Chris wasn’t sure what to make of it. The bear and heart-shaped box of chocolates were self-explanatory. But the card threw him off.
Why don’t you have the guts to text me? I know you have my number.
Chris had lots of girls’ numbers. It was one of his points of pride in his single journey. He had options. And he wasn’t in any rush to settle down. But who was this girl?
He unlocked the door to his house and carried the valentine gifts inside to show his roommate.
Shawn opened the box of chocolates at once and hovered his fingers over the variety of sweets.
“I wouldn’t eat those,” Chris said. He kept reading over the letter. “They might be poisoned.”
Don’t be shy. I’m not afraid of you. If you’re not afraid, take me out. I’ll be waiting for your message.
Shawn dropped his hand and closed the box with a pout. “Why would someone leave you poisoned chocolates? Especially if they want you to take them out.” He plucked the letter out of Chris’s hand and read over the details. “Oh.”
“Yeah. Bit creepy. I wouldn’t trust chocolates from someone who leaves notes like that.” He took it back.
“Who did you piss off, man?”
Chris shrugged. “No clue. I’m pretty straightforward when I take girls out. They know what they’re getting into. Someone must have gotten the wrong idea.”
Remember, don’t text or take out the wrong girl. I’m hoping it will be me one day.
“Didn’t you take out some girl last night?” Shawn opened the fridge and poured a glass of orange juice.
“Yeah. Kayla’s friend.”
“Kayla’s friend? Dude, that’s playing with fire. Do you think Kayla did this? She could be petty like that.”
Chris shook his head. “Nah. Kayla would be more direct. She’d egg my car and burn my old flannel on Facebook live. She’d also sign her name.” He waved the note. “This has to be someone else.”
“Hmm…” Shawn sipped his orange juice. Then he picked up the teddy bear and looked it over. “Maybe there’s a camera in this thing.”
Chris shuddered. “Don’t say that. Damnit. Give it to me.”
Chris looked over the bear, from little fuzzy tail to rounded ears on the top of its head. Then he stared into the black marble eyes and tried to see if it was really a camera. The bear felt awfully heavy for just being a stuffed toy.
“Verdict?” Shawn asked, the pulp from his orange juice coating his upper lip and sticking to the sparse hairs he called a mustache.
“I don’t know. There’s something off about it, though. It’s heavy.”
Shawn picked the bear up again and frowned. “You’re right. Weird. You sure this is for you? Maybe they got the address wrong.”
Chris raised an eyebrow and held the note back up. “Says my name.”
“Yeah, but Chris is pretty common. Our neighbor could also be named Chris and he might have cheated on his girlfriend and the other woman is out to steal him away. Or something.”
Chris rolled his eyes. “Sure. Maybe. But I don’t think so.”
He looked at the note one more time…
P.S. I know who they are. And where they live.
He still wasn’t sure who had sent the gifts and what was supposed to be meant by it, but he had a sudden epiphany of what was wrong with the bear. Before he could say anything, though, Shawn was squeezing it in a tight hug to his chest.
“It’s pretty soft-”
Click
“What was that?” Shawn held the bear out again.
“Drop the bear!”
Chris dove for the floor and didn’t wait to see if Shawn followed him before the bear…
Exploded.
Happy Valentine’s Day…