I nod and he disappears into the kitchen. I’m not sure if I’m even hungry anymore, not after reliving what happened. I wait for Rowan to say something. Anything. But she doesn’t.

“Rowan?”
“Yeah?”
“Are you okay? You’re not saying anything.”
“I’m just taking it all in. I can’t believe that happened to you. I’m so sorry. Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little freaked out. And wishing I had my phone.”
“Wait, so what did you tell the cops?”

“That a black figure was following me.”
“But did you actually see someone chasing you?”

“No, but -”

“And it was dark out, right?”

“Yes, but what -”

“Did the guy in the car see anything?”
“Not that I know of. I didn’t really think to ask him.”
“So it was dark out and you thought you saw someone chasing you? Did the cops find anything? Did they find your phone?”

“No.”

“Did you call your phone to see if anyone would pick up?”
“No, but I didn’t have access to a phone.”

She sat there for a moment, stewing in her own thoughts. What she said next caught me completely off guard. It hit me like a truck and it shattered something inside of me.

“I thought you were done with all this. With all this make-believe shit.”
I couldn’t say anything. I was completely dumbstruck. I couldn’t do anything but plant my feet firmly on the red carpet beneath them. I tensed up my whole body, as if to keep it from exploding. We sat there for what felt like forever, never meeting each other’s gaze. And then I did.

There she was. A look of terror in her gorgeous jade eyes. They were welling up with tears. On any normal afternoon, I would imagine staring into those green eyes, trying to read Rowan’s soul. But on this dreadful fall afternoon, there was nothing but misery, in her eyes and in her heart. She felt something. Something she hadn’t felt in a long time. She exits the booth and practically sprints out of the restaurant.

Dammit. I knew telling her was a bad idea.