Wish (Wishing Well #1)

Chapter 8

If Emily had any doubt before she got to work that she looked terrible, the horrified look on Angela's face was a dead giveaway. Angela tried to school her features back into a pleased expression, but it was too late. Giving up the pretense of being perky, Emily slumped into her chair as soon as she got behind the circulation desk. She dropped her purse, kicking it under the desk rather than putting it in the cabinet and proceeded to thunk her head down on the desk, groaning. Emily was thankful that she and Angela were the two that always opened the library, and that no one else was there yet. The man couldn't have called again last night since she blocked him, but Emily had been so paranoid she hadn't been able to fall asleep. If he has my number, maybe he knows where I live to, she had thought, undoing any of the work she had done to calm herself enough to sleep. Eventually, sleep had taken over and she'd gotten a few fitful hours of sleep before she needed to get up to come in for her shift.

"Uh," Angela started, obviously unsure how to handle the mess that was Emily this morning. Emily looked her head to the side to stare up at Angela, who had hoisted herself up onto the desk beside her. Emily blinked up at Angela, her mind still somewhat foggy from the miniscule amount of sleep she'd gotten the night before. Truthfully, she was so tired she had considered calling and telling Angela she was sick and couldn't come in. Her anxiety and need to be around someone that made her feel safe had overridden her exhaustion in the end.

"It was a very, very long night," Emily said in the most monotone voice that Angela had ever heard. "There is not enough coffee in the world to make me feel awake and alive."

Angela reached out and patted her shoulder sympathetically. It was in Angela's nature to make jokes and good naturedly tease Emily, but as much as she wanted to embarrass her friend and ask if her long night had to do with Jimin there was something in Emily's expression that made her think this wasn't the time.

"Is everything okay?" she asked Emily, voice full of concern. Emily rolled her head again so that she was face down on the desk.

"No," came her muffled reply. Angela could hear the emotion clogging her throat and scooted off the edge of the desk kneeling by Emily, rubbing circles on her back.

"What happened, Em? Did he do something to you?" Angela asked, a sense of unease settling over her. Emily didn't usually like to let on if she was having a problem, preferring to try and solve her problem herself before "potentially burdening someone else with her issues" as she had phrased it before. Some of the nervous tension unwound from Angela's gut when Emily shook her head. Angela was about to probe for more information when Emily sat up, turning the chair so she was facing Angela head on. Angela rocked back onto her heels, giving her some space. Emily reached up and wiped the tears from her cheeks, sniffling hard. She took a couple of deep breaths, trying to regain her composure.

"I had a lot of fun with Jimin last night," Emily said, pausing to collect her thoughts. As much as she didn't want to discuss this and make it real she knew that if some creep was stalking her she was going to need help and there wasn't anyone else nearby that she trusted more than Angela. Taking a deep breath, she started again, "When I got home last night I got a call. I answered it without checking the ID so at first I thought it was you or maybe I'd gotten disconnected until I checked the display and saw a number I didn't recognize. I don't know who it was, Angela, but they have the most threatening laugh I've ever heard in my life."

Emily's eyes started to fill with tears again. She felt so utterly powerless and completely stressed by this whole ordeal. "I blocked his number, but I'm terrified about how he got my number in the first place. If he has that, does he know where I live, too?? Am I even safe at home?"

Angela wasn't sure what she had been expecting for Emily to tell her, but she hadn't been expecting this. Angela pondered the situation for a moment while Emily grabbed some tissues and cleaned her face up again. On the one hand, Emily was completely justified in feeling freaked out by this. Emily was a cautious person and the only people that would typically have her number were the people she'd given it to. She could understand why Emily was so upset, not to mention her anxiety had surely grasped this whole situation and blown it into something bigger than it might actually be. Realistically, it didn't have to be some super creep stalking her, it could just be some brat that was prank calling random numbers and giving people a hard time.

Since Emily had blocked the number odds were that if it was the prank calls she wouldn't be having anymore issues. If it was the stalker though. . . Angela forced herself not to consider that option. There had only been once incident so it most likely wasn't that. There wasn't anyone Angela could think of that would want to torment Emily, most people really liked her. Some people thought her friendliness at the circulation desk was fake, or that her shyness was her being a snob, but the people who really knew her knew better than that. Angela nodded firmly to herself, sure of what she was going to tell Emily.

"Em, I'm really glad you shared that with me," Angela started. "I can understand why you're so freaked out by that. I know with your anxiety that must have made for a rough night. I think everything is probably going to be okay though." Emily quirked an eyebrow at her, disbelief evident on her face.

"Hear me out," Angela said. "You don't give your number out willy-nilly to just anybody, and your friends know you well enough to know that they shouldn't give your number out without asking you first." Emily nodded in agreement, recognizing the truth in Angela's words. "I know you won't be thrilled at the thought, but I really think some jerk was prank calling random numbers and yours happened to be one of the lucky few."

Emily scrunched her nose in distaste, thinking about what Angela said. It made sense that someone could have prank called her, as annoying as the idea of that was. She didn't give her number out to just anyone so the possibility of some creep weaseling it out of someone that did have her number was slim to none. Though her anxiety was still telling her she definitely had a stalker, she chose to do her best to ignore it and listen to the logical reasoning Angela had presented her with.

Angela watched as Emily worked through what she'd told her. She considered telling her that if anything else happened she should tell her, but she didn't want to undo any of the potential good she'd done with her talk. When Emily looked at Angela again, Angela could see the resolve in her friend's eyes. Emily was going to trust logic rather than her anxiety. Recognizing that now she could give the girl a hard time, she waggled her eyebrows at Emily.

"So, tell me about your time with Jimin."

A/N I don't know about you guys, but I'm really excited about this story and where it is headed!  Love ya'll!

Also I'm blown away that Wish has almost 200 reads!! Thanks guys!!