ARIA
I woke up to the sound of my heartbeat. It pounded in my chest like a war drum.
The morning felt wrong. Not bad- just off. Like the world had turned up the volume button too far and forgotten to turn back it down.
The hum of the air conditioner sounded like a jet engine. The sunlight filtering in through my curtains felt too hot. Too bright. Like it was looking directly at me.
I groaned and covered my head with my blanket. "Maybe I'm dying".
"You're not dying".
I froze. My eyes shot open. That voice again. The same one I'd been hearing all week, threading through my thoughts like static on a bad radio station.
"Nope," I whispered, "nope, no voices today. We are mentally stable. We are a perfectly sane woman who just needs coffee."
"You need control".
"Great. The voices are motivational now," I said to no one, dragging myself out of bed. "Love that for me."
I rolled out bed and landed on the floor with a thud. I groaned at how loud it sounded in my ears.
I sighed and dragged myself up from the floor and went to the bathroom. I brushed my teeth and hair, which looked like a bird's nest.
Then I went downstairs.
The smell of my dad's cologne hit me halfway down the stairs—oakwood and citrus. Usually I liked it. This morning, it was a punch to the nose.
Everything was amplified—the hum of the refrigerator, the hiss of the coffee machine, the heartbeat of my dad in the next room.
Wait. No. That wasn't possible. I was hearing things. Definitely hearing things.
"Muffles," Dad called. "You're up early."
"Yeah," I croaked. "Brain's loud. Can't sleep."
He frowned, but I waved him off and gulped down coffee. It burned my tongue; I barely tasted it.
Everything felt… alive. Like the world was breathing beside me.
I groaned and slapped my hand down on the counter.
"Still hungover?", dad asked, a teasing lilt to his tone.
"For 3 days? Even if I'm a Russian", I groaned.
"Got classes today?"
"Just one. By 11".
"Great. You'll be home early. Then you can rest".
I nodded enthusiastically but then remembered my study sesh with Darien and sobbed.
"I'll be home late. I'm studying with…. Uhm, a friend from six to eight. Academic comeback's still on".
"A friend that makes you study? For two hours? That's great Muffles". He dad hugged me and I choked on his scent.
"I need to get ready so I'm not late".
° ° ° °
Campus wasn't any better.
Every sound bled together—the chatter of students, shoes on pavement, the metallic squeak of lockers. I could smell perfume, sweat, cheap cologne, and burnt espresso all at once. It was too much.
"Pull yourself together," I whispered, clutching the straps of my bag. "You're fine. You're fine."
"You're not fine".
The voice again—lower, smoother, less distant this time.
"Breathe, Aria. You're fighting me".
I stumbled to the side of the hall, pressing a palm to the wall. "Who are you?" I whispered.
"You already know".
"Aria?"
I stiffened at the voice I did recognize.
Josh.
I turned slowly. He was standing a few feet away, leaning against the wall like he owned it, smirk plastered across his face. He looked the same—messy blond hair, grey hoodie, overinflated ego.
My stomach twisted.
"What do you want?" My voice came out smaller than I wanted it to.
He shrugged. "Just checking if you're still playing the victim."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
He laughed under his breath. "You've been walking around campus with that pathetic 'hurt puppy' look, acting like I ruined your life."
I clenched my fists. "You did ruin my life."
"Oh please. You'll survive. You always do." His eyes dragged over me, cold and dismissive. "You should actually be thanking me. You were suffocating, Aria. You think you're sunshine, but you're a storm—needy, loud, too much."
My chest constricted. Every ugly word echoed louder in my skull than it should have. Too much. Too much. Too much.
Then something snapped.
The air in my lungs changed—thickened, burned. I felt… strong.
Josh's heartbeat pounded in my ears like war drums. His scent—cheap mint gum and deceit—made my lip curl. My nails bit into my palms.
"Stop," I whispered. "Stop talking."
He stepped closer. "What? Gonna cry again?"
"End it".
The world blurred.
One moment I was standing still. The next, Josh's back slammed into the wall hard enough to rattle the posters pinned to it. My hand was fisted in his hoodie. My heart roared in my ears.
"Don't. Ever. Talk to me like that again," I growled.
Yes. Growled. It didn't sound human.
Josh stared at me like I'd grown fangs. "Aria—what the hell—?"
I stepped back fast, shaking, breathing like I'd run a marathon. My hands trembled. The world swam.
I didn't even realize I was running until I burst out of the building and into the cold evening air. The voice was no longer whispering—it was singing, low and furious and alive.
"You did well, little one. Don't let him break you".
"I'm going crazy," I gasped, stumbling across the quad. "I'm going insane—"
I wheezed, pressing the heels of my hands to my eyes. I didn't want to cry, but everything felt too much. I couldn't carry it.
It felt like I was drowning in sensory overload and I couldn't tell-
My eyes snapped open, as I lowered my hands.
° ° ° °
Darien was standing by the faculty building, talking to a student, sharp in his white shirt and charcoal vest. The air seemed to calm around him.
He looked up right as I approached them.
"Professor—" My voice cracked. I didn't care who heard.
"We'll talk about your project later Ayden", he said to the student.
"Alright Professor. Thank you sir", Ayden said and offered me a curt nod as he walked past me.
"Aria", he said softly and his eyes searched my face, "Come".
He led me through the winding path to his office.
He opened the door and let me in first, then he closed the door and locked it. "Talk".
"I feel like I'm going crazy. Everything has been amplified. Sounds, scents, everything. I can hear people's voices from a yard away. And… and I body slammed Josh. I don't know how. I just know that one minute he said I'm too much and I felt something rush through me, the next, I had his back to the wall.
"And oh gosh, I growled. Like literally growled. It didn't sound human at all. I'm-"
I didn't finish. I just barreled straight into his chest. His arms caught me instantly, like he'd been expecting it.
"Aria," he murmured, voice low but steady. "Hey. Hey. Breathe."
I clutched at his shirt, trying not to fall apart. "I think I'm losing it," I whispered. "I heard voices. And then Josh—and I—"
"I know." His voice was calm, grounding. One hand slid up to the back of my neck, the other anchored me by the waist. "You're safe now. You're safe."
For the first time all day, the noise in my head quieted. The world dimmed to the sound of his heartbeat—slow, steady, familiar.
"Mate", the voice purred faintly inside me.
I felt tears sting my eyes. "What's happening to me?"
Darien didn't answer right away. His jaw clenched, his eyes glowed faintly gold in the fading light.
"I think," he said quietly, "you're starting to remember what you are."