Skylar's POV

"You called the police for a break-in," Nova stated the next morning, right as I left my room--too busy to notice her sitting on one of the kitchen stools as I tried scrubbing off a dirty splotch of blue from my bright red hoodie.

I snapped my head up and stared with wide eyes. Nova was never usually up when I was.

"Oh...uh...yes." I managed out. Lying clearly was of no use. Not when she knew those police officers from last night.

"Why?" She looked confused. I trudged forward and plopped down on the couch. "I mean, why do that on purpose?"

"I did not, Nova." I passed her an exasperated look. She eyed my hoodie in something that looked like distaste--not everyone loved red, I guess. "Someone did break-in last night. I wasn't lying."

Not like she was going to believe me.

"Why--"

"My room was a mess when I got in. Everything was a mess. There was a message scribbled over my wall mirror in red paint. The same colour as this hoodie I'm wearing." It made me feel a bit sick now--the colour of my hoodie. "The windows were opened when I always have them closed shut. Everything was a mess."

Nova was still eyeing me sceptically. "But the officers didn't see anything."

They didn't. And I looked insane now. Perhaps I had gone insane after all. I'd thought about it the whole night.

"It wasn't a mess when they got in." I looked away from her. "Everything was...everything was fixed."

The silence that followed made me feel horrible. A little sick too. And here I'd been hoping for a nice start to the morning at least.

"You do know that makes you sound like a nut job, right?" She sounded pitiful.

I glared at her. "Where's your brother?"

She nudged her head towards the door. "Out for a morning walk."

"No, I mean, where was he last night?"

"Um...with me?"

I clenched and unclenched my jaw. "Do you know...do you think he's involved with gangs back in New York?"

Not the nicest question to ask, per se, but I was already in the deep according to Nova.

She gave me a look of disbelief. "Seriously?"

"Yeah, seriously." I faced her. "He's got that something about him. I bet he knows some sketchy stuff--"

"Well, isn't your boyfriend involved with sketchy stuff too? Is he in a gang?" She retorted.

I faltered and my mouth fell shut in surprise. Caden's life was his. I didn't have a right to go around talking about his secrets.

"You don't even know who my boyfriend is, Nova." I got up and opened the fridge, taking out a cup of yoghurt.

I heard her making a tiny noise behind me. "Uh-huh, Caden Miller. His name's plenty popular among Dad's precinct." She sounded like she was smirking. "Did I ever tell you that?"

I gripped the yoghurt, then slowly placed it back. I wasn't so hungry anymore.

"Why do you have a background check on me anyway?" I narrowed my eyes at her. "You're a creep. Did I ever tell you that?"

She pressed her lips together before breaking into a smile. Raising her brows, she looked away. "Kyle's not in any of that stuff. Believe me." She shrugged. "I would've known. He tells me everything."

I huffed a sardonic laugh. "You think you know people, and then they surprise you."

Nova stared at me, then down at my hoodie. "Don't go around quoting tv shows at me." She said. "By the way, you should change out of that hoodie if you're taking advice."

"I am not."

She would've said something else, something equally annoying as her previous responses, when the front door opened and Kyle stepped inside.

"Morning, ladies." He said before giving both of us a look. "What girl-talk did I miss?"

I gave him a look back. One which was way less friendly and a whole lot disgusted. "Nothing that concerns you."

It was a shame, I thought, that he gave such bad vibes. Like Blake. All those extremely good looks being a total waste.

Kyle's lips quirked up at one corner.

"We were just talking about Caden Miller," Nova said, totally ignoring me.

I gave her the same look I was giving Kyle. A menacing one. Kyle, on the other hand, raised a brow and came towards us. And to my horror, he pulled out a stool and sat right down across from Nova, as if this conversation was worth every second of his life.

I can't do this, I told myself. Not so early in the morning. I didn't have the mental capacity.

"Oh." He said with that same annoying grin that made his eyes glint for some reason. Knowingly. Like he knew a lot. "What about him?"

"Nothing much." Nova shrugged. "It's just--"

"I heard he's Blake Matthew's stepbrother or something." He interrupted.

An uncomfortable beat of silence passed by. More so on my part.

"What? Really?" Nova asked.

Deep breaths, Sky.

"Oh, yeah." He was teasing me. He had the nerve to sound mocking. "Totally. You must know about his dad's side of the family. I heard that he killed--"

"Can you shut up?" I exclaimed.

His eyes found mine and they were fucking laughing at me. "--his stepmum."

I had this sudden urge to fling the nearest thing at him. Fortunately for him, the knife stand was on the other side of me.

Nova frowned. "He killed his parents?"

"He did not." I gritted out.

Kyle laughed. "Nah, I was just messing around. 'Course, he didn't."

I glared at him. Who does he think he is?

"Whatever." Nova rolled her eyes. "This conversation is getting absurd. I'll be in my room." She got up then and left our tiny kitchen. Not before glancing at me pointedly. "The hoodie."

I clenched my jaw and said nothing. What in the fucking hell did she have against my hoodie anyway?

"I also heard he's extremely good with lies," Kyle added, right as Nova closed her bedroom door behind her.

I looked at him and he was already staring at me.

He's lying, sweet Skylar.

"Did you send me that letter?" My voice was an angry, accusing hiss. "Is that it? What the hell is wrong with you?"

He raised his brows. "What letter?"

"Oh, don't start acting so clueless. I know you're hiding something and you're so fucking obvious about it."

He blinked at me, seeming totally confused, before picking up an apple from the fruit bowl. "I honestly don't know what you're talking about."

I hadn't realised I was gripping the counter on either side of me until I finally released it, crossing my arms. Was I so bad at picking lies?--because Kyle sure as heck looked like he was telling the truth.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Who are you really?"

He smiled. "Kyle--"

"How do you know so much about Caden?"

I eyed a stray brown curl that fell over his forehead. He didn't bother pushing it back as he contemplated.

"I can't tell you that."

I stared and felt my heart thudding. Scared. Everything was starting to get freaky all over again. "I will find out myself," I told him.

"Well." He got up from the stool and took a bite of the apple in his hand, his eyes on me all the while, glinting and raking down my whole form. "Good luck with that, gorgeous."

•••••

If there was one thing I truly wished to do right now, it was to strangle Nova.

For being such a bitch.

For being so cryptic.

For not fucking telling me in words that it was Mrs Marshall's Doberman who loved anything red. Especially red clothes.

Like my hoodie.

That dog was aggressive on its own, all right. But when he saw me arriving outside Mrs Marshall's flower shop, just to be a nice person and exchange tiny greetings, he went nuts. Extremely bonkers.

I don't even remember what happened right then. All I remembered was falling down on my butt, knocking one of the flower pots behind me, and causing a big ruckus.

At least he didn't bite me. Mrs Marshall's Doberman, I mean. She came out right on time to pull him back, throwing a series of apologies my way.

"Oh dear, I'm so sorry, Monty's never really this aggressive." She helped me up, brushing off the dust from my shoulders. "Are you all right? Oh, come on in, sweetheart. Sit down, sit down!"

I followed her in a daze, wondering why she had named him that. But I suppose I was in no shape to be judging people when my cat was named Chicken. I then started wondering what had made me name her that after all.

"It's all right, Mrs Marshall." I gave her a strained smile. "I'm fine--oh."

My hand was bleeding. And drops of blood were slowly dripping on her floor.

God, I thought. If only I had taken Nova's advice.

Safe to say, my day didn't get any worse than that. I really should stop saying that. Especially when my whole life was a big jinxed puzzle.

The family party Mom had kept at our house was due Saturday since they both (Mom and Dad) would be flying back from Orlando the same day. Because I had no wish to stay there in my apartment with Kyle still lurking around, I decided to visit my hometown a bit early.

Like, tonight early.

I missed New York. I missed my sketchy little town. Chicken seemed to miss it too since she seemed ecstatic to get out of our apartment.

After my morning classes, and throughout the train ride to Crestmont, I wondered how things back at home were.

"I wish I could be there too, Sky. You know, like good old times." Alex said on the phone as I tried searching my pockets for the spare key, standing right in front of my house's front door.

"Well, why can't you?" I asked him and pushed open the door. Chicken hopped out of my arms and literally dashed inside. Like I said, ecstatic.

"Hanna's coming here in Pennsylvania." He told me. "I can't just leave."

"Of course, you can't, loverboy." I grinned and I could've almost imagined Alex rolling his eyes. Before I could've said anything else, a loud clatter broke the silence. "Hey, I'll talk later. I think Chicken's going nuts."

He laughed loudly and I ended the call.

I rounded inside the kitchen and saw three of Mom's precious plates thrown on the floor.

"Fucking hell, Chicks." I picked them up. "What are you trying to do? Get me kicked out of my own house?"

Chicken mewled loudly and I soon joined her on the couch, sprawling down and breathing out a heavy sigh.

"I missed it too," I whispered, closing my eyes with a goofy smile on my lips.

The next hour or so passed by as I unpacked the little amount of luggage I'd brought back with me. Somewhere in between, I got distracted looking through the canvases stacked at the corner of my old bedroom--which Mom hadn't yet put up in the attic. I don't know why that warmed my heart.

I was so busy going through them and all my old things, wondering what I should or shouldn't take back to my apartment, when the silence was once again brought to an abrupt halt.

The doorbell rang.

Looking up from a dusty old canvas, I frowned over at Chicken. Mom and Dad weren't to arrive till tomorrow. Who could it have been?

And then it rang again. And again. And again.

Scrambling up, I didn't even bother dusting off my pants before rushing downstairs with Chicken trailing right behind me.

The ringing stopped and a loud knock on the door ensued. I frowned and took a cautious step away from the door, my heart starting to race a little. Anxious. Paranoid. Something felt obscenely wrong.

"Who's it?" I asked out loud.

No reply came. Instead, the knocking got a little fiercer and a lot louder. Grimacing, I stepped back and flipped the lock on the back door before peeking from the tall glass windows.

This wasn't normal. Why would anyone keep ringing the doorbell and keep knocking on the door like a maniac?

I could barely make out anyone from the windows, especially when it was so dark outside. But then my vision readjusted, and I just about managed to spot a hooded guy standing right in front of the door. Still banging on it.

My eyes widened in horror, and I pulled back the curtains, placing a hand over my mouth.

This can't be happening, I thought. Was it the same person who'd sent me that letter? Or the person who'd broken into my apartment?

God, was he following me everywhere now? Even here in New York?

A flinch left my lips when the doorbell rang again. Chicken mewled around my feet, just as scared as me.

"What do I do?" I whispered, frantically looking around. "Fuck."

I wasn't going to call the police again. I couldn't. I was scared. They might probably take me with them this time if they found no evidence.

The hooded guy was still there.

Just a door between us.

"Oh my God," I whispered cowering back against the couch. "What do I do, Chicken?"

My hands were shaking as I gripped my phone, trying not to wince every time a knock resounded or the bell rang. I felt sick.

What was I even supposed to do? Not panic and lock myself inside my closet? Shout out for help?

I couldn't. I was shaking and I was panicking.

Tears blurred my vision as I gnawed on my lower lip, hurriedly switching on my phone and looking through my contacts.

If he got in, I thought. No, no.

I jumped and Chicken let out a meow when another loud bang came from the door.

"I should call...Caden." I whispered, swallowing and finding his number. I was just about to press on his name right as the knocking stopped. And so did the ringing doorbell.

My head snapped up towards the front door, my eyes wide in fear.

Where did he go? What if he's coming from the backdoor? Or climbing from the bushes up to my room?

"Oh...God." My voice broke in the end as I backed away from my couch, looking at the stairs and expecting the same hooded guy to emerge any second now.

I was seconds away from getting heart failure. The walls seemed to be closing in on me. And I was shaking. I think I was going to throw up.

To my surprise, no one came running down the stairs. Instead, only the bell rang. Just once this time.

Just once.

I don't exactly know why I didn't think twice this time before turning around and unlocking the door. Not even a second ticked by as I yanked open the door, hurriedly with my hands trembling, blinking and staring in front of me.

There was no hooded guy. My heart nearly lurched out of my chest in relief.

"Caden."

_______

what's one thing you would love to see me add in this sequel?

(btw im trying my best to update as fast as i can but mocks are coming up and im seconds away from fucking up physics. i hope you all would understand)
CrystalXx.