A soft buzz interrupted her peaceful rest. Austin sat up and reached for his phone that laid on the bedside drawer.
'Alora's calling me.' He smiled to himself.
"Sally, I need to take this." He turned to Sally who had already wrapped herself in the large duvet.
"Go ahead, Master Cannon." She mumbled.
"Thanks." He picked the call and placed the phone near his ear. "Hey babe."
[Austin, sorry to you so early. Or is it late?]
"It's fine babe. I was just about to go to sleep. How come you aren't sleeping?" He furrowed his brows. "Something the matter?"
[It's just....I miss you.] She sighed. [And I don't know how much longer I could go on like this.]
"Lora..." He got up from the bed and walked to the balcony. "I'm sorry about this. I'll come visit you as soon as I'm back from Taiwan. Alright?"
[I don't want you to have to rush because of me. Take your time to do what you have to do. How long is the trip going to take?]
"A week at most. I promise that I'll be fast." He whispered, in an attempt to soothe her. "And when I get back, I'll stay with you for as you want."
[Alright then.] Austin could almost hear the smile in her voice. [Go to sleep now. Wouldn't want you to look like a ghost.]
"I'd look like a sexy ghost, you know?" He teased.
[Yeah, whatever.]
"Love you babe."
[Love you too. I look forward to seeing you.]
Austin ended the call, a smile played on his lips. It didn't disappear even as he got into bed. Sally saw it and felt pained, knowing that he would never smile at her like that. After all he belonged to another woman. Nursing her wounds, she went to sleep with a heavy heart.
****
The next three days was hell for Alora. She could hardly get a hold of Austin. He didn't take her calls, reply her texts or call her back and she was missing him badly.
'Why is this happening to me?' She lamented inwardly as she made her way to her second babysitting job. 'I miss him so much.'
The sky had darkened rather quickly and she wanted to reach her destination as soon as possible. Suddenly, she felt overwhelmed, like she was being watched and oppressed. It made her dizzy with fear and anxiety and she tried stabilizing herself against the wall of a building. She looked around; no one was there.
The streets were eerie with silence and her breath was the only sound she could hear. She knew she wasn't safe. But she could hardly move and her legs gave way, sending her falling to the floor.
'This can't be happening.' She thought as she struggled to remain conscious. With her hands shaking, she sent a text to Austin before finally giving into the darkness.