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As the sun sets and the partygoers start to arrive, I’m grateful again for the professor’s help. Everything is perfect, and I know Bhodi will love it. I’m wearing the dress from my not-date with the professor and my feet are bare in the sand. It’s cool, but the torches and bonfire are throwing out enough heat that I don’t need a jacket. I double check everything, but the party is already underway and everyone is having a good time. I don’t need to worry. I don’t need todoanything.
But that’s the problem. I need to keep busy otherwise I’ll just stress about everything, especially with how many people are here.
I scan the crowd, hoping to see Summer. No sign of her yet. But I do see a vaguely familiar face over by the bar. Deciding that I could use a drink to settle my nerves, I make my way over, my heart pounding for some unknown reason. The guy sees me and grins, his dark eyes roaming over my body in a way that makes me shudder. I feel like tiny spiders are crawling all over my skin and when his black, soulless eyes meet mine, a sharp sudden pain stabs me in the temple.
“Hey there, beautiful. Want a drink?” he asks, his voice low and seductive. His dark hair is slicked back and immaculately styled, but everything about him is too perfect, too smooth. There’s something not right about him.
I force a smile and shake my head. “No thanks. I’m good.” Why did I say that when I came over here to get a drink?
I don’t even want a drink. I’m not thirsty.
He leans in close, his breath hot on my neck and I hate it. I cringe away from him, trying to be subtle so that I don’t come across as rude, but he doesn’t seem to notice. “Come on, don’t be shy. One drink won’t hurt. It’s someone’s birthday after all.”
He arranges a line of shots on the bar top and stares at me expectantly.
“What are they?” I ask, eyeing the shimmering liquids. Each one is a different colour and seems to be glowing.Yeah, there’s no way I’m touching those.
“They’re just a little something to get the party started,” he responds, his eyes roaming over my body again. “But if you don’t want them, I’m sure I can find someone who does.”
I suppress a shiver and force myself to stay calm, not wanting to cause a scene. “I really don’t want a drink, thanks.”
He shrugs and downs one of the shots himself before turning to leave. As he walks away, I’m relieved. There was something off about him, something dangerous, and I’m glad to be away from him.
I turn back to the crowd, scanning again for Summer. But my thoughts keep drifting back to the strange man at the bar. Who was he? Why did he seem so familiar? And why did he make me feel so uneasy? With a sigh, I decide to go find Summer and try to shake off this feeling. It’s probably just my anxiety coming out in different ways. Once I find Summer and speak to her, I’m sure I’ll feel better.
I weave my way through the crowd, checking every face I pass, looking for a familiar one. But as I move through the throngs of people, I can’t shake the feeling that someone is watching me. I glance around, but can’t see anyone staring back at me. Maybe it’s just my imagination playing tricks on me. It could be the professor; he said he’d be around tonight, keeping an eye on things. But that wouldn’t explain my discomfort.
As I continue to navigate the party, the butterflies in my stomach take flight. It’s not just the fear of being watched, but the anticipation of seeing Summer again. She’s the one who we wanted to come to this party in the first place, after all.
When I finally spot her, dancing in front of the DJ with a group of friends, my relief is palpable. I’m so glad she came. Even though I was sure an exclusive beach party would be just her sort of thing, I didn’t realise how anxious I was to see her until now.
Her hair is in loose waves around her shoulders and she’s wearing a form-fitting dress that hugs her curves in all the right places. She looks so much better than the last couple of times I saw her.
That fills me with mixed emotions, but it’s hard to explain. I’m glad she’s okay. Relieved in fact. Happy that she’s not hurt or missing or ill or dead. But also…I’m mad that she looks so good. That she could take the time to come to a party hosted by apparent strangers, but can’t find time to respond to any of my messages?
Slowly, I advance towards the dance floor, dreading that I’ll have to cross it to get to Summer, but knowing that I need to. I haven’t decided what I’m going to say. I don’t know how this will go down. But I do know that now that I’ve seen her, I have to speak to her.
As I get closer, I realise that the feeling of being watched hasn’t gone away. In fact, it’s stronger now than before. It feels like multiple sets of eyes are on me as I glance around the party area, trying to spot the source – or sources – of my unease.
A dark-haired man stands on the very edge of the party, just outside of our tiki torch area, watching me intently. He’s tall and muscular, with piercing eyes that seem to be locked onto mine and a sly smirk on his face that makes my blood run cold. His black suit hugs his broad shoulders making him look too old to be at a student party, and he doesn’t look like a teacher. He looks like trouble. Something about him reminds me of the guy at the bar earlier, but aside from the dark hair, I can’t pinpoint the similarity. It’s more the feeling they both give me. Unease. Danger.
I try to shake off the feeling and focus on the party, but I can’t shake the sense that this man is dangerous. He’s not just watching me, he’s studying me, like a predator sizing up its prey.
I give up on reaching Summer right now and turn away from him to walk back towards the bar, hoping to put some distance between us. But when I look back over my shoulder, he’s still there, watching me with an intensity that makes my skin crawl.
My heart races as I try to come up with a plan. I need to get away from him, but I can’t just run away from the party. I need to be smart about this. I should try to find one of the guys. Maybe Reef or Cove. They always listen to me. Bhodi might brush my fears off if he’s enjoying his party. And besides, if I’m worrying over nothing I don’t want to ruin his night.
I take a deep breath and make my way towards the crowded bar. I spot Cove’s distinctive blonde hair and make a beeline towards him, trying to keep a low profile while keeping an eye on the man in the black suit.
“Cove,” I say, trying to keep my voice calm. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”
“Sure thing,” he replies, flashing me a smile. “What’s up?”
I take him aside and explain the situation, telling him about the man in the black suit who’s been watching me all night.
Cove nods seriously, his eyes scanning the crowd. “I’ll keep an eye out for him. But we should probably tell Reef and Bhodi too, just to be safe. I’ll also send a text to the professor.”
I nod, relieved to have someone on my side and not thinking I’m crazy.
