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 Posted: Thu Oct 12, 2023 7:40 am
Quote: Shadow Stalker (1) - You're walking in the dark and soon hear the sound of footsteps following behind you. Every time you turn around, nothing is there. If you try to quicken your pace, the footsteps start running right along with you. No matter how you try to see behind you--if you use your phone camera or if you look in window reflections, you can't see anything...but you know it's getting closer. If you don't run fast enough, you can almost feel a hand on your arm, a breath on your neck... You need to get out of here, fast. If you can. Once you reach your destination and are safely inside, there might be a banging on the doors or windows. The air is heavy, but after a few moments it seems to lift. You have the distinct sensation that something is still out there, though. You just don’t know what.
Once upon a time, Ariel would have loved the idea of getting out of the busy cityscape of Destiny City and getting some fresh air. To an extent, he did now, too.
Things were just different now.
Every outing had to be carefully planned, and he had to weigh the pros and cons of each and every deviation from his carefully constructed schedule. Casey was always so polite and friendly, no matter how many times Ariel had to politely decline any sort of plan that wasn’t just dinner at his apartment.
Casey never asked invasive questions, and never even seemed to pry. Ariel appreciated that about him.
Appreciated it enough, and liked him enough, that when Casey mentioned taking Harrison for a walk in a park Ariel knew was out of the way and a bit private, well–
The logical thing to do was to politely decline, as he usually did, but…
He spent so much time cloistered away, hiding from the world. He’d missed most of summer, and most of spring before that. He didn’t want to miss Fall, too.
They’d planned to go early in the morning, just for a scenic walk to appreciate the changing seasons.
At first, it was great. The weather was perfect, just slightly overcast but not so much that it was too chilly. Every time there was a slight wind, a cascade of leaves fell around them. Ariel got to bundle up, Harrison got to smell and explore. They were alone. He and Casey could just talk.
For a while, he even got to relax.
The first time he’d felt like someone was behind him, he’d assumed it was just a jogger. When he’d turned, no one was there. The second time, it felt like someone was closer. In the bushes? No, when he turned again, nothing moved.
It was easy to blame it on his own paranoia until Harrison stiffened and turned to look exactly where he was looking.
If someone was following them, they’d been doing so for a few minutes–and they were getting closer.
Ariel pulled his jacket a little closer. His smile had faded, and he’d been growing quieter as they walked, and for as much as he wanted to listen to Casey, he was listening for footsteps. For rustling. For a voice. For anything. His stomach was twisting and his heart felt like it was in his throat.
He tried to swallow but his throat felt stuck.
Harrison was still looking behind them but Ariel still couldn’t see what had caught her eye. It had been a leisurely walk until now. Maybe he’d picked up the pace a bit when he first started to feel uncomfortable, but something felt wrong right now. His skin was crawling, like icy needles were poking into him.
He wasn’t even thinking about maintaining any sort of cool. He was half-facing Casey but looked like he was barely resisting the urge to bolt.
A stillness hung in the air. The forest was quite around them.
When Ariel spoke, it was in a quiet, desperate whisper. “I think we should leave.”
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Posted: Thu Oct 12, 2023 6:21 pm
Casey was honestly surprised that Ariel agreed to go with him when he took Harrison out for a walk. Surprised, but clearly delighted since he was chattier than usual, and talking about all kinds of things from the weather to things he’d done as a kid for Halloween, but clearly that was before his family cut him from their lives -- had he told Ariel about that yet? He couldn’t remember, but it was probably obvious, and Ariel didn’t seem to mind.
Everything was going great. He was even thinking about suggesting… kind of… maybe… about getting something at a cafe after. Was that kind of like a date? Oh, he didn’t want Ariel to be weirded out, so he supposed if he was weirded out that he would just… say it was a neighbor thing.
But things soon shifted.
He knew Ariel could sense it too, and even though Casey smiled and put on a good front, he was getting more and more anxious. Especially when Harrison started looking around.
“Come on, girl,” he quickly tried to coax her. If someone was following them, he didn’t want to give them the opportunity to ambush them.
He shivered, his smile fading completely by the time Ariel whispered desperately to him. He nodded, of course. They needed to get somewhere… preferably with more people.
Casey didn’t want them to get separated, so naturally he reached over to grab hold of Ariel’s hand, and he tightened his hold on Harrison’s leash. Maybe whoever was following them would leave them alone if they sped up some.
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Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2023 9:48 am
Ariel squeezed Casey’s hand instinctively. He was nervous. Anxious. “Maybe we should split up,” he said, like it was some sort of desperate last option. If it was who he thought it was, maybe Casey and Harrison could get back to the apartment without any issue.
Who else could it be, anyway? People didn’t just stalk you in the forest for no reason.
He knew it was a mistake to come out. But he’d just–just one time should have been fine. And he’d been enjoying it. It was nice to feel like it was okay to go out. And Casey was great, and Harrison was great, and–
There was movement ahead of them that made his heart stop.
Behind them, he was certain he could hear someone shuffling after them, but in front of them he could see someone.
It wasn’t quite foggy, but maybe it was just fear clouding his vision. They’d sped up so his heart was pumping fast aside from that.
In the distance, not so far around the bend in the path they’d just taken, stood a small building. It looked like little more than a shed but it had lights on and from that alone it was easy to make out the park ranger uniform of the man out front. He didn’t have the friendliest of faces but neither did he seem particularly unhappy–only, focused on what he was doing.
Which looked like taking notes, but honestly Ariel didn’t care because it was someone else.
…And whoever was following them felt like they were getting closer.
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Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2023 5:52 pm
“No,” Casey said immediately. He would not even discuss the idea of spitting up. They were going to stick together. There was safety in numbers.
But even he had to admit that he was getting pretty spooked by whatever shadowy figure was behind them. Even Harrison was starting to whine a bit, her tail tucked between her legs. Casey wondered if it would be better for him to pick her up and carry her. She wasn’t exactly very intimidating, despite her medium size.
Casey seemed to have caught sight of the other man the same time Ariel had, and he let out a brief breath of relief and tugged Ariel’s hand.
“Hi, sorry, um, I don’t mean to bother you but,” he started, already feeling ridiculous for rambling and peering over his shoulder as he approached the man. “We think someone is following us. Um, sorry, you just look really official, so.”
Oh, but now that he was looking at the man, he really didn’t seem friendly at all. Maybe he would yell at them or tell them to get lost.
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Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2023 10:38 pm
Ariel’s stomach was in knots, or maybe it had fallen out white they were speed-walking. He was afraid to look behind him.
The man in front of them didn’t seem frazzled, though; he didn’t have to look at them for long to figure that was some truth to their words. Humans might lie, but he doubted the dog would have been in on it.
For a few seconds he looked at them, and then he looked behind them.
He didn’t see anything. It didn’t mean there wasn’t anything there, though.
His expression didn’t change but he lowered the notebook he’d been writing into and in two long strides reached the front door. He pulled it open and gestured for them to head in. “Two chairs, you can sit down. Don’t touch anything, don’t let the dog eat anything, either. I’ll take a look.”
He tossed the notebook onto a table inside and held the door for them. He had a radio at his waist and his hand fell to rest on it. He kept his eyes out for movement behind them and for as focused as he appeared, he still seemed unfazed and unshaken by their worries.
Ariel hadn’t let go of Casey’s hand and he was squeezing it tighter now. “Thank you,” he said quickly; he hardly even looked at the man as he rushed inside.
There were two wooden chairs, one tucked under a desk and one out and pointed towards the small window. The lights had a warm yellow tint to them, and inside there was a computer, a file cabinet, and a phone. It had a small refrigerator and a monitor with a screen that alternated from a few different angles of the park.
Ariel didn’t care, he looked like he was ready to crawl under the desk. Instead, he just moved into the far side of the room and turned to face the door quickly, like he expected someone other than Casey to appear behind him.
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Posted: Sat Oct 14, 2023 6:06 pm
Casey tensed at the man’s straightforward response. There wasn’t anything necessarily bad about how he spoke to them, and he did give them a temporary shelter. And he looked much more suited to handle a stalker than himself or Ariel.
Or Harrison, who was still looking around anxiously.
But he was also used to people immediately disliking him for his rambling. Or maybe it was his voice. Or appearance. It could have been any number of things but… right now he would ignore his self esteem issues and try to make sure Ariel was okay.
Because while Casey was spooked by whatever had been following them, he wasn’t used to seeing Ariel so… on edge.
So he nodded in thanks to the man and made sure Harrison followed him inside.
Before he could make sure the door was shut behind him, he said quietly, “Please be careful.” He didn’t want anything to happen to this man, either.
And then his attention was on Ariel. He didn’t sit in one of the offered chairs, nor did he crowded Ariel too much. He looked so agitated -- like a cornered animal. So Casey gently tugged on his hand as he lowered himself to the floor. One arm was over Harrison, who had immediately tried crawling into his lap.
“Hey… it’ll be okay.” He didn’t know that, but he was doing his best to be optimistic.
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Posted: Sun Oct 15, 2023 10:29 am
Even when the door clicked shut, Ariel didn’t calm down. His eyes snapped to the door but there was no lock. There was a slot for a key but he didn’t have that. His hand was trembling even in Casey’s. He didn’t sit. He couldn’t bend his knees. He stared at the door for one second, two. Three.
Casey’s words took a few seconds to make their way to Ariel and he snapped to him. Even when he’d heard it, it didn’t quite set in. “I’m sorry,” he said. He looked at Casey, at Harrison, at the door.
The window was right behind him and when a branch scraped against the glass in the wind, he squeezed Casey’s hand so tightly he hurt himself. He’d nearly jumped out of his skin. It shook him enough that he shook his head and dropped to his knees. “I’m sorry,” he said, this time with more conviction. He took Casey’s hand in both of his own and rubbed it apologetically.
“Is Harrison all right? Are you all right?”
He looked at the door again but it was silent outside. The camera flickered to the front and he turned to face it. The Park Ranger was a few feet away from the shed and looked like he was saying something on the radio but he didn’t seem worried.
Ariel wished he could be so nonchalant, but he’d paled significantly and curled into himself. He thought he might vomit but he was trembling all the same.
There was more he wanted to say but he’d clammed up completely. Harrison looked so scared. He wanted to reach out to comfort her, but he couldn’t seem to move enough to do so. He just held Casey’s hand, instead.
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Posted: Sun Oct 15, 2023 6:00 pm
Casey watched Ariel with alarm at how jumpy he was. Yeah, Casey was creeped out by whatever was following them, but they had a kinda scary looking park ranger keeping them safe.
Okay, he wasn’t that scary looking, but he was definitely intimidating.
But this was okay. Even if Casey was shaken, it was obvious that Harrison and Ariel were worse off. He let Ariel rub his hand for a few moments, and then tugged it away so he could reach up to wrap an arm around his shoulders instead, trying to gently coax him to move closer to him. He wouldn’t fight if Ariel tried to resist. But he knew he would feel better if he could shield both Harrison and Ariel from whatever could potentially harm them.
“I’m okay,” he promised. “Harrison is just a big scaredy cat. She’ll be okay,” he said as he gave her another few reassuring pets. “Are you okay? This… this isn’t the first time, is it…?” he surmised, because Ariel’s reactions seemed like he knew something.
But then Casey winced and shook his head, and rubbed Ariel’s back if he was allowed.
“You don’t have to answer that. I’m sorry, I’m just talking because I’m nervous. It’ll be okay.”
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Posted: Sun Oct 15, 2023 7:03 pm
Ordinarily, Ariel kept a bit of distance. He seemed like he kept everyone outside of some sort of invisible wall. Today, his barriers were down. He didn’t have the heart or the energy to push away from Casey, and he let himself be tugged closer.
Maybe he even moved closer just because he wanted to.
Poor Harrison was a big scaredy cat, but that didn’t say anything better about him. He wanted to reach out to pet her, to reassure her in some way, but his body was rebelling against him. It felt like every muscle was trembling, and he was so tightly woven that it felt like he’d practically locked up.
When he spoke, his teeth were gritted together and he couldn’t muster much more than a whisper.
Casey had questions, he was right to them.
“It’s complicated,” he said, but what wasn’t? “I’m sorry. I’m fine.”
He reached up both hands to scrub at his face; he was a bit rough with himself but seemed to have a method to try and force himself to focus. “It’ll be okay,” he agreed, less for his own sake and more for Casey’s. His worrying probably wasn’t helping poor Harrison calm down.
“I don’t mind your questions. I’m sorry. There’s a lot I probably should have told you already. You’re a very good friend, it was selfish of me not to but I didn’t want to mess anything up. Or scare you away. And I’ve been careful.” Not careful enough, maybe.
The cameras were flickering to different screens again but everything seemed still. Safe.
His heart still felt like it was trying to burst out of his chest.
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Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2023 6:14 pm
He and Ariel had known each other for a while. They were neighbors, after all. Ariel had wandered into Casey’s unlocked apartment at least twice. They had dinner together. And more often than not, these days, if only to keep each other company. Casey made sure any music he played was to Ariel’s satisfaction, and Ariel made sure Casey had ingredients to make meals with.
It was a comfortable friendship.
So why, now, as he kept his arm protectively around an obviously distressed Ariel, did Casey’s heart feel like it was racing? And it had nothing to do with whatever was stalking them outside. There was a strong protectiveness he felt. Not just to keep Ariel safe, but to ease whatever mental anguish he was dealing with.
Casey couldn’t recall feeling this way about anyone else. He wasn’t even sure what it meant, or if it was just something that happened in the moment.
Harrison was still curled up against the two of them, hiding as best she could under limbs and across laps. But with her doing that, it gave Casey his other arm to wrap around Ariel as well. He rubbed his back and brushed a hand through his hair, doing whatever he could to try and bring him some comfort.
“You can’t scare me away,” he promised. He chewed on the inside of his cheek for a few moments, and then pushed for his chance to potentially mess their friendship up.
“Stay with me tonight? Just so Harrison and I can keep you company. I don’t snore! I don’t think… Harrison never complained.” Maybe he shouldn’t be making jokes at a time like this, but it was in an effort to make it less intimidating for Ariel. But he wouldn’t push it if he didn’t want to.
“You don’t have to tell me anything until you’re ready.”
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Posted: Mon Oct 16, 2023 7:55 pm
Ariel barked a laugh, brief and awkward. His lip was trembling but he pressed it firmly closed for a moment. He didn’t pull away from Casey.
If he’d been asked, he wouldn’t have known why that was his response. He felt like a match struck too roughly, burning too quickly. “It’s complicated,” he said again, but he knew he’d already told Casey that.
“I don’t want to make your life harder. Let me–let’s see how this goes,” he insisted. Ariel’s eyes hadn’t left the screen but there were too many other scenes between the one he wanted to see.
When it flashed back to the front of the shed where the ranger had just been he was disappointed to find that he was gone. Nowhere in sight.
There wasn’t any movement at all outside.
He moved closer to Casey.
“I don’t want you to get hurt. That’s all. I promise.”
It wasn’t no, he didn’t want to say no. If things had gone well, if things had been different, he probably would have said yes in a heartbeat. Casey was perfect. Friendly, warm, welcoming. He was so kind, so good-spirited. And Ariel loved Harrison. Poor girl, she didn’t deserve this.
Walking into someone’s home accidentally–more than once–was humiliating, but Ariel had found them to be the best mistake he’d ever made. Casey made him feel normal, made him feel safe. Made him feel whole again, too, but he wouldn’t admit that to Casey or himself.
He wasn’t selfish enough to risk hurting Casey just to have him around. He’d already pushed the limits of what was allowed, hadn’t he? And was this the price? He shouldn’t have come out today, no matter how much he’d enjoyed spending time with Casey.
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Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2023 6:14 am
He hadn’t expected the laugh, but then again, Casey didn’t blame him for reacting differently than he would have in a normal situation. And even though Casey rubbed at Ariel’s back and nodded to show him he understood, he couldn’t ignore the way his heart felt like it had stopped.
Ariel was his neighbor. His friend. He didn’t want to do anything to make him feel uncomfortable. But Ariel was also kind and considerate. He was practical and a realist -- someone to keep Casey grounded. And Casey really thought that he needed that in his life. It was just him and Harrison, but the time spent with Ariel had been wonderful.
“You don’t have to worry about me. I can handle myself. I have before,” he promised, but his voice was quiet, like he wasn’t sure he was ready to share things. Which was probably strange enough since he seemed to share everything.
“You actually make my life easier, but… yeah, it’s okay. Let’s see how this goes,” he agreed. Ariel hadn’t said no. But he hadn’t said yes either. And for as much as Casey liked to talk, he didn’t want to put words in Ariel’s mouth if he could help it. He didn’t want to decide for him one way or another. That definitely wouldn’t be fair.
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Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2023 7:40 pm
Ariel nodded but he seemed lost, like he was only half here and like he was ready to bolt any second. He knew it was irrational and impractical, but Casey was so good. He didn’t deserve any of this. In the back of his mind, something hooked onto what he’d said, but Ariel couldn’t focus enough to even think about what Casey meant.
“If I’m going to worry about myself, I’m going to worry about you,” he said, maybe a few seconds too late. He was trying to keep up but he was pretty sure the adrenaline was fogging up his mind instead of making things any clearer.
There was a lump in his throat and it was weakening his voice. He still couldn’t see the man outside on the camera and his stomach had wound itself in such a tight knot he was sure it was going to burst. If something had happened to him…
Ariel was trying not to throw up. He pressed closer to Casey instinctively. It wasn’t fair; Casey was so supportive, so grounding. He didn’t deserve to be trapped in here with Ariel. If anything happened to him...
The door opened. Ariel nearly jumped out of his skin.
The ranger’s brows lifted but his face was almost entirely unchanged. “Whoa, it’s just me. You two can stay here for a few minutes if you need to.” He closed the door behind him. “I want to walk you back to the parking lot, though. I didn’t see anyone while I was out there, but we’ve had some bears getting a little too close to some of the trails. Your dog seemed pretty spooked, I thought it might have been some predator behind you. You didn’t see or hear anything, did you?”
He moved slowly, like he was mindful not to rile them up any more than they already were. He pulled open the mini-fridge door and withdrew two water bottles, passing one to each of them. With his toe, he nudged a metal bowl from under the desk, just in case Harrison needed something to drink, too.
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Posted: Thu Nov 02, 2023 1:25 pm
Casey was at a loss for what to say to try and reassure Ariel. He knew there must have been something deep, something painful in Ariel’s life that made him react this way. He was frightened too by the strange feeling of being followed, but while Ariel trembled in his arms, Casey steeled himself as best he could.
He could have a heart attack later, when everything finally caught up to him, but for right now he wanted to make sure Ariel knew that he was someone he could rely on. Just as Harrison relied on him.
But when the park ranger finally entered back into the little cabin, Casey couldn’t quite hide the expression of fear and helplessness as he looked up at him. He could be strong for Ariel. He could be strong for Harrison. But even he didn’t know when that resolve would break. He could already feel the cracks.
He took the offer of the water bottles as a good distraction, not just for Ariel. He quietly said his thanks, and then opened one of the bottles to pass to Ariel, and then opened one for himself so he could pour most of it into the offered metal bowl.
Upon the entry of the ranger, Harrison, although still cowering, was enthusiastically thumping her tail on the ground.
“Really? Bears?” he asked in surprise, but then again, Destiny City had some weird things going on sometimes. He glanced down at Harrison as she wiggled over to the bowl to drink, and patted her head, and then took a drink of what was left of his bottle.
“I didn’t see or hear anything, but… I definitely felt like something was trying to catch us.” He rubbed Ariel’s back for some extra comfort.
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Posted: Thu Nov 02, 2023 3:00 pm
Ariel wasn’t thirsty but he forced himself to have a sip of the water, if only because the stranger had gone through the effort of getting it for him, and Casey had opened it. He whispered a word of thanks but couldn’t help but keep his eyes on the screen just in case.
Nothing moved. Maybe the grass, maybe the leaves, but so far as he could tell, it was just them.
He didn’t know if it brought him any comfort. It was a relief, certainly, but the damage had been done and now it felt like worms were wriggling in the back of his mind–biting, gnawing, digging.
Casey was out of water, so after he’d taken another sip, he passed the bottle back. He felt both exhausted and anxious, ready to run and ready to deflate all in one breath.
The ranger shrugged and took a seat across from them so he wasn’t towering over them. He propped his elbows on his knees and watched Harrison like he might have liked to pet her but he neither asked nor reached for her.
“There’s a lot of construction, it’s a threat to their natural habitat. They don’t mean any harm,” he explained, and for as stoic as he seemed to be there was something gentle in the way he spoke. He didn’t blame the bears, obviously, and he didn’t want Ariel or Casy to leave feeling like they shouldn’t come back. So, he made himself comfortable and talked in a patient, easy-going voice. “Sometimes they just get a little mixed up. Destiny City’s a weird place, though. Hard to predict when something strange is going to come your way. I’ll keep an eye out to make sure everything’s safe up here, but if something was following you, I don’t think it was a person.”
Ariel chewed on the inside of his cheek and then blurted, “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure,” the man said. He laced his fingers together and leaned forward. “I’ve been out here all morning and I haven’t seen anyone or anything suspicious. There are cameras all around, we do a lot of educational studies here. Nothing on the trail, but close enough that I can check and see if anyone’s sneaking around. If it would make you two feel better, I can pull them up and we can go over everything from the last ten minutes?”
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