Sick Little Games

Katherine Murphy didn’t know what to do with herself. She lived her life out like she always did, pretending Alex wasn’t getting to her, when in reality, he was. It had been a week and four days since she’d seen him in person, not like she was counting. She was already starting to feel that awkward sensation cascading off her skin, preparing itself for when her and Alex saw each other again. She didn’t know if she could take it.

“Hey Christine?” she called softly, hearing a low “Mmm?” from the other room.

“I think I want to move out here.”

Christine couldn’t deny the grin that made it’s way on her face as she ran into her kitchen where Katherine sat, hugging her best friend. She absentmindedly cooed different things they needed to set up, put together, and make happen, and Katherine laughed as she took it all in. This is what she wanted to do. This felt right. This was right.

They say home is where the heart is. Katherine didn’t really know if that was true; all she knew was that she didn’t want to leave Maryland. Her home of New York was sounding less and less homey as the days passed, and she realized that’s not where she wanted to be, it’s just where she ran. She was finished running.

But that still didn’t mean she was going to confront Alex first.

Who said she even wanted to talk to him?

Since when was she so obsessed with him?

He was like a deathtrap, like quicksand, like poison. Every little thing she thought about brought her back to thoughts of Alex and she hated it.

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Jack Barakat couldn't stand watching his friend act the way he did. He couldn’t stand the way he blew everyone off, all because of a girl. Jack was catching on to all this madness, and was taking it upon himself to change Alex’s actions, for everyone’s sake, including his own.

So he did was anyone would do: he called the girl’s best friend. Combined brainpower, combined information, doubled chance of this actually working. And it needed to because Jack was determined to get his best friend back.

He scrolled through his contact list on his iPhone slowly, meeting the barely touched number with his pointer finger. He pressed send and held the phone next to his ear, praying Christine didn’t change her number in the few years he’d had it.

“Jack?” a voice answered on the second ring, taking him away from his thoughts.

“Christine?” he asked through the speaker.

“This is she.”

He smiled at her correct grammar, and spoke into the mouthpiece. “I have a favor to ask of you.”

Christine automatically grinned on the other line, knowing it had something to do with Alex. “What kind of favor?”

“Well, my dear friend Alex is sort of in a… slump. He needs Katherine and he needs her now,” he stated, sitting down on his bed with a slight squeak.

“And Katherine needs your friend,” Christine agreed, nodding.

“So what can we do about this tragic situation at hand?” Jack wondered out loud.

“We could always go the cliché’ route and lock them in a closet,” Christine joked, “Or we cou—"

Jack cut her off. “I’m in.”

“You want to lock them in a closet?” she laughed, “I was kidding!”

“I know. I think it just might work.”