A/N So here’s the deal. KimHua and I take the same basic outline and events and write our own take on what happens and see what the other cooks up… Then mock each others’ (or our own) attempts thoroughly while seeing how much our writing style differs. Fun? Fun! Check out both and tell us what you think.

"Wait! Wait! Arrgh!"

'Stupid bus,' Chloe thought grumpily as she watched it disappear around the corner. She bent forward, resting her arms heavily on her knees as she panted. 'I seriously need to get into shape.' She grimaced at the thought of having to walk home. She could certainly use the exercise, but walking alone at night was never a comforting prospect.

Her assignments had been piling up on her due to all the procrastinating she had been doing lately, so she had decided to finish them all up in one day. The idea sounded good prior to actually executing it. Chloe hadn't considered how long it would keep her in the computer lab researching.

She sighed as she gazed down at her watch. 12:05AM. That had been the last bus. 'Maybe I could call Sara for a lift,' she thought as she rummaged through her black leather backpack. She frowned as her fingers felt the various miscellaneous items which were just about everything imaginable except for her cellular phone. Then the memory of where she had last left it came to her mind - on the burgundy coffee table in her apartment. 'Darnit.'

Chloe sighed as she looked down the street. At daytime, it’s usually a rather busy commercial area with people frequently walking in and out the various shops and café’s that tend to spill out their business onto the sidewalks. Tonight tall streetlamps lit the most of those now eerily abandoned sidewalks like beacons guiding her home while the evening shadows loomed around the light’s edges, as if waiting for the slightest opportunity to enter and consume all. Being on the border of campus though, Chloe was pretty sure that it was part of some campus security guard’s patrolling route.

She had always hated walking at night. Although blessed with very keen eyesight, it only made her more aware she wasn’t as alone or as safe as she might want to believe. In the dark alleyways, she would make out shapes of boxes and garbage dumpsters; their shadows shifting slightly as a stray dog or cat would scurry about them.

“Everything’s perfectly fine,” she said to herself as she tried to shake off the sudden chill that ran down her spine. Only yesterday did she hear of a mugging that had taken place nearby. It wasn’t as if things like that occurred frequently. Crime was actually pretty low in her area. But now in the creepy darkness, it was as if she was hearing all the stories once more: A student walking alone in the middle of the night in a quiet area when suddenly… She shook her head at the thought.

The air felt moist against her face. Everything around her was still damp from a rain shower she must’ve missed while she was in the lab. The sky was thick with dark and heavy clouds – seemingly rich with the promise of more rain. Chloe grimaced. The thought of getting wet wasn’t particularly pleasant to her either.

The sound of her footsteps rang out noisily down the deserted street; muffled every now and then by a stray patch of water that decorated the sidewalk haphazardly. She was partially happy that she had a mind to put on her jet-black ankle boots that afternoon instead of her new cream sandals she had been tempted to show off – not that there was anyone to show them off to, but she was tempted nonetheless. The boots kept her feet mercifully dry; although she was sure she wouldn’t be so thankful for their heels by the time she finally reached her home.

She kept a steady pace as she walked. She had never been the most patient of people and she hated to waste time. Maybe that’s why her habit of procrastinating had such a touch of irony to it.

As she reached the corner, Chloe glanced back down the road to check for any traffic. It was then that she noticed someone else crossing the street further down. He – at least it looked as if it was a guy – lifted his head towards her direction just as she looked at him. He wore a cream hooded top with dark, baggy pants. The light fell over the hood to throw a deep shadow over his face. It was as if staring into the black depths of Hades – which was enough to send another chill down her spine.

She looked away quickly, not wanting to show her unease or be caught staring and made her way across the road. Trying to silence her fears, she tried to turn her thoughts to something other than the journey, but her anxiety wouldn’t let her. It was funny how, just a moment before, she had hated the thought of being alone. Now she would have welcomed it more than anything just to feel more secure. Instead she couldn’t help but feel the stranger’s eyes burn upon her or keep her skin from crawling at the thought.

‘You’re being silly,’ Chloe thought to herself. ‘He’s probably just on his way home. As soon as you get into Clarkson, he’ll go his own way.’

It wasn’t long before she found herself at the Clarkson intersection. She quickly turned in, barely breaking stride and feeling incredibly stupid about the entire thing. ‘On the other hand, it’s always good to be safe,’ she reasoned. ‘There are just too many weird people in this world to allow you to be naïve.’

Halfway down the road, she glanced back and felt her breath get caught in her throat. The man had turned down the road with her. He must’ve picked up his pace during the time she had turned the corner until now because the distance between them felt closer than before.

He was tall; far taller than her own five foot five frame. She turned back and began to walk faster while still trying to look casual. She didn’t want the stranger to think she was freaking out – even though she was sure her heart was going to jump out of her throat at any minute. Her mind raced with all the various things she had heard women should do when in a position like this, but she still wasn’t sure whether she was actually in any dangerous position. All the options played before her: Turn around and talk to him; turn around and look him directly in the eye so that you can recognize him anywhere; turn around…

Yet, suddenly, turning around was the last thing Chloe wanted to do. That would mean stopping and having the distance between them close. It would mean taking the chance to come within reaching distance from him. It was too much of a risk. She didn’t care what all those silly email forwards said that told her about safety. Turning around was not an option right now.

She made her way to the next intersection and the next and turned in – weaving through the roads in the closest possible route to her house as she can manage. She didn’t want to look behind her. She knew he was there. His footsteps pounded the wet sidewalk almost as hard as hers did and it sounded to her like he was getting closer. Her body was shaking and she could feel herself becoming paler by the second. Her lungs burned as they longed for her to stop to catch the breath that seemed to keep escaping her, but she couldn’t; she wouldn’t dare to.

Just ahead, Chloe could make out the beginning of a public garden and a lengthy footpath winding through it. During the day the garden was a pleasant escape in the middle of the city and she loved to stroll through it. Nighttime, however, made traversing through it very unappealing as the trees threw sinister shadows over the path – making it almost impossible to see anything beyond the barest of outlines.

‘Should I go down the path or go straight?’ she wondered to herself. Taking the garden way would definitely shorten her route considerably and get her home faster, but it was the least safe of her two options. She was too frightened to think clearly. All that appealed to her now was the safety of her house. As she reached the path, she heard the sound of a splash as her stalker stepped into a puddle and made up her mind.

Pebbles crunched underneath her feet as Chloe turned onto the cobblestone pathway. The sound unnerved her even more as she imagined it reverberating through the garden for all to hear. It was not long before she began having doubts about her decision to take the route. She could feel the muscles in her stomach contract and relax at the slightest shifting shadow. The cold breath of anxiety seemed to blow on her neck and shoulders and she couldn’t resist the urge to stretch her back slightly in hopes of relieving the sudden discomfort.

‘Of all the stupid things you could do,’ she chided herself. Her head felt like it could explode with all the voices of the past warning her about avoiding dark and creepy areas when she was walking at night; reminding her of all the stories of past muggings and how she fit the ideal profile for a potential victim. She forced herself to come to a stop. ‘You haven’t gone down too far to turn back.’

Crunch.

The sound struck her like a thunderclap. She spun around and gasped as she saw the man beginning down the footpath. He looked at her, giving the slightest pause as he did so. She could barely make out the contours of his face but could feel his eyes on her – seeing her completely. As he walked towards her, a faint light fell onto his face from a nearby park light. She imagined seeing an amused glint in his eyes as they met hers. She hardly smothered a cry of terror as it reached her lips.

Chloe spun back around and barely could keep herself from running down the path. She knew if she did so, he’d probably run after her. She wasn’t a strong runner and he looked so strong, so powerful. Her throat dried completely at the thought of what he might do to her if he managed to get within arm’s reach.

The path felt as if it stretched into eternity. Everything she perceived was suddenly sharper, colder and more frightful. Tree branches seemed to reach towards her, hoping to hinder her way to safety; conspirators to her mysterious follower. His footsteps called to her. They jeered at her blundering progress through the park. She breathed hoarsely; a lone tear of desperation ran down her cheek.

A glimmer of hope resided warmly within her panting chest as the end of the footpath came into view. Just beyond it she could make out her street bathed in welcoming streetlight. “Almost there,” she whispered – her voice scratchy and tired. “Not far to go.”

Her eyes welled up with tears as she finally reached the sidewalk. She clumsily wiped her eyes with her sleeve – not wanting to pause for a second in her pursuit of safety.

Chloe groaned at the effort of keeping up her pace. Her ankles felt used up as she staggered down the road. Her body shook from exhaustion; her skin pale, cold and clammy. He felt so close to her, but she was too afraid to look back again. She made out her house just ahead. ‘Almost there.’ It looked dark inside. Chloe remembered Sara had mentioned the possibility of going out tonight and it was clear that the latter had forgotten – once again – to put the porch light on.

She bit her lip as she finally turned onto the little pathway leading up to her door and clumsily reached for her backpack. With her attention fixed on getting her house keys, she failed to notice the little porch step and stumbled forward; the keys falling out of her bag and crashing onto the ground. She squealed in fright and groped desperately for them, winching as her hands pressed on a key’s sharp edge but thankful to have found it in the process. The sound of footsteps pulls her gaze back to the street as she got up. Chloe froze as she saw the man near the pathway.

“O God,” she gasped out.

In that moment, everything around her became desperately bright as the porch light came on. Blinded, she turned and reached towards the direction of the front door, hoping to find something to stabilize her only to come into contact with limbs reaching towards her; pulling at her. Chloe shrieked and elicited a surprisingly feminine shriek from her attacker.

“Sheesh, Chloe! You almost gave me a heart attack! What’s wrong? Are you alright?”

“Wha-?” Chloe blinked. “Sara?”

Her eyes finally adjusted to meet the concerned gaze of her friend. Sara’s bright blue eyes studied her intently before gazing down to the man now moving towards the house beside theirs.

“Hi Neil,” Sara greeted him.

“Neil?” Chloe spun round to see the man unlocking the door. He looked in their direction and half-waved before mumbling something that half resembled ‘goodnight’ and stepping into his house.

“Sleep well,” Sara called to him before turning her attention back to her friend. “Poor guy, he looks beat,” she paused. “You don’t look that much better yourself.”

Chloe let herself be led into the house – barely registering the door closing behind them – and took a seat on a nearby chair. He wasn’t after her after all. A strange mixture of confusion and relief flowed through her. She closed her eyes and felt her exhausted body’s craving for rest. Her head buzzed with weariness and among the noise she noticed that Sarah was talking to her.

“… heard Neil was at campus tonight. I’m glad he walked the same way, I was worried when you didn’t get off the last bus.”

“I thought he… wait, he’s our neighbour?” she asked.

“Yup, he and his roommate moved in this morning. I met them earlier today. Neil seems nice. Dave is a little odd though…”

“Oh,” Chloe replied and felt herself blush slightly.

“Are you sure you’re alright?”

“Yeah…” she said slowly. “Just had a long night. Nothing a strong cup of coffee can’t fix though...”