School feels colder today.
It's not the weather. It's something else—like the air is heavier, like the shadows are sticking to my skin. I walk through the hall with my hood up, earbuds in, trying to disappear like usual. But everything feels off, like the world's holding its breath.
The bracelet on my wrist is snug, almost comforting. Its little beads clack softly when I walk, warm against my skin. I didn't take it off last night. I couldn't. Part of me didn't want to be alone. And somehow… it didn't feel like I was.
I round the corner near my locker, and that's when I see him.
Jasper Vale.
He's leaning back against his locker, one foot up on the metal, hoodie hanging off one shoulder like he doesn't even try to look good—he just is. His hair is messy in the kind of way that takes actual effort, and he's laughing at something one of his friends said. His voice is low and soft, like a secret being shared with the air.
I freeze.
I don't mean to stop, but I do. Like my body forgot how to keep walking. Something swells in my chest—a weird flutter, like my heart just tripped over itself.
And then the bracelet pulses.
Not gently this time.
It floods with heat, rising fast from my wrist up my arm, through my shoulder, into my neck and cheeks like a wave. My breath catches.
It's like it felt everything—the way my stomach flipped when I saw Jasper, the way my chest tightened, the way my heart started to race like I was running from something. Or toward something.
I clutch my wrist. The warmth turns to blushing heat, and my knees start to shake.
And then it happens.
Jasper looks up.
Our eyes meet.
And the bracelet explodes with warmth—sharp and burning and dizzying. I don't know if it's magic, or my brain short-circuiting, or both, but my vision blurs and my legs give out beneath me.
The last thing I see is Jasper stepping forward, eyebrows furrowed.
Then the floor rises up to meet me, and everything goes black.