George
What would have happened if my parents were with me?
I think to myself while watching my nails getting painted.
Tomorrow will be my party. I'm here at a spa with Aunt Liz. She said this is her gift to me. She'll be working tomorrow until midnight. So she wanted to celebrate it earlier.
She said she will be busy.
I'm used to it. I'm not mad at her. I'll never be mad at her about it. She's working and raising me at the same time. She doesn't have kids but she has been like a 'single mom' since I was four.
"I heard a couple found dead in the nearby park."
My thoughts are interrupted when the skinny lady in a black bob speaks. She is the one doing my foot massage.
"Yes, I am now afraid to go outside at night after hearing that," says the young lady in a curly blonde ponytail while massaging Aunt Liz's feet.
"Excuse me. What happened to the couple?" Aunt Liz asks.
"Well, there were no bruises or even bloodstains found. But, the authorities said they were dead," the bob-hair lady says.
"Hmmm," Aunt Liz nods.
"They were found dead about an hour ago. Goodness! It's really not safe nowadays," the blonde lady says.
"Wow! I'm like, I got ten years younger," Aunt Liz happily says while touching her face.
"Yeah," I smile. "As if that is possible."
I push the cart with ingredients inside. Aunt Liz looks at every mirror we passed by to check herself.
"You remember what we heard at the spa, right?"
I nod.
"Now, don't you ever go out without my permission, okay?"
"Aunt Liz, I'm not a kid anymore."
"Yeah, right," she chuckles. "You heard them. It's a couple. Probably they were only seven," she rolls her eyes.
"I'll go and buy some office supplies," Aunt Liz says.
I hum while I decided to look for a dress to wear for tomorrow.
"I'll message you once I'm done," she said.
"Okay then. I'll look for a dress to wear for tomorrow."
"There's nothing that I like here," I say as I walk on my exhausted feet.
I've been searching for the 'best dress' in every aisle. But, I haven't found the dress that wows me.
Ugh, I'm getting hungry.
"You know them? The couple?" the saleslady asks her coworker.
"Yes, the girl is my sister. I-I don't have any idea who would've done that to her—to them!" the sales lady with dyed hair says. She tries to stop herself from crying.
"Hmm, I hope that they punish the killer as soon as they find out, " I say to myself.
I talk to no one but myself, "Why would someone—"
Deep in my thought, I accidentally bump into someone.
"Oh... Sorry. Red?"
"Hey," he says with a poker face.
"What are you doing here?"
"Waiting for someone," he says and pushes his glasses to the bridge of his nose. "How about you?"
"I'm looking for a dress."
I am still confused about why Red walks beside me. I clear my thought. My eyes roam around the mall.
"Hmmm... Any suggestions?" I ask.
Well, I didn't really mean it. He is very quiet. He's just watching and following me around. We pass by a sports outfit section.
"How about that?" He asks while pointing at the black bikini.
What?
I look at him and roll my eyes.
I glare at him.
I dramatically gasp when a red halter dress caught my attention.
It has a minimalist design. The ruffles on the chest part of the dress are the only design it has. It has a slit on the side.
Wow, this is nice.
"Let's go. I got my dress."
We go to the cashier.
"Aren't we going home?" Jared asks.
"Go home by yourself. I didn't even know why you were walking beside me."
"You're walking around. Then, you'll stare at the random stuff. You'll check for its price and walk away," he complains.
"It's called window shopping."
"It's nonsense."
"Stop complaining and go ho—Woah!" I see a nice Grayish blue platform sneaker.
I take a closer look. A salesperson approaches me and asks for my foot size.
"I'm size 8... but I'm just checking it out."
"Oh," he nods and smiles.
I grab Jared's arm, "Let's go."
"I like those shoes. I'll save my money for that," I mutter.
"I'm going now," I say to him.
He nods and casually responds, "Okay, I'll be staying here for a while."
"I thought you wanted to go home?"
"No. I told you I am waiting for someone, haven't I? Window shopping is boring, that's why I said that."
"We were almost an hour walking together around the mall. Where is—"
"Stuck in the traffic jam," he cut my words. "She just texted me a while ago."
She? It must be Stacey.
I walk around the mall while I wait for Aunt Liz's message. I take the escalator and go to the ice parlor where I usually go.
"Wow, the place is full," I say while looking around the place with my hands holding the tray where my order is.
A couple prepares to leave at a table for two at the center of the Ice cream parlor. I focus my eyes on the two of them. The man notices my gaze, he smiles at me and gestures to the table. When they completely left, I walk and hold one of the chairs. Another person holds the other chair in front of me.
I lift my gaze and see a familiar face.
"You again," the redhead says.
"Hi," I say and sit.
"May I?" he asks and gestures to the chair he's holding.
"Sure," I say. I nod and smile.
We quietly eat at the busy ice cream parlor.
"Are you near this place?" he asks.
"Yep," I say while nodding.
"Are you on your own?" he asks.
"Oh," I take a last spoon of my chocolate ice cream. "I'm with my Aunt. I'm actually waiting for her message."
"I see," he nods and eats his cookies and cream ice cream. Aunt Liz messaged her.
Right after that, my phone vibrated. I look at the screen and see Aunt's message.
I lift my gaze to the man in front of me. "I'll go now," I say.
"I hope we'll meet again," Clarkson says before I left.
I give him a small smile before I leave. I furrow my eyebrows in confusion as I exit the ice cream parlor.
"It's been a while, my dear journal."
Flipping over my journal, I notice that I still have these several blank pages for June.
It's already July, Georgina. What happened to you?
"Hmm, okay. Where should I start?"
"A couple was found dead in a park."
I stop after hearing the news I've been waiting for.
"Julianna Loughty, age twenty years old, and Marcus Fernsby, age twenty-one years old, were found dead today, Saturday, July 11, 2020, at 5:38 in the afternoon. A street sweeper saw the couple at one of the lover's benches near the fountain."
I stand up to get a glass of water.
"At first, I thought they were just sleeping. I tried to wake them up. But when I came closer, their eyes were wide open. Their skin was pale. I immediately called the police. I-It was a horrible scene."
"According to the authorities, there were no bruises and wounds found on the bodies of the victim except to their necks. The police concluded that the victim's cause of death was Asphyxia."
I go back to the couch.
"This case is a tough one. Aside from asphyxiation, the loss of blood is also evident. There is no leading evidence found on the victims' bodies. We checked all of the CCTV recordings near the area. Unfortunately, " the police breathes out. "It seems like... they vanished."
"Vanished?" "I repeat and raise a brow.
I watch the saleslady I saw in the mall on the screen. She still wears her uniform.
'Caroline Loughty, sister of the victim.'
"She called me last Saturday night. She told me that she was with her boyfriend. She told me that I don't have to worry."
"I know that feeling," I sigh before I fix my gaze on my journal.
"Believe me! Those are some vampires! How do you think it's possible—"
I start writing in my journal while the TV is still on.
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