A/N: Hi, take a look at the pic above. 👆 It's going to pop up in the chapter. There's also some very mild smut in this one so consider yourself warned.
"I hope you're kidding me," I murmur tiredly into the receiver. Ever since the disastrous meeting with H, I've been on edge. This news is probably the last thing I could possibly need right now.
"I wish I was."
"But he's okay, right? Sal, tell me he's fine," I feel myself start to panic.
"Yeah, he's all good, I promise," she reassures me. "He got admitted for one night of observation, that's all. The doctor insisted on doing a CT scan to make sure he doesn't have a concussion. He hit his head pretty badly…"
I frown, running a trembling hand down my face. Just when I thought this week couldn't get any worse, this shit happens. "Can you please tell me how it all went down again… in detail this time?"
"Okay, but please don't freak out…" she starts to which I just groan in annoyance, because this is definitely not the kind of thing you should say to someone whose mind is already in shambles. "Paps were all over the LAX when I came to pick Asa up last night. He didn't want us to be tailed, so he asked me to circle around the city a couple of times before dropping him off at the hotel. I guess he thought they'd get bored and find someone else to follow after a while."
"This is all my fault…" I whisper.
Asa is quite a well-known face himself, but the only reason paparazzi would be so aggressive in their pursuit of him is because of our association. Most of these photographers are nothing but blood-thirsty vultures hoping to snap an embarrassing picture of me, and their best bet to achieve that is by following somebody I know. And since Asa is pretty much the most prominent 'public' friend I've had for years, he's currently become the top target on their radar.
"Stop. He knows it's out of your control, okay? He doesn't blame you," Sally says gently in an effort to comfort me, before continuing the story, "Eventually, after driving around for some time, we decided to wait these bastards out in some secluded alley. Asa got out of the car just for a minute to stretch his legs, and that's when this guy approached him."
"Did he see his face? I mean, he must have glimpsed at least something," I remark hopefully.
"No. He was approached from behind, and besides, it all happened so fast… One minute he was all alone having a smoke, and the next someone was pushing him against the wall. His head hit the wall real hard, which made him way too dizzy to focus. I didn't even register anything had happened until I saw Asa laying on the ground in the rearview window. I was so fucking scared."
"What did he want anyway? Cash?" I ask.
"No… that's the worst part. But maybe we shouldn't discuss it over the phone. We'll both come over to see you once he's discharged."
"What the hell, Sally? You can't say shit like that and expect me to stay calm," I erupt. "Just tell me what the hell is going on."
I can hear her exhale loudly before she says, "It wasn't about Asa."
"What?" I ask dumbly.
"This guy, he didn't do it because of Asa. Before I spooked him off, he had left something behind. I damn near had a heart attack when I saw it. Here… let me send you a picture."
She goes quiet for a moment and I'm left waiting with a pounding heart until my phone finally lights up with an incoming message. It takes me a moment but once I finally register what I'm looking at, I nearly gasp out loud. It's a printed out note, written in one of those creepy stalker fonts you usually see in movies, not real life. As I read through the message, I finally understand why Sally is so stressed out.
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The Fence || h. s.
Fanfiction"Cherry, is that you?" She loves late-night jogging, and his beach house happens to be on the way. Separated by a six feet tall fence, they both have no idea who the other is. Will their chance encounter grow into something bigger? Or was this biza...
