forty one

yo guys, how are you all doing?

soz that i went off the grid but hey life isn't the greatest right now but i'm trying my best to persevere lol, hope you guys enjoy this chapter :)

// chapter forty one //

I paused in my steps almost immediately, feeling my muscles tense.

I couldn't even bring myself to turn around and look at the phone as the shrill ring continued to echo around the abandoned street that it sat in. Grimacing slightly at the sheer intensity of the ring, I let out a deep sigh.

"You have got to be kidding me," I growled, my fists clenching around the limited material in my pocket. Taking in a sharp breath of the cold fresh air that blew past me, I slowly turned around to the phone as it paused in it's ringing for a moment. My breath caught in my throat, hoping to God it was only a coincidence and that I could just leave...but as soon as it had stopped, it started ringing once again. Somehow it sounded a lot more urgent that it had before.

Maybe I was going crazy.

Or maybe someone else was crazy.

My eyes involuntarily scanned around the area, hoping that I would be able to see someone in the darkness and that they were just pulling a prank. But my only company was an empty bottle of water that tumbled across the concrete floor in the wind.

Was I alone? Was there someone watching me?

I guess there was only one way to find out. Grinding my teeth and pushing away the thoughts that clouded my better judgement, I stormed over to the phone box.

I wanted to believe it was only a coincidence that only a few hours before, I had received a phone call with some creepy ass mofo breathing down the phone like his life depended on it and let's not forget the totally-not-okay way he said my name - which is still a complete mystery because I had no idea who it was or how in the name of hell they knew my name to begin with.

And now a phone was ringing just as I was walking past it?

Either it was some weird voodoo shit or I had a stalker on my hands.

But now I was even more thankful that I had made my brothers' go on ahead because having to explain that I was receiving weird phone calls could have gotten messy. I know Stefan was suspicious since I had left my phone at home and was clearly shaken when he had come to check on me, but he never pryed and a small part of me wished that he had. At least he would know what was happening. But then again, I wanted to sort this out myself. As much as I loved having my brothers and knowing that they cared so much meant a lot to me, but I needed to be independant. And I couldn't do that if they always intervened whenever something went wrong.

I could handle myself after all.

I wrenched open the rusty door of the phone box, a small shiver running up my spine at the rough and chilly feel of the handle. The box was a lot smaller on the inside and as soon as I let out a breath, one of the small window panels fogged immediately. The ringing was suddenly a lot more shrill and intimidating as I saw the phone in front of me vibrate slightly from the incoming call. There was a sudden slam behind me and I spun around, noticing that the door was now shut. I couldn't see outside very well, the windows all suddenly fogging up as my breathing became more erratic.

My chest rose rapidly as my eyes slowly turned to look down at the black, grimy phone that was shaking. My hand felt cold as I carefully reached down and picked it up, the vibration running through my finger tips as I hesitantly brought it to my ear. I kept my eyes trained on the scratched keypad beneath me, trying my best to slow my breathing.

"H-hello?"

It remained silent and my stomach turned angrily as my eyes narrowed. Enough was enough.

"Since you were so desperate to get my attention, the least you could do is say hello." I snapped down the phone, my courage dissipating slightly as I was met with heavy breathing once again. My hand involuntarily began to shake as I was hit with a wave of deja vu. Was it them? The same one that called me on my phone?

I didn't get so much as a grunt in response and I felt myself getting more and more angry about the situation. Did they think this was funny? Because it wasn't. Why were they calling me? I had no idea and I didn't actually care, I just didn't want them doing it anymore.

Quickly, I started to rack through the various people on my contact list, crossing off the ones that I knew definitely would not do this because they actually had lives to attend to and wouldn't find a kick in doing this. Elena? Nope. Matt? Nope. Caroline? Pssh, please. Bonnie? Highly unlikely. Tyler? Oh most definitely, but there was no way he had my number. And come to think of it I haven't spoken to the furball in a while. Wonder what he's up to? I mentally slapped myself, shaking my head as I tried to regain my train of thought. FOCUS. Jeremy? He honestly wouldn't have the effort to do this.

Then who?

I'd run out of people that could be doing this and I was starting to become desperate, I just wanted to know who it was so I could rain hell on them. They thought this was funny? It won't be funny when I set their balls on fire.

What if it's a girl?

I'll burn her clothes and watch her suffer when she tries to choose a nice outfit.

Usually I'm not this sadistic but desperate times call for desperate measures.

"Brook..."

"Okay, you can stop with the damn spooky voice," I chastised, my hand clenching the phone dangerously tight. "Good for you, you know my name, how about you tell me yours so we can be on an equal level."

When I didn't get a response again, I opened my mouth to let out a massive string of insults and really give them a piece of my mind when I froze, the gruff voice hissing through the line before I had a chance.

"Turn around..."

My hand immediately froze and I nearly lost my grip on the grimy phone entirely. My lips were parted in mid-insult and all I could let out was a choked breath. The box now seemed a lot colder and my legs seemed to have welded to the floor of the box.

That's impossible. I checked.

But no matter how much I tried to convince myself that I had checked there was something nagging in the back of my mind...Did I check everywhere?

I pushed down the small whimper that began to rise in my throat and instead slowly began to turn around. I reached one of my fabric-covered ups to rub away at the condensation that had gathered on the window and shakily began to wipe away at the vapour, my jaw beginning to shake in contained fear.

As soon as my vision was clear and the vapour was clear, my hand released all grip I had on the phone and my mouth dropped as I stumbled back. My eyes were wide as I let out a choked shriek. A pair of deep red eyes stared unblinking at me from across the road. Their arm was bent as their hand held a phone tightly to their ear.

Another shriek slipped past my lips as my back pressed up against the back of the phone box, the keypad digging into my back sharply. But I payed it no attention, I only knew that I wanted to be as far away from that figure as I could possibly be.

They didn't blink once.

The red eyes continued to stare deeply at me and I found myself unable to break the stare that they held me under. And as foreign as the eyes seemed, they held a hint of familiarity. But in my state of panic and fear, my memory was clouded and I couldn't even form a single clear thought that had any relevance. How do I know you?

Who are you?

Suddenly, they slowly began to drop their hand, one of their slender fingers pressing the end call button on their small brick of a phone. They stood under one of the flickering dim lights but I wasn't able to make out much since their hood was pulled up way too far across their face. I felt as if I had just been dropped into a scene of a horror movie and I wanted nothing more than to just close my eyes and disappear.

But I wasn't about to close my eyes. Not as the red eyes continued to glare straight at me, their shoulders heaving up and down with heavy yet patient breaths. My fingers curled around my palm and I tried to press my back further against the keypad, only to let out a stifled yelp as it pressed on my backbone. Why weren't they moving?

I thought about making a run for it, but with the figure watching me like a hawk and standing only a few metres away, I knew I wouldn't stand a chance. I know, I'm half-vampire, I have the speed to make it.

But I knew one thing for sure; that figure was anything but human. What if they were faster than me? They could maybe even outrun me. And I knew next to nothing about my powers and what I was capable of so I had no idea how they'd be of any use. I glanced up at the light that flickered above the figure.

Could I...?

I frowned in concentration, pushing any ounce of power I could towards it. Break. Nothing happened. BREAK. It remained in tack. I let out a small moan of frustration and felt my heart beat speed up as I realised I was trapped. There was nothing I could do. But what did they want with me? I mean...they're just staring at me. And it didn't look like they were going to be making a move anytime soon. What if I-

I didn't get a chance to finish my thought as the door of the phone box was suddenly ripped open. I let out a loud scream, pressing myself as hard as I could against the phone box, my fingers curling around on the keypad in an attempt to get some grip.

"Leave me alone, you psycho-!"

"Brook!"

My eyes widened as the figure emerged from the darkness, his face lighting up in the dim glow of the phone box. From behind the new figure, I could see the red eyes narrow at me and my new companion in the darkness. But for the moment, I wasn't concerned about red eyes anymore and instead focused on the new arrival, his oceanic blue eyes staring right back at me.

"Liam?!"

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tensions be rising omg

HEADS UP THAT LIAM IS NOT RED EYES SORRY IF THAT WASN'T CLEAR, HE GOT THERE TO HELP BROOK OUT SORRY LOL

i really enjoyed writing this chapter and I'm hella excited for the next few :) i really am sorry about the massive gap between chapters but hey, life's being a bitch at the moment and i'm trying my best to keep optimistic; i will try my best to update when i can :)

AND I DON'T THINK YOU GUYS KNOW HOW MUCH I SHIP LIAM AND BROOK AND I'M SO HAPPY LIAM IS BACK OMG MAKE BABIES PLS, anyway thank you guys so much for the support on this story and the votes and the comments, you're the best honestly ily

- Emma