Back in the hall, Zack stood frozen, staring after me as I ran out. His jaw tightened, and he took a step forward, ready to chase after me but Eska suddenly appeared, sipping casually from a glass of red wine like the chaos hadn't just happened in front of her.
"What's up?" she asked, raising a brow. "Why'd Terra just bolt like that?"
"I wish I knew," Zack muttered.
With a heavy sigh, he made his way to the wine table, poured himself a glass, and took a long, bitter gulp.
"So you're telling me you have no idea why she ditched you like that?" Eska said, watching him over the rim of her glass, "Maybe something you said?"
Zack set his glass down with a sharp clink. His mind replayed those last few moments. "One minute, we were laughing, figuring out a way to ditch the speech, and the next… she looked scared. She had this worried look on her face, like she saw something. And when she ran, it was like she was chasing someone." His brows furrowed. "I need to go after her."
Eska frowned. "Someone? Like who?"
"I don't know," he said, already turning to leave. "But I need to find out."
Before he could move, the rest of the group showed up, Pink, Summer, Clary, Daniel, all smiling and glowing, still wrapped up in the magic of the night.
"This party is everything!" Pink beamed, grabbing a drink and raising it. "Who's having fun?"
"I definitely am!" Clary laughed, downing her wine in one gulp
"Going great for us," Summer said, clinking her glass with Daniel's.
"Mine's going amazing," Pink added smugly.
Eska glanced around. "Where's Jesse?"
"He went to take care of something," Pink replied. Then she looked around. "Wait... where's Terra?"
Zack's face darkened, lips pressed into a tight line.
Summer noticed it first. "What happened?"
Eska set her drink down, exchanging a look with Zack. "She just… ran. Looked scared. Like something freaked her out."
"That doesn't sound like Terra," Pink said, concern flooding her voice. She placed her glass down and straightened her shoulders. "I'll go check on her. Who's coming with me?"
"I'd love to," Clary said, "but I can't keep my man waiting." She winked before slipping away.
Pink sighed. "Guess I'm going solo."
Outside
The night air was cool and crisp, carrying the faint scent of grass and fading perfume. Streetlights hummed softly, casting a silver glow across the empty courtyard. Pink crossed her arms for warmth as she called out:
"Terra? Are you out here?"
No answer.
She wandered past the garden, the gym entrance, the far side of the building, and finally toward the field heels clicking against the pavement.
"You better be here," she muttered.
Then she saw me at the edge of the field but I wasn't alone, Jesse was with me.
From a distance, Pink watched as he leaned in his lips meeting mine.
She froze, her breath caught mid-way
"Terra?"
Her voice shattered the moment.
I jolted, eyes flying open, and instinctively shoved Jesse away. I turned just in time to see the look on her face, wide eyes, trembling in disbelief.
"Pink! It's not what you think!" I cried, stepping toward her but she was already backing away.
She turned and ran, her hands wiping tears from her face before they could even fall.
"Pink, wait!" I yelled, but my voice only echoed behind her.
I turned to Jesse, hoping he'd say something or at least do something. But he just stood there, expression blank and unreadable.
"Aren't you going after her?" I demanded.
"To say what?" he replied flatly. "That it meant nothing?"
I stared at him in disbelief. "You're such a jerk!"
I let out a shaky breath and took off, running after Pink. By the time I reached the courtyard, she was gone. I stood there, panting, winded not just from the run but from everything.
This is so messed up.
Later that night at the hostel, the room was dimly lit, the air quiet, too quiet. Pink was already in bed, her back turned toward me under the covers. The silence in the room was deafening.
I paused at the door, guilt swelling in my chest.
"Pink?" I whispered but no answer.
I stepped in slowly, tugging off my earrings and heels. "I swear I didn't mean for that to happen. He just… caught me off guard. And I'm so sorry."
Still, nothing. She didn't even flinch.
I changed into my nightwear slowly, every move heavy with regret. I stood by my bed for a moment longer, staring at her still form.
"I really am sorry," I whispered.
I climbed into bed and pulled the covers over me, eyes wide open in the darkness.
Something told me... This was only just the beginning.
...
Monday at School
School felt weird, awkward, like the walls knew what happened, like the whispers between lockers were about me.
Pink barely acknowledged my existence. I'd tried to catch her that morning, but by the time I woke up, she was already gone. Every time I spotted her in the hallway, she'd find a reason to vanish like I was a shadow she wanted to avoid.
By lunch, the tension was unbearable. I grabbed my tray from the cafeteria line and walked toward our usual table. My heart pounded louder with every step.
Okay, this is it, I told myself. Be strong.
"Hey, guys," I said, forcing a smile as I reached them.
Eska looked up and waved. "Sup, Terra?"
Summer gave a half-smile. Clary blinked in surprise. Pink didn't even flinch.
I moved toward my usual spot next to her but her pink designer purse, the one she only brought out when she wanted to make a point landed on the chair beside her.
"Seat's taken," she said coolly, still not looking at me. "Find somewhere else."
The table fell silent. A cold kind of silent.
"But… that's Terra's spot," Eska said slowly, confusion tightening her features.
"Not anymore," Pink replied without missing a beat, finally turning to face me.
Clary looked between us. "Okay, I'm definitely lost. What's going on?"
Pink folded her arms, her eyes razor-sharp. "You wanna tell them, or should I?"
A lump rose in my throat. There was no way out now so I told them everything.
When I finished, the silence that followed was deafening. The way they looked at me, like I had betrayed them made my stomach twist.
"But it's not what it seems," I said, my voice cracking. "I've been under so much stress, and Jesse..."
"Save it," Pink snapped, cutting me off like a knife. "I think you've done more than enough."
She grabbed her purse, shoved her tray aside, and stood abruptly.
Clary gave me a look, a strange mixture of shock and disappointment before hurrying after her. "Pink, wait!"
I stood there, breath caught somewhere between guilt and rage.
I turned to Eska and Summer, desperately hoping one of them would understand.
"Look," I said, "I know I messed up, but it wasn't my intention to hurt anyone. I didn't even..."
"You really messed up," Eska said flatly. But then her voice softened. She reached out and placed a hand on my shoulder. "There's no point explaining. Not yet. Pink's not ready to hear it."
She pulled her hand back, grabbed her tray, and stood. "You'd better find a way to fix this, Terra. Because from here… it's only going to get worse."
She walked away without another word.
Summer stood last. She lingered for a second, her tray in hand.
"I've always admired you, Terra," she said softly. "But this?" She shook her head. "This is unforgivable."
Then she left, too.
I stood alone at the table, my tray untouched, my appetite gone.
The cafeteria buzzed around me, laughing, chewing, while I just stood there like a ghost. What the hell am I supposed to do now? This wasn't how things were supposed to go.
And the worst part?
It wasn't even my fault.
...
I skipped math and wandered to the field, the wind biting against my skin like it wanted to punish me too. The sky was heavy with gray clouds, and the whole world felt like it was holding its breath.
I didn't want drama. I just wanted to breathe. To fix everything.
As I turned to head back toward the school, I nearly collided with someone.
Jesse.
Of course.
Out of all the people I didn't want to see right now, he was at the top of the damn list.
I tried to sidestep him, to pretend he wasn't even there, but his hand reached out and caught my arm.
"Terra..."
I yanked my arm free and turned to face him, fire already building in my chest.
"What now?" I snapped. "You here to finish what you started? Don't worry, I'm leaving."
"Wait."
"Why? So we can be seen together again and fuel more rumors? I'm already getting burned at the stake, thanks to you."
He looked at me then, not smug, not cold, just tired. "I'm sorry. For last night."
"Oh, really? Now you realize that?" My voice cracked as frustration swelled inside me.
He stayed silent, jaw clenched.
I took a step closer, anger shaking my limbs. "Pink hates me. My friends turned their backs."
"I'm sorry about that," he muttered, his voice low. "knowing Pink... she's not going to believe anything you say. She believes what she wants. Always has."
My breath hitched.
"So I'm just supposed to give up?" I hissed. "Let her hate me and say nothing?"
He gave the smallest shrug, a barely-there movement that made my blood boil.
I laughed, sharp and bitter. "You really are something else, Jesse. You make the mess, and I'm the one picking up the pieces. You don't even care what this did to me."
"I do," he said quietly.
"Then act like it!" I shouted, voice echoing across the empty field. "Because I'm the one being painted as the villain here, and I didn't even do anything!"
For a second, something flickered in his eyes. Guilt? Regret? I didn't know, and I didn't care.
I turned and stormed away my heart pounding and he didn't follow.
Of course he didn't.
...
After School, I rushed back to the hostel like my legs had a mind of their own.
I didn't stop to greet anyone in the halls. Didn't even take the elevator. Just sprinted up the stairs, two at a time, my heartbeat echoing in my ears.
I needed to talk to her, i needed to fix everything. I burst into the room and froze at the doorway and it was empty.
The silence hit me like a slap. Her bed was untouched, pillows fluffed, sheets still neatly tucked. Not a single trace of her presence.
I let out a heavy breath and sank into my own bed. My bag slid off my shoulder and thudded to the floor.
I waited foe her to come back, hours passed but she hasn't still return. I signed, she's probably at Clary's. Probably venting to everyone who'll listen about how much I screwed up.
The thought made my stomach twist.
Midnight crawled in, stretching the shadows long across the floor. The dim lamp on my nightstand buzzed faintly as I leaned back against the pillows.
The silence was deafening, after a while, I heard a sound. It was soft at first, barely audible, like someone humming, far away.
I sat up slowly, my breath hitching. The air felt heavy and thicker as if something invisible had entered the room and settled into the corners.
I scanned the space, my eyes drifted toward Pink's bed and that's when I saw her, she was sitting there, still, like a porcelain doll placed too gently.
She looked like a shadow of a person, her body outlined in the soft golden light, but her face was unmistakably real. Hollow cheeks, lips slightly parted, and those eyes…
Those tired, sunken eyes with dark circles so deep they looked like bruises.
She wore a plain brown T-shirt, oversized, draping over her small frame. Black jeans torn at the knees. Her feet were bare, swinging ever so slightly off the edge of the bed like a child waiting for story time.
Her skin was a dusky brown, glowing faintly in the dim light, but it wasn't a healthy glow. It was pale.
She turned her head toward me slowly like she knew exactly how long it would take to unnerve me and then she smiled.
She looked tired, like someone who had been waiting too long.
My mouth opened, but my voice cracked. "Wh… who are you?" I whispered, barely able to breathe.
Her smile widened, too slow to be human. Then she finally spoke, her voice soft and melodic, like wind chimes on a dead tree:
"Why don't you find out?"
I couldn't move, I couldn't even think.
She laid down on Pink's bed, curling onto her side like she was home and the second her eyes closed, she disappeared.