FOR YOU, I KILLED

Drake had been sitting on a stool in his kitchen when he heard the loud squash of plates breaking. Fear so deadly gripped him as he jumped to his feet. He could feel the hair at the back of his head stand the moment he discovered the noise was coming from the next door. This was strange for the house had longed been abandoned after the mysterious death of its last occupant. Why then would noise be coming from an empty house?  Were the ghosts of the dead couple parading the house? The mere thought of it made him shiver.  

Moving to his window to take a peep even after the noise had quietened down, he saw a shadow of a person and dread consumed his entire being.  Balling his hands into a fist, he couldn't decide which was better: confronting whosoever it was or running up the stairs and shutting his door - perhaps, the ghost or anything wouldn't come for him if he didn't make his presence known.

He shook his head, concluding that was a bad idea.  What if he was attacked in the middle of the night? That would be so much worst. Taking the bull by the horn, he decided to confront whatsoever it was so he picked the long pestle by the side of the wall which he had long kept for security - though he had never experienced an attack in the past.

The noise began again - much louder this time and terror filled Drake to the brim as he stepped out of his house. It was times like this he wished he had neighbours around him; then, he wouldn't have to face this alone.  

The cool evening breeze hit him like a rod and he shivered as he was in nothing but a singlet. The noise was coming from the backyard and Drake contemplated if he should head straight for the back or take the front door. As he stood in front of the building, the iron black door creaked open due to its rust and the figure of a person came into view. 

This unexpected action caused Drake's legs to wobble and he fell on his back to the ground; his lithe figure falling in an undignified fashion. Scared, he covered his eyes, yelling at the top of his voice.

"Please, don't kill me!" 

He kept screaming and when he heard nothing, he slowly opened his eyes to meet a very irate lady standing by the door with a bowl of broken dishes. Drake stumbled to his feet and took some steps backwards; his eyes fixated on the lady. She looked harmless but very angry; she looked quite familiar too. Drake racked his brain to recall where he had seen her. 

"You!" He pointed when he finally remembered. She was the same lady he had seen jogging in a knee-length short and sleeveless top earlier that day. He could remember her because not only was it strange to see a lady jogging alone on the street of Geodan at that hour, she had glared at him like he had been her arc enemy right from time even when they had just met for the first time. She still had that same glare on her face as she looked him over now and Drake wondered if she had some frowning disorder. She looked like she wanted to pounce on him and Drake averted his eyes immediately, now uncomfortable with her intense stare; his cheeks heated up in embarrassment as he stood before her.  

He had met so many scary people in the past but none like her.  She was beyond scary and he couldn't help but think what was going on through her mind. Despite having most girls glare at him at every slightest opportunity, he still wasn't used to the feeling.  It was like the mere sight of him irritated them as most of the female employees at the company shook their heads in disgust each time he walked past. Why then was he expecting a different treatment from this lady looking at him like he was some smelly animal from the forest? Why would he think she would treat him better? She was nothing like Nicole -  no one was - so he should expect none of Nicole's attribute from her.    

The lady raised a brow at him just as quickly as he had looked away and in a flash, she dropped the bowl she had been holding and grabbed him by his light fabric, tugging at it.

"Who are you and what are you doing in front of my house?" She gritted her teeth; her fingers digging into his skin.

Her house? Drake was now confused as he stared into her dark flaming eyes. Looking at her upfront, Drake knew she was new in the country; he had never seen her before that day. Geodon was quite small so he knew virtually everyone.  

As she held onto his singlet, Drake couldn't form a coherent word for he was very surprised at her behaviour; she was choking him with her tight grip too. What kind of new neighbour behaved this way? The last neighbour he had before the mysterious death of the couple had made him some sandwich - such a caring soul. He expected a smile or a wave of the hand at least  - something far from a glare - for a new resident but the sight before him told him otherwise. He opened his mouth to speak but all he could do was gasp. Her long black hair was all over his face as the evening wind swept them sideways. Her skin was also glistening with sweat and Drake knew it was due to the strenuous work she had been doing before his arrival. Why again was she breaking dishes?

Her grip on his shirt was now getting tighter for his comfort so he placed his hand over hers to free himself from but she only held onto him tighter; the expression on her face demanding an answer to her question.  But how could he respond when he could barely breathe. 

Her heavy breath fanned his face and she pushed him hard like she could read his thought, he almost fell. 

Drake, thinking it was now over, struggled to regain his balance when he caught her grabbing a shard from the bowl of broken dishes on the ground beside her. Alarmed, he raised his hands in surrender. 

"I'm. . .I'm your neighbour!" He blurted out and she looked at him.

"I live here." He pointed to his house. "I heard sounds of dishes breaking so I came to check who it was since this house was supposed to be empty." He explained and he watched her chest relax. 

She made way to drop the shard but just like a voice warned her not to, she advanced towards him with the weapon in her hand. 

"What do you mean by 'you'? Do you know me?" The glare had returned to her face and Drake staggered a bit. He wondered why he was acting this way; she was only a harmless lady, wasn't she?

The look on her face told Drake he would get stabbed if he didn't provide a reasonable answer to her question.  She would surely get away with it if she did - one disadvantage of living alone in a deserted street. Ever since the old couple's mysterious death,  most neighbours relocated except him. She could dispose of his corpse into the nearby bush. End of story!  

Drake shuddered at this.  It was true he was a loner but he didn't want to die yet. He still had his poor mother who did nothing but worry about him all day long.  

"I don't know you but I saw you while driving to work today.  You were jogging."

She looked him over when he said this before shaking her head and grabbing her bowl. She walked to the nearby bush that was opposite their houses and disposed of the broken dishes.  Drake stood by her door, watching her and when she got close to him, she stopped and picked the pestle which had fallen from his hand when he fell. 
"Did you bring this to attack the thief or was this brought to attack you?" She raised a brow. "It seems to me you would be attacked with it, seeing how you behave like a chicken."

Drake frowned; he didn't like the tone of her voice; it was debasing. He wondered who she was and why she was being so rude. Already angry, he grabbed the pestle from her hand and walked quickly back into his house. He slammed the door shut and padded into his bedroom. Though he was relieved it hadn't been a ghost or something worst, he was deeply provoked by the behaviour of his new neighbour.