THE next evening, everyone was out doing something. Rajwan and Adam were catching up on their unfinished online work, which they didn't find time to finish because of their job at the restaurant. Ahlam and Nawal were out on a date, while Luna and Maya were texting their friends and playing video games in their rooms, and Mal was typing on her laptop in her room, completely focusing on finishing her chapter.

She had already finished her work and studies, so she could only waste her time on writing or talking to her friends from Egypt. However, since it was getting late, she decided to close her message board and just stick with writing.

She then sat on her bed and began to type, realizing that inspiration was hitting her and her creativity was flowing. She wanted to finish that chapter. She wanted to finish the whole story in one sitting. She wanted to-

Ring. Ring. Ring.

Her train of thoughts was interrupted by the sound of the landline ringing.

She heard someone stomping out of their room to answer. A few seconds later, the noise stopped, followed by the noise of soft speaking.

"Mal, it's for you!" someone called out. Mal sighed as she got up from her bed, then made her way out of the room. Towards the landline on the wall.

Her mother smiled at her, then handed her the speaker. She hurried inside her room after.

Mal smiled back, picking up the speaker from her mother's hand and putting it close to her ear.

"Mal?" Teo's soft voice came through the phone. Mal sighed in relief, her heart aching. She realized that she missed him, despite meeting him just the day before.

"Hey, Teo. I missed you a lot."

His eyes were filled with desperate tears at the tone. "I missed you more..."

"Is everything alright, baby? Are you doing okay?"

It immediately hit him that it was getting late than he thought.

He bit his lower lip in guilt. He realized that he shouldn't have called her at a time like that.

"I-I'm okay. I just... I don't know. I didn't get much sleep last night."

Mal's heart dropped a little. "Why is that?"

"I..." he wondered if it would make her more worried. "I keep hearing these noises coming from the basement. It sounds like somebody hitting something, against the wall, or something. I don't know."

Just then, Mal heard a couple of familiar voices in the background, followed by a series of loud laughing.

"Oh, Teo, you're always so paranoid!" Alyvia laughed, "You don't have to be so scared all the time!"

"Yeah! There's nothing in the basement, Mal. Teo just misses you, a lot, and he wants you to come to investigate!" Bjorgvin yelled, his voice a little further away from Alyvia's.

Teo scoffed, taken aback by his friends' opinions about him.

"I'm not paranoid! Do you think I'm making this whole situation up?!"

Mal heard him yell. It took her a moment to realize that the question was directed at her.

"N-No, babe, I don't think that."

His heart dropped a little. "Sorry, I didn't mean to yell."

"I know, don't worry about it." Mal paused for a few seconds, "Listen, how about I come by tomorrow and pick you up? We can spend the whole day together, and you can spend the night with me! How do you feel about that?"

Teo stuttered a little, clearly surprised by the offer. "Wait, r-really? I would love to!"

She smiled at his cute reaction.

"Then it's settled. I'll see you tomorrow, baby! I can't wait."

They hung up not too soon after.

Mal set the speaker in its place, then made her way back to her room. She sat down on the bed, a smile planted over her face as her mind wandered to what might happen the next day.

While her train of thoughts traced back to Teo, it made her frown for a few moments.

Why was Teo the only one hearing that sound in the basement?

Why was he the only one worried? And why was he the only one scared like that?

Was it really because he missed her?

Or was it something else?

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