Time stood still

"Kate!" 

My Aunt's voice made me lose my concentration. For a minute, I was tempted to ignore her and run towards Kyle, but in those few seconds, I felt my hands being gripped and shaken gently.

"Katherine! Are you okay?" 

Aunt Hilda's hands were all over my face all of a sudden, and I tried to focus on what she was saying. I risked tearing my gaze away to face my Aunt, quickly making an effort to look back as fast as I could.

I was desperately hoping my eyes were only deceiving me. He couldn't be here, let alone know I was here too.

However, a part of me somehow clung to the hope that it wasn't merely a speck of my imagination.

Unfortunately, he was no longer there.

My chest suddenly felt tight, my frustration turning into confusion. I forced my eyes shut, willing my mind to come back to the present. 

"Kate." 

I reopened my eyes and gave my full attention towards Aunt Hilda. Worry was creased in between her forehead.

On impulse, I glanced at the same spot where I thought I saw Kyle, hoping to get another glimpse. I had to convince my subconscious that it was real.

For some reason, I think I would be at ease if I had that firm confirmation.

Chasing away the effects of that brief delusion, I stared straight into Aunt Hilda's eyes.

"I'm sorry, I thought I saw someone familiar. I'm too exhausted. My mind must have played tricks on me. 

I bit my lower lip. I just sounded pathetic and had my Aunt's crease burrow even further.

It wasn't a one hundred percent lie, but I couldn't tell her the whole truth either, or she would tell my parents about it, and it wouldn't be good.

I get that they didn't want to talk about Kyle, so letting them know that I just saw him a few minutes ago would be insane unless I'd like to have some psychologist's visit or something. 

I'd rather shield the truth than have them worry over nothing.

"Oh, thank goodness! You almost gave me a heart attack." Aunt Hilda patted my head and then my shoulders, narrowing her gaze to check if I was really alright.

"I'm sorry. I didn't think. Let's go home," Aunt Hilda smiled warmly at me. I felt guilty for what just happened, even though I was aware that it wasn't my fault.

At least not entirely. Still, her genuine worry for me made it difficult to resist not telling the truth.

"Okay," I mustered the courage to say, forcing my lips to part into a thin smile as she dragged me toward the exit.

"What do you want for dinner? I want to cook something special," Aunt Hilda spoke cheerily as if nothing had happened. I listened to her list the dishes she planned to come up with tonight, barely absorbing anything.

My mind kept going back toward Kyle. 

Without meaning to, when we stepped out of the mall, heading toward the parked car, my gaze lingered on the exact spot where I thought he was standing. 

'Please tell me,' I internally begged. 'I'm not losing my mind yet. Or am I?'

--

12:51

The time on the phone, which Aunt Hilda got me a while ago, had me squinting. An annoyed groan escaped from my lips.

I lie in my bed, wide awake and unable to get over seeing Kyle. I was one hundred percent sure that it was him and not someone else. 

He was staring at me, his beautiful hazel daring me to come closer towards him, and he was smiling like he was glad to see me.

His jet-black hair and familiarity were driving me crazy.

I grabbed the pillow under my head and covered my face. It muffled the scream that came out of my mouth. 

There was a thin thread that held my sanity intact. If I were to cut it, I wonder what would happen.

Questions invaded my mind, firing one after another. Who wouldn't go crazy after all of this? 

My mind was in total chaos, but my heart was saying something else. I put away the pillow, staring at the ceiling as I caught my breath.

"Who are you, Kyle? Who are you in my life?"

The silence of the room hummed in response. It was eerily quiet that I could even hear the ticking of the wall clock outside the hallway. 

Time seemed to move slowly, rhyming with every beating of my heart. My chest heaved in and out. Flashes of vague images came to mind. 

Hoping to understand better what was going on, I closed my eyes.

But the array of images was interrupted by the sudden sound of a phone ringing. It echoed so loudly and unexpectedly that I jerked, gasping upon being jolted from what I thought was a mere trip to memory lane.

It took me a moment to find the source of the disturbance. 

Its incessant ringing right now had me wondering who it could be. There was no way anyone other than my Aunt and cousin could know about my new number. 

Aunt Hilda and Allen were already asleep. I'm sure of that. If they needed something, calling my mobile device was unnecessary.

I stared at the caller ID, my heart pounding. The mystery of the caller's identity was giving me the creeps.

But this case wouldn't solve itself if I ignored the call. Hence, I had no better choice but to pick it up.

Bracing myself, I took a deep breath and pressed the answer button.

"Hello?"

"Katie."

I sucked in some air and tried to remember how to breathe.

This can't be happening.

This isn't happening.

My chest tightened, and my throat went dry. The world around me had stopped moving. 

It made me feel like time had stood still hearing his voice, hearing him say my name with that familiar and endearing softness just like in that dream.

The only difference this time was that I was wide awake.

I released my grip on the phone a little, not even realizing that my hands were trembling.

My initial shock slowly wore off, allowing me a few minutes to gather my thoughts and remind myself that I had to say something.

But I couldn't think of anything to say, so I blurted the only thing that made sense.

"Kyle."