Chapter 2 JUST ANOTHER DAY

(Lilian’s POV)

The alarm on my cracked phone screamed like it wanted me dead.

“Ugh,” I groaned, smacking it quiet. “If mornings had a face, I’d punch it.”

My ceiling stared back at me in judgment peeling paint, a water stain shaped like a map of all my bad decisions. The fan in the corner wheezed like it was ready to give up too. My apartment wasn’t much, but it was mine. Four walls, leaky pipes and a cute little freedom. there was no foster home or some damn curfews, no questions about “how I’m coping.”

“Congratulations, Lilian,” I muttered, dragging myself upright. “Still not dead.”

The floorboards creaked as I stumbled to the bathroom. Now time for my morning routine.. toothbrush, shower, moisturizer rinse and repeat. I’d done it so many times it felt rehearsed, like a performance I couldn’t quit. Living alone at seventeen wasn’t glamorous, but it beat being someone’s temporary project.

As I tied my hair into a ponytail, something in the mirror caught my eye.

For half a second, I swore my reflection blinked a beat too slow.

I froze, staring at it again to confirm.

Then I laughed it off. “Okay, coffee, I definitely need coffee.”

Outside, the air bit cold against my skin sharper than usual.

The city hummed awake around me: buses growling, people shouting, the faint buzz of power lines overhead. Everything sounded too clear, like someone had turned the world’s volume up, it's always like that every damn time.

“New day, new chaos,” I mumbled, tightening my jacket and heading toward Crestwood High.

The building loomed up ahead, gray and ordinary. Except nothing ever felt ordinary lately not since my weird dreams started. The ones I couldn’t quite remember, but always woke from with my pulse sprinting. I shook the thought away. Dreams weren’t rent money, so they didn’t matter.

“Look who finally joined the land of the living!”

Mia’s voice pulled me back to reality.

Her curls bounced as she jogged up beside me, grinning like caffeine personified.

“Alive might be a stretch,” I said. “Barely conscious is more accurate.”

“Still dramatic before 8 AM,” she said, linking her arm through mine. “I’d be worried if you weren’t.”

We stopped at our lockers where Jonah already leaned, skateboard tucked under one arm like an accessory.

“Morning, delinquents,” he greeted, voice lazy.

“Morning, professional underachiever,” I shot back.

He grinned. “You wound me, Carter.”

“Not yet, but give me a reason,” I said, and Mia snorted.

We talked about nothing and everything just college plans, cafeteria disasters, who looked half-dead in class.

Jonah bragged about skipping gym to nap in the music room while mia lectured him like the overachiever she was. For a while, it felt normal. Warm, even. Like the world hadn’t tilted slightly off-center lately.

Then Jonah asked, “You ever gonna tell us what you’re doing after graduation?”

I shrugged. “Thinking of joining a secret cult or maybe the circus. I mean whichever offers better dental.”

“Liar,” Mia said, elbowing me. “You’ll probably run a coffee empire or something.”

“If by empire you mean minimum wage and emotional damage, then yes.”

The bell saved me from further interrogation, we walked down the hall before we had to separate to go to our different classes for the morning.

“Later, queen of caffeine,” Jonah called.

“Try not to trip over your own ego,” I replied, waving over my shoulder.

Classes dragged as usual, I doodled spirals across my notes, half-listening to lectures, half-wondering why my fingertips tingled when I tapped the desk. maybe it was stress, I just ignored it.

At lunch, Mia shared her fries and talked about a guy she swore was into her. Jonah joined us halfway through, reeking of energy drinks.

“You ever think,” he said suddenly, “that some days just… feel off?”

Mia blinked. “Off how?”

“I don’t know. Like the air’s thicker or something. I didn’t sleep well.”

I paused mid-bite, an odd chill creeping up my spine. “Weird, I thought that was just me, man.”

He shrugged. “Maybe we’re catching something.”

“Maybe,” I said with a shrug, though the way the fluorescent lights flickered above us made me doubt it.

By the time the final bell rang, I practically sprinted out. The air outside felt heavy amd pressing. My phone buzzed, it was the rent reminder I set up some time ago, due in three days. Perfect motivation to head to work.

The coffee shop was my safe zone with warm light, the hiss of espresso machines, the sound of conversation. It smelled like roasted beans and peace. I clocked in, tied my apron, and forced a smile.

“Hey, boss,” I said.

Mr. Rourke looked up from the counter, kind eyes creased behind his glasses. “Lilian, you're early again, You trying to make the rest of us look bad?”

“Just proving I’m a responsible adult,” I said. “you know sort of.”

“Keep saying that maybe you’ll believe it,” he joked, passing me the order pad.

Customers came and went, students typing essays, couples arguing softly, one guy who ordered four shots of espresso and stared into the void for twenty minutes. I took orders, cracked jokes, kept my self busy. It worked until the weirdness started again.

The hum of the refrigerator dipped a little bit lower, like a growl.

I turned to it and the sound went back to normal.

Then a coffee cup on the counter shook slightly, though no one touched it.

I turned, scanning the quiet shop, nothing was out of place. Just a trick of exhaustion.

Still, I found myself whispering, “Get it together, Lili.”

By eight, my body was aching but my brain refused to calm. My heartbeat seemed too loud, pounding in my ears with every shot of steam from the machine.

“Long day, huh?” Mr. Rourke asked, noticing my blank stare.

“Long week,” I said with a small laugh. “And it’s only Tuesday.”

The last customer left at ten. I wiped down tables, flipped the sign to CLOSED, and stretched my sore arms.

Mr. Rourke waved from the back. “Lock up tight and See you tomorrow.”

“You got it,” I said, pocketing the keys.

When the door clicked shut behind me, silence swallowed everything. The night air was cool, almost too cool. The city noise felt distant, muffled. Only my footsteps echoed as I turned toward the alley I always cut through.

It was a narrow lined path with cracked brick and broken lamps. Normally I just ran through it, humming something to drown out the echo of my own steps. But tonight, I hesitated to. The air felt thicker again. My skin tingled me.

“Okay, Lilian,” I whispered. “It’s just shadows, Shadows don’t bite.”

Still, I glanced over my shoulder, there was no one there.

Halfway through, I pulled out my phone to text Mia.

Me: survived another day of work.

Mia: proud of you, now go home before u get murdered.

Me: comforting as always.

I smiled faintly and slipped the phone back into my pocket.

Something fluttered at the edge of my vision fast, too fast to register.

A dark blur cutting past the mouth of the alley.

I froze, pulse skipping. “Probably a cat,” I said aloud, though my voice came out thin. “Big cat...a cute olympic cat.”

By the time I reached the streetlights again, my lungs burned from how fast I’d been walking. The world looked the same cars, storefronts, the glow of my apartment window up ahead. it was all normal and safe..

I exhaled and laughed weakly. “Paranoid much?”

Maybe but paranoia had kept me alive this long.

As I climbed the steps to my apartment, I felt it that same static hum beneath my skin, louder now, like the city itself was breathing. Something in me wanted to listen closer.

Instead, I turned my key, pushed the door open, and muttered to the dark:

“Just another day.”

But deep down, I knew it wasn’t.