Dangerously Yours

Party

I stand in front of the mirror longer than I should.

The dress is shorter than anything I've ever worn—tight, and cut lower than I'm used to. For a second, I almost changed. Then I don't. The girl staring back at me looks different. Not unsure. Not small.

My phone buzzes

JESS

I'm outside.

By the time I get into the can, she's already grinning. ''You look insane,'' she says.

''Good or bad?''

''The best kind,'' she smiles.

—

The party is chaos the second we walk in. Music pounds through the walls, people packed together, laughing, dancing, already drunk. It's loud, messy, alive. Jess pulls me straight to the kitchen, and one drink turns into two, then three.

The tension in my chest loosens. I stop overthinking, I laugh, I move, I let myself exist without questioning it.

For once, I feel normal.

—

I'm turning through the crowd, not paying attention, when I slam into someone.

''Sorry—'' I start, then stop.

It's him.

He's standing there like he hasn't moved all night, like everything around him is just noise he's chosen to ignore. His eyes drop briefly, taking me in, then lift back up to my face.

''You,'' he says.

My heart stutters. ''You disappeared.''

''I left.''

''That's it?''

A slight tilt of his head. ''I don't stay where I don't need to be.''

I exhale softly. ''And you need to be here?''

Before he answers, Jess appears beside me. ''Amara, I swear this place is insane—'' She stops, looking between us. ''Hey, You're one of the guys from last night. What's your name?''

''Elijah,'' he says with a cold expression on his face.

Jess glances around, then back at him, ''Do you even know whose party this is? Because this place is—''

''It's his.''

The voice comes from behind us. It's one of the guys that was with Elijah last night at the club.

Jess blinks. ''wait—what?''

He gestures casually around the room. ''This whole place? His.''

For a second, I think I misheard.

Then I look back at Elijah.

And it clicks.

The surrounding space around him. The way people move without getting too close. The way no one really looks at him directly.

This isn't just a party.

It's his.

—

''Oh,'' Jess says, quieter now.

I don't speak.

I just look at him differently.

Everything about him shifts into place in a way that makes my chest tighten.

''You didn't think to mention that?'' I ask.

His cold expression doesn't change. ''You didn't ask.''

''That's not exactly something people usually have to ask.''

A flicker of something crosses his face—amusement, maybe.

The music pulses louder around us, people brushing past, completely unaware of the shift happening in this place.

''You look different,'' he says suddenly.

The comment catches me off guard. ''So do you.''

''I don't,'' he replies.

And somehow, he's right.

—

Jess shifts beside me, clearly trying to process everything. ''Okay... I need another drink,'' she mutters, backing away. ''I'll be over there.''

She disappears into the crowd, leaving the space between us open again.

Too open.

Too focused.

—

I cross my arms slightly, suddenly more aware of everything—of him, of where we are, of the fact that I'm standing in his house without knowing anything about him.

''You always own the room like this?'' I ask.

''I don't need to,'' he says.

My breath catches slightly.

Because he doesn't.

It just happens.

—

The music builds again, the crowd moving closer, louder, but it all feels distant compared to the way he's looking at me.

Like he's already decided something.

Again.

And this time, I'm not sure if I like how much that affects me.