HELP WANTED ¤ harrison osterfield [hiatus]

0.3

Her first time back at the coffee shop after that night scared her.

She was nervous, always checking behind her shoulder, the sound of crunching glass below her feet always a constant reminder.

Everytime someone sat something down, she flinched, receiving pitiful looks from her superiors. The stress of being back was too much, leaving her to lean against the wall in shock.

After some time, Mrs. Richardson came up beside her, laying a hand on Y/N's shoulder. "I'm sorry, hun. You shouldn't have had to go through this."

Y/N sucked in a deep breath, and shook her head. "You're supposed to be mad at me. I'm the one who's supposed to be apologizing, not you."

The older woman gave her a comforting pat on the back. "None of this was your fault, dear. Why don't you go on home, yeah? Relax. I'll call you if we need you."

Y/N nodded, arms wrapped around her middle. "Okay... I'll-um-I'll just..." She gathered the stuff she'd left there : a now ruined coffee cup - a gift from the Richardson's when she'd first started working there - and her specially decorated apron. The fabric was worn, and now dirty, containing little rips in the seams.

Things that made her happy, that were all ruined in one night. A night that had left her stunned, and had possibly put her out of a job in less than twenty four hours. Y/N sighed, pushed the glass doors of the shop open, and walked out.

The walk home was long, and she tried to hurry, still on edge. She was completely drowned in her thoughts, minutes away from her home, when she bumped into someone.

"Sorry!"

The man in front of her smiled politely, a singular curl dangling in front of the tanned skin of his forehead. His brown eyes weren't trained on Y/N, however. They were behind her, narrowed.

When she turned around to see who or what it was, all she noticed was a black SUV, windows tinted. It was parked at the curb, waiting, and the engine was still running.

And when she looked back in front of her, the man was gone.

¤¤¤

The week after that passed quickly, as she got sucked back into her everyday life.

Y/N saw more of the man that she had bumped into, but he never came too close. He was there when she was at work, always sipping from a cup of coffee or eating a donut. His eyes never left her. She was too scared to ask for his name, or why he was watching her. All she knew was that he never went away.

She still found herself slipping back into a state of terror at the little things : screeching tires, loud voices, bangs.

When she wasn't busy with that or helping clean up the shop, she was thinking of him. As funny as it was, she couldn't help it. He was a killer.

There was no way she could even imagine how many people's lives he had ended with a single thought, and yet she was intrigued by him. She wanted to see him again.

Her wish was granted a few days later. Y/N was home, after a long day of helping around her job. She kicked off her shoes by the door, before locking it and securing the door chain.