Sofia
In hindsight watching true crime documentary about one of the most notorious serial killers during a bad thunderstorm was just asking for a terrible troublesome sleepless night. But when you've already run through your watch later list on Netflix in less than a week you get desperate for something to fill the quiet void, even if it makes you stay awake.
The loud cracks of the thunder across the night sky complimented the rather long and eerie description the host of the show was making about Ted Bundy. With the endless flood warnings throughout the night, I didn't have much of a choice but to stay in. But truth being told, being isolated in my own home is what I did most of the time anyways.
Nights as bland as these I regretted not taking my best friend Lacie's offer of going to France to meet her new boyfriends family before embarking on her semester long study abroad program in Paris.
She had met him during our Cabo trip last spring break and practically had a ring on her finger already. I couldn't remember much of their meet cute as I was vomiting every 5 minutes because miraculously I, the only latina on the trip, was the only one that got food poisoning. I didn't live that down for months.
But it was until I dropped Lacie off at the airport that I realized we hadn't been apart for more than two days since my freshman year at Finch University. Now I had to face the music that without having THE Lacie Barone at my side 24/7 I was one of the most boring and bland people to ever grace the earth.
The loud crack of thunder shuddered its way across the living room making the lights flicker. The sound rang through the house as the unmistakable sound of knocking on the door lingered. A chill ran throughout my spin as the knock intensified into slow but loud hits to the door.
Just my luck this was the part in the documentary where Ted Bundy killed his victims, didn't help that his primary victims was sorority girls.
I often prided myself on being the rational one in the sorority but in moments like these when your adrenaline is running so high you want to vomit, common sense goes out the door. And currently at the door was either a confused delivery food guy or a serial killer.
My hands slightly shook under the anxiety as my eyes looked through the peephole only to find a guy in khaki shorts and a white button up that soaked up water from the rain. His curly hair was a mess as he gripped to the door frame for his dear life.
His sharp blue eyes were made more clear as he shifted his body in clearer view, "I-think y-you took mah hoodie, would-ya pwease open the door." The blond guy said as he slurred his words in an incoherent manner.
My mind went blank going through all the scenarios in the would end me up on a problematic true crime podcast that would profit off my stupid decision to help the man on the other side of the door.
"Lacieee pleaaase, its so coldddd." The mysterious guy continued to pleaded as he clung onto the door frame.
Lacie.
There was a slight sense of relief entering my body knowing this was probably one of her many exes that wanted her back or wanted to cuss her out. It wouldn't have been the first time as Lacie could get a guy completely head over heels for her in a matter of minutes.
As his face shifted closer to the peephole I vaguely remembered him from a frat around campus, more importantly our brother frat I honestly couldn't remember his name to same his life but as I opened the door I remembered his curly hair that now sat on his head like a wet poodle.
Without so much as a hello he stumbled past me into the living room as the pungent odor of alcohol reached my nose, slowly everything was beginning to make more sense.
"Uh Lacie is on her study abroad program, but if you're looking for something I can look to see if its in her room." I let out still startled as he stumbled across my house to the kitchen with the same grace as a newborn giraffe.
Looking closer his face was flushed as his eyes looked red in the way that looked like he'd been crying for hours.
I closed the door as she rushed over to find him holding on to the kitchen sink for dear life, "Let me guess you drank too much?" I asked as she grabbed the boys figure and led him into the bathroom.
Luckily this had been a bonafide routine as most of my sorority sister partied too hard often and I usually was the only one sober. Lacie was the worst offender as her Saturday nights bar crawls became more frequent once she turned 21.
"I didn't drink that much really." He slurred out as I forced him sit down near the toilet. I've heard that line too many times for it to mean much of anything anymore.
Before I knew it the sounds of the boy expelling the copious amounts of alcohol echoed in the small bathroom. Just like what I did for all the girls that came before him in this moment, I rubbed his back helping him get everything out. As the sounds stopped I flushed the toilet and ushered him up to rinse his mouth up with water to get the remaining stomach acid out of his mouth.
At this point he stopped fighting it and accepted that he in fact did drink too much.
With the small amount of strength I had left, I managed to bring him back out to the living room and placed him on the sofa while grabbing him a water bottle hoping to sober him up enough to get some answers.
However as I looked over at him struggling to take even the smallest sips of water, I hesitated on the interrogation. I looked over at his reddened blue eyes, "You can um, stay the night here since you're not exactly sober enough to drive anywhere, but if you want I can get you an uber or call someone to pick you-"
"-Can I stay here?" He croaked out weakly.
I looked over at him in pitty, he looked completely wrecked with his dark circles overshadowing his tan face. Some shit had definitely gone down and I didn't have it in her to kick him to the curb on such a stormy night.
"Uh yeah sure, let me just see if Lacie's boyfriend has any spare clothes so you can sleep without soaked clothes." I said as she rushed over to Lacie's room.
It was the first time I was able to slightly process what the circumstances surrounding the boys appearance.
Truly I couldn't just let this stranger into the apartment? Well almost stranger that is.
He knew Lacie somehow and was in the "brother" fraternity, Phi Beta Sigma. My mind continued to justify the reckless decision as I scavenged through Lacie's messy drawers until I found the stash of mens clothes.
I grabbed a random t-shirt and gym shorts and made my way back out. As I closed Lacie's door her phone rang with the one person partly responsible for the drunk boy on their couch.
Lacie always had one cardinal rule: no frat boys over night. This was because of an incident revolving her first boyfriend from another frat stealing her Tiffany heart necklace and giving it to his on again and off again girlfriend.
Lets just say after the police report and the shattered windshield, he is single and has a criminal record.
"Shit." I sighed as I tossed the clothes to the boy, "I gotta take this but just change in the bathroom."
I bolted into my room letting the door slam behind me as I fumbled to get my ringing phone from my back pocket. The facetime notification made me want to vomit as it rang like an alarm in the morning. I eventually calmed myself down enough to accept the call seeing Lacie for the first time since the airport.
Lacie's face popped up on the screen as her radiant smile lit up, "Sof! We made it to France! I know I was supposed to call you when we landed but I had to call you from our hotel because check this insane view out!" Lacie exclaimed as she panned over her phone to reveal the lavish greenery that surrounded their balcony.
I forgot to add that Lacie's new boyfriend was rich, the type of rich that went back generations and probably was related to royalty.
I smiled, "Wow that's beautiful Lace, I'm so jealous that I didn't go."
"You can still come you know I don't mind paying and it's not too late to sign up for the upcoming semester." Lacie insisted as her newly dyed blonde hair fluttered in the light breeze.
"No, it's fine. I'm holding it down here perfectly fine. Nothing has caught on fire yet." I joked earning a small laugh.
"I know, it just feel weird not having you here and on top of that I'm going to be missing your birthday." Lacie huffed as she made her way back into her room and flopped down in her bed.
I rolled your eyes, "Good we don't need a repeat of my 19th birthday. I still have no idea how the goat got inside and someone stole our pineapple that I got from that fancy farmers market."
Lacie smiled at the memory, "Yeah neither do I. But who cares about that, what am I going to do without my emotional support bestie! I'm meeting his parents here in two weeks and I'm literally going to puke. On top of that I'm starting school without you."
Little did she know, vomit was something I already had to clean up earlier in the night, "I'm sure you'll win them over just like you win everyone else over. Just give them that classic Lacie Barone charm." I said making Lacie scoff in annoyance over the phrase she hated but secretly loved.
"Well I'm about to crash so please stay safe and remember no opening the door to strangers." Lacie said in a flat tone making my nerves spike up again.
My body froze as my brain focused directly on Lacie's words, surely she hadn't found out? We had a Ring camera on our doorbell but Lacie was too lazy to install the app on her phone, but maybe she had in anticipation of her leaving for the semester.
"I'm kidding, you gotta get your bi weekly Papi's Pizza delivery somehow. Now take care Sof , I love you babe." Lacie called out as she blew a kiss.
My heart felt a pang of hurt seeing Lacie go so soon but right now my biggest concern was taking care of the frat guy with borderline alcohol poisoning on our couch.
"I love you too Lace, goodnight." I said as I nervously hung up the facetime call. My anxiety spiked as I was forced to turn my attention back to the stranger in her living room.
Nervously I poked my head from her room to find him completely passed out on the couch using my oversized school hoodie as a teddy bear, holding it in his arms for comfort. I sighed grabbing a blanket from the closet and draped it over his limp body making sure to leave a bottle of gatorade and tylenol on the table whenever he managed to wake up.
Just as I turned to rest for the night my foot ran into the damp pile of clothes the guy had brought with him. While picking up the wet shorts, a wallet falls out of the back pocket, creating a rather interesting dilemma.
Was it wrong to look through someone's personal property? Probably. But before I was anything in life, I was incredibly nosy.
While I briefly debated on the ethics of invading someone privacy, my curiosity won out as I shuffled through his wallet without a second thought. It was cluttered but what stuck out most was the two driver's license that looked like him but each with radically different states and birthdays.
One Jeremiah Fisher, from New York, age 19.
One Collin Arthur, from Ohio, age 23.
It didn't take long to deduce his true identity as the cheap laminate on the "Collin Arthur" license was peeling from the corner and his two credit cards deduced that he was indeed Jeremiah Fisher.
His phone was the next mystery to unlock but unfortunately it was dead as could be and potentially damaged from the rain. Giving up I sighed and plugged it into the charger next to the couch.
I took a deep breath as I walked back into my bedroom, making sure to lock the door. Even if I did know him in some capacity the thought of a serial killer still haunted the back of my mind. But for now all my unanswered questions would have to wait until the dreaded tomorrow. I just hoped if he had to throw up again he'd be able to make it back to the bathroom in time.
I tossed myself upon the bed and looked up at the ceiling and racked my brain on all the possible theories on the mystery that was Jeremiah Fisher.