one that I've been missing. And the dress I wore on my birthday, still covered in throw up. I take pictures and put away the chest. I proceed to look through the cabinets and I find a photo album filled with photos from my social media. As I flip through the pages, I see pictures of my-self as a baby, with my father. But the faces are not of my father. The faces are of him...that sick freak.

Suddenly I hear the rolling in of car tires and my heartrate quickens even more. He's home.

          I rush back out of the secret small room and jolt down the stairs so quickly that I stumble over and fall, causing a loud bang. I hope he didn't hear that. I slip outside through the back door and close it tightly behind me, with no more than a sideward glance.

#

          "That was a close call", Kayden says as we drive to my house. "I hope what-ever you found in there was worth the risk"

          "...trust me...it was", I say and I put my hand inside my pocket and search around for my phone. "Uh...that's weird. I though I put my phone in my pocket"

          I take off my seatbelt and turn into the backseat of the car, searching for it. "No. No. No. No", I moan at the sudden sad realization

          "What? What's wrong?"

A pause.

          "I left my phone in his house..."

_____

Hello my beautiful beautiful, and handsome handsome readers too! I'm back! Ahaha

I apologize for not updating last week, I've just been a little stressed out but I can assure you that I am not a person that backs out on commitments and this story is a huge ass commitment, so updates will be to the best of my abilities. Be sure to follow me on Instagram: @_.satinsaturdai for news on my updates and things like that

Also, we hit 8000 reads and it's such a surreal feeling! I am insanely grateful to all of you, so thanks for making it happen!

Don't forget to comment your favorite parts and your theories, and your thoughts (I'd love to hear them) and don't forget to vote and share the story too!

Love you all!

-Xo, Lakish'a❤