.𖥔 ݁ ˖ִ ࣪⚝₊ ⊹˚

The sound of the phone ringing echoed through the house, breaking the silence that was hanging around. A blonde girl, who actually lived in the house, quickly made her way out of the kitchen over to the phone in the living room.

"Hello?" She softly spoke into the phone, holding it up to her ear so that she could listen to who was calling so late at night. Normally when she was having a sleepover with her best friend, Adora, people never called.

Well, that probably was because they took the phone off the hook sometimes, stopping calls from coming in. And they were probably to busy gossiping to pick up anyway if somebody had called.

However now that Adora will still upstairs, and Casey couldn't take the phone off the hook since her dad was expecting a call and he would kill her if she missed it. So, she kinda had to pick up, knowing that they would probably just call back.

"Hello?" A low voice came from the other side of the phone. A voice Casey didn't recognize, so she figured it was probably a friend of her parents or just another high school kid, going around prank calling everyone. It had been happening a lot in Woodsboro lately.

"Yes?" Casey replied with an asking tone.

"Who is this?" The man on the other side asked. His voice was laced with confusion. Or at least pretend confusion.

"Who are you trying to reach?" Casey asked, curiously.

"What number is this?" The voice asked.

"Well, what number are you trying to reach?" Casey question, a small smile on her face knowing that the man had probably made a mistake. Maybe he typed in a wrong number before dialing?

"I don't know."

"Well, I think you have the wrong number." Casey told him.

"Do I?" The voice questioned.

"It happens. Take it easy." Casey spoke to the stranger, before ending the call and putting the phone back on the hook, forgetting to put it next to the hook since her best friend came walking into the living room with excitement.

"What do you think?" Adora asked, making a twirl to show off her outfit. Another one that she was wearing when she arrived at Casey's house.

"I like it! You should steal my clothes more often." The blonde winked at her best friend, who brushed her hand over the short skirt that was Casey's.

"You don't think it's to short?" Adora asked. She never really felt comfortable with very short clothes, but she knew Casey did. She saw that when she was going through her best friend's closet minutes ago.

"Could be even shorter." Casey joked as she started walking back to the kitchen. "You know you should wear it on your date with Liam."

"Liam?" Adora glanced over to one of her best friends in confusion.

Adora and Casey's friendship had been quite a rollercoaster. Everyone in school knew the two hated each other in their younger years. The two weren't even sure what had made them such good friends. It just happened one random moment when they were fourteen when the teacher was done of their 'lady fights' as he called them.

But their new friendship had surprised almost everyone who went to the same school as them, knowing that the two couldn't stand each other for years. So now if you didn't see Adora with her usual friend group that included Sidney, Randy, Billy, Stu and her cousin, Tatum, she was probably somewhere off with Casey.

Tatum, who was technically her aunt, but the two called each other cousin. Tatum joked about being her aunt a lot even thought the two were the same age, Tatum was just a few months older than Adora was. That's why they were cousins in her eyes. It probably would've stayed aunt if Tatum had been a year or five older.

"Yes, Liam! A guy on the football team. I can set you up for a date with him?"

"Is he hot?" Adora asked, taking a seat by the kitchen island.

"Very. I know that he has had the crush on your for the longest time." Casey replied.

"Hmm, maybe I should," Adora said with a small smile, though she still looked unsure. "Wait—who was that on the phone earlier?"

"Dunno. He called the wrong number." As Casey spoke, the phone rang again. "Ugh, I hate having to wait for my dad's call." Casey spoke to her best friend as she walked over to phone, placing it to her ear with a big sigh. "Hello." She greeted.

"I'm sorry. I guess I dialed the wrong number." The man apologized and Casey let out a small laugh as she released that it was the man from the phone call a few minutes ago.

"So, why'd you dial it again?" The blonde asked as she looked over to her best friend, who was going to the pages of the new Vogue magazine that Casey had purchased earlier today.

"To apologize."

"You're forgiven. Bye now." Casey leaned forwards to put the phone down but stopped her movement when the person started speaking again.

"Wait, wait! Don't hang up!" The man said, his voice clearly desperate.

"What?" Casey asked, placing it back to her ear completely.

"I wanna talk to you for a second."

"They've got 900 numbers for that. See ya." Casey put the phone back down and made her way back to the kitchen.

"Same guy?" Adora asked, munching on some chips as Casey took out a Jiffy Pop out of one of the cupboards.

Her best friend hummed in reply. "Called again to apologize."

"Well, that's kinda friendly." Adora spoke with a shrug.

"But also kinda creepy." Casey spoke, taking the paper that said Jiffy Pop off the foil-covered, disposable aluminum pan. "Oh, definitely buy that one." She pointed at the paper to another skirt. It was no secret anymore to anyone that Casey Becker loved skirts.

Adora rolled her eyes, laughing. "Of course you like it. It's a skirt."

Casey just grinned, but then groaned again when the phone rang once more. "Ugh, again. Hello?" She asked through the phone, even more annoyed knowing that it was going to be the same caller again.

"Why don't you want to talk to me?"

"Who is this?" Casey asked, picking up a dirty cup and placing it by the sink.

"You tell me your name, I'll tell you mine."

"I don't think so." Casey let out a small laugh as she shook the Jiffy Pop that were almost ready. If the man just stopped calling their could start their movie soon.

"What's that noise?" The man asked, curiously.

"Popcorn." Casey simply answered.

"You're making popcorn?" His voice drawled through the phone.

"Uh-huh." Casey rolled her eyes.

"I only eat popcorn at the movies." The man continued, like he was talking to a friends

"Well, me and my friend are getting ready to watch a video." Casey explained.

"Really? What movies?" The man asked.

"Oh, just some scary movie." Casey replied with a shrug.

"Do you like scary movies?" The man asked, the smirk on his face was clearly visible in his voice.

"Uh-huh." Casey spoke again as she grinned at Adora, who let her eyes roll at the sight in front of her. Her best friend had a small smile on her lips while talking, well, no, flirting with the man on the other side of the phone while having a boyfriend.

Adora maybe didn't like Steve much, but she also knew he didn't deserve his girlfriend flirting with someone else. Even if he was the most self-esteemed person she had ever met in her life.

Even though her cousin, Tatum, and Casey had that in common, the two couldn't stand the sight of each other. The two of them always would make her watch them with her. And they were not the only ones, Billy and Stu did so too.

"What's your favourite scary movie?" The voice asked as Adora joined Casey by the other side of the kitchen island, wanting to hear the man better and know what they were talking about. She could be quite snoopy at times, but she also knew when she reached another person's limit.

"I don't know."

"You have to have a favourite. What comes to mind?" The man asked.

"Halloween." Casey replied. "You know, the one with the guy in the white mask, who walks around and stalks babysitters?" She shortly summarized what the movie was about.

"Yeah." He replied.

Adora, now sitting at the kitchen island with her chin propped in her hand, rolled her eyes again. "Are you seriously still talking to this guy?" She whispered, throwing a chip in her mouth.

Casey grinned at her and shrugged. "What's yours?" Casey asked.

"Guess."

"Um, Nightmare on Elm Street."

"Is that the one were the guy had knives for fingers?" He asked.

"Yeah! Freddy Krueger!" Casey spoke as she picked up some DVD's and moved to the hallway to make sure that all doors and windows were closed.

"I liked that movie. It was scary!" The man spoke, making Casey let out a laugh as she walked over to the TV, glancing at Adora's direction, who had dropped herself on the couch with the crisps and the magazine, as she stopped and opened the case as she started speaking again.

"Well, the first one was, but the rest sucked."

"So, you got a boyfriend?" The man asked, changing their conversation from horror movies.

"Why?" Casey asked with a flirty tone. "You wanna ask me out on a date?" Casey wiggled her eyebrows at Adora, who mouthed the words really back to her.

"Maybe. Do you have a boyfriend?" The man asked her again.

"No."

"You never told me your name."

"Why do you want to know my name?" Casey asked, curiously.

" 'Cause I want to know who I'm looking at." The caller responded and Casey's head shot up from the case as she turned to Adora with scared eyes. Adora immediately stood up seeing the fear in her best friend's eyes as a dog barked a few houses over.

"Because I want to know who I'm talking to." The caller said, but Casey knew that was a lie. She had heard him the first time.

"That's not what you said."

"What do you think I said?" He asked as Casey turned around to switch on the lights outside. She walked closer to the door, but she didn't see anything that came over as suspicious. Not by the pool and neither anything by the plants. "Hello?" The man spoke.

"Look, I gotta go." Casey spoke, clearly freaking out about the phone call more and more.

"Wait! I thought we were gonna go out."

"Uh, no, I don' t think so." Casey spoke as she checked the lock on the door to make sure it was locked.

"Don't hang up on me." He spoke but not even a second later the blonde had already pressed a bottom, stopping their call.

"What did he say, Cass?" Adora asked, throwing one last look over her shoulder into the backyard, before following her friend back to the kitchen.

"He said I wanna know who I'm looking at."

"What?" Adora asked, her gaze immediately setting sight on the door that lead to the backyard, but before Casey could reply again, the phone rang again. Adora held out her hand and Casey placed the phone in her hand.

"I told you not to hang up on me."

"And I am telling you to stop fucking calling us!" Adora's voice trembled as she spoke, anger pushing the words out in a sharp, unsteady burst. The caller could hear the rising pitch in her tone, a clear sign that beneath her frustration, fear was creeping in, making her voice crack.

Her hands shook as she gripped the phone tighter, her heart pounding with each second of silence from the other end.

"Well, hello, babydoll." The voice finally replied, oozing with a flirty tone, making her stomach churn. His voice was in a mocking tone and she didn't like it. 

There was something about the way he spoke that made her skin crawl, like he enjoyed the power he had over them right now.

"Well, bye, asshole." Adora snapped back at him, her voice sharper than before as she ended the call, her hands shaking even harder now. 

She slammed the phone down on the table on her right, but the anxiety still gripped her, the stranger's voice echoing in her head, refusing to let her feel safe even for a second.

Adora exhaled shakily, forcing a bitter laugh. She was trying to hold it together, trying to put on a brave face, but the fear still clung to her, as if the man's voice had followed them, lingering in the shadows. 

"He's probably just some sick fuck who likes messing with teenagers." She muttered, trying to reassure herself just  as much as she was trying to convince Casey of iy. Her eyes darted toward the windows, half-expecting to see something—or someone—lurking outside in the darkness.

"Yeah." Casey nodded, her voice quiet but firm, though her eyes still held that flicker of uncertainty as she looked from her friend over to the windows of the house.

"If he calls again, we're calling the cops." Adora spoke with a firm nod of her head.

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Words: 2228

Posted: October 15, 2024

Re-written: Monday February 17, 2025

Re-posted: Monday February 17, 2025

Hope you guys enjoy my new book this is gonna be such a fun one to write!!

Thank you so much for reading! Be sure to comment and vote! Love you guys!!

Mwah mwah Katherine