Chapter 29

Sera POV

Saturday night found me unable to sleep despite the exhaustion weighing down every limb. I'd spent the day trying to recover from the brutal work week, but rest felt impossible when my mind wouldn't stop racing.

By 10pm, I gave up and decided a walk might help clear my head. The downtown streets were busy with weekend nightlife, couples heading to restaurants, groups of friends laughing as they moved between bars, the normal rhythm of people enjoying their freedom.

I walked without destination, letting my feet carry me through familiar blocks. The air felt strange tonight, heavier somehow, like pressure building before a storm.

After maybe twenty minutes, the feeling started. Someone was following me.

The awareness came gradually, footsteps that matched my pace too precisely, a presence maintaining consistent distance behind me. I turned a corner onto a quieter street, and the footsteps followed.

My pulse quickened. I stopped at a shop window, using the glass to check behind me. The street had people on it, but no one stood out as obviously following me.

I kept walking, faster now, taking a turn I wouldn't normally take. A man walking his dog was coming toward me, and I seized the opportunity.

"Excuse me," I said, my voice shakier than intended. "Do you know if there's a coffee shop open around here?"

He looked surprised but friendly. "At this hour? Maybe the one on Market Street, but I think they close at ten."

"Right, thanks." I glanced over my shoulder, trying to seem casual. "Have you seen anyone else walking this way? Like, following the same route?"

His expression shifted to concern. "Are you okay? Is someone bothering you?"

"No, I just… I thought I saw someone I knew, but I'm probably imagining things."

"Do you need me to walk with you somewhere? My apartment's just up the block, but I can make sure you get where you're going safely."

The offer was kind, but I didn't want to drag a stranger into whatever was happening. "I'm fine, really. Just tired and paranoid. Thanks though."

He didn't look convinced, but his dog was pulling on the leash. "Be careful out here."

After he left, I felt more exposed than before. The conversation had confirmed I looked scared enough for a stranger to offer help, which meant I wasn't hiding my fear as well as I thought.

I pulled out my phone and called Bri.

She answered on the third ring. "Hey! I was just about to text you. Want to grab brunch tomorrow?"

"Are you busy right now?" I asked, my voice tight.

"Just watching TV. What's wrong? You sound weird."

"I'm walking home and I think someone's following me."

"What?" Her tone shifted immediately to alarm. "Where are you?"

"Near Fifth and Market. I'm probably being paranoid, but—"

"Sera, if you think someone's following you, you're not being paranoid. Can you get somewhere public? Like a restaurant or store?"

I looked around. Most shops were closed, but there was a convenience store with its lights on about half a block ahead. "There's a store nearby."

"Go there right now. I'm serious. And stay on the phone with me."

I walked faster toward the lit storefront, my shoes clicking against the pavement in a rhythm that sounded too loud. "I feel stupid. It's probably nothing."

"Better to feel stupid than to ignore your instincts. Trust me, if something feels wrong, it probably is."

"When did you become so serious about safety?"

"Since my best friend called me sounding terrified." Her voice softened slightly. "Are you at the store yet?"

"Almost." I reached the door and pushed inside, relief flooding through me at the fluorescent lights and bored cashier. "I'm here."

"Good. Stay there for a few minutes. Let whoever it was pass by or get bored."

I walked to the back of the store, pretending to browse refrigerated drinks while keeping an eye on the windows. The cashier glanced at me once but went back to his phone.

"I'm such a mess," I said quietly. "This whole week has been insane, and now I'm jumping at shadows."

"You worked yourself half to death. Your brain's probably fried." Bri paused. "Want me to come get you? I can be there in twenty minutes."

"No, I'm okay. I think I just needed to hear a friendly voice."

"Well, you've got it. And I'm not hanging up until you're home safe."

We talked for another ten minutes while I waited in the store. Bri filled me in on her plans to visit the mechanic shop again, her voice taking on that dreamy quality it got when she talked about Kael.

"He said the repairs are almost done. I'm thinking of bringing him coffee or something when I pick up the car. Is that weird?"

My stomach tightened at the mention of Kael, but I forced myself to sound normal. "Not weird. Just friendly."

"I'm trying to figure out if he's single. He doesn't wear a ring, but that doesn't mean anything."

I looked out the store windows. The street seemed normal now, the earlier sense of being watched fading into something that might have been imagination.

"I think I'm good to head home," I said, interrupting Bri's speculation about Kael's relationship status.

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Whatever it was, it's gone now."

"Okay, but text me the second you get inside your building. I mean it."

The walk to my building took five minutes, and I kept Bri on the phone the whole time. She chattered about weekend plans and her mother's latest redecorating project, normal conversation that made the world feel safer.

"I'm at my building," I said, pushing through the lobby doors.

"Text me when you're inside your apartment."

"I will. Thanks, Bri."

"That's what friends are for. And Sera? Maybe take it easy tomorrow. You sound exhausted."

After we hung up, I headed for the elevator. My neighbor, an older lady, was already inside when the doors opened.

"Oh, Seraphina," she said, her expression shifting to concern. "Are you alright, dear? You look like you've seen a ghost."

The observation hit closer to home than she could know. "Just tired. Long week at work."

"You young people work too hard." She studied my face with grandmotherly attention. "And you're very pale. Are you eating enough?"

"I'm fine, really. Just need some rest."

"My daughter works too hard too. Always on her computer, never sleeping properly." She shook her head. "You should have some hot soup and go to bed early."

"That's good advice. I'll do that."

The elevator reached the fifteenth floor, and Mrs. Chen patted my arm before heading toward her apartment. "Take care of yourself, dear. You can't pour from an empty cup."

Inside my own apartment, I deadbolted the door and leaned against it. My phone buzzed, Bri checking that I'd made it home safely. I sent her a quick text confirming I was inside.

The apartment felt quiet and safe, the earlier paranoia seeming silly now that I was surrounded by familiar walls. Maybe Mrs. Chen was right. Maybe I just needed soup and sleep and to stop pushing myself so hard.

But as I made tea I wouldn't drink and tried watching television that couldn't hold my attention, I couldn't completely shake the memory of those foots

teps matching my pace. The feeling of eyes watching from shadows.

Someone had been following me. I was almost certain of it