No Longer Afraid (Complete)

Pool Table

          It had been a few days before Sadie had seen Anrian, but he did keep in touch. He would always text her randomly after school, saying how he’s always thinking about her and how beautiful she was. Sadie had never experienced something like that before, so it took some getting used to. He would also call her sometimes just to hear her voice and talk about how their days went. They even did their homework together over the phone a couple of times. Sadie blinked with enlarged eyes as she pondered a sudden thought. They’re dating, aren't they? She is dating Anrian? “Hello?...Sadie? Darling, are you there?”, Anrian’s voice echoed through her phone. She shook her head slightly. “Yes, yes, I’m here.”, she responded with a shaky voice. “Are you sure? You sound sad. What happened?”, Anrian said, obviously concerned. Sadie smiled and sweetly responded, “No, no I’m fine. You don’t have to worry about me.” Anrian was quiet for a moment. With a slight sigh, he spoke. “I’ll always be concerned about you, Sadie, and I’ll always care about you.” Sadie almost gasped. The tenderness and smoothness of his voice made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She knew he meant it and that scared her. She regained her composure and gently told Anrian that she had to go and soon, they ended their conversation. Even after Anrian hung up, Sadie continued to hold the phone to her ear. “Good-bye...Anrian.”, she said in a whisper as she slowly put her phone down. This is starting to get really serious.

          Before Sadie even knew it, the end of the week had already come. The play was coming along righteously and she just couldn’t wait until opening night, which was scheduled to go on next weekend. She was speaking with the set designer when she noticed somebody sitting in one of the seats in the audience. She reassured the set designer that she would be right back as she went out into the audience seating to approach this person. “Excuse me! Excuse me, but this auditorium is reserved for the PTA and the student production staff. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”, she politely stated to the dark figure. As she came closer, she noticed that it was Anrian. She gasped deeply as she called his name. He slowly stood up before her with a smile. “I’m sorry Sadie. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”, he spoke respectfully. Sadie couldn’t help but smile. “Anrian...what are you doing here?”, she asked in a bewildered tone. Anrian smiled as he wrapped his arms around her. “I wanted to see you and see how your production was coming along.”, he spoke gently. Sadie awkwardly hugged him as she spoke. “Oh, how sweet. Thank you. Now, what are you really doing here?”, she asked as she pulled away and looked up at him. Anrian grinned slightly. “Okay, okay. You broke me. I was wondering if you wanted to go out this weekend. Just you, me, and a pool table.”

.         Sadie’s heart sank and her face instantly became pale. “A p-p-pool table?”, she stuttered. Anrian looked at her and frowned. “Sadie, what’s wrong, darling? You’re pale and you feel clammy.”, he spoke up as he gently held her face in his hands. Sadie’s eyes were empty and wide as she recalled that night with William. She thought she had moved on. She then recalled the dream she had where she killed William and reclaimed herself. “What is wrong with me? Why am I acting like this? I thought I was over this...unless...Oh, I get it...I still have work to do. I may have reclaimed my body and identity but I still have to practice that...I see.”, Sadie thought to herself. “I’m fine. W-where are we going?” she asked. Anrian forced himself to speak on. “I was thinking we could hang out at my place. My folks and I have a great bonus room with an X-box One, Playstation, Wii U, and even some old arcade games. My favorite though is my pool table. Have you ever played before?”, Anrian’s eyes beamed with excitement. Sadie swallowed hard. “No, no I haven’t. Sounds like...fun.”, she forced herself to say. Anrian frowned. “Sadie...I know something is wrong. Please, tell me. I hate to see you like this.”, he spoke in a very tender tone. Sadie gave him a soft look as she stared up at Anrian. “I’m fine, Anrian. Don’t worry about me. A game of pool sounds fun. Tell me your address and I’ll be there.”, she smiled. Anrian sighed deeply in frustration but soon regained his composure. “How about I come to your house to get you, that way I can speak with your mom and everything?”, he asked softly. Sadie felt her heart pound painfully against her chest. She grunted slightly as she took a step back from Anrian. If she lets him take her, he’ll have the upper hand. He could do anything to her and practically get away with it. Should she really let him pick her up? “Sadie…”, Anrian said as she sat on the back of one of the auditorium seats with her head hanging low. He walked over to her and lifted her face to face him. “I won’t ever, ever hurt you. You do know that right? I care deeply about you and I’ll always be here to take care of you. You can trust me.”, Anrian spoke gently to her and he push a stray hair from her face. The two just looked at each other for a moment. Sadie wanted to trust him but her body and mind didn’t. She fought against her fear and spoke. "Okay, I'll text you my address after school.", she said. Anrian smiled very slightly, wrapped his arm around her waist, and kissed her cheek. “I’ll see you soon.”, he spoke softly into her ear. Sadie smiled, bidded Anrian farewell, and got back to work with the set designer.