My Mate

The cafe wasn't busy but wasn't quiet. It was just like any other day. One hour left and she could return home. Levy was just serving the last regular for the morning, before taking a quick washroom break. "The usual?" Levy asked the customer with a friendly smile. "Yes please Lev. And can you make the order for two instead of one today?" "Of course. If you don't mind me asking, have you got a date then?" Levy replied whilst preparing the order. "Hahaha, not today unfortunately. The extra order is for my sister. She's visiting from out of town." "Ah, that must be nice. Well enjoy." Levy says with a cheerful smile as she traded the food for money. The customer gave Levy her tip as usual and gave her a wave as they turned to leave. "Hey, Janice, can you take over the register for a sec please?" Levy called to another employee who was cleaning tables. Janice gave a nod and then took Levy's spot behind the counter. Levy made her way through the back and into the washrooms. She sighed as she saw the mess of the overflowing bin and the soap dispensers empty. The janitor used to do such a great job, but he was fired because he was seen as unimportant. She went to go and get some new soap and a garbage bag from the storage room, when a pain shot through her head. She placed one hand on her head and the other on the wall trying to keep her balance. Timothy was walking around the corner as Levy fell into the wall. He rushed over to her, supporting some of her weight. "Are you okay?!" He asked panicked. Levy smiled weakly and pushed herself off the wall. After a second, she was feeling fine and standing on her own easily. "Thanks, Tim. It was just a dizzy spell. I'm fine now." Levy smiled at Timothy and went into the storage room to get what she needed. ❧ ❦ ☙ Levy made it through the last hour of work with no more dizzy spells and gathered her things before heading home. She waved at Timothy and Janice as she signed out and walked out the door towards home. As she was walking on the quiet sidewalk, she pulled the hairband out of her hair, allowing the thin strands to fall into place on her shoulders, loose strands being caught and blown around by the light breeze. One or two cars drove past as Levy put in her earbuds and listened to her favorite playlist. As she sang along to her music, she didn't hear her name being called. When she felt a hand touch her shoulder, she suddenly grabbed the wrist of the person as she spun around, holding their arm in the air. Her eyes widened as realization of who the hand belonged to. "Oh, Tim! You scared me!" Levy laughed nervously. With her free hand, she pulled the earbuds out of her ears. "I didn't think you'd finished your shift yet?" "I wanted to make sure you got home safe... Can I have my hand back now please?" Timothy asked. "Oh! Right! Haha." Levy quickly rushed out, releasing her grip. "But I told you. I'm feeling fine now. Honestly. I don't want to be the reason you get in trouble." Timothy simply gave her a smile and took her hand, leading her to her apartment. The warm sun shined down on the two co-workers as they approached a block of apartments. "So, have you decided what you want to do yet? You graduated high school like 6 months ago now. You can't work at the cafe forever." Timothy asked, breaking the silence. "Oh, not yet. The cafe isn't that bad. I make enough for now. Although, I think I have an interest in business." Timothy walked up to the door of the apartment with Levy, and released her hand. "That would be a great career path for you." Levy gave a gentle smile and thanked him for walking her home before she turned, heading inside. Timothy turned and Levy watched him walk down the street, caught up in her thoughts of how sweet he is. She turned around, walking inside and down the hall. With a click, she unlocked her door. Kicking the door shut behind her, she put her keys in a small basket on an entryway table and hung her bag on the hook. Walking into her front room, the young woman fell onto the couch, letting out a sigh of exhaustion. She hadn't realized how tired she felt until sitting down on a soft, comfy couch. Levy laid back and reached for the T.V. remote and turned the T.V. on, almost immediately closing her eyes, falling asleep to the sound of television drama. There was something weird about her dream this time. It felt more real than they ever had. She could see the shadow of a person standing over her, and felt an ice cold hand touch her mouth. With a gasp, Levy awoke, sitting up too fast, and becoming dizzy. Before she had even had the chance to lay down again, there was a pain in her head. It was worse than the first time at work. All she could hear was high pitched squealing. It was deafening. She curled into a ball, squashing her head in her hands; She could feel her cheeks becoming damp from the tears she shed. However, just as suddenly as the first time, the pain quickly stopped. Never experiencing anything like it before and having never heard of headaches as bad as what she had just experienced, Levy made a note on her phone to make a doctors appointment first thing the next day. Looking at the time, she saw she had been asleep for 3 hours. It was getting late and she hadn't eaten anything except a yoghurt at 7 A.M.. Carefully standing up, Levy made her way into her kitchen and opened the fridge to scan for left-overs. To her disappointment, there was none. With a sign, she opened the cupboard and pulled out some pot noodles. Whilst it was in the microwave, she went into her room and changed into her pyjamas. The microwave began to bleep, so she walked back into the kitchen, and used a sheet of kitchen towel to take the food out. Levy sat on the couch to ea, mindlessly watching the TV. She had almost finished when her phone rang. Pausing her show, she picked up her phone, and put her pot noodles on the table. "Hello? Levy speaking." "Levyitstimothyyouneedtogetoutofyourapartmentrightnow" Timothy rushed out in one breath. "Woah woah, slow down. I didn't catch a word of that." As Timothy took a breath, there was a knock on the door. "Oh, hold on Timothy, someone's at the door." "DON'T ANSWER IT!" Timothy yelled through the phone. Levy pulled the phone away from her ear as the knocking was back, and this time was louder and didn't stop. "COMING!" Levy called out. "Levy, hide!" Timothy tried to persuade her. "You gotta trust me." "Open up or we'll break down your door!" A deep voice yelled from outside her door. Levy hung up the phone, and placed it on the table before approaching the door. She opened it slowly, to have a force much stronger than hers, push it fully open, sending Levy falling backwards. In walked about fifteen people, all in black with black masks, surround her weak body, that was left on the floor. Before Levy could comprehend what is happening, the people attacked her. Kicking her, punching her, stomping on her. She laid there, unable to fight back, taking every hit thrown at her. Darkness started to consume her vision, pain consumed her thoughts, and tears consumed her face. She felt all her dreams fade as she accepted what she believed would be her fate...