When I wake up again, it’s morning, sunlight streaming into the room through the large windows and opened curtains. I blink a few times o clear away the bleariness of my sight, looking around and feeling a twinge of disappointment upon noticing that the space on the bed close to me is empty, and so is the couch. I stretch and hear my bones crack like my joints are rusty and in need of oiling.With a stifled yawn, I sit upright.The maddening headache is gone, and so is most of my fever, although I can’t remember much what has happened in the past twenty-four hours. My stmach still feels queasy, and very, very empty. It growls, as if to acknowledge my thoughts.I glance around the room for anything to eat, and my gaze zeroes in on an ancient-looking wooden bowl on the nightstand. With a series of twists and crawls and groans, I make it to the other side of the bed, and notice a small note with neat cursive handwriting. It says: EAT ME. Vaguely, it makes me recall the things that Alice

I awake slowly, blinking and staring up at the hotel room ceiling that’s now starting to look as familiar as the one back in my dorm.The first thing I feel is the bitterness in my throat and the heavy sadness in my chest. Memories of the previous day slip back into my mind like unwanted phantoms. The parts of myself I’d kept glued together had come apart; shattered, in the rain. My tears had turn hysterical fast, and William had been there, asking me what was wrong and then holding me close as I wailed, once he realized I was far from being able to form coherent words.The pain of the accident, of losing my father, of my family being fractured beyond repair, had felt raw and fresh yesterday. But it was beyond just that. I’d cried because I was sad, because I was confused, and angry, and happy to be alive. The silver could’ve killed me, but it didn’t. I’d survived a tragedy once, and I’d blamed myself for being alive after it, but then I’d survived a second time, and I realized that s

Chapter 44:The rules of the game are quite simple.It’s almost exactly like truth or dare, but instead of having to complete a proposed dare when you opt for it, you strip; getting rid of one item of clothing at a time; each the equivalent of a dare. The idea behind the alteration is to get the people playing to be as honest as possible. Unless of course the players are eager to get their clothes off. It’s brilliant; I’m hitting two birds with one stone; getting Ravenstone undressed, and getting him to be honest with me for once, since I’m sure he wouldn’t be too eager to get naked in front of me.That’s if he agrees to it.I watch him quietly. He watches me back.I hold my tongue from explaining further, beyond the basic rules of what the game entails, that is. Half of the appeal of something like this is the intrigue and the mystery the idea is shrouded in. I wanted answers out of him. Maybe as badly as I wanted to get him undressed.“Isabella…” he runs a hand through his hair, sig

After a few more minutes of talking and walking, Bibah and I headed back in because we were both tired and the air had begun to get a bit chilly. We said goodnight at the doorstep of her hotel room, and I started back to mine, but not before getting a bombardment of questions regarding my health from Vahini Singh. I assured her I was fine, maybe even more than I assured my mom, and made a quick exit.With every step I took back towards my room, my heart fluttered, and a stupid cheeky smile stubbornly stayed plastered to my face. But I couldn’t help it. All of the events of the night keep replaying in my head over and over again that I had to question if it had really happened, or had been a fever dream from the silliest crevices of my imagination.William Ravenstone had kissed me.No, William Ravenstone had begged to kiss me.My cheeks heat up. All the confidence I’d felt surging through me while inches away from his lips? Gone. A peculiar anxiety mixed with a shyness foreign to me ov

Wandering around the hotel for almost an hour, desperately pushing down my bitterness and blinking back hot tears led me to the small arcade just across the street.“Coins?” A short girl with a blond bob-cut asks from behind the counter the moment I step into the neon-lighted space. She holds up a box and jiggles it, making a sharp clinking sound, and raising an eyebrow in question; her polite but plastic smile in place. “You need to buy coins to play the games.”“I know how an arcade works.” I mutter under my breath, sniffing and making my way over to the counter. Thankfully, I had the mind to grab my card before storming out. I rummage through the pocket of my shorts and hand it to her.Her smile tightens but doesn’t falter. “Sorry, cash only. We don’t accept cards here.” She points to a small sign above the doorway with a chipped finger. “It says there.”I huff out a breath. “Come on, there’s got to be…”“I’m so sorry, but there’s nothing I can do.” She clips, dropping the box of c