YOU’RE NOT MINE OR ANYONE ELSE’S

”Phoebe.. ” he managed to say until Dex walked up from behind and handcuffed him. Removing the hood from his head, Phoebe gasps.

”You… ” Phoebe stares at him in anger an disgust. ”Why the hell did you do this? Whats the point? What would you achieve from this? ”

”I don understand you, Phoebe. Whats going on? ” The hooded guy asks.

”Really? Youve just been caught yet you
e denying acting like you don know what you did. Why do this after all these years? It took me weeks to get over what you did. ” Phoebe spat.

”You know him? ” Dex asks.

”Like hell I do. His name is Bryce. This asshole traumatized me in high school. Look, I can talk about this right now. Just take him away. ”

”Phoebe, I swear you gotta listen to me. I did nothing. A guy payed me some cash to stand here with this phone. ” Bryce points at the phone. ” You have to believe me. ”

”Thats enough. You
e under arrest. ” Dex snatches him and takes him inside the car, locking it, he turned around to Phoebe. ”So, thats that. ” He smiled.

”Thanks a lot Dex. He wouldn have been caught without you. I owe you one. ” Phoebe hugs him.

”Sure. Wanna come along? I can drive you home. ” Dex offered.

”Nah… Never mind. My friend works at the news station right over there. ” Phoebe points. ”Ill go visit her. ”

”Ok, sure. ” Dex smiles. ”Bye. ”

”Bye Dex. Thanks again. ”

”No problem. ”

As Dex drove off, Phoebe sighed. Incidents with Bryce in high school flooded her mind. Thoughts she managed to discard came rushing back. Thinking back on it, she vexes, wishing she had followed Dex and made sure Bryce got the punishment he deserved.

**********

It was in high school. Phoebe was a loner. No friends, no accomplice, just her, her books, her phone. She was just the average girl next door. She was also messed with by the popular girls, mostly the cheerleading captain. No girl wanted to be her, no boy wanted to be with her. Well, no boy except Bryce Stanton.

Bryce was also a loner. He was the weird kid. Everyone, literally everyone, messed with him. Everyone except Phoebe. She was nice to him occasionally whenever they crossed paths and that barely happened. They were never close, never friends. Everyone saw Bryce as a creep. He was the typical high school weirdo.

Things started to get weird when Phoebe began to notice Bryce always staring at her. At first she thought it was just an innocent stare or he had a silly little crush on her but things started to get more awkward when she started noticing him following her home from afar. She also noticed saw him in places he shouldn be, places around her. She felt weirded out but decided to shrug it off.

The both of them were in the same biology class. Their teacher, Mr Radcliffe, gave then a group assignment and asked them to pair with each other, two in a group, more like a duo. As expected, no one picked Phoebe nor Bryce to be their partner so they had no choice but to pair up.

After getting the assignment and all the necessary informations on it, they both agreed to take the project at Bryces.

Getting there, Phoebe noticed how large the house was. She automatically assumed Bryces parents were rich and immediately started to wonder why he acted so weird in school. The house was a little unkept. She got to learn that Bryce lived alone. His parents were never around.

While doing the project, they actually talked, the longest they ever did, and Phoebe was actually entertained. It was fun. As they kept talking about random things, Phoebe noticed a door in his room and decided to ask what it was.

”Its just like a basement but in my room. No need to go in there. Its a mess. ” Bryce said and smiled.

”Sure ” Phoebe returned the smile.

Phoebe kept stealing glances at the door. She was paranoid. Something about the door sent chills to her body and she decided to check what was inside but she was waiting for the right time. Fortunately, it came.

”Gonna go grab something to eat. You hungry? ” Bryce asks.

”Sure. Im starving. ” She smiled.

Bryce got up and headed for the door. Immediately he left, Phoebe got up and walked to the door. Twisting the knob, it failed to open. It was locked. She hurriedly searched round the room and managed to find a bunch of keys. She got the right key after several tried and as soon as she opened the door, what she saw sent chills down her spine.

They were pictures of her, hanging on the walls of every corner of the room.

Many of them were pictures of her taken unaware. Some were yearbook cutouts, some were pictures printed from her social media feeds. Walking out of the room, still in shock, she locks the door. About to turn back, she hears Bryces voice behind her.

”I told you not to go in there. ”

Remaining where she was, she turned and smiled.

”I didn go in. ” She lied. ”Gotta admit, I wanted to but I heard your voice and decided to respect your privacy. You caughy me though, about to enter. ” She gave a nervous chuckle.

”Don **ing lie to me Phoebe. What were you doing in there? ”

”I swear I didn go in. I… ” Phoebe didn complete her sentence as Bryce charged up and yelled.

”Shut up you lying bitch! ”

Phoebe gasped and moved back a little. She started to shake.

Sighing, Bryce asks, more calmly. ”What did you see in there? ”

No answer.

”Im talking to you! Answer me whenever I talk to you! ” He yelled again.

It frustrated Phoebe. She was scared but he was the one at fault there. She decided to return the energy.

”What are my pictures doing all over your walls you creep? ”

Aigini, Bryce smiled. ”Is it a crime to put your picture up my walls babe? ”

Babe?

”Don call me babe. ” Phoebe spat.

”Why not? You
e my girlfriend. ”

”The **? Am I missing something? ”

”Come on. Don act like you don want this. ” Bryce smiled.

”Just shut up Bryce. Whats wrong with you? ”

”I love you Phoebe and you love me too. ”

”No Im not. ”

”If you
e not in love with me, why are you always nice to me? ”

”Because I know what it feels like to not fit it. I know what itsike to be an outcast. We go through the same thing at school and Im not like the other jerks around. ”

”Thats my point Phoebe. We belong together. ” He starts coming closer.

”Thats it. Im out of here. ” Grabbing her things and reaching the door, Bryce stopped her.

”Don leave, Phoebe. ”

”Or else what? ”

Turning the knob and opening the door, Bryce ran and pushed it back shut.

”What the **? ”

”Lets not make this hard, Phoebe. ”

”Fuck this. ” Opening the door again, Bryce pushed it shut and held Phoebe tight.

”Let go off me. ” Phoebe struggled. Pushing her back into the room with full force, she hit the wall with full force and fell on the floor. Walking over to where she was, he yelled at her.

”I asked you not to go anywhere and thats exactly what you
e gonna do. ”

”Whats your problem? ” Phoebe cried.

”No, whats your problem? A girlfriend is meant to be submissive to her boyfriend. ” Bryce replied.

”You sick **! ” Phoebe charged and threw her shoe on his eyes. It got his right eye. It hurt him a lot and it angered him.

”You stupid bitch! ” He yelled and took the vase by the table. Raising it up, he throws it and she manages to dodge it, slightly missing her head. She gasped. Realizing what he had done, he calmed down and walked to her.

”Im really sorry babe, did I hurt you? You shouldn habe dine what you did. Stop making me do what I don want to. ”

He was about to touch her when she pushed him and ran off. She calles the cops and explained what happened. He was a minor so they decided to take him to a detention centre. It was kater discovered that he has a mental issue so they moved his to an asylum for treatment.

She never saw or heard from him again.

**********

Coming back to the present, she sighed. She realized Sydney was right about the creep being someone from her past. She decided to get all the thoughts away. He had finally been caught. She could live in peace now.

Walking around the park, Phoebe inhaled the air. It felt fresh. It felt good to breathe again. Wandering off to Sydneys work place, she sees Sydney walking out of the building. Smiling and waving at her, Sydney sights her, returns the smile and walks over to her.

”Look who decided to show up. I thought you were going somewhere else? If you were coming here, why didn you just let me give you a lift? Sydney asks.

”Well, I decided to drive myself. Its been a while you know. Its another sign of me moving on. I stopped driving because the whole Bryan incident. Im back on my feet. ” Phoebe lied.

”Good for you babe. ” Sydney smiles and gives her a high five.

”What
e you doing out here? ” Phoebe asks.

”Just came to get some documents from my car. You waved, I came. Ill soon head back inside though. Meeting Alan? ”

”Yeah. He told me he was going to be at the diner if I was interested. ”

”Wow. We
e in the inviting stage now hmm? ” Sydney raises her eyebrows up and down and gives Phoebe a light push with her elbow.

”You have work to go to Sydney. ” Phoebe smiles and they both laugh.

Going their separate ways, Phoebe walks to the diner and entering, she sees Alan waving at her. She smiles and walks over to him. He was there, waiting for her. She came. Walking over to where he sat, she takes her seat and smiles wider.

”Hey. ” She said.

”You showed up. Thank Goodness. Thought I was going to be stood up for the second time in a row. ” Alan smiles.

”I didn stand you up, Alan, I just didn feel the vibe to come here. ”

”While I was waiting? Yeah, sounds like a stand up to me. ”

”Come on. It wasn a date. You didn even invite me over. Ive got other things to do you know. ” Phoebe smiles.

”So this is a date huh? ” Alan smirks.

”No its not. ” Phoebe replied.

”What is it then? ”

”Its just a casual meet up between friends. ”

”Oh we
e friends? ”

”Yeah, of course we are. Its been almost a month since we met and we sure do enjoy each others company. ” Phoebe smiled.

” Yeah, thats right. ” Alan returned the smile.

After spending hours talking with each other, they decided to part ways. Phoebe decided to take a walk. Inhaling the fresh and open air, Phoebe smiled. Walking past a garden, she sees lots of beautiful flowers in full bloom. She inhales them from the roses to the lilies, from the lilies to the sunflowers. Picking up a dandelion, she makes a wish.

”I wish I get the job and get to live my best life yet. ”

But it wasn that easy. Her story was just beginning.