Tate
I spent the next twenty minutes staring at the reservation list. Focusing on the name Harry Styles. Assuring myself that he did in fact exist, and wasn't just a figment of my imagination. Perhaps I freaked him out, staring at him the way I did. It was a bit of a stretch, but I was running out of reasons for why he disappeared the way he did.
We have had guests in the past who have had to cancel, but it was usually before they got to the restaurant, and they definitely didn't just leave as he did.
The restaurant is pretty much empty now, minus a few people at the bar, sipping on the last few drops of their drinks, savoring each taste. There's a couple, giggling about something, and a man, sitting by himself, twirling his straw in his glass. He looked familiar, but I couldn't quite figure out why.
The couple began to stand up, the man grabbing his girlfriend's coat, slipping it over her shoulders, and smiling down at her. She leaned her head against him for a moment. It was a sweet sight. They made their way towards the front door, both of them thanking me and wishing me a good night, which I returned.
The only person left was the man that I thought I recognized. He suddenly looked up, as if he realized he was now alone. He looked down at his glass one more time like he expected it to magically refill itself, but alas, it didn't. He grabbed his phone and wallet off of the bar counter, and stood up, getting ready to leave. I took that as my cue that it was time to leave as well, seeing as there was nothing else for me to do.
I reached up to the hook on the wall and grabbed my coat, shrugging it on and then picked up my purse. Taking a final glance around the desk to see if I had left something behind. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the man, and I turned to him expectantly.
He looked like he wanted to say something to me, but he was hesitant.
"Can I help you, sir?" I asked, wondering if perhaps he recognized me as well.
"I'm sorry, I was just wondering, do you by any chance live in the Lotus apartment complex a few blocks down? I feel like I have seen you there before."
The Lotus apartment complex was one of the nicest ones in town, and it was no surprise that a man that could afford to eat here would be living there. For me, however, it was like a dream come true. The only reason I even had the privilege of living there was because my mother worked there as a maid.
I sighed in relief, glad that I wasn't losing my mind, as I feared I was after my encounter with Harry and his dissapearing act.
I gave him a warm smile. "Yes! I do! I thought you looked familiar!"
He looked just as relieved as me, maybe even more so.
"Oh, wonderful! I'm James, James Collins," he replied cheerfully.
"Nice to properly meet you, James! I'm Tate Bridges!" I smiled, extending my hand which he accepted, shaking it firmly, before retracting his arm.
I was expecting that to be the end of our conversation, but he remained where he stood, looking antsy.
"Is there something else, sir?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow.
He ran a hand through his hair and blew out a puff of air.
"Listen, this is going to sound strange, but I was wondering if you would allow me to walk back to the apartment building with you? I don't want to-" he paused briefly as if he was catching himself from saying something.
"I, uh, I don't want a young girl like you to have to walk home by yourself in the dark. It's not safe to be out there alone at night."
I paused for a moment, debating on if it was a good idea or not. He seemed like a nice enough man, if he didn't live in the same building as I did.
After turning the idea around a few times in my mind, I finally opened my mouth to answer.
"Sure, why not?"
He looked so relieved at my answer, which was odd to me, but I tried not to overthink it too much, it was just a couple of blocks, I didn't see a huge problem with it.
"Right then!" He chirped, opening the door to the restaurant for me. "Let's be on our way then!"
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Harry
I was growing tired of sitting in the car, my legs desperately needing to be stretched after being confined for so long. I knew that the restaurant closed at 10:30, which meant that she should be coming out any time now. It suddenly dawned on me that I hadn't caught her name, but I suppose it didn't matter too much, I just needed to get the knife, and that'd be the last I'd see of her, no need for formalities.
Moments later, I saw the door to the restaurant swing open, and she walked out, holding her arms tightly around herself, taken aback by the cold air.
"Finally," I mumbled to myself, turning off the car and reaching towards the door handle, eager to finally stand up.
My actions are halted however when I see another figure exit the door after her.
I furrowed my brows, utterly and completely confused.
"James?" I asked aloud, to no one in particular.
Sure enough, as they walked further down the street, the glow of the streetlights revealed his stout body, walking side by side with her. They were having a laugh, he seemed to be telling her a story, I watched as she threw her head back in laughter, sending puffs of hot breath into the cold night air.
How did they know each other? I thought, trying to put together a puzzle of which I had no pieces.
I wondered if they knew each other through work, maybe she was a part of Grayson's gang, and working at the restaurant was just a front she used to hide her real occupation. Maybe she was in on something I had yet to know about, maybe her finding my knife was planned... or maybe they were just friends, although after being in my field of work for so long it was hard for me to register that two people could have a relationship without one of them having an ulterior motive.
I shook my head, ridding myself of the thought. I was being paranoid.
I turned on the car again, and slowly pulled out of my parking space, following them, but making sure to keep my distance. They walked for a few more blocks before turning down a corner, heading down the road a little further before entering James' apartment complex.
This caused my suspicions to slowly creep back into my mind. They began to take over, and I was growing angry. I didn't want to report anything to Whit without confirming anything though, this was something I had to find out for myself.
And I planned to, tomorrow night. Where I would finally get her alone, getting back my knife, and the truth.
**************
Tate
James was funny, he told me stories that made me laugh until I felt like I was about to cry. I felt perfectly safe walking back home with him, and to be honest, it was nice to have someone to walk with for once.
His conversation was enough to distract me from the freezing cold, and made the journey back home feel much shorter than normal.
Despite the pleasantness of our walk, I had an eerie feeling, looming over me, for reasons that I couldn't even begin to explain.
I looked around as we walked, about to turn onto the street that lead to our apartment building. I saw nothing.
I tried to brush it off, and to focus on James and the story he was telling me, something about one of his friends back in university accidentally releasing all of the frogs they had for a disection into the hallways, and how it took weeks for all of them to be found, and once again, I felt very thankful that I wasn't alone.
Because no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't seem to shake the feeling that I was being watched.
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AN: DOUBLE UPDATE WOOHOOOOOOOO! I hope you guys like this, and Chapter 7 should be up soon. I need to get some work done, but if time permits I will post it tonight, if not, then keep your eyes open for it tomorrow! The song I paired with this chapter is Lurk by the neighbourhood! Don't forget to vote and comment and let me know what you think of the story so far! Thanks a million!! Xx