“No, I appreciate it. Thank you.” I tugged the sweatshirt on next, the soft material falling past my thighs.
The fog still coated the mirror, a small miracle. I gave my dumpster clothes one last searing look, then opened the door.
Winder fought back a smile when he saw me.
“What?” I pulled at the oversized sweatshirt. “Not my look?”
“Black doesn’t suit you.” His face grew somber. “You ready to talk about what happened?”
I wandered past him, sitting down on the edge of his bed. It was strange how comfortable I felt around him. “Someone broke into my apartment.”
Winder crossed his arms, and his tongue darted out to lick his lips. “A man?”
“Yes. I ran down the fire escape and whoever it was chased me. I outran him, and hid in a dumpster until he left. Hence the horrific smell. But I was kind of out of options and?—”
Winder held up his hand, stopping my ramble. “Did you see who it was?”
I shook my head, droplets of water splashing my face from my wet hair. “No. In fact, at first, I thought it might be you.”
“Me?” His eyes narrowed. “Why would you think I wanted to break into your apartment?”
“I don’t know. You didn’t seem impressed when I showed up earlier.” My heart pinged when I remembered the rejection from his attitude. Winder didn’t like me, that much was clear.
“Just because I tell you to go home doesn’t mean I want to hurt you, Blaire,” he scoffed.
I froze. “You know my name.” It hit me all at once. That was what had bothered me in the shower. When I got to his house, right before I fainted, he called me by my name.How did he know my name?
He paused as well, a muscle jumping in his cheek. “I do.”
“How?” I was already looking around the room for my escape plan, depending on how he responded. He might’ve had height and weight on me, but I was quick.
“The barista called your name out when you ordered your coffee.”
Plausible? Sure. But something about it didn’t sit right. Air filled my lungs again. I was just on edge, which was fair considering I was in a near-stranger’s bed.
Winder watched me closely, for something I couldn’t exactly pinpoint. “Are you comfortable going home tonight?”
If I closed my eyes, and imagined I wasn’t here, I was fairly certain I could fall asleep just listening to his voice. I only had to pretend he wasn’t saying things about me going back to my apartment. I didn’t want to stay here, in his scratchy bed, with what sounded like a party going on outside the door, but going home terrified me more than I wanted to admit.
“Is it always this loud?” I nodded toward the door, at the people sounding like they were having the time of their lives just outside.
“Mostly. Until they all crash in a few hours.” He cocked his head. “I can come with you and make sure your locks are as secure as possible, and in the morning you can call the police.”
I didn’t want to go back there. I didn’t want to call the police. I squeezed my wrist. “It just all seems too coincidental, you know? First the dreams, then you telling me I wasn’t safe, and then someone breaks into my house? It’s just all happening too close together for me to process.” I squeezed my eyes shut, pressing lightly on my eyelids with the tips of my fingers. “Before all this, I couldn’t remember a single one of my dreams, and now I’m waking up thinking I’m covered in blood.”
“Blood?” Winder crossed the room in a few steps, kneeling at my feet. “What do you mean blood?”
I could’ve killed him on the spot. “I tried telling you earlier, but you were more concerned about me seeing my doctor. I’m having a nightmare. Some things in it change, but for the most part, it’s the same. I’m standing over someone I’ve just killed, or am about to kill. Then I black out, and I wake up in my bed. But every time I wake up, I expect to be covered in blood, and I’m not. Because I’m fairly certain I’m insane. I have to be losing my mind, right? To actually think that I’m covered in blood.” I buried my face in my hands, trying to shut out all the memories of the dream that was quickly ruining my life.
I felt Winder’s hand rest on my knee, lightly, like he thought he was going to scare me off. “I know what I just said. But you can’t go home now, Blaire. I need you to stay here until we can get all of this straightened out.”
Half of me was relieved that I wouldn’t have to go back there. The other half of me wanted to run. I pulled my face from my hands. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, you’re right.” He sighed, sitting back on his heels. My leg felt naked without his touch. “Something is going on. If it was just a break and enter, yeah, I could come and make sure your locks were okay. But I can’t send you home.”
“So, you want me to stay here?” I pointed to the other side of the door, where a chant for someone named “Tommy” could be heard. I waited for him to disagree.
A scowl marred his full lips. “No. I need you to stay in my room, at least when I’m not here. A few days, max. I’ll see what I can find out from some people I know. Once I’m confident it’s just a freak series of coincidences, I’ll walk you home myself.”
