Page 49 of Creep

To understand that in a world filled with monsters, no one would ever protect her as well as I could.

I could just ask her now.

After all, she was awake.

16

LIA

I was frozen.

Scared shitless and not knowing what I could do.

He was back.

But instead of watching me shower from a small distance away, he was in my bed, holding onto me like lovers would, and he was quiet.

I didn’t know what he was thinking, nor did I want to know.

He tightened his arms around me marginally, and I let out a stuttered exhale.

In the face of danger, I didn’t fight, and I didn’t run. No, I froze.

And I was stuck frozen on my bed, praying he wouldn’t do anything more than hold me.

I closed my eyes. What would I do if he did something more?

Fuck.

How could I be so helpless?

And what should I do?

I didn’t know anymore. I wanted to turn around and ask him what he wanted from me. The words would not come, however, and a part of me was scared of what the answer might be.

Why me?

What had I done to catch his attention that he felt the need todothis to me?

Tears pricked at my eyes, and I closed them tightly shut, hoping this would be nothing more than a bad dream.

It was a bad dream.

It had to be.

* * *

I wokeup in fright to the blare of my alarm.

I blindly reached for my alarm clock, slamming it shut until the noise stopped, and I didn’t feel like my heart was about to fall out of my throat.

Disoriented, I looked around my room, myemptyroom, as last night’s memories rushed toward me.

It wasn’t a dream.

I knew that much, no matter how badly I had wished for it to be so.

My…stalkerhad snuck back into my apartment while I slept and gotten into bed with me and held me.

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