They'll Come For You Too
1110 Words
I don't move.
Leon is staring at me.
I'm staring at him.
The library suddenly feels too quiet.
“They'll come for you too.”
Those words keep repeating in my head.
Like my brain has decided I need a personal horror soundtrack.
I swallow.
“That's not funny.”
“I'm not joking.”
“I know.”
He looks away.
I pick up my phone.
My hands are shaking.
I hate that.
I hate feeling scared.
I especially hate feeling scared in front of Leon.
“So what am I supposed to do?” I ask.
“Stop looking.”
“At Lena?”
“Yes.”
“That's your advice?”
“Yes.”
I laugh nervously.
“Brilliant. Very helpful.”
“Amara.”
“What?”
“Go home.”
I stare at him.
“You're kicking me out?”
“I'm telling you to be careful.”
“I can take care of myself.”
“I know.”
“Then stop looking at me like I'm about to explode.”
He doesn't answer.
I pack my things.
For once, I don't argue.
I leave the library.
And I don't look back.
The train station feels different that evening.
Usually, I barely notice anyone.
Today, I notice everyone.
A man reading a newspaper.
A woman checking her phone.
Two students laughing near the ticket machines.
A guy in a black jacket standing near the stairs.
I look at him.
He looks away.
My stomach drops.
Okay.
Amara.
Calm down.
People are allowed to stand at train stations.
That's literally what they're for.
I move farther down the platform.
The guy in the black jacket moves too.
I freeze.
He stops.
I stare.
He checks his phone.
I stare harder.
He looks up.
I immediately look at the tracks.
Excellent.
Very subtle.
My phone buzzes.
I nearly throw it.
It's Sofia.
Where are you?
At the station.
Stay there. I'm coming.
Why?
Just wait.
Ten minutes later, Sofia appears.
She is breathing hard.
“You scared me.”
“I was fine.”
“You texted me that someone might be watching you.”
“I said I thought someone might be watching me.”
“Same thing.”
She grabs my arm.
“Come on.”
We move away from the platform.
I glance behind us.
The guy in the black jacket is gone.
That should make me feel better.
It doesn't.
Sofia pulls out her phone.
“I found Lena.”
I stop.
“What?”
“Her Instagram.”
My heart jumps.
“You found her?”
“Sort of.”
She shows me the account.
Lena Fischer.
Private.
No profile picture.
Barely any information.
“Is it her?”
“I think so.”
“How do you know?”
“Same first name. Same school. Same city. And there are old comments from people who went to International School Hamburg.”
I stare at the screen.
“Can we follow her?”
“It's private.”
“Then request.”
“I did.”
I look at her.
“And?”
“Nothing.”
“Maybe she hasn't seen it.”
Sofia's expression changes.
“There's something else.”
“What?”
“The account was apparently deleted for a while.”
My stomach sinks.
“Then how is it still here?”
“I don't know.”
I stare at Lena's profile.
Something about it feels wrong.
Not dangerous.
Just unfinished.
Then my phone buzzes.
Both of us jump.
Unknown number.
Sofia looks at me.
“Don't open it.”
I open it.
A message appears.
Stop asking about Lena.
My throat goes dry.
Sofia reads it over my shoulder.
“Oh my God.”
I scroll.
Nothing else.
Then another message arrives.
A photo.
I stare at it.
It's me.
At the station.
From behind.
I'm standing on the platform.
My backpack is visible.
The black-jacketed man is somewhere in the background.
My blood turns cold.
“Sofia.”
“I see it.”
“They took this today.”
“I know.”
“How?”
She doesn't answer.
I zoom in.
The photo was taken from across the tracks.
Someone was watching me.
Someone was close enough to take a picture.
My hands start shaking again.
Sofia takes my phone.
“We're going home together.”
I nod.
For once, I don't argue.
That night, I barely sleep.
I keep checking the curtains.
The window.
My phone.
The door.
Nothing.
Nothing happens.
Which somehow makes everything worse.
The next morning, I walk into König Academy feeling like everyone is watching me.
Ridiculous.
Paranoid.
Probably.
I see Leon near the lockers.
He looks at me.
I look away.
I don't tell him.
Not yet.
Because trusting him means telling him everything.
And I still don't know what happened in Hamburg.
I still don't know what he did.
I still don't know who Lena is now.
And I definitely don't know who is watching me.
I walk past him.
“Amara.”
I keep walking.
“Amara.”
I stop.
He catches up.
“You're avoiding me.”
“No.”
“You are.”
“I have class.”
“It's ten minutes early.”
“I like being early.”
“You hate being early.”
I turn around.
“How do you know that?”
“I've seen you arrive late four times.”
I blink.
“Why are you keeping statistics on me?”
“You're easy to notice.”
My brain short-circuits.
I recover quickly.
“That's probably because I'm very memorable.”
He looks at me.
“Yes.”
One word.
That's it.
Somehow it makes my heart do something stupid.
I hate that.
Then his expression changes.
He looks at my phone.
“You got another message.”
My stomach drops.
“No.”
“Amara.”
“I didn't.”
“You're lying.”
“I am not.”
He steps closer.
I try to walk past him.
He gently catches my wrist before I can.
I stop.
He immediately loosens his grip.
“Sorry.”
I look at his hand.
Then at him.
His voice is quiet.
“You got another message, didn't you?”
I don't answer.
He looks worried now.
Not annoyed.
Not suspicious.
Worried.
“Show me.”
I hesitate.
The hallway fills with students.
Everyone is moving around us.
But for some reason, I can only hear Leon.
I slowly unlock my phone.
And for the first time, I wonder if telling him is the safest thing I've done all week.
Or the biggest mistake.
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