Faye's landline and mobile phones have been ringing off the hook ever since she got back to her loft. At first, she decided to ignore the calls. She knew who they would be. Her aunt, surely, and likely some other people from her hometown. There was no one she wanted to talk to at the moment as she worked furiously on her knitting. And so after a few hours, she pulled the power off every communicating device in her home.

The thought of doing a knitted straightjacket festered in her mind until she had become set on doing it. Not the straightjacket, though. Just a jacket. She didn't continue knitting for therapeutic purposes. In truth, it was the most frustrating thing in the world. All too frequently, she lost count because of the events three days ago. She just continued doing it because there was absolutely nothing else to do. Going out was certainly out of the question. She had no face to show the world. The last time she had seen the dreaded video, it took her some months before she could get over the fact that 15 people have seen it. What more a few hundred?

Wait, was that last stitch a seven or an eight?

Faye screamed with her mouth closed as she removed the weave to start counting again. Knitting was definitely infuriating.

She threw the unfinished jacked down and strode toward the door hearing five consecutive raps. She opened it a crack and took several envelopes from the mail. Ad with that, the visit was over. The mail was promptly dropped on the table and a hard thud stopped her in her tracks. There was something else there besides the usual bills. Something that was solid underneath all those envelopes.

Her hand reached for it and then recoiled. No. She was on vacation. All she really had to mind was the bills. And as it were, she was not in the mood for checking them. She wasn't in the mood for knitting either. In truth, she was not in the mood for anything – not even being lazy.

Another rap on her front door released her from her confusion. The boy delivering her mail was going to get it, and from her agitated mood, he was going to get it good. Her instructions about sending the mail was clear: he was only to send it once a day at precisely two thirty. There was no reason for him to make an exception.

"Didn't I—" Faye stopped. The boy seemed agitated and he bore nothing on his hands.

"Ms. Westbrook, would you please let that man up?" the boy asked.

Faye blinked at him in askance. "Man? What man?"

"He says his name is Nathan Prescott. From your hometown," he said shifting from one foot to the other. "He's been there since yesterday."

Faye's stomach tied into knots and at the same time, volcanoes erupted in her insides. There was an indefinable feeling roiling within her, but there was one clear emotion she could not mistake for anything: rage. "Well, didn't you tell him I'm not here?" she snapped.

"We did. But he said that he knows you're here. And if you aren't he will wait for you to come. He's already slept in the lobby and some guests are worried about a strange man hanging about."

"Well, then, send him off!"

The boy steepled his fingers. "We would have done it long ago, but we can't."

"You can't? What do you mean you can't? Have him arrested or something!"

"Ms. Westbrook, he's from the Fed. I doubt the local officers would have much sway on him. At least not when they don't have anything on him."

Faye pursed her lips. He did say he was working for the government. Goodness knows what he really did and how much power he actually wielded. There had to be a way to get rid of him legally.

"Why don't you just wait for him to go out and get food then lock him out?"

"Ms. Westbrook, when I say he has not moved. He has not moved from the couch. Not for anything. Not even a bathroom break!"

"For three days?" Faye had not finished asking the question and the boy immediately, vigorously nodded his head. She paused for a while before continuing. "Well, he will get tired sometime. And when he does, lock him out. Unless, he's gone completely insane, we won't have a man who starved himself to death on the premises. And since he's Fed anyway, just tell the tenants exactly what he is. I am not going to be bothered by this anymore."

Without even waiting for the boy's confirmation on whether or not he understood, she closed the door and locked it. The fact that he had stayed there for three days without anything was unbelievable. But even if he were going to die, she would say nothing to him. He had incinerated any thread of friendship that was building between them and rendered unbridgeable the gap between them.

The fact that he was just below her was something that she needed to get out of her system. And so, she looked for the mail that made the thunk and found it at the bottom of the pile. It was sent via FedEx and thicker than all the rest and the return address was from her hometown – from Lisa.

She bit her lower lip thinking whether or not she would open it. After all, she had rejected all the means they tried to reach her the past few days. Why should she open this one?

Well, she did not have to respond, for one. Besides, it might contain what everyone thought. It would save her from fretting over it herself.

Finally, she sighed and read the note.

Watch disk one before watching disk two.

Faye turned the note around and around and even looked into the contents of the FedEx-marked parcel. There was nothing more there, but the two disks mentioned in the note, duly labled.

Not knowing what else to do, she shrugged and popped disk 1 in the player.

Immediately, she could hear the voices of Lisa and Jen speaking to one another through the din of voices of the crowd.

"Oh sweet baby Jesus! That was close!" It was Jen's voice. "Too close! A second later and everyone would have seen that!"

"Yeah. Talk about quick!" Lisa chimed it. "What the hell was Nathan thinking?"

"No idea. But here he comes." Jen's finger was seen pointing in his direction. "He looks like he just chewed on rocks. Never seen him that mad before."

"Oh shush!" Lisa said as the camera approached Nathan who planted himself in front of Jade.

"What the hell was that?!" Nathan demanded, his veins popping on his neck and his face turning from a shade of red to a darker one that was almost purple.

Jade, who was usually self-composed seemed to shrink under his malicious stare. "You said play the video."

"That was not the video!"

"But, who would watch a stupid prom video? Isn't that other one more fun?"

Little yelps rippled throughout the crowd as Nathan's fist connected with wood so loud that it silenced most people as soon as they have gotten their surprise out. Even the camera was suddenly aimed at unidentifiable torsos of different people. Only the sound of Nathan's cursing was heard in the background. And then it was black-out.

Faye waited, but there was nothing more. Even knowing it was over, she didn't move. She didn't know what to make of the newfound information. So it wasn't Nathan's idea, but Jade's and no one actually saw the footage. Though everyone did hear what was going on.

But the question that really hung over her head was...what prom video?

Finally, with a heave, she convinced her laziness to drown itself and pop the next video. The scene was pitch black, but she could hear Nathan – the younger, more high-pitched teen – in the background. "Oh man! Left the lens cap on!"

Someone in the background snorted. "For someone smart, you can be stupid sometimes."

The laughter between Nathan, and who she thought was Tim, faded into the din of other voices and the sweet music played at the prom. As the image focused, Faye could see herself with Jen and Lisa sitting in a corner kidding about.

After a few moments, Tim's voice came in again. "You've been pointing your cam in one direction for a long time. Don't tell me you're focusing on Faye."

"Shh!" The image shook a while before it became stable. "Be my PA system, will you?"

"Come on, dude. If you aren't going to make a move, you're not gonna get anywhere."

"I know, but not now."

"Not now? Why not now?"

"Total mismatch."

"Huh?"

"Look," the image shook a little as Nathan probably shifted his hold on the camera. "First of all, appearance. You think she'll really go for a fat pig like me? I mean, look at her. So pretty. And even so much prettier now, I can die with her image in my head."

"You can try."

Nathan laughed bitterly. "Yeah, right. You think I'm going to make her forget about that video with how I look right now."

"Even if you did get thinner, I don't see why she should."

"And that's another thing. I have to make it up to her first. And of course, I have to be better than her."

"That again?" Tim asked with a tinge of exasperation. "Of course! How else would I be able to take care of her? I want her to be able to rely on me. I want to be stronger for her. I'm not enough now. And I promise when I am better, I'll see her again. And I'll try, Tim. No. I'll do it."

"If you wait too long, she might be married already."

"I know. But, if she would be happier with him, I won't interfere."

Tim laughed. "Sappy! I'd hate to have a crush that deep. I'd look like an idiot."

"You're wrong. I love her. And I don't care if I look like an idiot."

The rest of the video was lost to Faye as she felt wiped away tears with the back of her hand.

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