Karl woke up feeling warmer than usual.

It took him a second to remember why.

Nick was still here.

Karl barely moved, trying not to disturb the weight at his side. Nick had shifted closer in his sleep, one arm half-tucked under his hoodie, the other resting just near Karl's.

Not touching, but close enough that Karl could feel every shift in Nick's breathing.

Karl swallowed, suddenly wide awake.

Nick didn't move.

He looked softer like this, curled up in the dim morning light, hoodie bunched around his shoulders, dark circles still under his eyes.

Karl wasn't sure what to do with that.

So he just stayed still.

His heart was beating too fast for a situation where nothing was happening.

Eventually, Nick stirred, groaning as he buried his face into the pillow. His voice came out rough, groggy. "What time is it?"

Karl glanced at his phone. "Like... noon."

Nick muttered something unintelligible and rolled onto his back. "I don't think I've slept that long in weeks."

Karl huffed. "Yeah. Same."

Nick sighed, stretching his arms over his head before dropping them back down. He looked at Karl, eyes still half-lidded with sleep. "You okay?"

Karl blinked.

The question caught him off guard.

Karl had been asking Nick that a lot lately, but he wasn't used to hearing it himself.

"...Yeah," Karl muttered.

Nick gave him a knowing look. "Liar."

Karl exhaled sharply, rolling onto his side to face him. "Okay, yeah. I feel like I'm losing my mind. But what else is new?"

Nick let out a breathy laugh. "Mood."

They lay there in comfortable silence for a while.

And then Karl made a mistake.

He let his eyes flicker down.

To the way Nick's hoodie had slipped slightly at the collar. To the curve of his throat. To his fingers tapping idly against the fabric of Karl's blanket.

Karl quickly looked away, suddenly feeling ridiculous.

They were just tired. That was all.

Nick didn't seem to notice. "You wanna get food?"

Karl nodded. "Yeah. Let's—yeah."

Maybe food would get his brain to shut up.

---

Karl and Nick were back in his dorm, sitting on the floor, scrolling through old research papers.

Karl tried to focus on the words, but his mind kept drifting.

Nick, sitting cross-legged beside him, had his hoodie sleeves pulled over his hands, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. His hair was still slightly messy from sleep.

Karl swallowed. Looked back at the papers.

He wasn't thinking about that.

Not now.

Nick sighed, tossing one of the documents aside. "None of this tells us anything new."

Karl leaned back on his hands. "It tells us they were covering something up."

Nick gave him a flat look. "Yeah. No shit."

Karl snorted. "Okay, fair."

Nick ran a hand through his hair. "What if we're just going in circles?"

Karl exhaled. "Then I guess we keep going in circles until something breaks."

Nick huffed. "That's stupid."

Karl nudged his knee. "So are we."

Nick rolled his eyes, but he didn't pull away.

Before Karl could say anything else, his phone vibrated.

A text.

Karl glanced at the screen, expecting it to be some random notification.

But when he saw the name, his stomach dropped.

Unknown Number.

Nick noticed immediately. "What?"

Karl didn't answer. He just unlocked his phone.

There was only one message.

help

Karl's breath hitched.

Nick sat up straighter. "Karl. What is it?"

Karl turned the screen toward him.

Nick went dead silent.

Karl's fingers trembled as he typed back.

Who is this?

A pause.

Then another message.

they found me

Nick swore under his breath, grabbing Karl's phone.

Karl could barely breathe. "It's Drista."

Nick's hands were shaking. "Karl, that—"

Another message came through before he could finish.

don't let them see u

Karl felt physically ill.

Nick stood up. "Okay. No. No, this is—this isn't happening."

Karl shot to his feet. "Nick—"

Nick started pacing, running both hands through his hair. "No way. No way this is real. No way—"

Karl grabbed his wrist. "Nick. Look at me."

Nick did. His pulse was racing.

Karl took a shaky breath. "We don't know what this means."

Nick clenched his jaw. "Karl. She's been missing for over a day. And now this?"

Karl couldn't argue.

His stomach was twisting itself into knots.

Nick turned away, gripping the edge of the desk. "We need to do something."

Karl's head was spinning. "Like what?"

Nick exhaled sharply. "I don't know."

Karl looked down at his phone again. His hands were still trembling.

Drista's last message stared back at him.

don't let them see u.

His blood ran cold.