“What is going on?” I asked as I continued to squirm. He held onto me as he opened the door again and brought me back inside. He set me down, and I started to walk. He scooped me up like a bride and stomped down the hall. He kicked open a door and brought me inside. Only once the door was closed did he let me go.
“Pace, run, dance, whatever. Just get it out of your system.” He spat.
I glared at him and decided to pace. I had so much energy I didn’t know what to do with it.
“Why are you locking me in here? I found you so that we could dance. We’re supposed to be down there right now. Ludovica threw this party for us! What are you doing?” I threw my hands up as I stalked around the room in a fury.
Desi leaned against the wall, hands in his pockets. He looked calm, collected, and almost bored. “The drinks are all spiked. I’m waiting for you to pass it. How much have you had to drink?”
“What? What did she spike it with? This makes no sense.”
He laughed and shook his head. “The drug queen giving you drugs to keep you moving all night doesn’t make sense? Scout don’t be so naive. I keep telling you that you underestimate us. We’re bad people.”
“Who? The Seven Sins?” I shouted the words as I paced. The smirk slid off his face, and he came over to me. He put his hand over my mouth, and I chomped.
“Say that louder, will you?” He hissed as he ripped his hand away from my fangs. “Shut up.”
“Why? You’re afraid people will recognize you as the laziest one? All she’s trying to do is give people a good time. She’s in love with life, and it shows. I spent all night with her. She’s kind and beautiful, and you’re wrong!” I cried. He tried to put his arms around me, but I moved away.
“She’s good at what she does. Just like I’m good at what I do. Scout, I’m not letting you leave this room until whatever was in the blood moves out of your system.”
“What if I don’t want it to? Maybe I like feeling this.” I shot back.
He sighed. “And what’s that?”
“Euphoria.” I laughed. “I can have fun forever. I don’t need to be sad. I don’t need to worry about money, or curses, or that little plant I bought.”
It was the plant that got me for some reason. I finally stopped moving, and my chin began to tremble.
“Will you take care of my plant? I want to stay here.”
“Sure. I’ll watch your plant as long as you need me to.”
He let me pace and trash the bedroom. I was angry that we were missing the party below.
“We should be dancing. She gave me this dress so we could dance together. She said we would make a beautiful couple on the dance floor.” I knew what I was saying made no sense, but I couldn’t stop myself. It was like I wasn’t in control of my own body. It felt like an eternity before I was starting to feel less blurry. I could think again. When I blinked, returning to myself, there he was, waiting for me.
He smiled softly and kicked off the wall. He reached out for me, and I took his hand.
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what that was.”
“That was Ludovica,” he chuckled. “Don’t underestimate us. We’re garbage.”
“You’re not garbage.” I shook my head.
“You don’t know us. You hardly know me.”
I put my arms around his middle and embraced him tightly. “I don’t care. What I do know about you I like.”
He sighed but let me hold onto him. “Did you still want to dance?” he asked softly.
I looked up at him. His eyes were earnest.
“Yes, please.”
He took my hand and led me out of our suite. We moved slowly, and it was when I hit the grand staircase I realized how tired my legs were. I had been going full speed for hours. They gave out a few steps down, and he caught me expertly.
He scooped me up again and took me down the rest of the way. I looked down at the partygoers. They didn’t pay us a passing glance as they continued to laugh and dance. I did, however, see one set of eyes on us as we descended.
