Three nights.
That's how long it had been since the alley.
Since she ran. Since him.
Elena clutched her coffee tighter as she walked down the same sidewalk she always did. Same café. Same path to the bookstore. Everything was normal.
Except it wasn't.
She still felt his eyes.
That man... he didn't speak. Didn't chase her. He just looked. Like she was something he'd already claimed without saying a word.
Her friends had laughed it off when she told them. "Probably just a homeless guy," they said. "Stop overthinking."
But her instincts screamed otherwise.
There was something in the way he stood. The way his eyes followed her, cold and unreadable. He didn't look lost. He looked... deliberate.
She shook the thought off. It was probably nothing.
Still, her steps quickened when she passed that alley again.
She couldn't explain it, but the air felt heavier. Like the city was watching her. Like someone was waiting.
She glanced behind her.
No one.
Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that she wasn't alone anymore. Like some invisible string had tied her to something dark that night—and now it was pulling.
---
"Elena."
She turned quickly.
No one.
Her heart beat faster. Too fast.
She whispered to herself, "You're losing it."
But somewhere, in the shadows, he smiled.
---