Page 32 of Killer Summer
With every anxious pulse that throbbed between her eyes, her anger at the man who had ruined her life only grew. Why did these internet randos feel the need to torture her? Why bring up the past again? Maybe this was really the end of it, and Vickers and the other inmates were dead at the bottom of some ravine. Even though the police weren’t doing jack shit to protect her, Dani had once again taken care of the problem on her own. Why didn’t she feel at ease though?
She needed to calm down. It was only normal; after being in an altercation like that, anyone would feel nervous. She needed sugar, fat, and salt; something delicious to help her feel better and boost her serotonin levels, and she needed to do it before night fell. But what if Tyler wasn’t working alone? What if he had already doxed her online, and an army of angry men were on their way to expose her, to harass her, or worse? Dani knew if she was out after dark, her safety would be even more compromised than normal. She considered the possibility of leaving town right then and there, but she was in no state to make the twelve hour drive across state lines. She needed one last night of rest to clear her head and think.
It would be easy enough for Dani to say goodbye to this false life she had created. She never wanted to be a self-contained, neurotic loner. This hard, closed-off persona wasn’t really her; it was who Matt Vickers shaped her to be. Her real life, the one she was always meant to live, waited for her on the other side of the state line, high up in the north Georgia mountains. She would put in her notice at the school, put her house up on the market and fall off the grid, just as she had always planned. Shehad managed to cosplay as Danielle Spencer all these years, but she knew when to call it quits. It was time for a new beginning somewhere far, far away.
Dani pulled into the grocery store parking lot near her college and parked, every cell in her body buzzing. She rarely visited this shopping plaza, especially during the school year. It was best not to patronize restaurants or businesses near campus unless she was on her lunch break so she could avoid the awkwardness of running into a student. That night, she didn’t care about the store’s proximity to the college. Even if she did run into a student, it wouldn’t matter; Dani doubted she would ever set foot back on campus ever again.
She scanned the shopping plaza parking lot as she exited her car, on the lookout as always for figures lurking in the shadows. Dani gripped her keys in her hand like makeshift Wolverine claws and walked through the automatic double doors. She was greeted with a blast of arctic air conditioning as Phil Collins crooned over the intercom and her shoulders tensed. Phil was right. Shecouldfeel something in the air that night.
Dani grabbed a basket with a trembling hand and made a beeline for the potato chip aisle. She mindlessly reached for a bag of extra crunchy sour cream and onion chips, her body on autopilot as she wandered toward the bakery for her next score; two dozen chocolate chip cookies and an entire key lime pie. She loaded the treats into her basket and paused at the wall of wine on her way to the checkout line. She picked up a bottle of pinot noir and then put it back. Even though Dani wanted to properly celebrate her decision to leave her job and blow up her entire life, she still needed to stay sober and sharp.
“Looks like somebody is having a party.”
Dani gasped and turned at the voice. She placed a hand on her chest, and her alarm instantly melted into pure embarrassment.
“Oh my gosh. Ethan. Hi.”
“Sorry if I startled you,” he said, pushing a pair of dark-framed glasses up the bridge of his nose. The glasses must have been a new back to school addition. The thick frames made him look even more adorable and professor-like somehow.
She blushed despite herself. “It’s okay, I’m just beat. First day back is always tough.”
“Yeah, no kidding. I was just about to drown my sorrows too.” Ethan plucked a bottle of chianti from the wall. An expensive bottle.
She glanced in his basket and spied a package with two steaks and a bagged salad. “Looks like you’ve got a date, too.”
“Nah, just me. Apparently a guy can’t just buy a single steak around here.” Ethan scoffed. “I guess chianti would pair well. What were you going to get?”
“Oh, I changed my mind.” Dani let out a nervous laugh. “I mean, I was going to, but I figured it would be better if I didn’t drink alone.”
“Maybe you just need some company then.” Ethan held up his basket. “You like steak?”
“Oh! Oh no, I couldn’t.” Heat rose to her cheeks. “I wouldn’t want to impose.”
Ethan glanced down at her over the top of his glasses, his lips curled into a playful smile. “It’s not an imposition. Come on, you can help catch me up on all of the office gossip.”
“Thank you. I want to, but …”
“But what?”
“I’m kind of a homebody. I don’t normally go to strange men’s homes. Alone.”
“Am I that strange?” Ethan frowned.
“You are.” She smiled. “In a good way.”
“What if I come over and cook at your place then?”
Dani blushed and flicked her gaze to the ceiling in thought. She knew what it meant to invite a man over to her house,especially a man who wanted to cook for her. It had been a long time since she had been with anyone, and she was admittedly infatuated with her colleague. And she was lonely. So lonely. After her altercation that afternoon, she didn’t want to be alone either. But her stalker was behind bars, and Vickers was probably dead. She deserved one nice night before disappearing forever, didn’t she? Turning down a date with Ethan wasn’t easy, but if there was even a hint of a possibility that another incel psycho would show up at her door, it wasn’t ethical to put him in harms way too.
“How about a rain check?” She asked. “Things are kind of complicated right now.”
Ethan nodded. “I get it. Can I give you my number in case you change your mind?”
“Why don’t I give you mine?” Dani reached into her bag and pulled out a pen. She grabbed his hand, turned his palm face up and began to write.
“Old school style.” He smiled. “I like it. Maybe you can sign my yearbook next.”
Dani chuckled. “Yeah, maybe.”
