"Look at the difference! Did I do a good job or what?"

Javon looked around impressed. "It looks good. I think I would have done a better job if I had the time, but this is pretty good."

I slapped his shoulder and he laughed, warping his arms around my waist from behind. "I'm kidding, hon. It turned out perfect."

I leaned back on his chest, admiring the newly built home. The hallways were completely different. The ugly wallpaper was torn down and in its place was a fresh coat of pale-ish pink color that matched the shiny mahogany wooden floors and the white painted edges. The light bulbs were new and lit up the house. Newly built furniture replaced all the broken ones and everything looked well-kept as if nobody dared to mistreat it.

Upon entering, there was a large hallway with framed pictures of the family: me, my son, my husband, my mama and my beloved step papa. There was a painting of a vase filled with colorful flowers on top of a long table where the keys, a basket, and a small statue of the Eiffel Tower I brought from Paris from the honeymoon. There was an opening to the left where it led to the living room and to the right led the kitchen. Right ahead, there was the staircase to the second floor and below that was the door to the basement and an empty closet.

"I went to see that elementary school for Drakon." I said, breaking the silence.

"And what did they say?" Javon whispered, his breath tickling my neck.

I giggled and pushed him away only to have him tighten his hold on me. "They said they'll accept him if he comes with me on Monday to fully register him. I think he'll like it. It's really pretty and everyone seems friendly."

Javon hummed at that, burying his face in my hair. I sighed and patted his hand. "I'm tired, hon." I said, hoping he'll catch my meaning.

Javon sighed. "Next time?"

I nodded, cocking my head and looking up at him. "Next time."

He grinned and pecked my lips. I smiled and cupped his cheek. "How's work going by the way? You managed to work it out with your boss?"

Javon shrugged. "A little bit, yeah. I just have to get up early and I'll be home later than usual on some days, but I'll manage."

"If it makes you feel any better, I'll make your favorite dishes for dinner."

"You are the reason I'll be breaking the speeding limits."

"But I'm only doing it for a few days because then you complain I'm fatting you up."

"Oh, well then fuck you."

I laughed and pulled free from his loosened grip. I went over to the living room and turned the light off. "Come on. Let's get some sleep."

Javon yawned and waited until I was halfway up the stairs before he turned the light off the hallway. He dashed up the stairs, almost bumping into me.

"Quick before the mask man gets us!" Javon joked; a joke he hadn't made since we moved to the city.

I forced a chuckle and ran to our bedroom with Javon hot on my heels. If only he knew the mask man...

-------

"I want you to behave, okay?"

"Yes, mom, I will."

"And I know this is hard for you, being in a new school and all, but try to make friends, okay?"

"Yes, mom, I'll try."

"And just to let this be clear, we do not make friends by farting and punching, okay?"

"Yes, mom, I know! We had this talk yesterday, the day before yesterday and this morning. You don't need to repeat yourself. I got this. Trust me, mom." Drakon sighed, holding the straps of his bag.

I smiled and cupped his cheek, kneeling down to his level. "I just wanted to be sure you understood, sweetie."

"I understood, mom. Don't worry. I got this." He repeated, looking excited; the exact opposite reaction I was expecting.

I smiled again and stood up, fixing the collar of his shirt and his hair. "I'll pick you up at three and we'll order from my favorite pizzeria restaurant."

Drakon grinned and nodded in agreement. I stepped aside to let the assistant take Drakon to his new class. I thanked the office workers again and said my goodbyes. I walked out of the school and headed towards the supermarket. I grabbed the red basket and started getting everything I needed to make dinner. I strolled through each aisle, pausing every so often to add something to my basket. I turned the corner and found myself on the junk food section.

I slowed down by the chocolates, staring at the box of Hershey kisses. It was on sale. My mind wondered to the incident where I left the kisses outside and then disappeared. I had told myself that it was probably an animal who took it, but I couldn't help wonder that maybe, just maybe, Tristian was the one who took it.

I frowned and shook my head. No, he didn't take it. Why would he? When we saw each other, he looked extremely uncomfortable and looked like he wanted to be anywhere, but near me. Why would he lurk around my house?

I brought myself out of my thoughts and grabbed two boxes. I went over to pay and took the shortest route to the house. While I had been back to my hometown for almost a month, I still couldn't ignore the stars people gave me.

When living in a small town, word traveled fast.

I sighed and set the bags down once I got to the front door. I struggled to find my keys in my purse and was about to dump everything out when I remembered I kept it in my pocket. I scoffed at myself and jammed my key in, pushing the door open with my hip.

I set everything on the floor and took out one pack of the kisses. I went over to the kitchen, flipping the light switch on, and set the kettle on the stove. I turned it on and went over to the brown marble counter, loving the way the kisses melted on my tongue. I leaned on the counter, my forehead touching the cold surface and my palms flat out on either side of my head.

I suddenly felt tired and debated on taking a nap. I quickly stood up straight, shaking the tiredness away. If I slept now, I would never wake up in time to pick up Drakon. I stifled a yawn and grabbed the groceries.

The kitchen was stranded. It had the same theme as the hallway with brown cupboards. The only thing that really stood out was the grey refrigerator, the black stove and the white door that led to the backyard.

I started lazily putting the groceries away, popping another kiss in my mouth. Just then, the phone started ringing. I checked the caller id, but it said it was private. I frowned and reluctantly picked it up.

"Hello?"

All I heard was static and I was about to hang up when I heard what sounded like a man panting. I kept it away from my ear and my eyebrows furrowed.

"H-Hello?"

Nothing, but panting. I slowly lowered the phone, feeling awkward and confused. I quickly hung up and walked away from the phone.

I didn't know what that was, nor did I wanted to know. I put everything in its place and got my tea ready. I sat up on the counter, crisscrossing my legs and gently took a sip. I stifled another yawn when the phone started ringing again.

I let it ring and decided to let the answering machine take a message. As soon as it stopped ringing, there was a soft beep followed by panting.

I shivered, feeling the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I set my mug down, staring at the phone. There was a small whimper and it sounded like a teenager. My fingers twitched and I climbed off the counter. All of the sudden the panting stopped and waited to hear the beep again to signify that it was over, but I heard a distinct whisper.

I didn't want to know what they were saying, so in quick strides, I ripped off the cable and it got quiet. I breathed a sigh of relief. I took a couple of kisses and grabbed my mug, deciding to head over to the living room.

I stopped midway, feeling the breath knocked right out of me and my heart jump a beat in terror. My favorite mug slipped from my grip and the kisses dropped to the floor one by one in an almost rhythmical way.

A six foot, wide board shoulders, shadow of a man stood on the opening of the living room. His shoulders rose with every breath he took and his hands were curled into fists. Only half of his body showed, but I was able to see his shoulder length hair was dripping wet and his coat that reached just above his ankles was torn on the bottom. What scared me was that he was only a shadow. It was a sunny day and I left the curtains opened, allowing sunshine to pour in. The lights were on and it shined directly above us.

I don't know how long I stood there, paralyzed with fear, but when the man growled low in his throat, I snapped myself out of it. I turned and ran, almost panicking when I couldn't open the door that led to the back yard.

I ran through the ruined yard, jumping over the broken pieces of the lawn chairs. I ran to the woods, hoping I could somehow lose him. Before I knew about the mask man, I always ran in the woods. When my step papa chased me when I wanted to play tag, I always ran to the woods, turning and jumping over fallen branches. It was a secret route I made myself and it always confused my step papa with the turns and twists.

I looked over my shoulder, screaming when I saw the man leap high in the air. I ran faster, but it was no use. He landed right behind me and the ground surprisingly shook so bad, I lost my footing and landed on my side.

I looked behind me to see him leaning forward. I sobbed and quickly sat up on my knees preparing to take off, but his big, cold fingers gripped my upper arm, yanking me off my knees. I grabbed a fist full of dirt as he gripped my other upper arm and I was dangling right in front of him.

Tears ran down my face and I shook my head, kicking my feet uselessly. "P-Please, don't hurt me. I'll give you anything you want just please don't h-hurt me."

He abruptly brought me closer and my eyes widen. I couldn't see anything, but darkness. My breathing quickened when I heard bones cracking. I cringed then froze when two eyes popped open. There was nothing, but two white pupils staring at me.

No iris, no cornea, just two small white pupils surrounded by darkness.

I felt like I was watching those YouTube scary pop-out videos and the screen froze. There was more bone crunching and seconds later, pearly white teeth slowly spread to a smile. What caught my attention was that the canine teeth were much larger and sharper than all the other teeth. It glistened with salvia and the two white dots that represented the eyes turned a bloody red.

I screamed and struggled to loosen his hold. "Please! Let me go! Please! Help me! Someone help me!"

The man's shoulders shook as if he was laughing, but no sound came out. An invisible force turned my head to the right and a name I never thought I'd be calling for help slipped past my lips as the man leaned closer.

"Tristian! Tristian!"

I felt colder as the man pulled me closer to his body and his teeth nearing my neck. I closed my eyes shut and yelped when I suddenly fell on the ground. My eyes popped open and I almost jumping ten feet in the air when Tristian stood there, another heavy pile of wood in his arms.

He slowly dropped the wood and held his gloved hands out in front of him as if to mean he didn't want scare me further. I nervously looked around, quietly sobbing.

"W-What did you do to him?" I asked as Tristian stepped over the pile.

"Him? There's no one here." Tristian replied calmly, his voice a bit muffled over the mask he still wore.

I looked at him confused. "There was a-a man! He w-was massive and he-he had these eyes! He was right here!"

Tristian shook his head, stopping a few feet away. "There's no one here."

My vision clouded with tears and I looked behind me, feeling like we were being watched. "N-No, there was someone here. He grabbed me like-like this and he-he chased me!"

He went through his coat pocket and came to kneel in front of me. He held out his hand and uncurled his fingers, revealing a Hershey kiss. I looked up at him, the white mask blank and eyes hidden completely.

"There's no one here." He repeated.

I sniffled and pushed his hand away. I pushed myself up and warped my arms around his neck, burying my face in his neck. I sobbed and clenched his coat as if afraid that man would come and take me. "He-He was here. Believe me."

Tristian stiffened and his body grew tense. I realized what I had done seconds later and slowly loosened my hold on his coat. I sniffled again and pulled away. I wiped my warm cheeks with my hands and swallowed hard.

"I-I'm sorry. I... don't know what got into me. I'm sorry if I, uh, bothered you." I stuttered stupidly, refusing to look at him.

From the corner of my eye, he titled his head to the side. He held his hand out with the chocolate kiss still in hand. I glanced up, wishing I could read his expression, and slowly took it. I unwrapped it and popped it in mouth, letting it melt on my tongue and waking my taste buds.

I peered behind him and rubbed my forearms as the wind brushed behind me, shaking the tree tops. He slowly stood up and held his hand out, grabbing my attention.

"Let me take you to your home."