Chapter 17 : The Intruder

Rayline

I walked up the stairs to the room. I could hear the cars pulling out of the driveway, which meant that Cole and I were going to have the whole house to ourselves for a couple of hours. I felt a mixture of excitement and anxiety about this.

I knocked on Cole's bedroom door, but when I called his name, I didn't hear an answer. I turned the doorknob and found it unlocked. I walked in and saw that my balcony door was open. I could see him leaning against the railing. Maybe he opened it just in case he didn't hear me from outside. Fortunately, there was no sign of my parents coming upstairs.

I put the plate of food on my desk and went to the balcony. It wasn't until I stepped out that I noticed he was shirtless, a large incision scar was visible on his side, and the bandage that had previously been wrapped around him had now fallen off his lower body.

"Hey," I called as I walked over, and he looked over his shoulder.

"Oh, hey," he said, looking back at the forest.

"What are