CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
ALICE
They say that when you feel like everything is crumbling around you, that is the exact moment everything changes forever.
But I am a thousand percent sure that in my life, all of those comforting little sayings have been proven wrong.
In my entire existence, nothing truly good has ever happened to me—except for getting into Oakhaven, and finding friends like Mio and Ellie.
"Alice... can I tell you something?" Mio asks, her voice uncharacteristically small.
We are walking down the the main street to the university...
"Of course you can, Mio," I reply, keeping my gaze fixed straight ahead.
"I am so sorry for whatever happened yesterday," Mio begins, hesitating before she takes a deep breath.
"But... you shouldn't have said those things to Zade. About him being a cold, empty tomb. You don't know how much he has been through since he was seventeen. He lost his girlfriend... and she was pregnant with his baby. He lost them both in a horrific car accident."
The horror of her words settles instantly, sinking deep into my chest.
It isn't the same sharp anger I felt yesterday; instead, it feels like a heavy, silent ache in my heart.
He lost his woman, and he lost his child.
But then, the grief twisted, morphing into a strange, ugly emotion that I recognize with a pang of guilt: jealousy.
I shouldn't be jealous of whoever he chose in his past, let alone his late girlfriend.
Feeling that territorial spark makes me feel like the worst, most selfish person alive.
"I... I am sorry for his loss," I whisper, my voice entirely devoid of its usual bite.
"But he still shouldn't have done what he did at the pavilion. I am not an object he can just decide to own."
"I know," Mio says softly, offering a sympathetic nod.
"And I think that's exactly why he asked me to bring you to his personal suite in the administrative wing today. He wants to apologize to you."
A thread of suspicion weaves through my mind. Zade Hamilton? Apologizing? It sounds entirely out of character.
But if he is genuinely ready to say sorry for the kiss, then I am ready to hear it.
And truthfully, I need to apologize for weaponizing his internal darkness, too.
"If he asked to talk, then okay," I say, adjusting the strap of my backpack.
"I want to apologize for my cruel words yesterday, too."
As we pass by the café, a sudden movement catches my eye.
I stop dead in my tracks and look behind us.
Ellie is gripping the edge of the brick wall, her eyes half-closed as her body sways dangerously.
"Ellie?" I call out, my chest tightening as I rush toward her.
"I... I just need to sit down for a moment," she croaks, her face ghostly pale.
Before she can even finish the sentence, her legs completely give out beneath her.
"Ellie!!!"
I lunge forward, grabbing her elbows and pulling her weight against me to keep her from slamming into the concrete.
Mio moves instantly, throwing her bag to the floor to help me support her.
"Call Nate! Now!" I tell Mio, my heart hammering against my ribs as we carefully guide Ellie inside the café, letting her slump heavily into the nearest booth.
Mio frantically fumbles with her phone, but as I lean over Ellie, a cold prickle of dread washes over my skin.
It isn't just because of Ellie's condition.
Slowly, I lift my head and look toward the café's glass exit doors.
Standing just outside on the pavement is a figure dressed entirely in black.
They aren't moving.
They are just standing there, their face partially obscured, staring directly through the glass at us with an intensity that makes my skin crawl.
A heavy, suffocating realization slams into me.
The storm isn't coming anymore.
It's already here.