"...And if I cut myself, it was you I bled"

                                                                      -Jeanette Winterson

                                                                                    #

Mr. Grayson's p.o.v

          Where are you my sweet Nailea?

        You're hiding from me. And doing a decent job at it, might I add. It's been—what? —an eternity, since I last saw you? Since you were last well within my grasp, since I filled both my lungs with your sweet, subtle scent. I scared you, didn't I? It shook you to the core to see me sitting besides your mother, knowing that I've nested inside her brain just as I did inside the blood pulsing through your veins, didn't it?  You underestimate my capabilities Nailea. You really do, and though it makes me angry, it's a hell of a thrill.

And when it comes to thrill, oh my dear sweet Nailea, I can be...insatiable.

          I tug at my bottom lip as I stand across the street from your new home and wait. I breath and watch and wait for you to show up. But you don't. Your irrelevant friends show up at different intervals, bringing in boxes and cleaning around the house. They don't even bother to close the blinds or lock the doors. I swear at some point I watched your roommate have a threesome. That skank.

          Your friends are irresponsible and dumb. They're a brain-dead bunch of attention seeking whores. Remind me again why you choose to be acquainted with them? Remind me why you continue on your consistent quest of seeking their approval. You're far better off Nailea. You really, truly are.

          Your friends leave at seven in a beaten down old Uber. They looked almost wasted already in their sketchy—no—skimpy outfits. Especially the skank. Oh, and the icing on the agony-filled cake? They didnt even bother to lock the doors. Its like theyre inviting me in, I mean, What morons. You'd have locked the door and checked it thrice Nailea. I know you wouldve.

          I slip inside the house easily, making sure to close the door. I pad through the house, not sure what exactly I'm looking for but I know that Ill know when I find it. I know this house well. Your mother gave me a thorough tour the month we met.

          Let's talk about your mother for a second Nailea. I see why you are the way you are. Your mother is smothering, controlling, suffocating. She thinks far too highly of her intellect and quite frankly, it's agonizing to be around here for more than a few minutes at a time. Your mother is agonizing. Much like mine.

See? I get it. We have so much in common.

           It's funny, I thought about killing your mother many, many times. She's one of those people that I wouldn't immediately feel strangely about murdering. It would be relieving actually. But I know that you'd never forgive me. Because even though she drives you crazy, deep down, she's your mother...and you care for her.

Basic emotions confuse me.

          I'm in your bedroom now. I sit at the edge of your bed and take in the surroundings. Your book shelf is littered with classic literature from Paula Fox to Bret Easton Ellis. Your countless academic trophies sit perfectly on a wooden stand, shining in all their glory. I even notice the measly 5th place participation trophy hid-den behind the rest of your awards.

          My fingers tug at the fabric of your panties that I find when I snoop through your moving boxes. I bring them to my nose and, oh, that scent...the scent that drives me mad. I shove a pair in my pocket, call it a souvenir.

          I notice your laptop is sitting on top of one of your pillows. I tuck it under my arm as I walk into the kitchen. I grab a bottle of water from the fridge and sit at the island. Your laptop has a password. Of course, it does. You're reserved and cautious. The only time you're not is when it comes to me.

          Let me guess...Maybe your birthday? No. How about your favorite band? No. Maybe...Oh, of course, the date your father left. A constant painful reminder that you think you deserve to burn in your memory for the rest of your life.

          I snoop through your folders and emails. Those are the things that really mat-ter. There's nothing here to do with where you've disappeared to. So, where are you? It's been days and I'm starting to get worried. Who are you with and what the hell are you doing? Why won't you answer any of your emails? Why won't you call me? Or text even? Nailea, I miss you. I need you.

          A click at the door jolts me from my thoughts. The lights go on and a sense of panic slices through me.

          "It just sucks because you know, it's my first night here and of course I wanted to spend it with my new permanent roomie", I hear your irritating roommate Daisy say

          I think quickly. I close the laptop and lay my back flat against the wall as I hide behind the thick white floor to ceiling curtain. I try not to breath, and I try not to make a sound. These curtains are hideous by the way.

          "...Yeah, of course. And I know that. I just can't wait for you to get here and hopefully set everything right, you know?", she continues. She's on the phone. "Don't worry about me...he doesn't want anything to do with me. Besides, if he real-ly wanted to kill me, he would've done it already. I'm more worried about you. I mean, we know this man isn't normal. What if he's there...watching or whatever"

           'He' who? 'He' me? They talk about me like I'm crazy. I can assure you; I am not crazy. Aggressive maybe but, crazy? Not a chance.

           "Okay. Stay safe Nai", I hear her sigh. "I'll see you tomorrow"

Tomorrow? You're coming back tomorrow. See you soon Miss Tembo.

#

          I'm coming back from the local supermarket where, by the fresh produce isle, I started to have a hallucination of some sorts. I was completely and entirely detached from the real world. I started to sweat, and vomit. My breathing was faulty and I attracted a lot of unwanted attention. Also, Im almost one hundred percent certain that the fresh apples on sale asked me to throw them at an old ladys head until she bled. There was a doctor there, shopping for party decorations for her five-year-old child. She said I had a panic attack. She was wrong. These hallucinations are nothing less than a part of me.

          Now my mood is ruined. I am agitated and I just want to get to my house and dissect my neighbor's dog. When I arrive finally, I run into one of my old students.   I think his name is Steve or.... Harry. Or something like that.

          "Mr. Grayson", he chirps. "...uh...it's nice to see you"

          I bring my palm to my forehead and sigh. "...Sorry, who are you again?"

          "...it's...Kayden. Kayden Hossler. I was one of your students"

          I'm blinking when I mutter, "Is there a reason why you're standing outside my house?"

          He twitches idiotically. He's sweating a lot and I think he's nervous about something. But, I'm too exhausted to really care what.

          I thought it would be nice for me to check in and see how you're doing. We uh...we at campus all miss you terribly", he mumbles

          "Mhm. This isn't a good time Kevin", I reply. I'm already bored. Neither concerned nor listening.

         "Well see, the thing is sir—", as he starts to talk, I hear a loud thump coming from inside my house. This alerts me and I feel a wave of adrenaline pulse through my veins.

          I crane my neck to look, then turn back to Kevin...or, whatever his name is. "Is there somebody in my house?", I ask softly

          His eyes widen and he gulps. "No. no... no. I dont th...think so"

          "I'll ask you one last time", I seethe. "Is there someone in my house"

          He glances over my shoulder and gulps. "No. Goodbye Mr. Grayson"

           He hurries away and drives off. I quickly March into my house. The door is open. Someone was in here...and I'm willing to bet that it was you my sweet Nailea.

Welcome Home...

Thank you for 7000 reads! I adore you all!

We have seven more chapters to go before this beautiful story comes to and end, I hope you all stay along for the ride! Also, I hope you liked this chapter, I'm in a bit of a writing slump at the moment (which is perfectly normal) but I tried my best to keep things exciting!

See you in the next chapter loves...

-xo, Lakish'a...