Just as Kitty had advised, you continued to keep entirely to yourself in the supposed safety of your own home. Though, deep down, a part of you knew that this wasn't the rational route to follow. Any normal person would have contacted the police on the night of the incident, but with no other friends or relatives to contact, Kitty had become your only beacon of light in the darkness. There was only his guidance to follow. And, in some respects, you felt relieved hearing him tell you not to go to the police and not to leave your house. It was exactly what you wanted to do. After all, he could be right. What if the killer was out there, watching and waiting for your next move. Eager to see if you will turn against him by reporting to the authorities. Your life may not be the best, but you didn't quite feel like ending things by becoming the title of the next shitty mukbang true crime video.

Unfortunately, even with Kitty's support, the panic didn't end. He did his best to comfort you, frequently calling you so you didn't feel completely alone in your self-isolation. His soothing voice would calm you temporarily but it was not enough to soothe the storm brewing in your mind. That paranoia. A sense that you were being watched from every corner. You emailed your professors, letting them know that you'd be off sick again due to a fever. They weren't too happy with this reply. Having been ill just a couple weeks prior, it was only natural that they'd be a little suspicious. However, they let it slide since you were mostly a good student.

As you rotted in bed, complete corpse mode, watching a string of cat videos Kitty had sent to cheer you up, you received a text message notification from an unknown number. Instantly, you sat up and rubbed your eyes, trying to blink it away as though it were a hallucination. It wasn't. Could this be from...?

You shivered. You didn't want to know. You didn't want to read it. Ignorance was bliss. And yet, you knew you had to. What if it was a warning? A message alerting you of his nearby presence? For the sake of survival, you knew you had to rip off the band aid and check what was going on. Swallowing anxiously, you opened up the text.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Unknown Number Hey, [Y/n]! It's me, Liam ^^ I'm texting you from my friend's phone

[Y/n] Liam, it's good to hear from you! I missed talking to you guys

Unknown Number Rlly? Oh wow Ngl I kinda thought u were upset at me or something. Cuz u just left the group chat and then blocked all of us. And then u didn't show up to class and we were all super worried.

[Y/n] That wasn't me. I wasn't the one who did that

Unknown Number ??? ... !!! Ohhh! Like split personality disorder. That's okay! My cousin's gf has DID! I don't mind. I just wanted to make sure ur okay! :)

[Y/n] What no I mean an actual other person I Listen, a lot has happened recently. But I don't want to spam your friend's phone.

Unknown Number Can I give u my number again? You can unblock it and tell me on there

[Y/n] Okay but don't tell anyone

Unknown Number Okay! 🐶

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

At first, you had only intended to give Liam the cliff notes of what was going on but as the two of you began talking, the story began to spill endlessly from your fingertips. You couldn't control yourself. Tears welled up in your eyes, blurring your vision as you recalled the entire traumatic event, listing every detail and emotion you could remember. Somehow telling Liam felt more cathartic than telling Kitty. Maybe it was because Liam was a real life friend.

Kitty was great at keeping you distracted from all the bad things going on in life but, at the end of the day, he was just a talking PNG behind a screen. Not a full person. An online persona with no real strings attached to your reality. Liam, on the other hand, existed in your world. You saw him nearly every day, felt his touch, and knew he was knowledgeable about the recent events in your town. Even if he wasn't the most mature or reliable person to discuss this with, you knew he was probably more suitable than Kitty. After explaining everything to him, you sat back in silence, hunched in the corner of the room like a hunch backed gremlin beneath your cape of blanket layers.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

Liam okholy shit this is srs have u gone to the police yet?!

[Y/n] No. But my online friend told me not to so now I am conflicted

Liam WHat Why would she say that?? Ik the police can be kinda dumb but we need to get this on record

[Y/n] Well my friend warned me saying that if the guy finds out I went to the police, he might target me

Liam Hmm... Idk that seems like scare mongering to me. I know ur friend probably means well! I don't mean to criticise them. But you might be putting yourself in even more danger by keeping this all to yourself.

[Y/n] I know you're probably right

Liam Are u nervous about going to the police?

[Y/n] I am. I know I shouldn't be but I get so anxious just thinking about it

Liam Hey, that's totally fine! Dw dw Want me to come with you? As morale support. I've been to station before so I kinda know how stuff is done

[Y/n] Oh?

Liam Waitwaitwaitwqaitjijesdionfiu I HAVEN'T BEEN ARRESTED I PROMISE. My friend's bike got stolen so he dragged me along with him as witness.

[Y/n] Did your friend manage to get his bike back

Liam No lmao

Liam Anywayyys would you like my company at the police station? We could go together this sat? ^^

[Y/n] Yes please. I really don't want to go But I'm going to make myself. I don't want that guy to hurt anyone else

Liam I believe in you, [Y/n].

𝘓𝘪𝘢𝘮 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦.



𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦.



▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃