Valerie Lives in Dreams

CHAPTER 5

I entered the restaurant and was immediately approached by a tall brunette waiter with an intimidatingly straight posture.
This guy looked really familiar. I think I saw him at my school.
“Hey! How can I help you?”
“Table for one, please!”
“Right here!”
I got seated and started looking through the menu.
“What would you like?”
“Can I get the famous left bank burger and fries?" I pointed at the menu.
“What’s your name?” The guy gave me a friendly smile.
“Mary Grace," I politely smiled back.
“I’ll be right back.”
I started to fiddle with my fingers, wondering what the girl had meant.
What was she saying? What does it’s going to be you not her mean?
“Here you go!” he interrupted my thought process.
“Huh," I snapped out.
Keep it together! I thought to myself.
“Your burger!" he said.
“Oh, right! Thank you so much!”
“I’m Alex! You must be new here. I haven’t seen you at this restaurant before!”
“Yeah! We moved here a couple of months ago and I go to Miller High School now!”
“I go there too! I work here on weekday nights and on weekends!”
I gave him a big smile.
“Welcome here, then… even though it’s a little late!" he chuckled and his dark eyes smiled as well.
“Well, thanks, Alex! I have a question. You wouldn’t know anything about the Stuarts, Miller, and this sort, you know, would you?" I glanced up at him, maintaining eye contact, as I munched on my burger.
Oh, so this was Alex. That guy from school that Hannah is friends with.
“I’d say I would. The Stuarts were a really wealthy, high-status, and respected family here and they had a grudge or something with Miller. They were against his ways of making money and stuff. Miller murdered them all. People say Miller still lives here and the dark mist that remains on top of the city is because of him.”
My eyes widened at this. How does he know all this?
”Thank you, Alex!" I said in shock.
”No problem!”
“Would you mind if I ask for your number?”
“Of course not!" he said as he told me his number and I entered it into my phone.
Why did you ask the nice guy for his number?
I’m sure it’s for professional reasons (?)
I finished my meal and made sure to leave a big tip.
I went around asking a lot of people what they knew about Miller and the Stuarts, but people refused to tell me anything. I suddenly felt the presence of someone other than me
. I ignored my gut feeling and kept walking.
Was someone following me?
I didn't realize that I was in the dark woods now. I saw an old man sitting on a small sheet.
"Hello, who are you?" I asked the old man, trying to smile politely.
"Oh, I am just an ordinary man who ended up here after losing everyone, everything. But why are you here, my dear?"
"Oh, I am just here in search of answers."
"What kind of answers, my dear?"
"The Stuart family, now I know they were killed by a man named Miller, but I want to learn how to free their souls." I replied.
"You shall find out."
I stuttered for a moment and inquired. "I need to know how to free their souls or avenge them."
Utter silence occurred from the old man.
"So do you know anything about freeing souls or not?"
"Unfortunately, my dear, I can't help you with this, but I know someone who can."
"Tell me!"
"I will not want to disrupt the balance between nature and magic; therefore, I shall leave it to the forces of nature to cross your path with whoever shall be of help to you. You won't understand but go ahead now."
I sighed. "It was nice meeting you, goodbye!" I forced a smile as I held myself back from rolling my eyes at him out of respect. I turned around immediately and started fast-walking.
He was of no use. Just an old man using fancy vocabulary to sound smart. What a waste of my time.
I made my way out of the forest, asking people that I saw if they knew anything about the Stuart family or freeing their souls. Suddenly I saw out of the corner of eye that there was a person who seemed to have been following me.
I turned around and immediately went, “Hey! Do you know-” but I couldn’t complete my question because no one was there.
That’s not possible.
Someone was definitely there.
Someone was following me…