Chapter 6

Lily sat on the old park bench, gazing into thin air as she awaited her best friend, Ashley. She had arrived early at Funtimes Park just as they agreed, she wondered what took Ashley so long.

Her mind was in turmoil, thoughts swirling like a hurricane. She couldn’t shake off the feeling she had gotten since she read the threatening text earlier in the morning. 

She suspected it had to do with the man she had her one night stand with the previous night who was now her new boss and so she decided to stay away from him for good. Maybe he had a girlfriend or perhaps a wife?

Just as Lily raised her head up, she spotted Ash running towards her, her face hinting all signs of worry.

“Sorry I’m late friend! Traffic was insane”, she tried to catch her breath,” You said we needed to talk urgently?”

Lily gave a small smile as she adjusted for Ash to sit, “Something really strange happened Ash”

“ Of course something strange happened girl! Where were you last night?”

And so, Lily narrated the whole story to Ash from how she met the strange man to their one night stand and how she almost missed her job appointment because she lost track of time.

 Then, she dropped the bomb when she mentioned that the man she had lost her virginity to the previous night was her new boss.

Ash’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped, her face had a mix of surprise and shock, the plot twist was just crazy and a lot to take in,” Girl whatttt?”, she nudged Lily playfully,” your love life just skyrocketed from a minus one to a hundred! Straight out of a movie!”

Lily didn’t look too excited,” Only, I wish it ended there Ash.” She got out her phone and showed Lily the text from earlier on.

Ash’s protective instincts kicked in immediately as she read the message ,”Who could’ve sent this Lil? We need to report this”

“No no Ash. Although I’m terrified, I don’t want things to complicate my new job position and I’m sure this is just something small right? Maybe his wife or his girlfriend?”

“Hm”, Ash wasn’t totally convinced,” We can’t be so sure, you should ask him.”

“About that, I wish I could”

“ But why can’t you, you know where he works now right?”

“He pretended not to know me at the office today.”

“What?! Girl that’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard. That’s like only a few hours away from the last time you guys were together. Right?”

“Yes”, Lily said sadly.

“Just wow.”

They both sat in silence for a minute.

“I still think you should try saying something to him Lil, this might be serious “, Ash said, her voice filled with worry.

“Maybe I will. Tomorrow”

“Please do and try not to be scared. Remember, I got you.”

Lily pulled Ash immediately into the tightest hug and they both giggled.

“What’ll I do without you Ash?”

Ashley only smiled back at her words,” Icecream?’

The sun began to set, painting the skies in shades of orange and pink, Lily and Ashley were now seated again on the bench with ice cream filled cones in their hands.

There was a street performer nearby, filling the atmosphere with beautiful music. For a moment, Lily forgot all about the chaos from the whole day. 

Ash broke the silence,” I still can’t believe you lost your virginity to your boss”, she giggled,” So what next? The epic CEO and secretary sex scenes?”

“Stop!”, Lily giggled,” We are very much over Ash, his signs are too clear.”

“ Does he know it was your first time?”

“Nope and I won’t tell him. I just want to forget everything about it”

“Congratulations on your new job though. How should we celebrate?”

“No celebration Ash, we should just be glad that we have a higher paying job to foot our bills.”

“That’s why we should celebrate!”

“I have work tomorrow Ashley Herrington!”, Lily laughed.

“I’m not saying we should party girl . I’m going to see Dan now, I’ll get a bottle of champagne from him when I’m coming home.” “Don’t fall asleep!”, she warned.

“I won’t “, Lily smiled as she thought of Ash and her boyfriend Dan, they had been together for three years and were now inseparable. She sometimes wondered if she would ever find someone that’ll love her the way Dan loved Ash.

“Speaking of which, how’s Danny boy?”

“Same old , same old”, Ash replied,” He is working really hard. By the end of this month, he should have enough money to buy his own house.”

“Aww! That’s so nice girl!”

“Right? Things have started looking good for us. I pray earnestly that it all continues this way.”

“It will. It has to”

“ Hopefully, we will all do thanksgiving at his new place”

“ We will”, Lily squeezed Ash’s hand in hers.

Ash got a call from Dan and spoke to him shortly, “ I’m about to go see Dan, will you like me to drop you off at home?”

“ I’ll just sit here a little while girl, I’ll leave soon”

“Okay my friend “, Ash stood up,” Try not to think too much and never hesitate to call me okay?”

“Yes girl”

Lily watched Ashley leave and a sudden wave of sadness filled her insides almost immediately. Nothing felt right, but she couldn’t place her hands on what to do exactly about anything.

She watched a woman play with her baby and she remembered her mom. If only her parents were still alive, things wouldn’t be so complicated. 

The sun had set finally and night was creeping in. She thought of the person that sent the threat message and wondered if the person was watching her. She became terrified immediately and decided to head home.

Bag clutched tightly beside her, she walked as fast as she could to the exit gate. Everywhere was quiet and she could hear her own footsteps, each feet slapping loudly after the other on the tarred road.

She felt the wind push her hair back with every step she took, caressing the hairs at the back of her neck.

Her phone buzzed loudly and she almost jumped. She stopped in her tracks immediately.Who could probably be texting her. Was it the person that sent the threat message from the morning? Was the person stalking her?

Shakily, she pulled out her phone and read the text . This time it was a new number.

It read:

‘Roses are red, the ocean is deep. I’ll think of you, even while I sleep.’