Babysitting the Player

Chapter 23

"About?"

"Do you think I should press charges?"

"Against?"

"Johnny."

"Alex!"

"I know he's just trying to get a rise out of me, but he's been driving by in the middle of the night again. And he kind of assaulted me at the mall too. A security guard had to intervene."

"What? You didn't tell me all that."

"He threw a tantrum and he grabbed my arm and wouldn't let go. I had red marks from his fingers all over my forearm."

"Do you have proof?"

"I have pictures."

"Can you show me?"

I pull up the photos and hand her my phone.

"Holy shit, Alex."

"I know. The security guard took those actually."

"What else happened?"

"Well don't even get me started on all the fake accounts he's been making to try to talk to me. And now after hearing he's been visiting Brandon and discussing me, I don't know. He's been posting some stuff on social media now too."

"Posting stuff like what?"

"Threats."

"Threats?"

"Threats."

"What kind of threats, Alex?"

"Apparently he has a video of us having sex and he's threatening to post it. He's also threatening to go fight Bryce. I don't even know how to handle this anymore."

"Well is there actually a video of you two going at it?"

"I don't know." I shrug. "I didn't think so, but it's Johnny. Who really knows for sure when it comes to him?"

"That's true."

"I'm just scared at this point. And I don't know if I'm just being paranoid or if it's warranted."

"And are you sure this isn't just the period talking?"

"What are you talking about?" I shake my head.

"You have your period right now."

"No, I don't."

"You do."

"I think I'd know if I had my period."

"Alex, we get them at the same time. I have mine right now, which means you have yours."

"I don't have my period." I shake my head and then it hits me. "Oh my God. I don't have my period. I have to go. I'll talk to you later."

I don't hear if she answers me and I don't bother to grab my smoothie before getting up and running to my car. My keys slip out of my sweaty palms and I rush to grab them off the pavement. I have to fight to get my car door to unlock and open but once I succeed, I climb in and barely buckle my seatbelt before speeding out of the parking lot.

I narrowly run a few red lights and almost flip my car turning into the parking lot of the drugstore. My hands fumble through my wallet to dig for cash and how much does a pregnancy test even cost? Twenty bucks? More? I grab my debit card instead just in case twenty won't be enough and head in. I have absolutely no idea where the pregnancy tests even are and there's no way I'm asking someone for help and admitting I need one of these so I jog up and down every aisle, hoping they'll stand out and catch my eye. I go through every aisle and don't see them so I start making a second trip through each and finally, I find them on a shelf in aisle eight.