Fallen Raine {Completed}

Chapter Eighteen - You've Got The Wrong Idea, Buddy

“Hey, Steve, you wanna help me get some food?” I asked the middle-aged man, taking pity on him. He looked so sad and lonely, and I had to do something.

   Ever since we had talked, he had been sitting in that exact same spot, staring at a mysterious place on the plaster wall. It seemed like we both needed a break from standing out here worrying for our lives. I could just imagine how much his thoughts would be devoted to his family. We both needed a break from reality.

   There was no one else I was in the mood to go with, and I couldn’t go alone. Each other time I had gone I had almost given myself a heart attack, and I wasn’t doing it again. It was too hard all of the other times and I’d rather not be scared half to death, and paranoid at every creak and noise.

   Steve looked up and nodded. “Yeah, we need to talk, anyway.”

   I frowned but didn’t question it. Had I done something wrong? Was something up? Was everything okay? Surely he couldn’t still think I was the killer, right? I wondered what he wanted, but pushed it to the back of my mind. I’d find out as soon as we were away from the group.

   I followed him into the backroom of one of the fast food stores that we had not yet ransacked, and started searching through all of the foods. There wasn’t really much there. For food stores, they really weren’t all that well stocked. It was incredible they hadn't run out already.

   In the end I grabbed some dry noodles and some sodas from the fridge. It wasn’t much, but then again I didn’t really have much to go on.  

   “I think this is really all we can get,” I said, scanning the shelves for any more food. Most of the stuff were things like frozen fries and frozen pies and sausage rolls and spring rolls. “So, you wanted to talk?”

   I spun around, and yelped in surprise as I came face-to-face with Steve, who was standing so close to me we were almost touching. He had crept up to me when I had my back turned, and my throat caught at the closeness. I gulped. I could feel the heat radiating off of his body and towards me, but pushed it back.

   His chapped lips pulled up into a smile, revealing white, slightly crooked teeth. “I know why you brought me here, Raine.”

   “Um… okay,” I said unsurely. How the hell was I supposed to reply to a sentence like that? Yeah, you looked lonely as hell and I took pity on you?

   He took a small step forward, and I ducked out from under him, uncomfortable at the close proximity. He followed me, until I was fetched up against a bench. He came ever closer, until I could smell his breath and see every vein in his eyes.

   And, yes, it was as disgusting as it sounded.

   “Steve,” I said quietly, gesturing to the distance—or lack thereof—between us. “Can you maybe step back? You’re kind of a little bit close there.” I faked a laugh so I didn’t sound rude. Maybe he was just one of those people that didn’t get the concept of personal space. But I was one of those girls who felt awkward when people were too close.

   Steve chuckled, a deep, gruff sound that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. “It’s okay, you don’t have to be shy now. I just want you to know, I understand completely, Raine.”

   “What?” I breathed out, feeling my stomach slosh and lurch.

   He leaned forward and caught a lock of my dark hair in his fingers, his chubby fingers lightly brushing my cheek and making me shiver for all of the wrong reasons. “A beautiful, intelligent girl like you, surrounded by immature boys your age. I can see why you’d want to be with someone older. And, you know what, Raine? That’s perfectly okay, and completely understandable.”