Mindy Lawrence stared blankly at the luminescent screen of her computer, her amber scanning the conversation searching for the reason , thinking how weird it was for Lauren to just logged of like that.

“Lauren: hey Mindy, were are you
3 minutes ago LIKE
RE:sweetPea19: home why
3 minutes ago LIKE
RE: Lauren: Just wandering
3 minutes ago LIKE
RE:Lauren: you wanna come over to my place?
1 minutes ago LIKE
RE:sweetPea19: cant tonight:( i have to look after benny
1 minutes ago LIKE
RE: Lauren: That’s to bad, How come?
1 minutes ago LIKE
RE: sweetPea19: moms out,
1 minutes ago LIKE
Lauren signed out”

‘she thinks I was lying’, Mindy thought to herself scanning the text again ‘or maybe her laptop turned off, but…wouldn’t she still be logged in?’ her hypotheticals grow and gnawed away at her, poisoning her from the inside like they were made of arsenic.
She scanned again, analysing each word.
(“Lauren: hey Mindy, were are you
RE:sweetPea19: home why
RE: Lauren: Just wandering
RE:Lauren: you wanna come over to my place?
RE:sweetPea19: cant tonight:( ,i have to look after benny
RE: Lauren: That’s to bad, How come?
RE: sweetPea19: moms out,
Lauren signed out”)

Still scanning, still no answer.

(“Lauren: hey Mindy, were are you
RE:sweetPea19: home why
RE: Lauren: Just wandering
RE:Lauren: you wanna come over to my place?
RE:sweetPea19: cant tonight:( i have to look after benny
RE: Lauren: That’s to bad, How come?
RE: sweetPea19: moms out,
Lauren signed out”)

She was about to go over it one more when the phone rang. She shut her bedroom door behind her (thinking Benny was too short to reach the handle). The bare wood stairs creaked under her weight. When she reached the dimly lit hallway, she picked the phone up from the table (CALLER UNKNOWN) and pressed it against her ear.

“Hello,” Mindy chirped in her usual up beat way, masking her frustration.
No reply, just loud heavy breathing at the other end of the phone.
“Hello. How is this…Are you some kind of pervert of something?”
“It’s me.” The man’s husky voice was unfamiliar to Mindy’s ears.
“Well you must have the wrong number, ‘cause I don’t know anyone called ‘me’.”
“I like your top Mindy.”
“…What?
“I said, like your top Mindy, the blue one. I looks good on you.” She took a deep breath. Air rushing to her lungs, her heartbeat racing.
“How’d you…I am getting my mother.”
“I thought she was out SweetPea,” his words made a cold bead of sweat dripped down her back.“Are scared yet Mindy? You should be.” The phone slipped from her hand, shattering into a million pieces by her feet.
A million thoughts dashed through her mind:

'it’s a prank'
'someone must have told him what I wore to school today'
‘im imagining things’
‘mums out’
'it has to be a prank'







“what if he can see me”







‘where’s benny’
Benny.

“BENNY!” she cried desperately as she ran back up the stairs heading for the five-year-olds room.
His bed room door, the one she’d seen closed no more than thirty seconds before was swung open revelling the boy was gone. A terrible sinking feeling of guilt took over Mindy leaving her at the verge of throwing up. Tears welling at the corners of her eyes.
She turned round. That’s when she saw him. Benny, and the relief covered her like a wave.

“Who’s Lauren he asked?” he asked, clutching his teddy to his chest.
“What?” Benny didn’t answer, instead he grabbed her sleeve and lead her to her room pointing to the blue screen.
“She’s angry at you, she said real bad things.”
Slowly, she walked up to her computer, holding Benny’s free hand.

“…RE: Lauren: That’s to bad, How come?
7 minutes ago LIKE
RE: sweetPea19: moms out,
6 minutes ago LIKE
Lauren signed out
Lauren signed in
RE: Lauren: What the f*** you hang up for you little b**** ?
3minutes ago LIKE
RE: Lauren: not talking anymore?
2 minutes ago LIKE
RE: Lauren: Guess what SweetPea
1 minutes ago LIKE
RE: Lauren: I’m coming to get you Mindy
10 seconds ago LIKE”

Mindy scrabbled for her mobile phone.

“…RE: Lauren: I’m at the door
2 seconds ago LIKE”

By the time she found it, she could hear the key turning in the lock.

“…RE: Lauren: It’s almost open
2 seconds ago LIKE
RE: Lauren: I’m comin’ to get you SweetPea
1 seconds ago LIKE”

By the time she dialled, her mother had locked it behind her.