124. An Uninvited Guest (1)

Ashley fell asleep not long after Josh left the room. She didn’t remember when her eyes had shut, only that her body had sunk straight into darkness that offered no rest—only carried her into long, unending dreams that kept shifting, like endless, nonsensical episodes of a soap opera that would never end. Scene after scene overlapped; she was running down a hallway she didn’t recognize, hiding from faceless figures, entering and exiting rooms that changed form every time she turned around. She was afraid, but also confused. 

Until she woke up, none of the stories remained—only the exhaustion that gnawed at her body as if she had truly been running endlessly.

Outside, the sky had melted into a soft orange hue, a sign that the day was slowly slipping into dusk. The room looked calm, but the air inside was thick with drowsiness and emptiness. 

Ashley sat up with heavy movement, as if returning from someplace far away. Her eyes felt heavy, full of sand and leftover dreams that had yet to fully dissolve. She massaged her temple with one hand, trying to ease the slow throb beginning to form at the side of her head. Her body felt frail. Hunger squirmed in her stomach like a worm writhing. 

She realized that nothing had entered her body since morning. Breakfast had been skipped, lunch forgotten entirely when she came home feeling empty—both physically and emotionally.

With reluctant steps, she walked downstairs to the kitchen. Her feet dragged along each step, her breath heavy as if the air around her was too thick to inhale. In the kitchen, the automatic light flickered on as she opened the fridge door. 

Blinding white light greeted her, illuminating neatly arranged groceries—fresh vegetables, meat, eggs, frozen broth, several packets of sauce and cheese. There was food, plenty even, but Ashley only stood there, staring blankly into the cold space. Her mind was blank. Her tongue wanted nothing. Her stomach whined, but her appetite was gone, as if pulled away by an invisible hand whispering: what’s the point of eating, when the world doesn’t feel safe?

So she shut the fridge slowly. The sound of the door closing felt heavy and sluggish, like a decision she was reluctant to make. 

Without saying a word, even to herself, she went back upstairs. Crawled back into her blanket. Curled up like a baby that didn’t know where to find safety. The air in the room was quiet, but not peaceful. She closed her eyes, trying to piece together what was really happening in her life—three strange incidents in two days, all leading to fear, threats, and the realization that something evil was moving in the shadows. She remembered bits of what Josh had said on the phone that morning. About money, stocks, and… a baby. She tried to piece it all together like a puzzle, but the harder she tried to find its shape, the more her head felt like it would burst.

The pain came slowly but kept intensifying, like fog thickening inside her skull. Dizzy. Tight. Pressured. The world seemed to sway faintly behind her eyelids. Ashley rolled onto her back, trying to breathe slowly and deeply. Counting in her head. Four… five… six… trying to calm her increasingly erratic heartbeat.

And suddenly—

Her phone rang. Its sound was sharp in the quiet room, piercing the false calm like an ambulance siren in the middle of the night. Ashley jolted. Her heart slammed against her chest from within. Her hand trembled as she reached for the phone on the nightstand, fear and curiosity clashing in her mind. Was it him? The one who had terrorized her earlier? Was this the beginning of the next threat?

She looked at the screen.

Mark.

A slight wave of relief washed over her, but her heart hadn’t calmed yet. She swiped the screen. “Hello…” her voice was barely a whisper.

“Ashley? Are you okay?” Mark’s voice was fast and full of worry. “Are you home? Alone? Are you safe?”

Ashley took a short breath. “I… I’m home. Just woke up. I think… I’m okay.”

Mark exhaled deeply on the other end. “Thank God. I heard what happened… did you tell your husband? You shouldn’t be alone right now. This is serious.”

Ashley bit her lip. Should she be honest? “Josh… is busy. I haven’t had a chance to tell him.”

“So your husband doesn’t know?” Silence for a moment. “Have you eaten?”

Ashley shook her head before realizing Mark couldn’t see her. “Not yet.”

“Then… May I come over and stay with you? At least I can keep you company until your husband gets back. I’ll bring food. We can eat and talk for a while. This incident is partly my responsibility too—you’re my employee, and that horrible thing happened in my office.”

Ashley was silent for a long time. Her chest felt tight. Letting Mark come to her house wasn’t a light decision. Josh might get angry. But… who could she trust now? Josh, who hid so many secrets, who had hurt her again and again, who might be capable of planning something terrible behind her back. Or Mark, whom she had known so well, who had never hurt her, who had once loved her so beautifully.

Because Ashley took too long to answer, Mark spoke again, this time with a gentler voice. “It’s okay, Ash. I understand if you say no. But please, take care of yourself. Tell Josh as soon as you can. Don’t be alone for too long.”

Ashley let out a breath. A guilt suddenly rose inside her, like a duty she hadn’t fulfilled. “Mark…”

“Yes?”

“…If you still want to come… I’ll be waiting.”

“All right. I’ll be there soon.”

With twilight slowly creeping in behind her bedroom window, Ashley sat at the edge of the bed, staring at her quiet phone. Mark would come. The sentence echoed faintly in her mind, bringing a feeling that wasn’t entirely comfortable, but also not entirely frightening. Like inviting the shadows of the past into a life that was already falling apart.