Counting Minutes | Gay MxM |

8. Pen Pal

-Jordan-

I was pacing around in my living room when the intercom started to ring on my desk. I stopped to a halt and turned to look at the closest clock with wide eyes.

"Jordan? Honey?"

It was my mom's voice. I hurried to the intercom, so she wouldn't get worried, and opened the line. "H-Hi mom," I breathed out and sat down on a chair in front of the desk.

"What's wrong? You sound scared," Mom spoke, and her tone was worried.

I stared at the intercom for a moment, before turning to look through the glass walls. The balcony was still empty. There was no sign of the man that had been there. Now, I wasn't even sure if I had really seen what I saw.

"Uh, I'm fine. I uh... I just was doing my exercises," I said, trying to sound convincing.

"Didn't Mr. Xavier tell you to take it easy for now?" Mom asked.

"Yes... Yes, he did..." I muttered.

I couldn't take my eyes off the spot where the man had been standing. It was hard to concentrate on what Mom was saying. I was too busy thinking about that stranger.

"Jordan? Are you listening?" Mom asked at one point, and I realized I had completely ignored her.

"Sorry, what did you say?" I asked, and forced myself to look at the intercom.

"Are you sure everything's all right?" she asked, sounding worried again.

I had never lied to her, but for some reason, I didn't want to tell her about the stranger. I had no idea why I felt the need to keep it as a secret. Maybe I had lost my mind for good.

"I moved my couch... It's bothering me," I lied, hating myself for doing so. I just couldn't tell her the truth.

"Oh," she uttered. "If it's too much, you should move it back. Remember, you should be taking it easy for now."

"Yes, mom," I sighed. "I should go now, I'll move it back..."

"You do that. I'll call you tomorrow again," Mom said tenderly. We bid our goodnights and ended the call.

I continued staring at the intercom for a moment before I had to look back at the balcony. I hesitated for another moment, before I stood up, and walked to the balcony door. I carefully peered outside, but I didn't see anybody. I gathered my courage, before I unlocked the door, and opened it. I listened to every sound around me, but I didn't hear anything unusual, so I stepped out.

I was nervous, and about to freak out, when I took a few steps towards the flowerpots, the two that weren't where they should've been. It was just an inch of a difference, but to me, it might as well been a mile. The strange man had been hiding behind the roses, but why?

And, how did he get up on my balcony? I looked over the railings, but I didn't see anything that could be used to climb up. Could he have jumped? It seemed impossible, but the guy was pretty tall. Maybe he was tall enough to reach the edge? He couldn't have climbed all the way up on my roof, and then jump down on the balcony since I definitely would've heard it.

But why? Why on earth had he been in my balcony? How many times had he been there? I leaned against the railing and tried to think. The cool wind felt nice on my face, and I breathed in the fresh air. I turned to look at the flowerpots again. I let my mind trail back to that night when I had fainted. The flower pots had been out of their place, and I couldn't remember why. Was it possible the man had been here that night? But why? How? I had been the only one home that night, so I couldn't even ask my family if they had seen him...