Sunlight shone through the windows as it hit Stanley in the face while he attempted to sleep soundly. He groaned, tossed, and turned on the bed as he placed a pillow on top of his head.

“Go away, sun, can’t you see I’m trying to sleep?” Stanley complained. After thinking for a moment, his eyes opened wide as he shot out of bed. “Wait, what am I saying?!” He jumped up and checked the alarm clock; it was past the time he had set. He overslept at the worst possible moment.

Stanley ran out to go upstairs and see if Hilary was in her room, only to find a tag on her doorknob, saying she went out for lunch. Stanley turned to check out the windows from below, only to find Hilary and Jordan walking out of the apartment, smiling and chatting.

“Oh, no...” He mumbled, moving his hands to scratch the windows.

With the elevators out of service, Stanley sprinted down the stairs. He ended up getting a stitch in one of his legs but kept running and hopping on his one leg.

When he reached the doors, Stanley could hear his phone ringing again, this time with Nana's name on the front of the call.

Stanley’s hand gripped as he bit his lip and shoved the phone back into his pocket before heading out. As much as he wanted to talk to her, it wasn’t the best time right now. He had a mystery to solve and was going to figure it out, one way or another.

.-.-.-.

Stanley walked behind Jordan and Hilary, following them wherever they went without trying to get caught. The sun was scorching down on everyone today, as many people went to stands and stores to get drinks and snacks. The two headed across the street. Stanley tried to follow, but the streetlamps turned bright red, obscuring his sight and forcing him to stop in place.

He stood by and watched them enter a building. He checked his watch and tapped on his foot furiously, waiting for the light to change back to green. Eventually, after some time had passed, the illumination altered, causing Stanley to run on the other side immediately.

Much to his surprise, Jordan and Hilary entered the Midnight Delight. He pressed his face against the windows and watched them both order their snacks. Jordan ordered the Banana Cheesecake, which came back on the menu, along with a Chestnut Bliss flavored mocha. Hilary got a Raspberry Fruitcake and a Strawberry Slapper smoothie.

As they exited the place, Stanley ran and hid behind a Stonehenge next to some small bushes before he could get spotted. He peeked as Jordan and Hilary took some seats near an empty table with a velvet red and chocolate brown trimmed umbrella, trying to get a listen to their conversation.

“Hey, do you have a feeling that someone’s watching us?” Jordan asked, taking a bite out of the cake.

“Huh? No, not really.” Hilary replied, taking a sip from her drink. “Why do you ask? Is something bothering you?”

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“Nah, it’s probably my imagination.”

“Ok, if you say so...”

“Now, where were we?”

Stanley bit his lip and clenched his fists as he continued to listen in on their pleasant chattering. He thought it was sickening and disgusting that they could get along so well. What was Jordan doing, being that friendly with Hilary? Stanley wondered if he tried to purposefully make him look bad. Was he trying to get him to hang with others so that Jordan would have Hilary to himself? Not only that, but have him look impressive by comparison?

The thought of Jordan doing and thinking about those things made Stanley’s blood boil. He should’ve known to trust a guy he had only known for a few days. Jordan wouldn’t do all that out of the goodness of his heart after all. What was up with his plans with Melody?

That was when Stanley thought up an idea. He took out his phone and texted Jordan something that might get his attention.

Jordan felt a vibration in his pockets and took out his scarlet red phone. He read the message, got up from his seat, and excused himself for a moment, promising to return shortly. Hilary finished her cake and drank up the rest of her drink to settle in her stomach while waiting for Jordan to come back.

Stanley smiled to himself; everything went according to plan. He got up and left his hiding spot to approach Hilary when she least expected it. It took a while for Hilary to notice the coincidence, as the two exchanged pleasantries before Stanley got to the point of why he came here.

“So, you’re waiting for Jordan to come back, huh? How is Jordan? Is he nice?” He questioned, tapping the table.

“Well, yeah,” Hilary replied sheepishly. “He’s not as bad as I thought to be hon—”

“Well, I hate to break it to you, but you should avoid him at all costs from this onward.”

“Huh? Why’s that?”

“He’s not as friendly as he claims to be.” Stanley took out his phone and adjusted it to a picture before showing it to Hilary. “Unless you know what this is all about? And yes, this is real.”

Hilary’s eyes widened as her mouth dropped open upon seeing the picture. “When did you take this?”

“Two nights ago, to be precise. It seems that Jordan’s not as he seems, after all, most likely playing us all like—”

“I can’t believe this...” Hilary muttered with her head lowered. “I thought he said that he l—” Her voice faded as she stopped herself from continuing any further.

“Hilary? You ok?” Stanley asked with concern. He extended his hand to reach Hilary, but she stepped back, got off her seat, and checked her watch.

“Oh, would you look at the time? I almost forgot!” She said out loud. “It appears I have somewhere to be!”

“Would you like for me to accompany you?”

Hilary’s head raised as she forced herself to make a smile and squinted her eyes, trying to hold back the tears. “No, it’s fine, I can go by myself, thanks.” As she stormed off, Stanley noticed her sad expression; her head lowered down as tears streamed down her face.

Just seeing the moment where her mask fell apart broke Stanley’s heart. He tried to follow her, but her pace was too fast for him to catch up.

Just then, a single raindrop fell from the sky and hit his cheek. As Stanley looked up at the dreary sky, the air grew more humid. Soon, many spots of rain kept pouring, causing everyone around him to scatter and go to the nearest building for shelter.

Stanley moved his hands above his head as he rushed back to the apartment, guessing that Hilary went over there. High gusts of wind soon blew over hard. Stanley soon wrapped his arms around his body and shivered.

Why is the weather acting so weird? The weather said it’d be nice today. Stanley thought. I need to hurry back to the apartment ASAP!