The next day Daniel follows me to my dance studio, then leaves. He'll come back to follow me home from a distance once I am done. As I prepare for my performance, I send a quick text to Lara, asking her where she is. Elias is taking a train with her to the studio, they should have been here already. I'm not too worried, though, because we still have a lot of time before the dance starts and it's likely they missed a train or bus.
"You look beautiful as always" Raymond says, walking up behind me, I turn my head towards him and smile,
"Always ready with a compliment" I tease,
"Only for you, my shining beauty" he jokes, I laugh and turn back to the mirror. It's a contemporary story performance tonight, which means applying an excessive amount of makeup to transform myself into the character I will portray.
My chestnut-coloured hair falls gently on my sides, white specks of glitter poured all over it. My eyes are framed with green blue eye liner, making them pop out. I glance at my phone again, no reply from Lara. Now I am starting to feel uneasy, I try calling her but she doesn't pick up, I try Elias but he doesn't answer either.
I glance back at the mirror, my dolled-up face stares back at me. My eyes, which only moments before shone with excitement for the dance, are now clouded in worry for my friend,
"Where's Lara?" Sarah asks,
"Not sure, I've been texting her but she's not responding" Just as I finish my sentence, my phone goes off. I glance down at the screen, it's Lara,
"Lara, where are you?" I say,
"Elias! He's hurt!" she yells frantically,
"Elias? What happened? Where are you?"
"In hospital. We were attacked. He hurt him!" she cries, speaking really quickly,
"Wait. Lara. Are you okay now? Tell me where you are, I am coming"
"In hospital" she says, through tears
"Near Evergreen gardens?"
"Yes"
"I'm coming" I start walking, ignoring Sarah who's calling after me asking what happened. I don't care that I am dressed for dance, I run out of the studio,
"Is Elias okay?"
"I don't know" she cries, lucklily I see a parked cab across the street, I run over to him, telling him to take me to the hospital,
"What happened?"
"We were walking from the train station, to the theatre. When he came out of nowhere"
"Who?"
"A man. A tall big man. I think it was the stalker" she starts sobbing again, talking so fast that I can't follow,
"The stalker attacked Elias?" I ask,
"Yes. He came at us when we were all alone, he went straight for Elias. Elias told me to run, but I didn't. The man punched him, Elias hit him back, he fought, I started screaming. I ran to call for help, people came and he ran off. Elias was on the ground, unconscious"
"Is he going to be okay? Did the doctor look at him?"
"I don't know! I don't know! Please hurry! Please come!"
"I am coming, five minutes away. Just- just don't cry, okay? Everything will be okay-"
"What if he killed him?" she cries hysterically,
"No! Don't say that, he didn't!"
"What if-"
"No" I stop her before she breaks down again, "Lara. Don't cry. I'm coming"
"Please"
"I'm coming"
The cab stops in front of the hospital, I throw a wad of cash at him, everything I had on me. I run out towards the hospital, I hear the cab driver yelling after me that I forgot my change. I don't care, I have to find my friend. I run up to the reception, ask them if they know where to go, before they get to respond I see Lara from my peripheral vision pacing the waiting room to my left. I rush over to her, she runs into my arms for a hug, sobbing. We stay hugging for a long time. Neither of us has the will to let go,
"Where is he?" I ask, she points to a door to our right,
"Will he be okay?" she whispers a question,
"He will" I promise, though I have no idea what state Elias is in,
"If anything happens to him-"
"Nothing will happen to him. He will be okay" I cut her off,
"Please let that be true" she starts crying again. We stand there, holding each other, for what feels like hours. When a doctor exits Elias' room, we rush over to him,
"You're Mr. Nova's sibling?" the doctor asks,
"Yes, please tell me if he is okay"
"Your brother is stable at the moment"
"He will be okay?"
"He had a concussion due to a blow to his head. We've conducted scans, and while there is some swelling, it's within the expected range for this type of injury"
"That means he will be okay?" she asks hopefully,
"It's still early to make definitive statements, but based on his current condition, we're optimistic for a full recovery. Right now, the most important thing is for him to rest and allow his body to heal."
Tears glisten in Lara's eyes, I squeeze her hand reassuringly,
"Thank you, Doctor. Can I see him?" she asks,
The doctor nods his head,
"Of course. He's resting in his room. Just remember, he might be groggy when he wakes up, but that's normal. I'll arrange for a nurse to take you to him"
"Thank you so much, Doctor. Thank you for taking care of him" I say to the doctor,
"It's my pleasure. We'll do everything we can to ensure Mr. Nova's recovery goes smoothly"
After the doctor leaves, a nurse comes over to us to take Lara to see Elias. She tells me only one person can go, so I stay in the waiting room and Lara leaves.
Close to an hour later, Lara comes back,
"How is he?" I ask,
"He woke up, he spoke to me. It took him some time to remember everything, but he's okay" I hug her in relief,
"Thank goodness!" I sigh, "what did the doctor say?"
"He wants Elias to stay the night for observation. But he's awake, talking"
"We will stay the night with him" I say,
"No. The doctor said only one person can stay, they have a chair next to the bed"
"I can stay in the waiting room"
"No, Sofia, you need to go home. It's 9pm already, it'd getting late. Call a cab and go home"
"I want to stay with you"
"No point. Come back in the morning, at around eight. Doctor said if wverything is good they'll release him then"
"I don't mind waiting here, Lara"
"I do. The stalker is out there, Sofia, and it's getting late. Call a taxi and go home. You've done enough by coming here"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. No point in you staying, better that you go home and rest. I'm going to stay in Elias' room, I can even sleep on the chair there"
"But-"
"No buts, call a cab before it gets even later"
"Okay... but if you need anything-"
"I'll call you"
"Okay" we hug and I leave the hospital. I didn't tell Lara that I had no money at all for a taxi. Daniel was supposed to come to the theatre to follow me home at ten pm, after my dance, but it's only half past nine now. I'm about twenty minutes walk from home. I stare into the night, afraid to walk away from the hospital lights. Today proved that the stalker is even more dangerous than I ever imagined. He attacked Elias. What else is he prepared to do?
I'm only dressed in my dance clothes, so I feel even more vulnerable. I take off my heels and throw them into the bag, pulling on my sneakers. I will run the distance home. I will keep to the lights. I can do this.