I heard a key turn in the lock and swivelled anxiously in my chair to see Lottie coming through the door.
I stood up and hugged her quickly. "I was worried." I said quietly. She laughed lightly and stepped back.
"You don't need to worry about me, dummy. I can take care of myself." She said, smiling affectionately.
There was something different about her. Her usual sullen- whatever disposition was replaced with a cheerful, upbeat girl. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were bright. She bounced on her toes.
That could only mean one thing.
"You met him?" I gasped. She grabbed my hands and shrieked happily.
"Oh, my god! He's so perfect, Millie! He's tall, taller than me, and he has dark hair, and blue eyes and oh my gosh, the cutest smile ever! He has a tooth gap, but that really only adds to his appeal and he gave me his jacket and it smells like heaven and-!" She paused to gasp for air, then turned to me, suddenly back to her usual self.
"This whole conversation never happened." She said sternly.
I rolled my eyes. "Oh, god forbid that anyone knows you have emotions." I said sarcastically. Lottie gasped dramatically.
"Did you just use sarcasm? No, no way. Sarcasm of my thing. Reserved only for me." She said.
Her phone buzzed. She pulled it out and had a brief conversation with someone. It sounded like a girls voice, probably Lara.
She pocketed the phone. "Millie, the group is going down To the beach tonight. Your coming with us."
Yikes. That means meeting people for the first time. Not my favourite thing ever. I opened my mouth to protest, but Lottie covered my mouth with her hand. "
"Oh, no. You are coming with us. Don't try to get out of this." She said, removing her hand.
I sighed, extra-dramatically for her benefit and nodded. "Fiiiiiiiine, but let me get changed." I said, and walked into my bedroom.
I threw on sweatpants and a tank top, then put on deodorant and perfume. I lost my lucky scrunchie, so I looped my hair with a pen, securing it in a messy bun. I applied mascara and lip gloss, then hung my heart locket around my neck. The girls got it for my birthday last year. It's the most special thing I own.
I slipped a few bracelets on my wrist, then pocketed my phone.
When I stepped out, Lottie was leaning against the door, tapping her foot anxiously.
"I'm good to go." I said. She smiled and nodded. I linked arms with her, ignoring her eye-roll and sigh, then we left.
Lottie slid into the driver's seat and I sat in the back, so she couldn't see how anxious I was.
I mentally rehearsed what I was going to say to the boys. Meeting people for the first time isn't something I'm crazy about. I felt a little better knowing that I'd have Lara, Amelia and Lottie with me.
*half an hour later*
We pulled up to the curb closest to the beach. There were no parking spaces left, so Lottie was going to find somewhere to park and then meet me there.
"See if you can find everyone else, ok?? Lottie said, giving me a quick hug then stepping back in the car and driving off. I kept my phone in my hand, in case I needed to call her, then started walking down the back, looking for a familiar face.
The sun was starting to dip lower in the sky. In about three hours, it would be completely gone. I checked the time. 5:38. The others are due to arrive in about 20 minutes.
I was contemplating whether to keep walking, or turn back when I noticed that just past the sand, near the closest building, a guy was watching me. He grinned at me, shifting his weight. He looked me up and down in a way that made me feel uncomfortable. I smiled tightly and turned back, walking towards the parking lot. This end if the beach was almost deserted.
About a hundred metres later, almost at me destination, I heard footsteps. I turned to see the same man as before, tailing me not even 15 metres away. I felt a cold rush of fear and quickened my pace, hearing him speed up to match my steps. I reached the footpath and started walking, forcing myself not to break into a run.
I reached the outskirts of the town beside the sea. A quick glance over my shoulder told me that the man was still following me. I turned sharply, going down a side street. This led into the main road, so I walked a little further.
This road was a dead end. I turned bad, desperately, just as the man appeared at the mouth of the street. I was cornered.
"Oh, crap." I whispered.
