“It’s the least I can do,” Elias whispers, and he reaches behind him to switch off the light.

The sadness in his voice can’t be described. It pierces my chest.

“It’s going to be okay,” I mutter, even though it most likely won’t be.

“Did I take it too far?”

“Yeah,” I reply honestly.

I hear him shift before he speaks. “Did you have fun today?”

I move closer to the edge of the bed, looking down at him. “Yeah.”

I can’t see his face in the dark, but I imagine he is smiling.

“You did a pretty good job beating me at Mortal Kombat. No one in this house has done it yet.”

“Oh, shut up,” I laugh, and it seems far away. “You’re a bad liar.”

“What do you want me to say? That you’re terrible?”

“If I am, then yes. Always tell me the truth.”

“I’ve seen worse, but you are really bad. Like really, really bad.”

“So, you did let me win.” I raise a brow, although he can’t see me in the darkness.

He sighs. “I’m going to have a chat with Olivia.”

I laugh at that. “She didn’t tell me anything, but you just confirmed it.”

“I wanted you to like it. You have to win at least once to like something, right?”

I shrug. “I don’t know, but it seems like it worked.”

My head falls on the pillow with a soft thud. I don’t know about him, but even with the urge to cry my eyes out, a smile forms on my lips.

“Have a great night’s sleep, Indigo,” Elias says after the silence settles.

“You too, Elias.”

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

ELIAS

Although I don’t usually listen in on people’s private conversations, it’s pretty difficult for me to avoid hearing Indigo’s chat, given the fact that I’m in the bathroom. She’s talking on the phone with her mom.

Her. Mom.

Why would she tell us her family is dead? That’s not a thing to joke about. Talk about lying. No matter how hard I try to find an explanation or to understand her motives, it doesn’t make any sense.

The rational part of me thinks that if she didn’t want me to know, she wouldn’t be speaking with her in the same room as I am, and she’d definitely not call her Mom

“I won’t bring a date because I’m not coming.”

After that, the silence settles and I take it as my cue to get out of the bathroom. I’d been standing in there for over ten minutes so she could finish her call.