Okay, so maybe going to a giant party in the middle of my mental breakdown wasn't my best idea. But Lani had basically screamed at me until I said yes. And now here I was standing in the middle of a backyard the size of a football field, surrounded by people who looked like they belonged on some kind of college reality show.
Bonfires were lit. The music was way too loud. Red cups were everywhere. Like, is it a law that rich kids can't drink water?
Lani was thriving, obviously.
"Oh my god, it's giving epic core memory," she squealed, grabbing my arm and dragging me further into the chaos. "Look, there's Ryles! He's so hot it's offensive."
I didn't even glance at him. "You think everyone's hot."
"Because everyone is hot, Sam. Open your eyes."
I was looking, just not the way she meant. My brain was in full spy mode. I scanned the yard like I was on a secret mission, which I literally was. Ryles was near the bonfire, surrounded by people laughing at something he'd said. Typical. Matteo? Nowhere. Cassien?
Cassien was sitting on a low wall by the water, a cup in his hand, staring out like he was thinking deep. Because of course he was.
I tried to relax. Be normal. Blend in. But my skin felt too tight, and I hated the way my stomach flipped every time someone looked in my direction.
Lani leaned in. "Okay, I'm gonna disappear now, probably make bad decisions, you good?"
"Yeah, totally," I said, already watching a group of guys whispering near the fence.
She smiled and vanished into the crowd like the chaotic fairy she is.
I stood there awkwardly, pretending to sip from the soda I had poured just to look normal, and tried not to scream internally.
"Not really your scene, huh?"
I turned.
Cassien.
Great.
He was close now, too close and way too confident about it.
"You've been watching me," I said, trying to sound casual. Like my heart wasn't beating so loud.
"You've been watching everyone," he replied, raising an eyebrow. "But nice try flipping it on me, Agent Barbie."
I rolled my eyes. "I'm not an agent."
He stepped beside me and looked out over the lake. The firelight made his features sharper somehow.
"You're not like the others," he said, voice lower now. "You don't do small talk. You observe. You think too much. Dangerous smart."
I swallowed and looked up at him.
"Is that an insult?"
He smirked. "It's a warning."
We stood there for a second in silence, just the wind and the faint sound of bass from the speakers behind us. His gaze shifted to me again, slower this time. Studying.
"You always try this hard to be mysterious?" I asked, crossing my arms.
"I don't try," he said, grinning. "I am."
Ugh. The worst part was he was kind of right.
Our normal banter started back up, fast, sharp, like ping-pong. He teased, I fired back. He smirked, I rolled my eyes. It was annoying. Infuriating. Weirdly addictive.
I hated that he made me laugh. Like, actual laugh. Not the fake one I used on professors.
"You really don't trust anyone, do you?" he asked suddenly.
"Do you?" I shot back.
He didn't answer. Just looked at me with those stupid golden-boy eyes, and for a second the space between us felt smaller. Like the air shifted or something.
It was barely anything. Just a tilt of his head. A flick of his gaze to my mouth.
I should've stepped back.
I didn't.
Cassien leaned in, slow, like he wasn't sure he was going to kiss me or just see if I flinched. And I was standing there like a total statue, heart pounding loud, brain short-circuiting.
He was so close I could smell his cologne. Clean, woodsy, a little unfair. I could feel his breath on my skin. His fingers brushed mine, just barely.
And then—
"GIRL."
I jumped back like I'd been electrocuted.
Lani.
She popped up behind me like she waited to spoil the moment with absolutely zero awareness of the vibe she just annihilated.
"I just saw a guy jump into the lake wearing nothing but a sock! A SOCK. We have to go see!"
Cassien blinked, straightening up like he hadn't just almost kissed me.
"I'll let you… go check that out," he said, voice unreadable now. The smile was back, but it wasn't the same one as before. It was colder.
He turned and walked away before I could say anything.
Lani grabbed my arm. "Wait, wait, what was that?? Were you about to kiss Cassien Vanelli?"
"No."
"Yes, you were! Your faces were so close, oh my GOD—"
"Lani, drop it."
But I couldn't stop replaying it in my head.
The way he looked at me. The shift. The almost.
I needed a minute. Maybe ten.
So I pulled away from the party mess, wandered down the side path that led to the woods behind the yard. Just for air.
And that's when I felt it.
That prickling, crawling feeling like I was being watched.
I turned.
Someone was there.
Not Matteo. Not Ryles. Not anyone I recognized.
A figure in a dark hoodie, half-hidden behind a tree.
I blinked, and they were gone.
I ran after them, darting through the crowd, heart pounding, scanning the faces I could see.
Nothing.
Whoever it was, they vanished.
Just like the last one.