chapter 15

Stalker

The air was frigid, and the wind was biting as it swept through the streets of New York City. The only sounds were the distant hum of traffic, but there was something about it that felt strangely beautiful.

Kayla Anderson sat on her bed, munching on an apple, and scrolling through her phone.

She had just gotten off work, and was just bored. She had tried everything she could, like talking to Aubrey and her family.

Now, she just sat on her bed going through her instagram and munching on a red apple. She watched a few reels and stalked a few celebrities and instagram chefs.

Her heartbeat almost stopped when she saw an edit of Xander. She forcefully swallowed her barely chewed apple down her throat.

The edit was so good, with a beautiful caption. She need not be told that it was a fan or rather a crush, that made the edit.

His page was tagged and attached to the caption. She paused for a while. Different thoughts ran through her mind.

"Maybe I shouldn't go through it." She said to herself. But, the next minute, she found herself tapping on it.

His page looked beautiful. She never imagined Xander to be an aesthetic lover. She stalked his page.

It was beautiful. I mean, she legit thought he looked so good I'm every picture. He could be a model, she thought to herself.

She couldn't get over the aura he possessed. His smile and everything captured her heart. She found herself smiling more than she would have.

Among all his pictures, she found herself staring deeply at his vacation picture from a year ago. Something about it made her heart beat run faster.

Then, the worst thing happened. Her finger slipped and touched the love icon. She gasped loudly and threw her phone in a corner.

"No. No. No. No. No." she cried loudly.

She couldn't believe that she had loved his picture from a year ago. Definitely, he'll figure out that she was stalking his page.

Maybe if I remove it before he sees it, he wouldn't notice. She thought to herself. Immediately, she grabbed her phone and tapped on the icon again.

She breathed a sigh of relief and lay flat on her bed.

She stood up from her bed and made her way to the kitchen to grab another apple. Then she went back into her room.

Just in time, the moment she stepped into her room, her notification button went off. She went for it immediately.

Her heart almost escaped her mouth, in shock.

She blinked, once, twice, thrice, just to be sure she was seeing the right thing, or it would go away.

But, it never went away. She realized what she was seeing was in fact, the right thing.

"What the hell!" She muttered to herself.

Xander Wellington, her boss, was following her on instagram.

Did it mean he saw the photo she loved?

She was pressed at that moment. How was she going to face him at work, when he clearly knew she was stalking him?

And why the hell was he following her.

She couldn't think of anything else but to call her best friend.

Aubrey picked up almost immediately.

"Hey." The background where Aubrey was, was a bit noisy.

"Are you busy? I need your help right now." Kayla begged.

"I'm never too busy for my best friend. I'm at work right now, but it fired me. What's up?"

Kayla forgot her problems for a second, and appreciated how Aubrey loved and cared about her so much.

"So, I did something crazy." Kayla cried out.

"Had sex with your boss again? Or a total stranger?" Aubrey teased.

Kayla scoffed. "I wish. This is worse, Aubrey. I stalked my boss's instagram page."

"How's that a problem?" Aubrey questioned, quite confused.

"I liked his picture from about a year ago. I removed it, but the next thing I knew, he was following me on instagram. I'm fucked right now." Kayla sounded like she was about to cry. She wanted a way about the situation. And she knew Aubrey could help.

Aubrey sighed. "You're very dramatic, Kayla. You don't act like we're best friends. Things like this shouldn't freak you out."

"Well, it's legit freaking me out right now. I can't face him at work tomorrow."

"Jeez Kayla, this is a man you've been intimate with. And I'm sure he doesn't mind, because if he did I'm pretty sure he won't hit the follow button." Aubrey rubbed her head gently. "Act neutral at work tomorrow, and if he asks you about it, try to act like it was just a coincidence. Or pretend you know nothing about it."

Kayla nodded, then realized that Aubrey wasn't there with her. "Sure I will. Thank you."

"Anytime baby, I have a lot to do right now. I got another job. The pay is nice, at least it'll help me help dad out with the bills." Sadness laced in her voice.

Aubrey worked her ass off to pay their bills, since her parents earnings did nothing. Kayla wished she could help, but she, on the other hand, was trying to give her family the best life she could afford.

"Things will fall in place soon, we just have to believe in God." Kayla said.

"Yes. Talk to you later Kay, I have a lot of work here. Bye, I love you,"

"I love you too."

The line went dead.

Kayla sat on her bed, playing with her fingers. Her phone was beside her, as she couldn't think of a thing to do with it anymore.

Maybe she should follow him back, she thought. She decided against the idea almost immediately.

If she followed him back, she would give him the impression that she really was stalking him.

Well, yes she was. But she did not have to prove it, because he was her boss.

After much contemplation, she decided to go to bed before she did anything silly again.

Her notification went off immediately. She forced the urge to check it, but she still did anyway.

It was a message.

A message from someone she least expected.

That night was definitely not her night.