Chapter Two

The sun filtered through my drawn curtain to cast a warm glow on me. My stomach growled signalling that I had stayed too long in bed. I shuffled out of bed, then a kind of nerve racking ache settled on my joint, the event of last night filtered into my head. I remember I had passed out on the cold kitchen floor for four hours straight. I checked the time and it was reading 12:15 pm. I ran my hand through my messed up hair. My friends had ignored me for the second time. Was I that bad a person? I wonder what is so special about that godforsaken Rose that would make everyone angry with me. Maybe there was nothing wrong with her, maybe I'm just paranoid just as Anna said. Maybe if I just painted her as a good person, I'm going to like her a lot. If I imagine her as a lonely girl that leave in a part of the state that snows a lot, who rarely goes out. Maybe her parents had passed away and she lives with an aunt that isn't all too good to her. Maybe she had a dream of studying photography in college and would like a shot of dark forest and scenes. No, she's not suppose to like that. Maybe She's just a nobody. What was even wrong with her? How could I judge a person by merely seeing thier photo? I'm just being paranoid. "Bella you can get over these" I told myself. I grabbed by brush and hit the bathroom immediately. My growling stomach wouldn't allow me think. I did enough scrobbing both on my teeth and body as much as the hunger pang would allow and was downstairs at 1:30 pm. I saw Steve, Pal and Anna sitting around the dining table, a pack of half finished cookie box in thier midst. 

     "Good morning guys, what did you have for breakfast? I'm farmished" I said, I ignited a cheer in my voice. 

     "Well, I thought you were angry with us and wanted us to leave you alone, so we didn't cook for you" She said with a shrug. 

Okay, there it is, my bubbles were boasted. I look across at Pal and Steve, they didn't even raise thier head to acknowledge me.

      "It's okay, I'll just grab something outdoor" I said my voice very low. I pulled my jacket tighter around me and made for the door.

      "Bella" Anna called, I didn't stop "Bella, will you just wait a damn moment, I was kidding" she said, I turn around to face her and her hands flew to her mouth "Bellaaa, were you going to cry? I'm sorry, I'm really sorry, that was a cruel joke to play" 

     "Come on Bella, don't be a cry baby" Steve pushed off the chair with a broad smile on his face "come give Daddy a hug" 

     "You are not my Daddy" I smiled, but the sob was still in my voice 

     "How was your night, darling Bella?" Pal asked.

     "Well, I couldn't call it a pleasant night when miss Ann here, made me cry on the kitchen floor" I jerked my thumb towards Anna who was behind me.

    "I'm going to punch her in the face for doing that to you" Pal supplied

    "I only gave her a little therapy session, no harm done" Anna raised her hands in surrender 

    "So, will some one get any food in the fridge warm, before my stomach pour out on this dinning floor screaming for pizza" 

    "The microwave and I are at your service Miss Bella" Anna said already making her way to the fridge. 

   "So guys what's good?" I asked as I occupied the chair that Anna left 

   "We just pushed a call to..." Pal was saying 

   "Will you shut up for a second?" Steve rolled his eyes

   "It's okay. You can tell me anything, I was just being insecured for a moment" I was nervously rubbing my hands together. See what I've made of my friends. Pal look across at Steve, then at me. I smiled encouragely.

   "Well, Rose is coming over today?" Pal said. The way he twisted it made it seem like a question. He might as well have said "can she stay or should we leave?"Steve looked like he was holding his breath in expectations of what I'll say. So if I was to say No, then I would be saying goodbye to my friends.

   "I look forward to meeting her" I said "and I hope I like her" I added in my mind. "Can you tell me a little story of her though?" I directed my gaze at Pal. I deliberately added a soft edge to my voice, in order to lessen the intensity of my scrutiny.

   "I only met her once in an abandoned bus when I was six. She was pretending to be a pilot, I joined her in the game and we played for the rest of the day, before my parents came to pick me up. We lost contact since then, before her Dad called my Dad six months ago. We spoke to each other, then we exchanged phone number. We have been speaking over the phone since then and now I'm going to meet her in face after so long. I'm not going to lie, I've missed her" Pal closed his hands over his chest, his eyes gazing upward. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. 

    "Should we call her again so Bella would talk to her?" Steve suggested

    "Since you guys have called her, it's okay" I rejected instantly, it must have looked too instant, because no one spoke again till my breakfast which was more of lunch arrived,  And no one spoke till the last grain was off my plate.

     "What's with the silence?" Anna asked

     "It's nothing, we should probably call Rose to burn away sometime over the phone. Things are getting boring here" Steve suggested again, he looked pointedly at me as if to say  "I dare you to decline" 

    "If you insist" I said, and Pal was already dialing before I could even acknowledge. She picked after the first ring. 

    "Hey Rose, just wanted to ask how is the preparation going" Pal said, I couldn't hear her reply, but I could here the static sound as she updated him on her preparation or that's  what I think she's talking about. She seem to talk for eternity, then Pal said "Bella here wants to talk with you" He passed the phone over to me, I took it as casually as I could.

    "Hello," I said into the reciever

    "Hey Bella," she replied, the first thing I registered was the overly calm and slurred voices she used, then suddenly an image filter into my mind. I saw a grass filled path that led straight to a huge tree, skeleton were falling out of it in streams. The scene shifted and I was staring face to face with a black cat with red eyes that glows. I thought the scene was going to shift again, but it only became blury. The only thing I could focus on was the cat. I was trying to seek for Rose through the whole blur, when the cat dived high in my direction fangs and claws extended. I didn't remember someone pouring water on me, but I was soaking wet when I came to myself. The empty jug was dangling in Anna's hand.

    "What happened?" Anna asked. I was going to tell them about the vision, spill my mind out about how it was a bad idea to adopt Rose in our midst, I was going to tell them how diabolical she is, but the question is, who would believe me? They would probably think I was only pretending to see stuffs just to keep her away. The best I 

could do if I don't want to lose my friends is to pretend all this was a huge joke until I'm able to get the situation under control. I laughed and they all frown, they probably thought I'm crazy, but I laughed harder.

   "You probably shouldn't have pour that much water on me. I'm only joking" I said, I hope they didn't detect the fakeness of my laughter.

   "That is a pretty expensive joke. Please don't do that again" Pal said, his mouth was pouted. Steve let out a sigh of relief, while Anna was still holding the jug standing were I left her. 

    "So, now I'm the world's biggest idiot" Anna said as she dropped the jug on the table "if you ever feel faint for real don't expect me to help. But damn it looked so real" 

    It was realer than any of them could ever think, I only hope they don't find out in the hard way. There came a knock on the door, it came in form of two gentle tap that seem to say "no, they are going to find out the hard way" I knew the evil has arrived. I made for the door before anyone else could do it. If there is anything that is going to go wrong or if there is any first hand plan the witch has made, I need to counter it. I walked in a dramatic step, not caring if the others see it like that. I twisted the knob slowly and swing the door open very fast, the way a police on a criminal hunt would do, but there was no one on the street. I checked to the right and to the left, but was only greeted by the horn from a car in the other street and a ghostly wind that brings goosebumps on my arms. I shut the door a little too hard.

    "Probably the wind, there is no one there" I said as retraced my step to join the others 

    "Are you sure?" Pal asked, he drew out the question emphasising on each word as if he was talking to a four years old

     "Why not, I checked down the street and up, no sign of a human" I said 

Pal still got up anyways and reached for the door, he swinged it open, he paused then turn back into the house leaving the door open. His gaze was directed at me. The look on his face was something I can't describe and the intensity of his gaze was burning that I couldn't help but squim. What had he seen?