Her phone rang at 11:47 PM.
Katherine was still awake, scrolling through nothing, the blue room too quiet and too big around her. When Marcus's name lit up the screen, she answered before the second ring.
"Hey."
"Hey yourself." His voice was warm. Familiar. Home. "Thought you'd be asleep."
"Can't sleep. This house is weird at night."
"Weird how?"
She looked at the ceiling. The shadows from the window. The way the silence here felt heavy, like it was holding its breath.
"Just... big. Empty. I don't know. It creaks."
"Creepy mansion vibes. Got it." She could hear him shifting, probably lying in his dorm bed. "Want me to stay on the phone till you fall asleep?"
"That's cheesy."
"That's romantic. There's a difference."
She smiled. Actually smiled. "Is there?"
"Huge difference. Cheesy is like... buying a giant teddy bear. Romantic is staying up past midnight because your girlfriend sounds lonely and you want to hear her voice."
"Who said I was lonely?"
"You answered on the first ring, Kat."
She laughed. Soft. He was right and they both knew it.
"Fine. I'm a little lonely."
"I knew it." He was smiling too. She could hear it. "Tell me about the house. Distract me from my roommate's snoring."
"Tyler snores?"
"Like a dying animal. Every night. I'm going to smother him with a pillow by October."
"That's murder."
"I don't give a fuck."
She laughed again, and something in her chest loosened. This was them. Easy. Stupid jokes and late-night calls and the comfort of someone who knew her before all of this.
She told him about the house. The blue room that was entirely blue, floor to ceiling, like someone had one favorite color and zero chill.
He told her about orientation. His classes. The party he'd gone to where some guy did a backflip off a table and broke a lamp.
They talked about nothing for an hour. Maybe longer.
"I miss you," he said finally. Quieter now.
"I miss you too."
"Like actually miss you. Not just saying it."
"I know. Me too."
Silence. But not the bad kind. The kind where you're both just existing together, miles apart but still connected.
"When can I see you?" he asked.
"I don't know. Maybe you could visit? Or I could come back for a weekend?"
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. I'll figure it out. Talk to my mom."
"Okay." He yawned. "I should probably sleep. Early class tomorrow."
"Go. Sleep."
"You too."
"I'll try."
"Love you, Kat."
"Love you too."
The call ended and she lay there in the dark, phone warm against her chest, and felt okay for the first time in days.
Morning came soft through the blue curtains.
Katherine woke up slow, blinking at the sunlight, her body still heavy with sleep. For a moment, she forgot where she was. Thought she was home. In her real room. With the leaky bathroom and the too-small closet and the sounds of the city outside.
Then she saw the chandelier.
Right.
She needed more normal.
She got up, showered, actually took her time with it. Did her skincare. Put on a little makeup—not a lot, just enough to feel like herself. Picked out clothes that weren't gym wear for once. A sundress. Sandals. Earrings her dad had given her before he died.
She looked at herself in the mirror.
There you are, she thought. Still in there somewhere.
She needed to get out of this house. Just for a few hours. See the area. Find a coffee shop. Remember that a world existed outside these walls.
But first she needed to find her mom. Ask about a car, or how to get into town, or if she was even allowed to leave.
Allowed. Like she was a prisoner.
She pushed that thought away and left the blue room.
The house was a maze.
Three days and she still didn't have it figured out. Hallways that looked the same. Doors that led to other doors. Stairs that went up and then somehow also down.
She'd seen her mom go toward the east wing yesterday, so she headed that direction. Passed a sitting room. A small library,A room with a piano.
The hallway curved. More doors.
One of them was open. Just a crack.
She almost walked past it. Would have, if she hadn't heard the sound.
A moan. Low.
Katherine stopped.
She should keep walking. Obviously. This wasn't her business. Someone's door wasn't fully closed and that was their problem, not hers.
But her feet didn't move.
Another sound. Male this time. A grunt. The creak of a bed.
She knew she shouldn't. Knew it was wrong. But something pulled her toward that crack in the door, some stupid curiosity she couldn't control.
She looked.
Elijah.
Shirtless. On top of a girl. His back muscles flexing with each movement. The girl's legs wrapped around him, her nails dragging down his spine.
Katherine's breath caught.
She should look away. Should leave. Should—
Elijah's head dropped, mouth on the girl's neck, and the girl's head turned toward the door.
Their eyes met.
The girl's eyes Looking right at Katherine.
For one horrible, frozen second, neither of them moved.
Then the girl smiled.
Not embarrassed. Not surprised. Just... smiled. Slow and knowing, like she'd caught Katherine doing something wrong.
Katherine ran.
Actually ran, down the hallway, around the corner, heart slamming against her ribs. Her face was burning. Her whole body was burning.
What the hell was that?
Why did she look?
Why did she KEEP looking?
She pressed her back against a wall, breathing hard, trying to get her head straight. The image was stuck there—Elijah's back, the way he moved, the girl's smile. That smile.
She felt sick. And something else. Something she refused to name.
No. No no no.
She pushed off the wall and walked. Fast. Needed to find her mom. Needed to get out of this house right now.
She found her mother in a sunroom on the first floor. Alone, thank God, drinking tea and scrolling through what looked like wedding venues on her iPad.
"Katherine." Her mom looked up, surprised. "You're up early."
It was almost ten. Not that early. But whatever.
"I want to go out."
Her mom's eyebrows rose. "Out where?"
"Into town. Just to explore. Get coffee. Walk around."
"By yourself?"
"Yes."
Her mom set the iPad down. That look on her face
"I don't know if that's a good idea. You don't know the area."
"That's why I want to explore it."
"Richard has drivers. I can have one take you—"
"No." Too fast. Katherine took a breath. "I just... I need to be alone. For a few hours. Please."
For a moment, she almost looked like she understood.
"There's a town about fifteen minutes from here. Cute shops. Safe area." She reached into her purse, pulled out a set of keys. "You can take the Range Rover. It's the black one in the garage. Third spot from the left."
Katherine stared at the keys. "Seriously?"
"You have your license. You're an adult." Her mom pressed the keys into her palm. "Just be back before dinner. And don't scratch it. Richard will lose his mind."
"I won't."
She turned to leave.
"Katherine."
She stopped.
"Are you okay? You look... flushed."
The girl's smile flashed in her mind. Elijah's back. The sounds.
"I'm fine. Just hot. The house is hot."
Her mom didn't look convinced but didn't push. "Be careful."
"I will."
Katherine walked out, keys clutched in her hand, and didn't breathe properly until she was in the garage, standing in front of a Range Rover that cost more than her entire life back home.
She got in. Started the engine.
She pulled out of the garage, down the long driveway, past the gates, onto the road.
The house got smaller in the rearview mirror.
She exhaled.
Her hands were still shaking.
She didn't know if it was from embarrassment, from being caught, or from something else entirely.
She turned on the radio, found a station playing something loud and mindless, and drove toward town with the windows down.