Monster in Hiding

December 23rd, 1999

Christmas was only a few days away now. I had already bought gifts for everyone, and they were hidden away in my small closet within th dorms. Tonight, I would be wrapping them all and getting it over with- my least favorite part of Christmas shopping.

“I’m leaving if anyone comes looking for me. Don’t wait up” Stacy didn’t look at me as she shoved something into her pocket and made her way over to the door. This was how it was every night. She would leave telling me not to wait up and not come back for days at a time; but when classes were still in session I would see her around campus daily.

I never worried about the girl as we weren’t really that close. When she was back in the dorm she was normally high off her ass, leaving me to clean up after her when she puked all over herself and couldn’t remember a thing the next morning.

Picking my phone up off of the nightstand, I sent Matt a text. I hadn’t seen him since the night he surprised me. But we had been talking nonstop, trying to make the distance seem less and less. I had also been in contact with the other boys, talking about how excited they were for the holidays and to have a break from recording. As much as they loved their music, they missed their families and needed a break.

Matt:
Yeah, Justin just kind of stormed out of the studio. No one can find him so I guess we’re done for the day...

I frowned a bit, it seemed that Justin did nothing but cause problems for the guys when it came to the band. Even before they were signed, I never heard anything good about the boy...

Me:
Well then take some time to relax. You’re overly stressed, you deserve a break, sweetheart.

Sighing, I put my phone back on the nightstand before standing up and moving over to my closet where all the presents were hidden. It was while I was pulling them out from their hiding spots that someone knocked on the door. Knowing there was no way that it could be Matt like it had been last time, I didn’t bother answering it to see who it was.

“Stacy isn’t there!” I shouted loud enough for whoever it was to hear me. There was a pause, and what sounded like someone kicking the floor in front of them as if disappointed. “Thanks, sorry to bother you.” The voice almost sounded familiar. It wouldn’t be surprising if it were someone I had classes with.

My phone vibrated from where it was sitting on the night stand, so as I was grabbing the scissors and tape I checked to see what it was saying.

Matt:
You’re right. I think I’m gonna go down to the gym, blow off some steam. I’ll talk to you when I get back.

I didn’t bother wondering why Matt wouldn’t be checking his phone during this time because I already knew. When Matt worked out he had a tendency to just zone out, and get things off of his mind, and it’s easier to do that without the distraction of a cell phone.

Once more I set the phone down on the night stand before going about my business.

I ended up sitting in the floor with my legs cross crossed in front of me, while I began wrapping the presents I had found for each person. It wasn’t much, but everything I found as something that had made me immediately think of who I was buying for.

I had only finished three of them when someone began banging on the door once more. My entire body jumped at the sudden loud sound coming from across the room, and suddenly I had a very unwelcome feeling of fear surging through my body.

“Stacy! Open this door, right fucking now!” Whoever it was, was yelling loudly and definitely didn’t sound too happy with my roommate.

“S-Stacy isn’t here,” I responded, even though a part of me knew they wouldn’t listen. I had never been in this situation before, but I already could tell that it wasn’t going to end pretty. Either with the cops or someone getting hurt, I didn’t know which but I wasn’t looking forward to finding out.

Whoever it was continued to bang loudly, my eyes shot down to the doorknob as it began rattling. They were trying to get in. Jumping up from my spot in the floor, I grabbed my phone off of the night stand. I dialed the first number I could think of, Matt’s. Only to groan loudly when it went to voicemail and I remembered he was at the gym.

The banging on the door slowed down, but was now louder and more harsh. My eyes flashed to the clock. It had almost been an hour since Matt’s last text, meaning he would take a break and check his phone soon.

Me:
Matt, I’m scared....there’s someone trying to get into my dorm. I’m gonna call the police, Matt he’s gonna get in...

Hitting send, I almost sighed in relief as the pounding on my door ceased. I put off dialing 9-1-1 for a few seconds as I waited to see what was going to happen next. My eyes once more found the clock, and I timed how long the silence last for. Three minutes.

Taking a deep breath, I stepped back over to the center of the floor where the rest of the presents were waiting to be wrapped. My heart was still beating out of my chest like crazy from fear. Realizing I didn’t want Matt to worry, I went to message him that whatever was going on was over.

Except, I was wrong. As soon as I made myself comfortable sitting in the floor once more, the door to my dorm burst open, slamming loudly against the wall.

The sudden noise made me jump up to my feet, almost confused to see who was standing in front of me. “Where the fuck is she? Where is Stacy?” Justin was screaming loudly as he came barging into the room. His eyes darted around the room quickly as he searched for her. “Justin? Stacy isn’t here, what are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be at the studio with the guys?” I spoke calmly, stepping towards him ever so slightly.

His hands were balled into fists by his sides and shaking rapidly. His forehead was drenched in sweat, his pupils were huge. It took me longer than it should have to realize that he wasn’t sober, and was looking for another hit.

“Don’t lie to me, I know you know where Stacy is!” When he came charging towards me, I found myself back up away from him. Backing myself up against my desk.

He was so far gone, I don’t think he even realized who I was. Putting my hands up as if in surrender, I did everything I could to stay calm. “She was here earlier but she isn’t here now. I have no idea when she’ll be back.” I spoke slowly, hoping not to upset the boy that was standing in front of me, obviously freaking out.

Whatever Stacy had been selling, he was hooked on it and wanted more. Based off of the symptoms I had seen Stacy go through, I knew that he was very likely to get violent if pushed in the wrong way. That’s what I was trying to avoid.

Justin’s eyes darted around the room for a few minutes before landing on a pair of shoes sitting under the window. They were my shoes, I put them under the window every night so I could just slip them on and go in the morning when I’m rushing. However today when I kicked them off of my feet they landed with the backs facing the wall, and due to the curtain it looked like someone was standing behind the curtain.

I groaned inwardly, practically seeing the thought flash through his mind before he turned around to face me once more. “You liar!” He shouted, taking two large strides over to where I was standing against my desk. I could feel my body begin to shake. “J-Justin you have to listen to me. Those are my shoes, Stacy isn’t here I swear. I wouldn’t lie to you, you know me.” I tried to reason with him.

The boy was just about Matt’s size, meaning he towered over me. It was almost like the haze over his mind disappeared as he looked down at me, realizing what was going on. “E-Elle?” He question, his eyes scanning over my face.

“Y-yes that’s right! Elle.” I smiled. Though the hopefulness I had for the situation quickly dissipated when I saw the anger return to his face. Before I could say anything to try to convince him otherwise, his hand came up and went flying back across my cheek.

My head whipped to the side, tears filling my eyes, and is sucked in a deep breath. “You lied to me!” He screamed, moving for another blow.

I had trapped myself in a corner, backed myself up against my desk on the wall furthest from the door. My only other escape route was through the window, and seeing as my dorm was on the second story, that would do more harm than good.

Feeling his fist collide with my midsection, my entire body doubled over. My arms wrapped around my midsection as I struggled to breathe. But it was in that moment that a thought came charging into my mind. Looking up through my lashes, I saw once more that Justin was looking around the room. I struck while he was distracted.

Balling my fingers into a fist, I reached back and swung as hard as I could manage. Sending my fist flying straight between the boys legs, and causing him to go down to his knees. “You bitch!” He groaned loudly.

After that I didn’t even think, with my arm still wrapped around my midsection I booked it out of the room, running as fast I could down the hall. I didn’t bother taking the elevator, it would take too long and he would have a better chance of catching up to me- so I ran to the stairs at the end of the hall instead.

Running down two flights of stairs was definitely easier when you haven’t just been punched in the gut. My lungs were on fire, and my mind was blurry. What the hell am I supposed to do now? Call Matt. Call Anna. Call the police. Hell anyone who could help me.

I ran out of the dorm building quickly, my body freezing upon realizing- I had left my phone in the dorm. I had no way of contacting anyone for help.

Hearing a loud noise, I looked up, only in time see a pair of bright lights speeding towards me before feeling my entire body go numb.

And nothing hurt anymore.