Chapter Text
Hello friends! We are coming close to the end of this story! Thank you all so much for sticking through it. I’ve had so much happen since I began this fic and I appreciate all of your love and support.
I will be taking a break from fanfiction after this one (Though I will eventually be back with another Seb au!) as I am putting all of my focus onto my actual books. If you follow my instagram luckybug.writes you can see my progress there and get updates for when it should be available for purchase.
◤─────•~❉✿❉~•─────◥
Chapter Twenty
◣─────•~❉✿❉~•─────◢
When you open your eyes, you’re still on the bathroom floor. You can hear muffled speaking and while you want to move, your limbs don’t respond. How could this be happening to you? Why couldn’t you just catch a break?
“Should I call an ambulance?” You hear Sophia ask. You clench your fists and goran softly.
“No, no she’s coming back.”
You don’t open your eyes. You’re not only humiliated for the episode you just had, but you’re also not ready to accept the reality. The reality that some strange man has your cat and will only give it back if you…you what? date him? You’re not even sure what he really wants.
He’s obviously delusional, not that it matters. He has Cup.
Your head is pounding and your stomach is turning and all you really want is to let the darkness consume you once again.
But you know you can’t. Instead you shift slightly and flutter your eyes open. Victor is squatted in front of you, studying your face. Concern is etched onto his face and you give him a weak smile.
“Fuck, Y/n. Are you ok? What the hell just happened?” He asks. You feel Sebastian’s hands gently run down your arms reassuringly and you struggle to sit up. Clarity finds you and you glance around at the mess you’ve made.
You had never felt so out of control in your entire life. It was like you had been watching from the outside as your body moved on its own.
“I don’t…I’m so sorry. I’ll replace anything I might have broken.”
Sophia kneels down in front of you as well, placing a hand gently on your knee. “We’re not worried about that right now. We’re worried about you.”
“I’m well…I’m not really ok. I don’t think I’ve been ok for a while.” You admit, looking down at your hands. “I’ve been holding it in I think and haven’t really allowed myself to feel the things I’ve needed to.”
Sebastian squeezes your upper arms, dropping his head on your shoulder. You lean into his warmth, appreciating the support.
“Is there anything we can do to help?” She asks, glancing towards Victor.
There’s that damned question again. You’re not even sure how to answer it at this point. Is there anything they can do to help? Genuinely?
“You could call the police. I have his instagram account and maybe we can find him with that.”
“Find who? What is going on?” Victor asks, looking at Sebastian behind you. Of course he’s not asking you. The thought makes your heart ache a little, but you push it away. Being prideful is exactly what got you in this situation. It’s ok to ask for help.
You remind yourself of this as Sebastian explains the majority of the situation to Victor. You take that moment to lean against him and catch your breath.
Another panic attack would do nothing except make the situation worse, so you opt to regulating your breathing, and creating a plan in your head.
One,you would need to find out what he wants in order to get Cup back.
Two, you would need to screenshot all of the messages just in case he tried to delete them.
And three, you would need to take all of the evidence to the police.
“Hand me my phone,” you say softly, trying to push yourself up. Sebastian releases you and allows you to move, helping you stagger to your feet. Sophia hands you the device and you take a moment, rereading the messages.
What is it exactly that you want?
You send the message quickly, and Sebastian looks over your shoulder as a message almost instantly pops up.
Dinner.
You think about it for a moment, dancing through the details in your head. “I say I go to dinner.”
“Excuse me?” Victor asks, raising an eyebrow. “Are you stupid this guy-”
Sebastian holds up a hand, cutting Victor off. “Hold on. Explain, why should you go to dinner?” He asks, placing a hand on your arm. The gesture is comforting and you lift one of your own to place over top of his.
“Well, he doesn’t sound very…stable? If we get him to go out to dinner with me in a public setting, we could notify the police of who he is and have them wait for him outside. Meanwhile, you and Abigail could be out for dinner at the same place and keep watch to make sure nothing happens. I think it’s our best chance of catching the guy.”
Sebastian seems to think it over for a moment, mulling the idea over in his head. “And you’re comfortable doing this?” he asks, giving your arm a squeeze.
“I will be. With you there.”
It’s almost annoying how eager this guy was to meet you. It made your entire day with Elliott useless, and if you were being honest that was a situation you would’ve liked to have avoided if this was the inevitable outcome.
“We’re coming too,” Sophia says, standing behind Victor. “We’ll be there for moral support too.” She clarifies, looking up at Victor.
You’re slightly frozen, but shake your head quickly. “No, no I couldn’t ask you guys to do that,” you say, looking between the two of them.
“You’re not asking. We’re offering.” Her smile screams honesty and genuine concern. You wished you could hate her, wished you could hate the woman that Victor had cheated on you with but you can’t.
“I had no idea so much shit was going on Y/n. Of course we’re going to be there to support you. Plus, Cup was my cat too,” Victor says, giving you a reassuring smile.
You glance between the three of them before looking around the bathroom. Guilt and shame once again hit you like a tidal wave and you bring your hands to your chest. “Thank you. I can’t apologize enough for the mess I’ve made. I promise, like I said, I’ll pay for anything I’ve broken.”
“I’ll hold you to it,” Victor teases.
It takes a while for the plan to be set into motion. Convincing the police of your plan took a lot more effort than you had originally thought. They wanted to storm the man's house but with the instagram account being the only contact you had with him, it was hard to pinpoint his location.
He didn’t give you his name, his address, or even his phone number. He had simply told you all would be revealed if you actually showed up for dinner.
And so that’s how you ended up sitting alone at a table in a popular Italian restaurant. That had been your condition, somewhere public to meet. He hadn’t seemed concerned, if anything he had seemed eager to show.
Sebastian and Abigail sat in the corner to the left, behind where your stalker would be. That way they could gauge the situation based on your expressions. Your heart hammers in your chest as you anxiously glance around the restaurant. The police would be waiting by the door, disguised by the time the mystery man sat down. It was only a matter of surviving the dinner long enough for the situation not to grow harrow.
Everytime the door opens though, your heart nearly explodes through your chest. Sebastian gives you a reassuring smile every time you glance his way, but if you’re being honest it does nothing to cool your nerves.
You’re starting to think he might not show, until the door opens and a man enters, scanning the room. When his eyes land on you, he seems pleasantly surprised that you’re actually sitting there.
He’s not at all what you had expected. While you had thought you’d be finding a man who looked like he hadn’t showered in months, or had any contact with the human population ever, he was almost the complete opposite.
He wasn’t drop dead gorgeous like Sebastian, but he wasn’t ugly either. You were also shocked to realize, you didn’t recognize him in the slightest. A part of you had thought maybe it was one of your regulars, but there was nothing that seemed familiar about him in the slightest.
“Y/n.”
You glance up at him, placing your menu down. “I would return the greeting, except you’ve never told me your name,” you say, voice surprisingly steady. You could do this. You could finally do something for yourself and have it turn out right.
“Clint.”
“Clint,” you repeat, and the way his eyes light up makes your skin crawl. “Well Clint, I have to say. I’m impressed,” you start, making sure your phone is still in your pocket, recording the conversation. “Breaking into my house, stealing my cat. That’s a hefty job just to get someone’s attention. Ever heard of saying ‘Hello?” you ask, raising an eyebrow.
He settles down in front of you, placing his hand on the table. “I know you had a boyfriend, I didn’t think you’d come on a date with me on your own terms without some negotiating. But I know you’ll see after us spending some time together how compatible we are.”
You tap your fingers on the table, trying to look as bored as possible. He couldn’t know that you were nervous. Even the slightest hint might give you away and you’re not sure if the man came armed or what. He was a psychopath afterall.
“You seem to think we’re compatible but we’ve never spoken. How can you be so sure.”
“Oh we have spoken just not the way you think.”
That peaks your interest. “Care to explain?”
“I came to the bar often, I just never approached you directly. I always had another girl make my drink while I listened to you talk to everyone else. I knew from the way you spoke to them that you were fake. But one day you made my drink, you told me to have a great night and it was so genuine. I knew we had a connection.”
You try your best not to let your jaw drop in complete shock. How delusional was this guy?
Delusional enough to commit a crime and then show up and confess to it immediately.
“Why not just say something then, why steal my cat?”
“Like I said. I knew you’d need some convincing.”
“Well, you won’t be surprised when I tell you I have a boyfriend, since you already know.”
“Oh I know. The other girl said she didn’t know if you did, but I saw you and that other
guy from the bar a few times together. But those kinds of things never last. They’re built on passion and spur of the moment feelings. What we have is a solid connection.”
You hum in acknowledgment, studying him carefully. “How is my cat?”
“Our cat is fine. She’s sleeping at home right now. If you want to speed things up, we can go see her right now.”
You sneak a glance to Sebastian and tap your finger three times, the code for leaving. He and Abigail stand and walk outside, where you know he’d be waiting with several police officers.
The situation is ideal, but doesn’t do much to calm your nerves.
“You want to go back to your house? Don’t you think that’s a little forward?” You ask, looking directly at him.
He seems to shy away for a moment before catching himself. He tugs at the collar on his neck and shakes his head. “Like I said, we’re soulmates.”
“Ok. Lead the way.”
Your knees feel like rubber beneath you as your shaking hands collect your purse. He stands, towering over you and placing a hand at the small of your back. You know Victor and Sophia are just behind you, watching the entire thing in case something were to happen on your way out.
“I need to use the restroom, would you mind waiting for me outside,” you ask, adjusting the strap of your purse.
His grip on you tightens as he looks down suspiciously. “You can use the restroom at my place. I don’t live far.”
Well there goes that plan. “It’s kind of an emergency,” you say softly, glancing around like you're embarrassed. “A girl emergency.”
He watches you before narrowing his eyes. “Is this some kind of set up?”
You blanche, shaking your head quickly. “What do you mean? How would me going to the bathroom be a set up?”
“Go then. I’ll wait for you here. And leave your purse at the table, and phone.”
You do as he says in order to not raise his suspicion any further. You even make a show of grabbing a tampon from your purse before walking to the bathroom in the back. You glance at Sophia and Victor who avoid looking at you, probably for the same reason.
You stand in the bathroom stall for a moment before it opens. You panic for a moment, thinking perhaps it’s him but Sophia’s voice sends a wave of relief through you.
“He’s still waiting, but Sebastian texted and said he and the police are positioned right outside. There’s no way he’s getting out of here without getting caught. Just gotta get him outside ok?”
“Ok. You leave after me so it’s no suspicious.”
When you step back outside, he waiting by the bathroom door looking annoyed.
“That took a while.”
You feel the irritation bubbling up inside of you but you tamp it down. “Well, you know. Takes a while to change a tampon.”
“Let’s go. I’m getting impatient.”
He ushers you forwards, nearly shoving you to the door. It’s almost like a switch flipped and he’s a completely different guy. It’s almost jarring. When you step outside, your stomach drops as the restaurants patio seems completely empty.
It makes sense though when you hear a voice shouting to put your hands up. You comply quickly as does Clint, glancing around in confusion.
“Step away from the girl.”
Clint looks at you as though he’s about to lunge for you but the woman shouts again. “Make one move and we will shoot. Back up Y/n. Slowly.”
You do as she says, slowly backing up until you feel someone behind you. It’s a taller man who ushers you to the left all while Clint shouts profanities at you. He tells you he’s going to kill Cup, but you’re not worried anymore. There’s nothing he can do to Cup and nothing he can do to you anymore.
You’re free.
__________
I'm sorry it's so short but I wanted you all to know I'm not dead. I moved in June, started teaching high school Lit and ELA in a new area, and will be getting married in January so I have just been super busy and have had almost no free time lol. Hopefully this fic will be finished soon and I can stop torturing you all!