Page 2 of Chase

Dad was furious. I don’t’ know if it was because I’d be so close to Canary Bay or if it was because he’d be losing his live-in babysitter.

Dad has never been present. Sure, he provides for us, but that’s about it. He left us at home with our alcoholic mother. He’s a police officer and has always worked nights, weekends, double shifts and even covered shifts in different towns in order to avoid being at home. Which meant not only did I raise myself, I had to raise Millie as well.

Mum would often take off for days at a time on a bender and then when she was home, she’d either be drunk or sleeping off a hangover.

I did everything I could to give Millie a normal life. She plays soccer, has friends and knows that I’ll always be there for her.

It was a difficult decision to make to choose a school so far away from home, I spoke with Millie about it for ages. She’s the one that encouraged me to go for it. I didn’t want to leave her behind, so Dad had two choices: either he stepped up and started being a dad or Millie would come with me, and he could just pay for all her expenses to live with me in New Hope. She’d be sixteen by the time I was planning on moving.

I really hoped he’d step up. He’s missed his chance at being a fatherly figure to me, but he still has time to be one for Millie.

I love him, but he stopped being my dad the week after Mum died and I realised that he was going to continue to be absent.

I always made excuses for him. I thought it was Mum he didn’t want to be around.

It was a bitter pill to swallow when nothing changed after she was gone.

It would be hard, but I knew we could make it work. She’s a good kid but Dad didn’t have an excuse to not be at home anymore. He needed to step up and be a dad. He still has a chance to have that relationship with Millie. She is fifteen, and she needs him. I will always love him, but he stopped being my dad when he started leaving us for longer periods of time.

We had been fighting about it for months. But after the incident, he decided it was a good idea to get a fresh start.

I feel guilty because Millie has been uprooted halfway through high school, but she promised me she was okay with it.

I only have two months of school left before I get to start making the plans for the move early next year. I’m not planning on making friends. I don’t really know how. Where Millie is a social butterfly, I’m the opposite. I’ve only really had one friend. My focus has always been Millie. Given that I only have a few months here, I’m kind of okay with not making friends.

I’ll try next year.

My phone vibrates in my pocket. My fingers are frozen, so in the struggle to get my phone from my pocket I drop Daisy’s lead.

“Shit” I mutter as I watch her take-off up a driveway. Ignoring the message, I follow her whisper yelling her name, trying not to wake up the neighbours. I turn the corner and freeze.

Daisy is sitting with her tail wagging; someone is crouched down patting her. I approach with caution, thankful that the sun has finally started to make an appearance and that it is no longer dark. Daisy starts licking playfully at the stranger’s face, and he laughs. I stop in my tracks again. The stranger’s laugh loosening some of the tension I didn’t even know I was holding.

Daisy doesn’t like strangers. It’s odd to see her so affectionate with someone she doesn’t know. They say a dog is a good judge of character.

I don’t think this guy is a serial killer.

But a girl can never be too careful.

“I’m so sorry, Daisy come here,” I say finding my voice. It comes out quiet and timid. I’m only this way in situations that make me uncomfortable or when I don’t know someone. I don’t need to advertise my awkwardness and scare someone off from the start. Daisy doesn’t listen. She continues her assault on the stranger.

Ever so slowly, he lifts his head, his hands stroking Daisy’s coat methodically. I take in his features; he has a strong jaw with a hint of facial hair. His dark hair hangs low but not quite covering his eyes. He flicks it back while his eyes slowly roam up my body. His features are hard, but his mouth turns up in a smirk.

“Uhh, what the fuck is on your pants?” He sounds like he just woke up, his voice rough and gravelly with a hint of amusement. I look down and realise I am still in my pink Disney princess pjs. I don’t really care. I would live in my pjs if I could. He leans forward trying to get a closer look.

“Are they princesses?” His voice is rough, but the amusement is clear now. He stands and Daisy sits by his feet.

Traitor.

She is supposed to protect me, not make friends with a stranger who could still be a serial killer. Ignoring his question about my pyjamas.

“Are you a serial killer?” I blurt out awkwardly. His eyes meet mine and I gasp. They’re a deep shade of blue. But that isn’t what has me gasping. His eyes are penetrating. I can feel them pushing their way inside of me, a sense of knowing and familiarity.

I feel like I have seen his eyes before.

I lose focus on everything around me. The only thing I can see is him. I catch an emotion flicker in his gaze, almost as if he feels this too.

It’s hard to explain. I can’t look away; I don’t want to look away. Our eyes stay locked in a silent battle, neither of us wanting to break the connection.

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