April 3, 2010
7:30 p.m.
Diner Parking Lot

It was a cool, slightly breezy night out. So Will and I decided to spend it outside rather than inside one of our cars. And yes, my car was still there when we returned to the diner’s parking lot, just like Will had promised.
There was a small area of patchy grass beside the head of the parking lot, and there was also a tree. It was a tall oak tree, very similar to the one Ash and I had carved our names into. And Will was sitting with his back up against it and me sitting up against him. I rested my head against his tight, toned chest and gazed up at the clear, starry sky above us.
It was the perfect moment. However, it didn’t last very long. Because both of our phones began to buzz loudly at the exact same time, which was extremely peculiar. We both glanced at eachother, completely puzzled, and pulled out our cell phones.
I had one new text. And it was from an unknown number. Weird.
I hope u 2 r happy together…just remember Evalynne: once a cheater, always a cheater…
My eyes went wide and I instinctively glanced around, expecting to see some creeper spying on us or something. This was just too weird. And what was with the once a cheater, always a cheater thing?
The only thing I could think of was when Will cheated on Valerie. But who knew about that? Besides Valerie and Michael. No. It couldn’t be. They were long gone. It couldn’t possibly be them. They couldn’t possibly know that Will and I were together. But if it wasn’t them, then who was it?
And were they trying to tell me that Will was cheating on me?
“So who uh, texted you?” I asked Will.
“It was actually an unknown number.” he replied, sounding just as freaked out as I felt. “How about you?” he asked.
“Unknown number,” I told him. I pulled my head away from his chest so that I could look into his eyes. “What did yours say?”
He handed me his phone and I handed him mine. And then I read the text he’d received.
I hope u 2 r happy together…just remember Will: some people won’t settle for just one guy…
My eyes went wide and my hands began to shake. I knew immediately that whoever sent this was referring to my past, to when I couldn’t decide between Ash and Cole. But how the hell did they know about that? Who the hell was this person? Michael and Valerie didn’t even know about that…did they?
No. They couldn’t have possibly known about that. I’d never mentioned it to either of them. And Will wouldn’t have told them about it either.
We handed our phones back to eachother, both feeling incredibly awkward.
“Probably just some kid playing a lame prank on us,” Will said. But I knew that he didn’t believe it. I could tell by the look on his face, by the tone of his voice.
“Yeah,” I replied. “Just some kid who somehow knows about both of our pasts,”
He sighed, obviously agreeing with me that this was not a kid playing a prank. This was serious. Whoever was doing this was trying to tell me that Will was cheating on me…and was trying to tell Will that I couldn’t settle for just him. But that wasn’t true. Will was everything I could ever ask for. I didn’t want anyone else in my life but him. No other guy mattered to me as much as Will did.
Except for Cole.
No. I needed to stop thinking about him. Cole and I were over, and this time we wouldn’t be getting back together. No matter how many times we tried, our relationship was never able to last. We just weren’t meant to be together. I knew that. It was just hard for me to accept it.
Oh God, I did still love Cole, didn’t I? This was not good. Will could not know that I still had feelings for Cole. This mystery texter could not tell him.
“Well if it’s not a kid playing a prank, then who is it?” Will inquired. “Who knows so much about both of us?”
We both sat in silence for a moment, pondering through all the possibilities. And then it hit me.
Ash. He just couldn’t get over the fact that I had moved on and found someone else. So now he was trying to break us up. He had read my mind and found out that I still had feelings for Cole, and he was going to tell Will. Well I wouldn’t let him.
Ash, I thought, if you can hear what I’m thinking right now, then you’d better listen up. I don’t want you sending anymore texts to Will and I. We’re perfectly happy together, and we don’t need you trying to intercept our relationship.
I knew it was brutal, but how else was I supposed to get him to leave us alone? I waited for him to respond to me, but he didn’t. He’d probably left to go sulk somewhere. But I really didn’t care anymore. As long as he left Will and I alone, I was happy.
“Well I say we just ignore it.” I said. “If we don’t let it get to us, then maybe whoever’s doing this will stop.”
“Yeah,” Will agreed, “you’re right.” An awkward silence passed between us. Both of us knew that we weren’t just going to settle for that assumption. I was positive that Will’s mind was racing just like mine.
What if it wasn’t Ash? What if it was Michael and Valerie? What if they were stalking us?
I shuddered but not because of the cool spring air. Because I was now afraid. Very afraid. Will wrapped his strong arms around me, comforting me. But not completely. His warm embrace couldn’t make my fear disappear. I was still terrified. I could just picture Michael and Valerie lurking behind the diner, watching us, sending us these texts.
My stomach churned uneasily and I all of the sudden felt nauseous. A cold film of sweat broke out over my body and I began to shiver. I couldn’t stop it though. I felt so sick to my stomach. And it didn’t help that my head was spinning either, making me feel dizzy.
“Hey, you ok?” Will asked me, concern clouding his throaty voice.
“I don’t feel so good,” I confessed.
“Well what’s wrong?” he inquired.
“I feel hot, I have chills, my stomach hurts, I’m dizzy…” I tried to stand up, but my legs were like limp noodles beneath me. I didn’t have enough strength to hold myself up. So Will, being the great guy he was, reached out a hand and helped me to my feet.
“Sounds like you have the flu or something,” he told me, sounding worried.
“Will, I don’t think it’s the flu.” I informed him, biting my lower lip. I didn’t want to tell him that I thought his brother was stalking us. I didn’t want to tell him that I was just completely terrified. Because I didn’t want him to feel any guiltier about his brother than he already did.
“What is it then?” he asked. I knew that question was coming. I just didn’t know how to answer it. But I knew that Will would want the truth, even if it hurt. And I wanted to keep an open and honest relationship with him. Lying never seemed to go well in my past relationships.
“I think Michael sent us those texts. I think he’s still here in Westchester.” I let him know. “Will, I’m really scared.” I watched as his facial expression went from worried to a mix of apologetic and angry.
He shook his head and his fists clenched and unclenched at his sides. “He can’t do this anymore.” he uttered mostly to himself. “He’s got you worried sick…literally. Why can’t this just stop already?”
“Will, it’s fine. I’m probably just overreacting. You know what a drama queen I am.” I said, trying to lighten his mood.
But he didn’t listen to me. “I swear to God, Michael,” he called out, even though nobody was there, “if I ever find you…” He trailed off at the end, just shaking his head lividly. “I swear to God I’ll freakin’ kill you!” he shouted in rage.
“Will, please calm down.” I begged him. I hated it when he got like this. I hated having to see him like this.
“I’m sorry,” he said to me. “It’s just not fair. Michael got away. He should be happy that he didn’t get caught. He just go far away from here so he can enjoy the rest of his life. But no. He has to stay here and antagonize me.”
“We don’t even know that it was him. I was just jumping into conclusions. Maybe it wasn’t him.” I said.
He ignored me though, continuing on with his rant. “Don’t you get it, Evalynne?” he cried. “He’s not going to give up. It’s not going to end. He’s just going to keep torturing me until the day I die. It’s never going to end!”
“Will, listen to me!” I shouted. Fortunately, I’d gotten his attention. “You need to stop freaking out, ok? It might not even be Michael.”
“Well who else would it be?” he demanded, pretty much shouting it right at me. I felt his hot breath on my face as he yelled and watched with wide eyes as a vein in his forehead bulged. “You can be so freakin’ stupid sometimes!”
My jaw dropped and a small gasp escaped my throat. I couldn’t even begin to wrap my mind around what had just happened. Will had called me stupid. He’d shouted at me. He was mad at me and I didn’t even do anything. “I can’t believe you just said that.” I told him, my eyes still wide with shock. I’d never have thought that Will could be this malicious towards me. But apparently I was wrong.
“Well it’s true!” he remarked. Now I was even more surprised than before. He didn’t even apologize for it. He wasn’t even sorry! “How can you seriously say that it might not be Michael? Seriously though, Evalynne,”
“I was just saying that we don’t know for sure that it’s him. It might not be.” I replied defensively.
“Well who do you think it is then? Huh?” he retorted, pursing his lips and glaring at me, waiting for my answer. But I was too upset with him to reply. “You see? You don’t have an answer, because it couldn’t have been anyone else. It was Michael! Stop acting so goddamn stupid!”
I felt my lower lip begin to quiver and I knew that the tears weren’t far behind. “I need to go.” I muttered to him, my voice soft and wavering.
“Evalynne, wait,” he called after me. But I didn’t listen to him. I just kept walking towards my car. But just as I reached it, I felt Will’s strong hand wrap around my wrist. “Come on, don’t go.”
“Will, let go of me.” I remarked, the tears beginning to well up in my eyes. I tried to pull away from him, but his grip just tightened. “Will, let go! You’re hurting me!” I cried.
“I’m sorry, ok?” he snapped. “Is that what you wanted to hear? I’m sorry for calling you stupid. Ok?” But I could tell by the venomous tone of his voice that he was far from sorry.
“No, Will, you’re not sorry!” I shouted back at him. “Now let go of me!” I yanked my arm away from him, but not without a fight. As I was pulling myself out of his grasp, his nails dug into the skin of my wrist. I gasped when I saw the bright red scratches he’d left.
They hurt with a burning pain that lingered there for awhile. The shock of what had just happened kept me frozen in place as the pain slowly began to subside.
Will looked down at the scratches, seeming just as shocked as I was at what he’d done. And this time when I reached for the handle of my car door, he didn’t try to stop me. He just stood there and watched with blank eyes as I drove away from him.