Adelaide closed the door to her refrigerator. She had just finished putting away her leftovers and cleaning up. Her red curls fell over her shoulder as she walked over to the couch and fell into the welcoming cushion.

A soft breeze came in through the window of her small home. Adelaide lived in a small home just outside of a big city. She lived alone and received visitors occasionally. Her eyes closed as she breathed deeply and enjoyed the relaxing moment.

It would be a matter of time before Andrew stopped by to visit her. Adelaide pulled up her feet and curled into a small ball on the couch. In just minutes, she was breathing deeply, sound asleep.

A young man outside her home reached under the doormat, in front of her door, and grabbed the spare key. He quickly unlocked the door then quietly put the key back. His footsteps sounded quietly inside as he set a box on the countertop.

His brown hair glistened in the lighting. Adelaide sleepily opened her eyes and stretched her arms. She slid off the couch and turned to face the young man. “Andrew!” Her blue eyes widened. “You’re here early.” She tilted her head at him. “Did you dye your hair or something?”

Andrew let out a nervous laugh. “Nice to see you too, Addy.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Uh, yeah... I sorta dyed it.” His voice didn’t sound the same. Something about him was different to Adelaide.

She walked over to him. “How did you get in?” She glanced at the door. “It was locked.”

“I-uh-” He stammered. “I know where you hide the spare key.” He forced an innocent smile. His normally hazel colored eyes seemed more green.

Adelaide slowly walked backwards towards her bedroom. “I’ll go freshen up... then we can hang out.” She reached behind her for the door handle. When she found it, she grabbed it and yanked the door open. She shut it behind her, her heart was now pounding. Fear set into her chest. Andrew’s hair was a dark brown, almost black, not a chocolate brown. His eyes had always been hazel, there was never a hint of green in them and lastly, Andrew never showed up early, anywhere.

Adelaide pressed her back against the door. Fear flooded her mind. Who was this man and what could he possibly want?

The Andrew imposter glanced at himself in a mirror, his eyes narrowed. He reached up and pulled off a face mask. Underneath the mask was a different face. He cringed as the mask pulled his skin, but he peeled it off. His eyes glinted evily, a smirk spread across his face. He now had her just where he wanted. This was his chance, to get revenge, to hurt her like she’d hurt him. He dropped the mask onto the floor and knocked on her bedroom door. Then, he stood back, hid himself around the corner, and waited.

Adelaide opened the door cautiously. She slowly stepped out, her heart racing. As she stepped towards the living room, she saw a mask on the floor. A mask that had Andrew’s facial features. She muffled a scream and feld back to her room. She slammed the door shut and locked it. Footsteps sounded outside her door, heavy footsteps. “You thought you had gotten rid of me, didn’t you, Addy.” A deeper male voice chuckled.

“Russell.” She whispered, franctically lifting up the carpet on her floor. “What do you want?” She asked him, trying to mask the noise she was making.

The doorknob rattled slightly. “To get what I want. To hurt you, like you hurt me.” His voice rumbled through the door. “To get even.”

“I broke things off because you were evil from the start!” She yelled, pulling harder on the stuck carpet.

The door shook, as though someone had kicked it. “I guess you could say I was evil.” Another hard kick rattled the door, causing it to groan and creak.

“Where’s the real Andrew?” She held back a grunt. The carpet came loose and she scurried to find the loose floorboard.

“Oh, not to worry, he’s fine. He is just waiting back at his home, unconscious from a blow I gave him.” He kicked the door again.

Her heart pounding she lifted off a big piece of the floorboard and slipped herself inside the hidden area. She pulled the carpet back as neatly as possible and closed herself in the dark space. The door broke open, footsteps and heavy breathing sounded in her room now. Adelaide closed her eyes and held her breath. “Oh, come on, Addy.” Russell walked on the floor above her. “You always know I won at hide and seek.” He paced the floor slowly. Quietly he knelt down and felt the floor boards. Adelaide held still, but her heart was pounding so hard, she feared Russell could hear it.

His hands pulled away the carpet covering her hidden spot. His hands felt along the floor, she held back a whimper and bit her lip, holding still. The board rattled slightly under his touch.

Russell chuckled and moved, shifting his body. The board moved more and he slowly started to lift it. “You should know by now, Adelaide: you can run, but you can’t hide.”

Somewhere out there

You’re living your life

Evading me,

Avoiding me

Sweetheart,

You can run,

But you can’t hide

I’ll track you down

I’ll sniff you out

Like a bloodhound

So, run, if that is

What you want to do

But remember that you can’t

Hide from me, dearest

I will always find you

Go ahead run another mile

Your calories will still find you

Go ahead run into his arms

Your flaws will still show through

Go ahead run to the medicine cabinet

Your high will still run low eventually

Go ahead chase your dreams

Like the Ambien in your veins

Your failure will still be there

When you wake

"You can run, but you can't hide Jen!" The voice screams from everywhere at once, surrounding her, invading her ears. The shrieking of metal against metal piercing the night. The silent sobs racking her body, the fear worming its way even further into her brain. The noise stops, she looks up from her hiding place to see the eyes that have haunted her nightmares for months.

"See, I told you, you couldn't hide," He grinned at her, the insanity gleaming in his eyes. "Now you need to learn your lesson"

"No! Just leave me alone! I don't understand what I did to you!" She screams, trying to attract the attention of someone, anyone that could stop this madness.

"Oh, Jen," He sighs, pulling her along, ignoring the continued crying from the girl. When he reached the nearest forest, he turned back to her, "Jen, SHUT UP!" He bellowed, spittle flying from his mouth and onto her face, silencing her. He leaned back, surveying the terror that laced her features, and got to work.