CHAPTER THREE— THE MORNING AFTER
1034 Words
ELARA POV
My eyes stayed closed a moment longer than they should have.
Something felt off. The weight beneath me shifted when I moved, too soft, too wide. The sheets were cool against my skin, smoother than what I was used to.
My eyes opened. The ceiling came into focus, blank and unfamiliar. I stared at it, waiting for recognition, for something to click. Nothing did.
My gaze drifted to the side. The room was too quiet, too still, like it hadn’t been disturbed in a while.
I pushed up on my elbows, the movement dragging a dull ache across my forehead.
My vision steadied.
Nothing lined up. My gaze dropped.
The sheet was pulled up to my chest, the fabric light against my skin. My dress from last night was nowhere in sight.
My fingers curled into the fabric. Fragments surfaced, uneven, the party, the drinks, the balcony, him.
I shut my eyes and pressed my fingers to my temple, as if that might stop it. It didn’t.
My hand dropped. I turned to the side. The other half of the bed was empty.
I looked at it a second, then away.
I got out of bed carefully, keeping the sheet gathered around me. My legs wavered, then steadied.
My clothes were on the floor. I picked them up without really looking, my focus fixed somewhere lower, safer.
I dressed quickly.
The ache in my head lingered, but it was easier to ignore once I was moving.
My bag sat where I’d left it. I reached for it, hesitated just a second, then picked it up. I walked out without looking back.
The air outside was cooler than I expected, brushing lightly against my skin. I let out a slow breath as I stepped forward. It helped, a little.
After a few steps, I pulled out my phone.
The screen lit up. Missed calls. Too many. All from Lydia.
I exhaled under my breath. “Great.”
I slipped the phone back and quickened my pace.
LYDIA POV
I knew something was wrong the moment I stepped into her apartment. It was too quiet.
I paused just inside the door, my hand still resting on the handle, listening like she might walk out if I waited long enough. Nothing.
“Elara?” My voice sounded louder than it should have. No answer.
I checked her room first. Empty. The bed was untouched. I stood there for a second, then turned back into the living room, already reaching for my phone.
I called her. It rang and kept ringing.
I pulled the phone away, stared at the screen for a moment, then brought it back to my ear.
“She wouldn’t just leave,” I muttered.
Not like this. Not without saying anything or leaving a text. I ended the call and dialed again.
This time, I couldn’t stay still. My footsteps echoed lightly as I moved from the living room to the kitchen and back again, my grip tightening around my phone with every step. Still nothing.
“Elara, pick up…”
The call ended. I didn’t wait. I called again.
It rang, then silence.
I let out a slow breath and dragged my hand through my hair, turning toward the door without thinking.
This wasn’t like her. She doesn’t ignore calls. She doesn’t stay out all night, not without telling me.
I kept my eyes on the door for a second, like it might open if I stared long enough. It didn’t. I looked back down at my phone and called again.
ELARA POV
By the time I got back, my head was pounding again. I stopped in front of my door, my hand resting on the handle, staring at it for a second like I needed a moment before going in.
Then I opened it. Lydia turned immediately.
Relief flickered across her face, quick, almost gone before it settled. Then it hardened.
“Where were you?” she asked, already walking toward me.
I stepped inside and shut the door behind me. “I’m fine.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“I said I’m fine.”
“And I asked where you were,” she said, sharper now. “Do you know how many times I called you?”
I didn’t answer.
She held up her phone. “Seventeen.”
I glanced at it. “I didn’t see it.”
“You didn’t see it? Or you ignored it?”
“I didn’t ignore you.”
“Then what happened?”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
Her expression shifted immediately. “You didn’t come home,” she said, her voice slow. “You didn’t pick your calls. You disappear all night, and now you’re standing here acting like nothing happened.”
“I didn’t say nothing happened.”
“Then say something.”
I looked away. “I just… stayed out.”
“With who?” she asked quickly.
Silence answered her.
Her eyes narrowed. “Don’t tell me you stayed out with a total stranger, Elara. You don’t even know him, do you?”
She exhaled, shaking her head slightly. “You don’t do this,” she said. “You don’t just disappear.”
“I know.”
“Then why?”
My fingers rubbed together, my gaze fixed on the floor. “I don’t know.”
Her eyes stayed on me a moment longer, searching for something I wasn’t giving.
Then her shoulders eased. “You scared me,” she said, quieter now.
“I’m sorry.”
“You should be. But that doesn’t fix it.”
I nodded. “I know.”
Silence settled, heavier than before.
She stepped back. “Go and rest. You look terrible.”
A breath slipped out, almost a laugh. “Thanks.”
“I’m serious.”
“I know.”
I moved past her and into my room, the door closing softly behind me. The edge of the bed dipped under my weight. My hands rested in my lap, still.
For a moment, nothing held. Then the railing pressed cold against my palms again. The night air, too close.
I hadn’t stepped back.
I hadn’t stopped.
- Writer
