Lex and Adrian made sure they out Sasha to sleep before they left. They decided to make a stop at a local bar near Sasha's place to have a talk about the messages Sasha has been receiving.The bar was dimly lit, a quiet hum of music filling the space between half-empty glasses and conversations too heavy for daylight. Lex sat with his arms folded across his chest, his jaw tight. Adrian, across from him, had just lit a cigarette—something he only did when tension became too much to swallow.
Lex hadn't spoken in the last ten minutes. His eyes were unfocused, glued to the condensation sliding down the neck of his beer bottle.
"You're acting like you saw a ghost," Adrian finally said, taking a long drag and exhaling it slowly.
Lex blinked, turned to face him, then leaned back in the booth. "Maybe I did. Or something worse."
Adrian raised a brow. "You're not exactly one to believe in the 'worse'."
"Yeah, well," Lex said, voice lower now, "you didn't see what I saw that night."
Adrian straightened. "Which night?"
Lex swallowed hard, like the words had claws. "That night we dropped Sasha off. The one after her promotion party. You remember how we parked a little further down her street?"
Adrian nodded.
"I saw him, Adrian. Kian. He was waiting outside her place like a man possessed." Lex's voice turned bitter. "And the way he grabbed her when she got out of the car—it wasn't innocent. It was desperate."
Adrian looked away. "I had my suspicions. Sasha's been… different."
Lex ran a hand down his face. "But that's not the worst of it."
"What is?"
Lex's throat tightened. "That night, the lights around the house started flickering. The streetlamps dimmed when we were parked. I thought it was just power fluctuation, but it felt off. Like something watching. Like time skipped."
Adrian leaned in. "Lex… that's not just your paranoia, is it?"
"I didn't tell anyone. I thought maybe I'd been drinking too much. But it's happened more than once now—only when we're at her place. Shadows move where they shouldn't. Cold drafts. Time feels… wrong."
Adrian's lips parted, a slow breath escaping. "Damn."
Lex looked at him. "You've felt it too?"
Adrian tapped ash into the tray, eyes dark. "The last time I went to pick Sasha up at Alani's place, I went inside to wait. I saw this jar on the counter, beautiful glass, had carvings at the base. Looked out of place, antique. I even asked her about it."
"What did she say?"
"She just laughed it off. Said it was for 'sisterhood bonding' or some crap like that. But man… the thing gave me chills. Like it wasn't supposed to be there."
Lex sat forward. "You think it has something to do with what's happening?"
"I don't know," Adrian muttered. "But think about it. Sasha gets a sudden promotion. Sienna breaks off her engagement. Naya's mother miraculously recovers from a terminal illness.abd Alani's been oddly happy and off. All these good things happening, but they're... strange. Like something is balancing the scale in the background."
Lex let that settle for a beat, the noise of the bar fading beneath the gravity of their conversation.
"And the jar," Lex said quietly. "What if it's not just some decoration? What if they did something—some ritual, even if they didn't know it was real?"
Adrian nodded slowly. "Kian's been unraveling too. Ever since that night, he's cold, distant, erratic. He tried to play it cool with me, but the man's not sleeping."
"I've known him since we were kids," Lex added. "And I've never seen him this... obsessed. It's not just about Sasha anymore. It's like she's wrapped in something he can't escape."
"Or something none of us can."
They both sat in silence, the air between them suddenly heavy and still. Lex glanced toward the window. The street was empty, quiet—but a chill ran down his spine.
"You ever get the feeling we're being watched?" Lex asked.
Adrian didn't answer right away. Instead, his eyes locked on something outside the window—just for a second.
A silhouette.
Still.
Hooded.
Then gone.
He blinked and it was as if nothing had ever been there.
Lex turned to follow his gaze, but saw nothing. "What?"
Adrian shook his head, standing. "Nothing. Let's get out of here."
Lex hesitated, but followed.
As they stepped into the night, the streetlights above them flickered. The shadows stretched a little too far across the pavement.
And behind them, in the dark corner of an alley, a hooded figure stood motionless… watching.