WRONG TURN,RIGHT ON TIME:PART III

Catherine's popular amongst my relatives, so her presence is always appreciated and welcomed, damn near expected at this point. Since her house is just a two-hour drive from mine, we decided early on to spend Christmas Eve with my family, who celebrates Christmas Eve night, and then drive through the night to her house for Christmas Day. Until I met her, I didn't realize that most families celebrate Christmas the day of, not the night before. 

 Oddly enough, my favorite part of the holiday isn't Christmas Eve or Christmas Day though, it's that late night drive. It's become its own little tradition, something we both look forward to every year. The first time we did it still remains one of my favorite memories with her. Because of where I live, the quickest route from my house to hers doesn't take us on a major highway. Most of the route is quiet backroads, just fields, trees, and the occasional distant farmhouse.

It's always really late at night when we do it, so in combination with the secluded route, we rarely encounter any other cars. It feels like the world is asleep, and we have it all to ourselves. Don't laugh, but we always blast Juice WRLD during the drive. His music has been a shared obsession since we met. I know his music is a little cringey, but something about singing the lyrics together is really special. It's like we're in sync. This past Christmas Eve started like any other. After a wholesome night with my entire extended family, we packed up my car around midnight and hit the road.

The snow was falling lightly, and the roads were deserted as expected. With the music and heat cranked up, everything felt perfect. That all changed in an instant, though. What I'm about to describe to you is still one of the most unsettling things I've ever experienced. Probably the most unsettling thing. I was driving along when the music was interrupted by my phone ringing. I glanced down, a little irritated that I'd be getting a call this late. It was an unknown number. 

 I ignored it without thinking. Probably a scam call. Those things are constant these days. Catherine made a joke about how committed those call center guys must be making calls on Christmas. I laughed in agreement, and that was that. But then, a few minutes later, my phone rang a second time. I again looked down and saw that it was another unknown number. Probably the same one as before. I sighed, irritated, but let it go to voicemail. 

 Catherine glanced at me and raised her eyebrow, but didn't say anything. I tilted my phone towards her to show her that it was an unknown number, and she said, that's so weird, with a confused look. I didn't respond, instead just shrugged my shoulders. The music eventually resumed, and I tried to take my mind off the phone calls. But of course, not two minutes later, my phone rang again. I was pissed at that point, cursing under my breath as I fumbled wildly for my phone. 

 I snatched it from the console and swiped aggressively across the screen, ready to tell whoever it was to screw off for spamming my phone. I could tell I startled Catherine, as her body tensed up with my sudden movements. In hindsight, I probably overreacted, but I was sick of being harassed. I basically barked hello into the phone with as sharp a tone as I could muster. I expected the scam script to begin, but I was instead met with silence.

I turned up the volume in my car, and immediately picked up on a faint static coming from the other side of the line. I was about to hang up, when a man's voice spoke. The voice didn't belong to anyone I knew. I was so caught off guard I nearly swerved off the road. I couldn't speak. I felt my whole body starting to itch, which always happens to me when I'm nervous. Before I could respond, the man continued. He started reciting personal information. My full name. My address. Details about my life that no stranger should know.

Details that no stranger could know. My mind was racing, trying to make sense of it. I wanted to pull over on the side of the road, but I kept striving like I was in some kind of trance. I considered shouting at him, but decided that anger wasn't the best resource in a situation like this. After he paused for a few tense moments, I finally spoke. I asked him what he wanted in a steady voice, trying to hide the fear I was feeling. The voice paused before delivering the words that made my blood run cold.

He said that he wasn't here for me, that he was here for Catherine. Hearing my girlfriend's name was about 100 times more terrifying than hearing my own, and the horrified expression on her face told me that she was just as shocked as I was. I blurted out that I didn't know a Catherine, that he must have the wrong number. The man chuckled before saying, she's sitting right next to you. That was too much for me. I pulled over on the side of the road. I had no choice. 

 My hands were literally shaking in fear. I was about to say something when Catherine reached into my lap in one fluid movement and hung up the phone. Just like that, I literally screamed in her face, demanding to know why she hung up on a stranger that was making personal threats towards us. She didn't answer, just looked at me with wide, fearful eyes. I desperately tried to call the number back, once, twice, three times, but it never went through. Catherine told me to keep driving, which I ultimately did, but not before questioning her. 

 She told me she was scared, and that I couldn't blame her for hanging up, which I guess was fair. I drove off in silence, but I still couldn't understand why she'd hang up the phone. I don't know whether I was more furious or afraid. Part of me was expecting that number to call back, but after about 10 minutes, I felt like it was increasingly unlikely. At one point, I looked over at Catherine and saw tears in her eyes. She told me she didn't feel safe, which I empathized with. Something in the pit of my stomach gnawed at me, though.

Catherine and I had been through enough in our relationship to know that trust didn't always come easily. There had been little things, white lies, half-truths, moments where I caught her being less than honest. I knew I was being paranoid, though. How could she possibly have done anything to do with this? The rest of the drive was silent. I didn't play the music again, and neither of us spoke. My mind was still spinning with a million unanswered questions. Who the hell was that guy? How did he know so much about me? Only my family knew where we were driving that night, and they'd never this. I was 100% sure of it. 

 I couldn't think of another explanation, though. Even when we finally pulled into Catherine's driveway, I didn't feel much better. It's been almost a month since this happened, and I have yet to get my answers. Neither of our family members were responsible. We asked all of them. Catherine swears she's just as clueless as I am, which leads me to believe the person on the other end of the phone call had sinister intentions. You might think I'm overreacting to a harmless prank, but I'm telling you, other than our family members, there are no people on earth who knew Catherine and I would be driving that night. I've been really tense ever since. I can't help but brace myself every time my phone rings. I know he's going to call me again eventually. It's just a matter of time.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME😘