Noelle’s hand fell from my waist and the warmth left my body at once.

She was the first one to step outside, offering me a hand to stop me from face-planting right there. Once I stood firmly on my feet again, blinking into the blinding lights, she turned to Amelia and said, “Hey Amanda. Next time make sure the people you send in there aren’t drunk. They should be able to know what they’re doing before they hook up with a stranger.”

Her tone was unexpectedly harsh in comparison to how soft-spoken she had been just a few seconds earlier, enough so to make Amelia flinch. “Sorry, I did not know . . . she seemed fine.”

“It’s okay. She was with me, so nothing happened.”

“I am truly sorry.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Noelle said, detangling our limbs from each other. “You could bring her to our room to make it up.”

“Of course,” Amelia immediately said, linking her arm with mine.

“Are you not coming?” I asked Noelle. In the light of the basement, I suddenly felt unbearably cold, to the point I imagined my teeth would start chattering any second. My cheek was still tingling where her lips had brushed it.

“I’ll be there in a few minutes. You can wait for me, okay?”

I gave a reluctant nod, stifling a yawn behind my hand.

Amelia didn’t say anything as she led me out of the room, only stopping so I could say good night to Seth, who was still sitting in the exact same spot where I had left him with our two cups in hand. It was only when we were back in my room that she asked,

“So . . . how scary was being in there with her?”

“Not scary,” I mumbled as I sank onto my bed, my words muffled into the pillow. “Not scary at all.”

7

Seth

Uncertain what to do, I watched as Amelia led Evelyn out of the room. I briefly considered following them, but came to the conclusion that probably wasn’t the best idea. Amelia had already freaked out the last time I had entered the girls’ wing and I was sure that her reaction would be no different tonight.

Without Evelyn, I suddenly felt adrift amid the chaos, my only real anchor gone. I was standing somewhere between the couch where we had been sitting and the closet, my hands stuffed into my pockets to stop them from fidgeting. Earlier, I had felt good.

Good when I chugged a beer and people cheered.

Good when Evelyn took my hand and dragged me onto the dance floor.

Good when Jasper flashed me a grin in passing and his arm brushed against mine just long enough for me to feel like I had swallowed static.

Now the drink in my veins had worn off, Evelyn was gone, and Jasper sat on one of the couches with Sammy, their legs and arms so entwined that it was hard to tell which limb belonged to whom.