I wake up to the soft light of morning spilling through the curtains, but it does nothing to warm the chill still clinging to my skin. The unease from last night hasn't faded—it's settled.
Natalia's voice still echoes in my head, each word sharp and deliberate.
"Stay away from Justin. Before it's too late."
I shudder, rubbing my arms as if I can shake the memory off, but it sticks, a whisper curling around my thoughts, refusing to let go.
What did she mean? What could she possibly know?
The tension is coiled so tightly in my chest that I feel like I'm suffocating on unanswered questions.
Was she just trying to mess with me? Get in my head? Or…..was she warning me?
I exhale, running a shaky hand through my hair. I need to clear my head.
Shaking off the unease, I push off the covers and force myself out of bed. I grab the first set of clothes I see—a sweater and jeans—but as I turn toward the dressed, something makes me stop.
I never stop to look at myself in the morning. But today, something makes me pause.
My reflection stares back.
My wavy brown hair is tangled from sleep, falling in messy layers past my shoulders. The shadows beneath my eyes seem darker today, like the nightmares have left something behind. My skin is a shade paler than normal, like the color hasn't fully returned to me yet.
But it's my eyes that catch me off guard.
I lean in closer, studying them.
They're the same icy blue I've had my whole life—-sharp, piercing, a little too intense. But something about them looks…..different.
The light shifts in the room, catching my gaze just right.
A flicker.
For the briefest moment, a glow pulses in my irises—faint, but unmistakable. A sliver-blue light, like frost catching sunlight, flickering just beneath the surface.
I freeze.
My breath catches, my pulse stuttering like my body recognizes something my mind doesn't.
I blink—-hard.
Gone.
I step back, my heart hammering a little too fast. It was just the lighting. Just my imagination.
But even as I pull my sweater over my head and grab my bag, the feeling lingers—--like something inside me is stirring.
Waiting.
I shove the thought away.
I don't have time for this.
Downstairs, the smell of fresh coffee and maple syrup drifts through the kitchen, a scent so familiar it almost grounds me.
Almost.
Mom is at the stove, humming softly as she flips pancakes. The scene is warm, easy—so perfectly normal that it feels like a lie.
"Good morning, Monkey," she greets me, her voice gentle. Too gentle.
She doesn't pause in her movements, but I see it—the quick flicker of her eyes over me, assessing.
She notices things.
I force a smile. "Morning."
Mom plates a pancake, setting it on the counter, but her attention lingers on me. "Big plans for today?"
I hesitate, gripping my backpack strap a little too tightly. "Just school. Same as usual."
But nothing about today feels usual.
Mom watches me for a second longer, like she's about to say something else—-like she's searching for the right words.
But then, just like last night, she chooses silence.
The space between us stretches—--a quiet neither of us knows how to fill.
I swallow hard. "I should get going."
Mom's lips press into a thin line, but she nods. I step forward, wrapping my arms around her in a hug that feels both too short and too long.
Her hand lingers on my back for just a second before she pulls away. "Have a good day, Monkey."
I nod and step outside.
The crisp morning air should clear my head. But it doesn't.
The unease clings to me, pressing against my ribs.
Like something is waiting.
Watching.
*******
By the time I reach school, my thoughts are too tangled to make sense of anything.Natalia's warning loops in my head, twisting through the remnants of last night's dream like a snare I can't escape.
But the moment I step inside, everything shifts.
Justin leans casually against his locker, arms folded.
For a moment, I consider turning the other way. Avoiding him.
But then his gaze locks onto mine, and something in my chest tightens.
Like gravity shifting.
Like a thread pulling between us that I don't quite understand.
Justin's lips twitch into a slow, knowing smile.
"Hey, Sarah."
His voice is smooth, familiar—-too familiar—and despite everything, my heart does an unwelcome little flip.
I swallow. "Hey."
Justin pushes off the locker, stepping toward me. Effortless. Deliberate.
He never rushes.
Never hesitates.
It's like he knows exactly where he belongs in the space between us.
"So," he muses, his tone light but edged with something else. "How's our project coming along? You getting anywhere with that creepy town?"
I blink, grounding myself in something tangible—our project, the safe topic.
I force a laugh, lighter than I feel. "Yeah, it's coming along. I think we're really onto something with the whole 'town's alive' idea. It's definitely… eerie."
Justin tilts his head slightly. Something flickers in his expression. A shadow. A thought he doesn't share.
"Eerie's good." His voice dips lower, like he's testing the weight of the word.
His eyes linger too long, and my stomach twists—not in fear, but in something I don't understand.
Then—softly, like it's meant to slip under my skin—
"You seem like you'd be good at uncovering secrets."
A chill runs through me—not unpleasant, but sharp enough to leave a mark.
I tilt my head. "Maybe. Or maybe I just like a good mystery."
His smirk deepens. "I think you're underselling yourself."
The air tightens, something electric stretching between us. For a split second, I wonder if he's talking about the project—-or me.
Before I can say anything else the bell rings, snapping the moment in half.
I exhale., grounding myself. "I'll see you later?"
Justin's smirk lingers, but there's something softer underneath it now. Something I can't quite name.
"Definitely."
********
By the time the last bell rings, my nerves are shot.
The day has been a blur—whispers of Natalia's warning, flashes of my dream, the way Justin's words always seem to mean more than what's spoken.
I need something solid. Something real.
I spot him immediately.
Justin leans against his locker, talking to someone, his stance relaxed, effortless. Like he belongs anywhere he decides to stand.
For a moment, just a moment, the tension in my chest eases.
Then he sees me.
His gaze locks onto mine instantly, like he knew I was there.
The shift in his expression is subtle–a flicker of something softer. Something just for me.
"Hey, Sarah."
My pulse skips, then stumbles. I swallow it down. Bury it.
"Hey." I manage.
I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear, trying to ignore the way his presence shifts the air between us.
"You heading home to work on the project?"
Justin nods, but there's a hesitation in his stance. A pause, just long enough to notice.
"Yeah," he says, scratching the back of his neck. "Had some more ideas." His eyes linger, like he's debating something. "What about you?"
I don't let myself overthink it.
"Actually…" The words slip out before I can second-guess them. "Why don't you come over? We can work on it together."
A flicker in his expression—so quick, I almost miss it.
Surprise. Maybe something else.
Then, that easy grin returns, smoothing over the moment like it was always meant to happen.
"That sounds great."
The way he looks at me then, steady and certain, sends another unwelcome flutter through me.
I push it down.
"Five o'clock?" I add quickly, suddenly self-conscious.
Justin's lips twitch like he sees right through me. "I'll be there."
I nod, gripping the straps of my bag tighter.
Then he turns, walking away, the easy grace in his stride somehow making it harder to breathe.
I exhale, trying to steady myself.
It's just a simple study session.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
And yet—I feel it.
Like something is shifting. Something new.
And maybe—-just maybe—I'm starting to let it happen.
******
The house is quiet when I get home.
Mom's car is gone. The silence feeling heavier today—-like something is waiting.
I throw my bag onto the couch and exhale, rubbing my temples. Maybe I just need a nap to reset my mind before Justin comes over.
But as soon as my head hits the pillow, sleep refuses to come.
Natalia's words won't leave me alone.
"Stay away from Justin. Before it's too late."
My stomach twists, replaying her expression—that sharp-edged smirk, the way her gaze pinned me like she was testing me.
What did she mean?
I sit up with a frustrated sigh, running a hand through my hair. I need a distraction.
Justin will be here soon.
I turn on the television and soon I'm lost in my favorite movie Beauty and the Beast.
*********
The knock at the door comes precisely at 5:00 p.m.
I pull the door open, and Justin is already watching me.
His eyes flicker over my face, too observant.
"You okay?" he asks, his voice casual. But there is something careful in the way he says it.
I force a small smile "Yeah. Just tired."
Lie.
But Justin doesn't call me on it. He just nods. "You ready to work?"
"Yeah. Come on in."
As we make our way up to my room, Justin is quiet—but not in a normal way.
There's something too controlled about him tonight. Like he's trying not to say something.
Or like he's waiting for me to say something first.
Once we're inside, I sink onto the edge of my bed, the weight of everything pressing down on me.
Justin sits across from me, too steady, to patient.
"Sarah." His voice is soft, but insistent. "You're not okay."
My breath catches slightly.
I want to tell him.
I almost do.
But then I remember Natalia.
Her voice, her warning. The way she looked at me like she knew something I didn't.
"I'm fine," I say instead, shrugging like it's no big deal. "It's just been a long day."
Justin doesn't look convinced.
There's a flicker of something in his expression—a hesitation, a shift.
But instead of pushing, he just nods slowly. "Alright."
We get to work, flipping through books, scribbling notes.
At first, it's easy to focus. Justin keeps the mood light, tossing ideas back and forth, making me laugh once or twice.
But then—I notice it.
His eyes dart toward my notebook.
Not at my notes.
At my sketch.
The crescent moon symbol.
My stomach tightens. "What?"
Justin blinks too quick to mask whatever flickered in his expression. "Nothing."
Lie.
I glance between him and the page, a small knot forming in my chest.
"You recognize it." I say slowly. Testing.
Justin exhales through his nose, running a hand through his hair. "It just looks….familiar."
There it is. The wall.
The same way Mom shut down when I asked her about the pendant.
The same way Natalia smirked at me like I was walking into something I didn't understand.
I swallow. "Justin."
His jaw tightens slightly, but he doesn't look away.
"Do you know something?"
A muscle in his cheek twitches. His fingers drum once against the table before stilling.
I lean in slightly. "You do, don't you?"
His lips part, like he's about to say something. Might give me something.
Then, just as quickly, he leans back, stretching lazily. "Not enough to give you an answer."
The air between us shifts.
A game of chess neither of us admit we're playing.
I exhale through my nose, frustrated—but not entirely surprised.
"No worries," I say lightly. "I've cracked harder mysteries than this."
Justin smirks slightly, tapping his pen against the page.
"Good. I like a challenge."
I return the smirk, but my stomach twists.
Because now, I know for certain—he's not just hiding something.
He's protecting it.