Choose (A Choose Your Own Story Adventure)

30. Believe Craig

Mia nods. "It's a cool theory. It could be possible."

"You think so?" Craig's eyes light up.

"Sure, it's not too far-fetched." She shudders. "Though really creepy if it's true."

He shakes his head. "Don't think too much about it. It's just a theory."

She doesn't think about it for the rest of the night. Craig and Mia spend another few hours talking, eating, and watching the second movie that John puts on. Mia only realizes a little after midnight that she has work tomorrow and should probably get enough sleep to survive.

"How are you getting home?" Mia asks Craig. He seems disappointed that Mia's leaving, but he doesn't pressure her to stay.

"I'm only a block away, so I just walked here," he says. "Do you have a ride home?"

Mia hesitates to respond. She doesn't really want to ask Terry for a ride home. She hasn't talked to him all night, so it seems wrong to ask for a favor. "Therese will probably give me a ride." Therese won't be happy that she's being pulled away from Haley, but she'll understand.

She ends up being more than happy to give Mia a ride. Therese and Haley are planning to go to Therese's house, anyway, so driving Mia home will just be on the way. "We need to grab our things, so wait by the door for us, okay?" Therese tells Mia. Haley and Therese leave into another room to collect their bags.

Craig, who has been standing next to Mia the entire time, clears his throat. "So, I'll see you at work?"

"Oh," Mia blinks. "Yes...yeah, of course. Maybe we can go get lunch together some time, too."

He nods, smiling. "I'd like that."

A silence lingers between them. Craig scratches the back of his neck. "I don't want to be sudden, but would you like to have dinner some time, too?"

Mia's stomach flips. A smile uncontrollably invades her face. "Yes, I'd love to."

They exchange numbers. John comes over to talk to Craig again, inviting him to play a game with everyone else. He offers it to Mia, too, but she explains that she's leaving soon. Craig waves goodbye to Mia before leaving with John. She is left alone.

"Hey." Mia looks up and fights back a groan. Terry is leaning on the wall next to Mia. Who knows how long he's been there for. "Haven't talked to you all night."

"Yeah..." Mia laughs nervously. "I'm just about to head out."

His brows raise in shock. "Already?"

"Yep."

"...Are you leaving with that new guy?"

"What? No, I'm leaving with Therese."

He doesn't seem to hear her. He looks over at the group huddled at a table playing beer pong. He huffs and turns back to Mia. "Why are you bothering to hang out with that guy? He's a jerk. I mean, did you see how he ignored John earlier? Not cool."

Mia wants to laugh but she is so angry that she can't muster it. She bares her teeth, trying to hold back from screaming at him. Terry really couldn't be any worse than he is. Mia can't believe that those words actually came out of his mouth. "Craig is deaf, Terry."

Terry seems taken aback by her words. He tries to respond, but ends up frozen, his jaw hanging. His face grows pink. His embarrassment satisfies Mia. Good. He deserves it.

"Mia, I'm sorry, I—"

"Alright, I'm ready, let's go." Therese links her arm with Mia's. She gives Terry a dirty look before smiling at Haley, grabbing her hand. She pulls the two girls out the door.

Mia looks back at Terry. He is still standing there, clearly conflicted with himself. Mia shakes her head. "Don't apologize to me, apologize to him. Have a good night."

Mia sits in the back of Therese's car. Her friend quickly starts her car, jolting the three forward. "Jeez, Mia, sorry we took so long. If I knew that creep would be there, I would've just left my purse."

Mia shakes her head. "It's not your fault."

She stays silent for the rest of the car ride. Therese and Haley talk together, laughing at each other's silly jokes and excitedly sharing stories. Mia would listen in to try to find something to tease Therese about the next day, but she's too exhausted to. She just stares out the window, trying to keep her heavy eyelids open.

Therese and Haley say a brief goodbye while Mia is getting out of the car before driving off. Mia walks into her house. Her feet feel like weights as she drags them across the floor. Benjamin is sleeping in the middle of the floor. She carefully steps over her dog and heads into the bathroom to brush her teeth.

Mia is horrified to see her distraught reflection in the mirror. Her hair is messy and her shirt is halfway tucked into her pants. Hopefully she didn't look like that all night. How did Craig manage to put up with it?

Craig. Even the thought of his name makes Mia smile. She has never had such a lovely night with someone before. She feels like they know everything and nothing about each other. She feels like they talked forever and not at all.

Either way, it had been magical.

On cue, her phone beeps and Craig's name pops up on her screen. The night just got so boring without you, the message reads. And I swear John's repeating movies now.

Mia giggles. Maybe you'll have even better commentary the second time, she replies. Mia then puts the phone down and picks up her toothbrush.

She stares in the mirror while brushing her teeth. Looking at her reflection reminds Mia of the theory Craig shared with her earlier that night. A sudden wave of paranoia overwhelms her. To calm her nerves, she leans closer to the mirror. She doesn't expect to see anything, but she wants to make sure to clear the thought.

She gasps and backs away from the mirror. She closes her eyes and shakes her head. She's just seeing things, it's the reflection of the light.

Mia checks again to make sure. Once again, in the corner of her pupil, she sees a blue light.

Mia runs out of the restroom and into her bedroom. She picks up her phone, which is resting on her bed. "I need to text Craig," she mutters under her breath, frantically trying to open her phone. "I...I need to tell him..."

She opens his contact. Her finger lingers on the message icon. Should she tell him? Earlier he had called it "just a theory." Could she just be seeing things? If so, Craig will think she's crazy. She could cause him to run away and lose one of the best people she has ever met.

Craig seems like an understanding guy, though. He might be willing to help her. She won't know until she tries. She stares at the screen. Should she text him?

Clearly Mia is just seeing things because of how tired she is. It isn't something that she should bother Craig about. If she goes to sleep, she'll forget all about the ridiculous theory by the morning.

Text Craig ... Chapter 36

Don't Text Craig ... Chapter 37