Followed

Aiden looked down at the guitar she held. The polished wood reflected the dull light seeping through the gap in the closed curtains. Boredom held her in its strong grip. Nothing to do… The sound of a phone ringing broke the still silence of her room. She glanced over at the black mobile lying on her desk.

It was probably one of her mates. Calling to find out why she wasn’t at school. She let it ring out. What was she supposed to do? Tell them she had skipped again? They wouldn’t get it. No one ever did.

How was she supposed to explain that she had seen him watching her once more? At school she wasn’t safe. Here, locked away in her room she was. Here, no one could touch her.

She ran through a few chords on her guitar, loving the sound of the notes filling the silence of the room with a comforting presence. Her long finger struck a wrong note. Scowling, she pushed the instrument onto her bed and stood up.

Walking over to her desk, she picked up her phone. One missed call. She flipped it open. Unknown number? She had all her friend’s numbers in the phone. Who had called her?

Just as she was about to return it to her desk, the mobile emitted a small beep. Aiden flipped it open again. One message from unknown.

I know you’re not at school Adrianne.
I know you’re in your room, playing
that guitar of yours. Come outside
I want to talk to you.

She tossed the phone onto her bed, running a hand through her short black and white hair. What was she supposed to do? It must have been Him… but how did he know her real name? Only her mother knew that. She doubted even her father; having left before she was born, knew that piece of information.

Her father; she had given up searching for him years ago. She wondered what had happened to him. Her mother refused to speak about the subject and when she did it was in brief sentences Aiden had to strain to hear.

Her thoughts were interrupted as a second message appeared on her phone.

Look, I know you probably don’t
trust me or anything and I
understand. You’ve never met
me before but I’m not going to
hurt you. I just want to talk.

For some reason she felt reassured by this second message and began to walk toward her bedroom door, pausing by the wardrobe to pick up her skateboard. A quick escape if she needed it.

The walk down the stairs was faster than she had anticipated and in moments she stood before the door, suddenly nervous. Her breaths shortened, a cold sweat breaking out on her brow.

“Don’t be stupid,” she muttered to no one in particular before opening the door and striding out. An icy blast hit her, tearing at her t-shirt and loose track pants.

She looked around; only the howling wind was there to keep her company. The place was deserted. She sighed, half glad, half disappointed. Seeing no point in staying out in the cold, she turned back to the door, pushing it open.

“Wait.”

She spun around to see a man walking slowly toward her. Him. He looked to be in his early forties and was dressed casually in a pair of jeans and shirt, not too dissimilar to herself actually.

Aiden closed the door and walked halfway to meet him.

“Adrianne-“ he began.

She cut him off. “Aiden, its Aiden. No one calls me Adrianne. No one.”

He looked a little taken-a-back but nodded anyway. “Okay then, Aiden. I just wanted to talk to you.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

He shrugged. “Let’s just start with a question okay?”

She nodded.

“Why aren’t you at school?”

“You,” was her simple reply.

Confusion swept across his face. “Me?”

“Yep.”

“Why?”

“You’ve been following me, watching me. I don’t know who you are. Home is my only safe place.”

After a moments silence, he spoke. “Look, I’m not… I don’t mean you any harm okay? I’m just… I don’t know…”

Rain began to tumble down from the skies. “I’m gonna go, okay?”

He nodded. “Yeah, I’d better be going too.”

Aiden smiled at him once, before turning and pushing the door open, seeking the warmth of her room.

xxXxx

Aiden walked through the school gates, skateboard under her arm. It had been three days since the short conversation outside her house and she had finally deemed it necessary to come to school.

“Aiden!”

She spun around when she heard her name called. Daniel and Jace were shoving their way toward her through the crowd.

“Where have you been?” asked Daniel breathlessly on reaching her.

“Just a cold, nothin’ to worry ‘bout,” she lied.

“So you were out for four days?” he asked incredulously.

She shrugged.

Jace who hadn’t spoken yet was watching her suspiciously. As she had suspected, he didn’t believe her. Jace had been her closest friend since primary and still was. He knew when she was lying.

“So what have I missed?” she asked quickly, changing the subject.

“Well,” began Daniel but Jace cut him off.

“Hey, Dan, do you mind if I talk to Aiden… just for a moment please?”

“Um… yeah, sure.” Daniel looked bewildered at the turn of events.

Jace nodded his thanks before steering Aiden away by a hand on her upper arm. The moment they were out of sight and earshot he spun her around to face him.

“Has he been following you?” he asked shortly.

How did he know about that? “What are you talking about?” she asked lamely.

“Aiden, don’t play stupid ‘cause you’re not, now tell me, was he following you again?”

“How do you know about that?” she asked.

He shrugged. “I wanted to know why you were skipping school so I went and found out.”

“How did you find out?” her tone demanded an answer.

He seemed uncomfortable.

“Look, Jace, just tell me, I won’t be angry or anything with you… just tell me,” she pleaded.

“Promise?”

“Sure.”

“On Monday when you didn’t come to school, I cut class to follow you. I heard you playing and then I saw you come down the stairs and talk to that guy. I recognised him. He was the same guy I saw following us on the weekend. Remember?”

Aiden nodded. “Yeah, I remember.”

“Who is he?”

“I know just as much as you do.”

A mischievous light flared to life in his eyes.

“What is it?” she asked cautiously, a little suspicious.

“We’re going to find out who your personal stalker is.”

Aiden grinned. “If you insist.”

xxXxx

Aiden sat at the back her English class at a lone desk. No one wanted to sit next to the strange girl. That was the way she liked it. No one but Jace and Daniel.

“Hey, Aiden!”

She looked up to see the school ‘bad boy’, Tyler, watching her.

“What?” she asked in a bored voice.

“They say you’re not a girl,” he taunted.

“Well maybe I’m not,” was her cool reply. She looked around the classroom, realising it was absent a teacher.

“Everyone knows you prefer chicks over guys,” he continued.

“Really? Is it that obvious?” she asked sarcastically, wondering when that rumour had come out.

“Yeah, it is actually.”

“Oh well, how upsetting that must be for you. I do apologise but I find it very hard to pity you,” she mocked.

“Aiden, what sort of a name is that anyway?”

She shrugged. “What sort of a name is Tyler? Sounds like flooring. People walk all over it.”

He scowled at her.

She shrugged again. “He can give it but he can’t take it.”

“Well I still don’t think you’re a girl,” he said, returning to his earlier attack.

“Good for you.”

“Come on; show us you’re a girl!”

She stood up, knocking the desk over.

“Oh! Someone’s angry now!” he teased. He continued when he heard the others laugh. “Oh please! Don’t hurt me! I’m so scared. The guy/girl is coming for me!”

“Shut up,” her words were whispered but she knew he heard it.

“You know,” he continued, heedless to her threat. “They say you don’t have a dad, that’s why you’re not a girl, trying to compensate is what they say.”

She lunged across the classroom, knocking him from his chair. Curling her fingers into a fist, she slammed it into his face. There was a sickening crunch as his nose broke beneath her strength.

“Stupid bitch!” he yelled, covering his nose with a hand.

“And yes, I am a girl.”

Aiden turned around to see every eye on her.

“And that’s why you shouldn’t mess with me,” she stated matter of factly.

There were murmurs of agreement. Something pulled at her leg and she felt it give beneath her. Before she could react, she was lying on her back on the cold floor, Tyler was standing, a foot on either side of her hips, his face a picture of triumph.

There was a sudden shifting as the door opened and the previously absent teacher appeared.

xxXxx

“So you didn’t get in trouble at all?” asked Daniel incredulously.

Aiden shook her head.

“And Tyler didn’t even say you had hit him?” he continued, unable to believe what he had heard.

“I don’t think he wants to admit he got hit by a chick,” put in Jace.

”Well at least he knows I am a chick.”

“I have doubts myself,” teased Daniel.

Aiden punched him playfully in the arm. “You do know that everyone doubts your straightness don’t you?” she asked, struggling to keep her face expressionless as she lied.

Jace grinned, seeing right through her guise.

“You’re kidding… right?” asked Daniel faintly, his face pale.

“Yeah.”

Daniel scowled at her. ”Okay,” began Jace. “Daniel, you definitely sure this is the right address?” he held up the scrap of paper which supposedly held Aiden’s ‘stalker’s’ address.

“Yep, certain, saw him go in there the other day I did, had the keys an’ everything.”

The three talked as they strode confidently in the direction of the house.

“Wait,” Daniel held up a finger. “This is it here,” he gestured to a house on the right.

Jace followed Daniel to the door, a tin in hand, while Aiden remained safely out of sight, watching.

Daniel reached up to ring the doorbell. After a moments silence, a man opened the door. He opened the door.

“Good afternoon, sir,” she heard Jace say. “My friend and I are raising money for Leukaemia. We were wondering if you could make a small donation.”

“Yes, of course,” he replied brightly, fishing through his pockets and withdrawing a few coins and dropping them in the tin.”

“Thank you very much sir!” cried Daniel, a little too enthusiastically.

“Yes,” began Jace, considerably quieter. “Thank you very much for your donation.” He extended a hand. “It was nice meeting you…” he waited for a name.

“Michael, Michael Brayson,” he answered, accepting the proffered hand.

She couldn’t believe it. It couldn’t be. Yet it was. After all these years she finally had a face to put to the name.

The name of her father.

She looked up as she heard the door close and saw Jace and Daniel striding triumphantly towards her, grinning.

“We have a name!” crowed Daniel in triumph.

“Aiden, you alright?” asked Jace, noting her expression.

“Yeah… yeah, I’m fine, just… shocked,” she replied slowly.

“Shocked?” asked Daniel, sounding hurt. “You didn’t expect us to get a name?”

“No! Of course I knew you could get the name. I was just shocked by what the name was.”

“Michael Brayson?” Jace sounded confused.

“Yeah, Michael Brayson is the name of my father.”

xxXxx

At first she had been shocked, then overjoyed, suspicious, then angry. How could he have known about her and not talked to her? Did he even know about her? He must do, that was why he had been following her.

But who cared? After years of thinking she’d never see him, she had found him.

The moment her mum came home, she had some questions to answer. Lots of them. She wondered if her mum even knew where her father was. If she even knew he had followed her.

xxXxx

“So your mum knew and never told you?” Daniel sounded shocked.

“Yeah, that’s right, she didn’t know he’d been following me though. She knew he was in the area and they sort of kept in contact. He sorta said he wanted to meet me but she wouldn’t let him. She didn’t want to upset me or anything. She said things were going pretty smooth and him meeting me would just send everything into turmoil.”

“So what are you going to do?” asked Jace quietly.

“Meet him.”