where the remote had fall en, then pushed the mute button and, with a sleepy groan, turned back into the cushions. But a few seconds later, I heard the tapping noise again. Annoyed, I lifted my head and blinked my eyes into focus, staring down the hall that led to my sister’s room. I could see a light shining from underneath her door.
“Lora!” I shouted. “Be quiet, I’m trying to sleep!” I listened for her response, but the house stayed quiet. Assuming the silence meant she must’ve heard me, I slumped back into the cushions and closed my eyes.
Then the tapping came again, this time louder than before. I sat up, glaring toward Lora’s room. I was mumbling curse words under my breath when the tapping sounded yet again. Much to my annoyance, I was almost fully awake now, and with the clarity that brought to my senses I realized the noise wasn’t coming from Lora’s room at all .
Our dining room, which was adjacent to the living room, had sliding glass doors that led to the back porch, and that was were I suspiciously focused my attention on. Sure enough, a second later several more taps on the glass pane confirmed it—someone was knocking on our back door.
At twelve-thirty in the morning.
“Who in the heck…”
Tap, tap, tap…
I was tired. Nauseous. And the last thing I wanted to do was get up off that couch.
TAP, TAP, TAP.
“I’m coming!” I flung my blanket off, causing a sharp spasm of pain to shoot through my arm, and stood up and stalked over to the door. I guess I should’ve been frightened. I mean, it could have been a burglar, a serial kill er, who knew? But at the moment, I was too tired, too sick, too annoyed at having been so rudely awoken that I didn’t much care who was outside the door.
I did grab the poker laying by the fireplace, but the motive behind that wasn’t real y self-defense—I just real y wanted to hit whoever had disturbed my sleep. Regardless of the motivation behind picking it up, however, as soon as I flipped on the back porch light, it dropped to the floor with a clang! And I was too shocked to even move to pick it up.
“Alex?” my sister’s voice quickly ended my paralysis. “What was that?”
I heard her door open, and panic flooded over me.
“Nothing!” I shouted back. “It was just… Apol o knocked something over!”
Apol o was our dog. Our dog who was currently outside, Apol o was our dog. Our dog who was currently outside, and had been for the past several hours. Hopefully Lora didn’t know that. And hopefully, Lora would just stay in her room—the last thing I wanted was her getting mixed up in all this any way, shape or form.
“You know Mom doesn’t like him sleeping in the house…”
Lora called back after a few seconds of hesitation.
“Right, I was just going to put him outside!” I called back, amazed that my lie had worked out so perfectly. I slid the glass door open and, as an after thought, reached down and grabbed the dropped poker on my way through.
“You!” I said in an angry whisper to the man standing before me.
“Were you expecting someone else?” Kael asked, eying the poker I was brandishing with a look of amusement.
For a second I was too busy staring into his eyes to reply; maybe it was just the way the moonlight was shining off of them, but they seemed to be glowing. A slight shiver ran down my spine as I glared at him. I gave my head a hard shake back into focus.
“I wasn’t expecting anyone—it’s twelve-thirty in the morning!” I said, straining to keep my voice down.
“I told you I’d be seeing you soon, didn’t I?”
“Yeah, but I didn’t expect you this soon—and did it real y have to be right now? I was trying to sleep!”
“I can’t help it your mother works night shifts,” he said with a shrug.
My eyes widened. “My mother…oh. If she knew you were here… you would be in so much trouble, you know that?” I said, jabbing him in the chest with the poker for emphasis.
“Are you
“Lora!” I shouted. “Be quiet, I’m trying to sleep!” I listened for her response, but the house stayed quiet. Assuming the silence meant she must’ve heard me, I slumped back into the cushions and closed my eyes.
Then the tapping came again, this time louder than before. I sat up, glaring toward Lora’s room. I was mumbling curse words under my breath when the tapping sounded yet again. Much to my annoyance, I was almost fully awake now, and with the clarity that brought to my senses I realized the noise wasn’t coming from Lora’s room at all .
Our dining room, which was adjacent to the living room, had sliding glass doors that led to the back porch, and that was were I suspiciously focused my attention on. Sure enough, a second later several more taps on the glass pane confirmed it—someone was knocking on our back door.
At twelve-thirty in the morning.
“Who in the heck…”
Tap, tap, tap…
I was tired. Nauseous. And the last thing I wanted to do was get up off that couch.
TAP, TAP, TAP.
“I’m coming!” I flung my blanket off, causing a sharp spasm of pain to shoot through my arm, and stood up and stalked over to the door. I guess I should’ve been frightened. I mean, it could have been a burglar, a serial kill er, who knew? But at the moment, I was too tired, too sick, too annoyed at having been so rudely awoken that I didn’t much care who was outside the door.
I did grab the poker laying by the fireplace, but the motive behind that wasn’t real y self-defense—I just real y wanted to hit whoever had disturbed my sleep. Regardless of the motivation behind picking it up, however, as soon as I flipped on the back porch light, it dropped to the floor with a clang! And I was too shocked to even move to pick it up.
“Alex?” my sister’s voice quickly ended my paralysis. “What was that?”
I heard her door open, and panic flooded over me.
“Nothing!” I shouted back. “It was just… Apol o knocked something over!”
Apol o was our dog. Our dog who was currently outside, Apol o was our dog. Our dog who was currently outside, and had been for the past several hours. Hopefully Lora didn’t know that. And hopefully, Lora would just stay in her room—the last thing I wanted was her getting mixed up in all this any way, shape or form.
“You know Mom doesn’t like him sleeping in the house…”
Lora called back after a few seconds of hesitation.
“Right, I was just going to put him outside!” I called back, amazed that my lie had worked out so perfectly. I slid the glass door open and, as an after thought, reached down and grabbed the dropped poker on my way through.
“You!” I said in an angry whisper to the man standing before me.
“Were you expecting someone else?” Kael asked, eying the poker I was brandishing with a look of amusement.
For a second I was too busy staring into his eyes to reply; maybe it was just the way the moonlight was shining off of them, but they seemed to be glowing. A slight shiver ran down my spine as I glared at him. I gave my head a hard shake back into focus.
“I wasn’t expecting anyone—it’s twelve-thirty in the morning!” I said, straining to keep my voice down.
“I told you I’d be seeing you soon, didn’t I?”
“Yeah, but I didn’t expect you this soon—and did it real y have to be right now? I was trying to sleep!”
“I can’t help it your mother works night shifts,” he said with a shrug.
My eyes widened. “My mother…oh. If she knew you were here… you would be in so much trouble, you know that?” I said, jabbing him in the chest with the poker for emphasis.
“Are you
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