When I emerged from my room early the next morning, I found Stormy in the kitchen, hovering over coffee and toast. She looked exhausted, the shadows under her eyes telling the story she wasn't quite ready to share.
"Morning, Stormy," I said softly.
"Morning, Everly."
I didn't want to poke my nose into things that weren't my business, so I just stood there, letting the hum of the toaster fill the gap.
"Coffee?" she asked. I nodded and gave her a small, grateful smile.
We sat at our small dining table in silence. It wasn't an awkward quiet; we had both grown used to existing in the same space without the need for constant chatter. It was a strange pairing,Stormy was a social butterfly, one of the popular girls on campus, while I was the girl who preferred the corners. We had found each other by chance when a dorm advisor mentioned Stormy was looking for a roommate. Somehow, we'd made it work, carving out a life in this small apartment near the college.
This was one of the most elite institutes in the country. I knew I was lucky to be here on a full ride, a result of straight-As and a total lack of a social life in high school. Stormy, on the other hand, moved through this world like she'd been born to it. She finished her breakfast quickly, tossed a "Bye!" over her shoulder, and was out the door in ten minutes.
I sighed into my mug. I had a psychology lecture today, but I decided to skip it. It was a deliberate choice. I didn't want to face Liam, and more importantly, I wanted to stay out of his line of sight. I figured if I stayed invisible, he'd forget about his fickle texts and move on to a more willing target.
Later that morning, I was sitting on the grass outside the art building when Charlie appeared, slightly out of breath.
"Hey, what happened? Did you run here?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"You won't believe the drama, Eve."
"I'm sure whatever it is, it's none of my business," I replied, but Charlie just rolled her eyes and sat down next to me.
"You know that girl we saw in the cafe? The one who was talking to Liam? Apparently, she went off the rails this morning. She bullied this freshman girl, literally made her run out of the building crying because she thought the girl was into Liam. It's insane. This is college, not some petty high school drama. I think she's obsessed."
I listened quietly. I knew how these circles worked.I'd spent my high school years on the fringes of the elite, watching the way they used bullying as a tool. The rich always seemed to get a free pass, no matter how much wreckage they left behind.
That evening, I decided to take a short nap before diving into my project. But sleep didn't bring rest. My dreams shifted into something dark and tangled. I was running through a dense, suffocating jungle, my voice cracking as I called out.
"Liam? Where are you? Please, come out... I'm scared."
I was on the verge of collapsing when he appeared. He looked calm, shrouded in that same mysterious aura that followed him in reality. I was crying in the dream, and as he stepped closer, he leaned in to whisper something in my ear.
I woke with a start, my heart hammering against my ribs.
I was still under the trance of the dream, that strange, electric lingering in the air. Without thinking, I grabbed my sketchbook and started to draw. I had this habit, whenever inspiration struck, I couldn't stop until the image was out of my head and onto the paper. This time, the compulsion was frantic.
When I finally pulled the pencil away, I stared at the page. It was Liam.
I'd only known of his existence for a few days, yet there he was, rendered in graphite with an intensity that made my hands shake.
I'm going crazy, I thought, closing the book and pressing it to my chest. I must be losing my mind.