"I better get back to the club." Todd shoved his hands into his pockets. They were still about a mile away from Carter's house. "I'll tell Zac you're on your way home."
Carter shivered with a little bit of fear. She hated walking home alone. Not that there was anything to really be afraid of except that Todd was dropping her off about 10 blocks from her home at 10:00 at night in pitch black. Just when she was starting to like the guy. "Ok. I'll uhm. See you later."
"You gonna be ok?"
"Oh yeah. Fine." Carter waved and started to walk by herself. She past the first street sign and sighed. "9 more to go." She tried not to jump every time she heard the sound of a screeching bat or a creaking door, but she was terrified. She hated the dark and Todd actually had the nerve to leave her in the middle of nowhere. "Oh that's ok." She said outloud to herself. "I'm ok. I'm not that far from home." She shivered and almost jumped when she saw a figure walking across the street. Slowly, nothing frightening about it besides the fact that he kept looking over at her. "Todd?" She shouted across the street to him. "What, didn't think I could make it on my own?" She calmness was cut short when she saw the man crossing the street towards her. It wasn't Todd.
Dark, he was all dark. But she couldn't see any features until he got too close for her liking. "Didn't your mom ever tell you not to talk to strangers?" He used the cliche saying all too smoothly. His voice almost as deep as his eyes.
Carter ignored him and started to walk a little faster, but his arm shot out and grabbed her around the waist. He pushed her into the bush and held her shoulders against a thick, spiny branch. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!?"
"Just trying to scare you. Do I scare you?! Everbody says I'm scary." He licked his lips as he sat down on her legs. "It's like I walk across the street from them minding my own business and they ignore me and give me dirty looks like I'm going to rape them or something."
Carter shook with fear as she shifted under him and tried to grab a sharp branch to scratch his eyes out with. "Are you going to do that?"
"Rape you? Nah I like blondes. I'm just gonna beat the shit out of you so that you never talk to strangers again."
Carter screamed as loud as she could, sure that somebody would hear her. Why did Todd have to leave her in the dark in the middle of the scariest part of town? She screamed again when he grabbed the branch she was reaching for and scraped it across her cheek, up towards her eye. "TODD!!! HELP!!!!!" She hoped he was still around, but it had been too long. He could have made it to the club and back by that time.
"Am I scaring you now?! DO I SCARE YOU!? I told you people think I'm scary. I can be really scary if I want to be."
"YOU'RE A SICK FUCK!" She screamed in his face.
He grabbed her shoulders and slammed her head against the base of the bush again. "THAT'S WHAT THEY ALWAYS TOLD ME! My parents. I bet you have great parents don't you? I bet your mom never told you that you were insane. Did she?!"
"GET OFF OF ME!" She screamed. She kicked him in the leg, and he fell on top of her, completely knocked out cold.
It took her a few minutes to realize what had happened. She could barely see Zac's face through her tears, holding a brick above his head. "ZAACC!!!" She yelled as he dragged the limp body off of her. He felt for a pulse and realize he wasn't dead.
"Come on." He helped her up and put his arm around her waist. "Let's get home before he comes to." And they ran.
Zac held Carter in his arms on his bed, wishing her dad would get home from work early. Taylor was standing next to them with his hand on her shoulder and Isaac was in the doorway. "What happened?" He asked when he noticed the bloody cloth Zac was holding to Carter's cheek.
"Todd told me he left Carter to walk home alone so I ran as fast as I could to walk with her. I know she hates the dark. I'm gonna kill Todd."
"Zac don't." Carter whispered.
"If he doesn't kill him, I will." Taylor shook his head. "And who the hell was this guy? Just some guy that wanted to scare the shit out of you and see your blood all over his hand?"
Carter shrugged. "Did somebody call Todd?"
Zac nodded. "I told him to stay away from you."
"He's downstairs." Isaac sighed. "I told him to come on up. Sorry."
Todd appeared in the doorway next to Isaac and stared at Carter. "I'm sorry. I didn't think... you said you'd be fine."
Carter ignored him and looked over to the window. She screamed and burried her face in Zac's shoulder. "HOLY SHIT! ZAC HE'S THERE!" She jumped up and ran over to Zac's dresser and looked out the window. There was nothing there. "I swear to God he was there. On a ladder."
Taylor walked over and put his arm around her. "If he was there, he probably fell off the damn ladder. I don't think he's playing with a full deck."
"You think he followed us home?" Zac looked around nervously.
Carter shrugged. Isaac grabbed Todd. "Come on man, you got us into this mess. You're helping me go outside to find this guy. Even if we have to walk all over the city." Ike turned to Taylor. "You two make sure she's ok. Call mom and dad at the party. The number is on the fridge. Make them come home now."
Isaac and Todd walked around the back of the house. Todd was practically clinging to Ike. "Dude man, I thought you were into chicks." Isaac moved over and walked about three feet away from him.
"This guy sounds crazy. I don't think I wanna run into him."
"Carter said he cut her with a branch. I don't think he's armed or anything. Besides, we can take him."
Todd rolled his eyes. "Yeah right." He stopped and pointed to a dark figure on the Hanson's side of the house, looking all around him as if looking for somebody.
Isaac ran over to him and threw himself on top of him. "YOU CRAZY ASS HOLE... HOW COULD YOU HURT SOMEBODY LIKE THAT?!" He screamed and looked down. Taylor stared up at him, terrified. "Whoa. Sorry. I told you to stay upstairs with Carter."
Taylor stood up and brushed off the back of his legs. "Somebody was pounding on the door. We weren't sure if it was you, so I went out the back way." He punched his brother in the arm. "Why the hell did you tackle me?!"
"Cause I thought you were the looney guy!" Isaac punched him back.
"Are you guys quite done?" Todd whispered, staring towards the front of the house. He motioned for them to come over. "I heard something over here." He pointed and the man shot out from behind the bush. He was holding the brick that Zac hit him with. He tossed it at Todd and he fell to the ground when it collided with his shoulder.
Then he turned to Taylor. "You look like the girl that hit me with the brick!"
"I'm a guy. And that wasn't me." Taylor glared at him.
Isaac smacked his arm. "Dude, this guy's a psycho. Don't piss him off."
"Oh yeah."
"DON'T MAKE ME MAD!" The man yelled, taking a few steps towards them. He picked up the brick that was laying next to a whimpering Todd.
"Alright, dude. Chill out." Isaac put his hands up.
"POLICE! STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" Two voices shouted in unison as they grabbed the man.
Taylor's arms shot into the air, above his head.
"Not you, idiot." Isaac laughed. They ran upstairs leaving Todd to be attended by the paramedic.
"We called the police instead of Mom and Dad. We figured they might be able to help a little more." Zac smiled. "Did they get him?"
"Yeah. And there was a ladder on the side of the house. And Todd's hurt pretty bad. But they're taking care of him and they're taking the guy somewhere."
Carter looked up. "Is Todd ok? I wanna go see him." She jumped up from the bed and pushed away from everybody else. Zac followed her.
Todd was sitting on the porch, holding an ice pack to his shoulder, assuring the paramedic that he was ok. The police had left, telling them they'd be back for their statements in the morning.
Carter sat next to Todd. "He could have killed you, you know."
Todd looked up at her, surprised. "He could have killed you. Not me. And it was my fault."
Carter shook her head. "Nah, I shouldn't have gone on that walk with you in the first place. I should have known you're a creep."
"Huh?"
"I'm kidding." She smiled. "But I think you should stay away for a while. Zac and Tay are kinda pissed at you. They're a little overprotective of me." Zac nodded in the doorway. "Don't call me. I'll call you." Carter patted the top of Todd's head and walked back inside with Zac.
Todd walked back home and greeted his blonde friend that was hanging out in his bedroom. He pulled out five, one hundred dollar bills and handed it to him. "Thanks Keg. I didn't think he'd get arrested, but this is for bail. Keep whatever's left. I'll call you when I need you again."
Todd shook "Keg's" hand and watched him leave his room. Then, he went to bed, content with the day.