I Have an Invisible Stalker (Guardians #1)

Chapter 4

"I already told you that I can't remember. And if anything you should be the one telling me what happened."

"How would I know?"

"Because you were either already stalking me back then, or you're actually the driver who ran me over, which is why you're now stalking me."

"Someone ran you over?" I'm not too surprised because I expected it to be something like that. What I need to figure out is how, when, and why.

"You're really not the driver, are you?" She lowers the crutch. "Man, I thought I was so close to figuring out what happened."

For the tenth time since my reappearance, she switches the position of her injured foot, so I nod in the direction of the bed. "Sit."

"You really think I'm going to sit on my bed while you're in here with me?" Instead of her bed, she hops over to her desk and grabs a thick worn-out copy of the Encyclopedia—the one she uses as a cover to pretend like she's studying when in reality she's playing games on her phone. "I will throw this at you."

"You can't throw that far." I shake my head at her.

"Then I'll settle for throwing the book to the ground so that my mom barges into the room. She'll definitely insist on calling the cops when she finds you in here."

"Go right ahead." I motion for her to continue, while I rest my elbow on the wooden cupboard beside me.

"I'm not bluffing." She lifts the book as high as she can.

"Neither am I." I eye the position of the book and wonder if she'll be able to slam it far enough without hitting her own toes.

"Shoot, I thought this was going to work for sure." With a sigh, she lays the book back onto her desk. Then she hops to her unmade bed and sits down at the edge furthest away from me. "You can also sit down if you want to." She points toward her desk chair, which is crumbling under what looks like a hoodie, two pairs of dirty socks, a pair of sweats, and a T-shirt. "Or not."

"Tell me what you know about the accident." I straighten my back and fold my arms in front of my chest.

"Not much." She rests both crutches against the bed. "Apparently I was run over by a car, but the driver fled. And I can't remember a thing about it."

"When?"

"Thursday night on the intersection of Southeast Bush Street and Fourth Avenue. Why?"

"Southeast Bush?" The name rings a bell as another one of my charges lives near the street. "What were you doing there?"

"You tell me." She shrugs, and when I open my mouth to explain to her again that I was nowhere near her on Thursday, she continues. "Okay, fine. You don't know. But neither do I. Do you think I might have sleepwalked all the way there? But why there? I don't know anyone who lives in that neighborhood."

"You don't sleepwalk."

"How would you know?" She snaps her eyes back to mine but then lowers them with a sigh. "Right, you're my stalker. I guess you of all people would know such a thing."

"I'm not your stalker." This time I can't stop myself from rolling my eyes.

"You keep saying that, but don't offer an explanation in return. If you're not stalking me, then why were you in my hospital room? Why did you follow me onto the bus? And what are you doing in my bedroom?"

From her perspective, all of that might sound suspicious, but for me, it's my everyday. It's what I'm sworn to do as her Guardian.

"I'm guarding you," I say.

"Guarding me against what? Other stalkers?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"But I want to." She stands up and reaches forward until she wraps her small fingers around the edge of her desk chair, and pulls it over to her. Once next to the bed, she rests her injured foot on the chair and turns back to me. "Is guarding what you stalkers tell yourselves you're doing? A way to rationalize your behavior?"

"No. We're not stalkers. We're Guardians."

"Guardians? Is that stalker slang?"

I sink my teeth into my tongue and push away from the wall. I always wondered why so many people lost their temper around Olivia, and now I have my answer. As her mother always tells her, she really is a handful.

In two strides I reach the only door in her room and pull it wide open. Then I move over to the desk, push the Encyclopedia to the side and lean against the edge of the desk.

"Call your mother." I pull the watch out of my pocket and notice that it's eight minutes until three in the afternoon, which means I have to suffer only through another eight minutes. Then I'm free to leave.

"What?"

I glance from the watch to Olivia, who is looking between me and the open doorway. "Just call her. It'll prove that I'm not human."

"Mom!" she shouts, while now probably looking at me the same way I looked at her the first time her eyes met mine in that hospital room. "Mom, the stalker is back!"

"What are you trying to pull now?" Mina walks into the room a minute later and looks at Olivia.

My charge points at me. Mina turns in the direction Olivia is pointing and her eyes land directly on me.

***

Since this is my first chapter in a male POV, I'd greatly appreciate it if you'd tell me what you think of the chapter and my try at the male POV.

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Much love

                - E