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Mark glanced from one to the other, realizing in that moment that over the past few minutes, he had been acting in a way completely different from how he would have wanted. Suddenly, a wave of realization swept over him: he had been laughing, joking, letting himself relax... and in this situation, he looked like an ordinary teenage girl. His eyes widened, and his chest tightened.
— I... what? — he muttered under his breath, feeling his face grow hot.
— You okay, Emma? — Dan asked, tilting his head slightly and watching her closely.
— Yeah, — she replied, trying to regain her composure. — Just got lost in thought. Casey’s leaving already, right? — Emma tried to make her voice steady, but it still sounded far too tense.
Casey, not lifting her gaze from her phone, took a few steps toward the exit. Then she stopped, turned around, and casually tossed a small shiny key in Dan’s direction. He caught it with one hand without even looking, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
— Have fun, — she said curtly, her voice laced with mild sarcasm. — Just don’t scare her too much, Dan. See you later.
Casey turned and strolled away leisurely, leaving behind a sense of cold indifference that unsettled Mark even more. Now he was alone with Dan in the middle of an abandoned stadium, where every gust of wind seemed ominous.
"Have fun?" Mark thought desperately, feeling anxiety build inside him. "She didn’t mean...?" He watched as Casey disappeared behind the stands, leaving the two of them alone. He now stood in the middle of the desolate stadium with the one guy everyone was afraid of. The eerie silence around them was broken only by the occasional rustle of wind through the grass, making the atmosphere even more unsettling.
"What am I doing here? Why did I even come with him?" His thoughts raced wildly, every instinct screaming at him to leave. "I laughed with him, joked, like I... Damn it, I was right. This is just getting worse and worse." The memory of how he had allowed himself to relax hit him like a wave of shame. It felt like it wasn’t even him laughing, but someone else entirely. Mark couldn’t believe how quickly he had lost control.
— Why so serious? — Dan interrupted his thoughts, tilting his head slightly. There was a faint note of concern in his voice, but it only made Mark more tense. Once again, he felt Dan’s gaze studying him, digging deeper than he was comfortable with.
— Nothing, just... — Emma began, trying to keep her voice firm, but it betrayed her confusion. She gripped the strap of her backpack tightly and took a step back. — Alright, I think I should go. See you at school.
She turned to leave, but hadn’t made it more than a couple of steps before she felt someone stop her. Dan gently took her hand, halting her, but the speed with which he had closed the distance was even more unsettling. And while his touch was unexpectedly careful, almost as if he was afraid of scaring her, it somehow made things worse.
— Hey, don’t leave so quickly, — his voice was unnervingly calm, his gaze far too intense. — Do you really think I’d hurt you?
Mark froze, feeling cold sweat trickle down his back. "Hurt me? — the thought echoed in his mind, but instead of calming him, it threw him even further off balance. — Does he seriously think that? I... I’m not some scared schoolgirl!" And yet, every instinct screamed at him to run, but he couldn’t move. His legs felt rooted to the ground, his fingers gripped the strap of his backpack so tightly they turned white, and his heart pounded like a drum in his chest. "This is ridiculous," — he thought, — "I need to turn around and leave right now."
Finally, he forced himself to exhale sharply and yanked his hand free.
— Don’t touch me! — Emma snapped, stepping back. She tried to keep her voice steady, but a tremor slipped through. Mark clenched his fists, feeling his palms slick with sweat, and stared into Dan’s face as if trying to uncover hidden intentions.
For a moment, Dan looked puzzled, but he quickly replaced the expression with his familiar easy smile—the very one that made Mark’s insides boil.
— Sorry, — he said, raising his hands in a placating gesture. — I didn’t mean to scare you.
Emma watched him closely, every muscle tense, ready to react. Something about the softness in his voice only made her anxiety worse. She tightened her grip on the strap of her backpack, as if it might somehow protect her.
— It’s just, you’re acting... strange, — she finally muttered, struggling to find the right words. — Why are we even here?
Dan lowered his hands and smiled again, but this time, it seemed more genuine. He nodded slowly, as if acknowledging her words.
— Alright, — he said, shifting his gaze from Emma and scanning their surroundings. — Maybe I went a little overboard. It’s just... this place. It reminds me of how things used to be. Back when I was... different, I guess. This place, — Dan gestured toward the abandoned building, — it doesn’t mean anything to anyone else. But to me... I spent a lot of time here when... well, when I wanted to get away. From home. From school. From everyone.