ALL BLOOD AND OXYGEN DRAINS FROM MY BODY.

"Alephie, do you need to find a new hobby?" Jax asks, his face contorting in a grimace. He moves back from all three of them and approaches me, shielding the book with his body.

Logan smiles. "Do you know how hard it was to get you two alone in an isolated room with the book?"

His words hit like a slap. They knew. They planned this. We're going to get in trouble or get killed. Or, be manipulated. Alephie's face is already stressing the hell out of me, and knowing that Logan is in on it too doesn't ease my mind.

Jax shifts his weight, positioning himself in front of me completely. "So this was all a setup? Is this your idea of a prank?"

Alephie scowls. "Jesus, not everything is about you. Get over yourself for one goddamn second, would you?"

The staring match that seems to be going on between Jax and Alephie is practically crackling like static electricity. They look seconds away from tearing into each other, and I'm just standing here in the crossfire with a giant question mark floating above my head. Alephie's scowl is sharp, but there's a vulnerability behind it too. Jax must have done something really really bad.

Logan, of course, finds the entire thing amusing. His smug smile doesn't falter, and he leans casually against a desk as if we weren't inches from a fight. "Calm down, kids. You're both being so dramatic. This isn't a prank. It's an intervention for the safety of everyone."

"An intervention for what?" Jax snaps.

"For Avra," Logan says smoothly, gesturing toward me like I'm a prop in a play. "Or, more specifically, for the role that she's taking on, and the implications of it."

"You don't need to anything for Avra," he says, folding his arms. Oh, he's mad mad. He's so clearly trying to break into Logan's soul and crush it.

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" I shout, finally breaking. My voice echoes in the room, the dust sprinkling around us from the impact. "Why won't anyone just tell me what's going on?"

Logan grabs a chair nearby and moves it beside me. "You know, you're officially the most sensible person in this room." He plants himself in the chair beside me like he's about to have a casual chat over coffee. Except the glares in the room could shatter glass. Alephie stares at him like she's considering using the chair as a weapon, and Jax looks like he's ready to leap across the room.

"Okay, Avra," Logan begins, steepling his fingers with a self-satisfied smirk. "I'll level with you, since your bodyguard here isn't in a sharing mood." He nods at Jax, whose jaw tightens visibly. "You've been chosen for something... important. Something bigger than being a hall monitor. But here's the catch: you didn't just inherit a title. You inherited a responsibility."

"Logan, I know I've just met you, but stop talking in riddles. Why is everyone doing that?" The last thing I want is to entertain this cryptic nonsense, but something about the way he's speaking—it's like he already knows the answer is going to devastate me.

"I'm telling you what we know, okay?" Logan says, "Basically, after what happened to Amelia, some of us realized something was really off, and I mean, really off. I don't know how well you know her but—"

Alephie interrupts him, "Oh, she knows her quite well. It's actually quite annoying since she's just a replacement."

Jax shoots Alephie the sharpest look I've seen on him. "Alephie, shut up."

"A replacement? Do I even want to know?" Logan sighs, looking between Alephie and Jax.

Jax stares at the awful painting of Cleopatra on the wall while Alephie moves closer to me. "He's not going to say anything, so I will. Jax and I were close in middle school. I was best friends with both Jax and Amelia. Amelia moved up a year and it was just us for a while," She locks eyes with me, her expression softening just slightly. "When Amelia moved up, everything shifted. It was Jax and me against the world, or so I thought." She casts a quick, accusatory glance at Jax. "But Jax? He couldn't stop chasing after her shadow."

Jax winces at her words, his expression twisting between anger and something that looks suspiciously like guilt. "Alephie, stop. This isn't about me—or you, for that matter."

"Jax, what did you do?"

Alephie laughs, a sound that has no humor to it. "See, that's the thing. We don't know, no one knows. He won't tell anyone about it and when we started high school, he replaced me with you to get a fresh start."

He glances at me briefly, but instead of explaining, his gaze shifts quickly to the floor.

"That's not what happened," Jax finally says. "I didn't replace anyone."

Alephie's eyes narrow as she steps closer, her voice tight with frustration. "Oh? Tell me, Jax, why did you stop talking to me? Why did everything change when she arrived?" She gestures toward me with a flick of her hand, as if the answer is obvious.

I stand there, trying to process what's being said—she being me. My heart races as I wait for an explanation. What is she talking about?

"Alephie, I didn't replace anyone," Jax says again, his voice quieter this time. "I couldn't be around you anymore and you know why."

Alephie's eyes flash with bitterness. "Of course, it's all my fault."

I've stepped into the middle of something that's been brewing long before I even knew any of them.

Logan watches the exchange with me. "It's clear that there's a lot of unresolved tension here," he says, almost casually. "But let's focus on why we're all really here. Avra—" he pauses, his gaze sharpening on me, "—you're not just in the middle of a friendship drama. Hastings giving you the role of the Hall Monitor means more than you might think. Especially since you never applied."

"Right," I reply. "And this is relevant because..."

"So, you've figured out about the Hall, I presume?" Logan shifts beside me, scooting closer to reach the book. "That's why you wanted to meet Jax at the pool?"

"Yeah."

Logan claps his hands. "I knew it! See, Kaia, I told you she's figure it out."

Kaia, who hasn't said anything till now, smiles. "Well, I don't know her well."

"It wasn't exactly rocket science." All I had to do was find something odd in a series of words and combinations. It wasn't the most difficult thing in the world. "So you're telling me, this Hall thing—this secret group or whatever—is behind the Hall Monitor position?"

"We think it's something like that," Logan explains. I'm slowly, and I mean, slowly, liking him. "Obviously, we need more evidence. But we wanted you to understand this before something bad happens. You need to be on your toes when you're getting the job done. I heard Hashtag is giving you monetary benefits."

"Hashtag?" I ask. "Are you talking about Hastings?"

Kaia giggles. "It's a reference to his cringe hashtag posts for promoting the school. Like, #Education and #Support."

"Anyway," Logan continues, leaning in closer. His gaze doesn't quite leave mine. "Hastings is more involved in this than you probably realize. He's not just a figurehead; he has connections, and he's likely tied to the Hall more than anyone wants to admit." He gives me a pointed look, his eyes narrowing slightly as he assesses me. "You were quick with deciphering the code. Most people would've been to busy freaking out to notice the obvious."

"Well, I've been freaked out by freakier things before," I reply, thinking back to the East Wing. "A random clue in a book isn't that big a deal." I try not to show it, but there's something about Logan that makes me feel like I'm the only one in the room. It keeps sending jolts through my chest. I force myself to look away, glancing at Jax and Alephie whose eyes are both trained on Logan.

Logan notices, of course. He straightens in his seat, turning slightly toward Jax. "What's the matter Jax?" he asks innocently. "Are you upset that Avra is catching on faster than you did?"

Without a word, Jax steps closer to me, subtly placing himself between me and Logan, his broad shoulders blocking the view of the other boy.

Oh, boy.

"Ah, Jax," Logan says with a slow smile. "Always the protector. How sweet. Too bad you couldn't do the same for Amelia." He looks at me then, eyes glinting with a mischievous light. "But you know, Avra, sometimes it's more fun when you're not shielded so much. You might miss something interesting."

He points to my jeans, Amelia's jeans, and smiles. He's telling me something, or trying to tell me something, but I can't tell what.

"You have very nice eyes, Avra, anyone tell you that?" he says, ignoring Jax who is wedged between. "Definitely nothing like Amelia's."

"Can you shut up about my sister and my best friend?" Jax says, grimacing. "Is this your idea of messing with me?"

"Like I said, everything's not about you. Get a life," Alephie says.

"Clearly, this is about me. He wants to—" His fists clench at his sides.

"Jessica was supposed to come with me on a world tour during the summer," Logan begins, "But her parents whisked her off to God knows where."

"You knew Jessica?" I ask softly.

"Well, she just happened to be the love of my life before she disappeared."

The air in the room seems to freeze for a moment. Jessica. Jessica. . A cold knot tightens in my stomach as I stare at Logan, trying to make sense of his words.

"Love of your life?" I repeat, my voice barely above a whisper. My brain scrambles to process this new piece of information.

I can't stop myself from glancing at Jax. His face has gone pale, his jaw clenched tight. His eyes flicker toward Logan before quickly darting away, like he's trying to control something—like he's holding back.

"We lost Amelia. Logan lost Jessica. And now—" Alephie bites her lower lip and doesn't finish.

Logan looks at her, unfazed. "I think Avra's already starting to figure it out, Alephie. She's not dumb."

Kaia weaves her way through the chairs. "Okay, so, we just wanted to make sure you're careful. Amelia saw some weird shit happen during her shifts like her pictures popping up everywhere and disappearing, random sounds everywhere. We don't know what's wrong, and what it's all about. Be careful, that's all we wanted to say. You can talk to us if you need something, and whatever you do, keep that book safe at home or something. We can't risk Hastings seeing you with it."

I nod. "Thank you."

The bell chimes and everyone takes their leave. In a few minutes, the room reinstates the silence as Jax and I watch the door. I steal a glance at him, and I realize he's figured it out too.

There's something they're not telling us.

★★★

My third shift starts at five p.m., right after school on a Friday, coinciding with the robotics club meeting. Naturally, I have questions. I'm not sure why I'm lingering in the hallway while everyone in the club is inside tinkering with code, but apparently, "unusual" is a suspicious pattern for this job.

Time passes and passes, like the receding waves of the sea. It stretches as I stand there, leaning against the cold, sterile wall. The sound of my sneakers scraping against the flow is the only sound breaking the silence. Every now and then, a murmur of conservation leaks from the robotics club room. I keep caution on my mind like a crown, refusing to take it off. The feeling nags at me, a persistent itch at the back of my mind that I can't quite scratch.

Drip. Drip.

The sound of water brings me back to the moment. Brows furrowed, I focus my ears. Sure enough, the dripping is real. I turn toward the source of the sound, but the hallway is still and empty. It's strange—it wasn't there before. I move my back off the wall, turning to find the sound. The more I feel like I'm closer to the source, the further the sound goes. The swishing of the droplets doesn't get louder even as I approach the wing in all directions possible.

I glance down at the time on my phone. Five minutes past five. Technically, I'm not supposed on a search hunt right now. I'm supposed to be outside the club room, ensuring they're all fine in there, and keeping things in order. But instead, I'm standing in this hallway, searching for something that might not even exist.

With Logan's words ringing in my head, I decide it's going to be alright. I'm not imagining it.

I find myself at the door of the robotics club.

"Uhm, excuse me? I'm sorry for interrupting," My knock causes all fifteen pairs of eyes to turn to me. "You guys didn't hear water leaking anywhere around here, have you?"

The captain removes his headphones and grimaces at me. "I'm sorry, but we are doing something important, please don't interrupt."

A sigh escapes my lips before I can stop it. "I'm very sorry for interrupting your process, but I need to make sure everything's okay," I say. The room is silent for a beat, and then the captain glances up from my laptop.

"No," he says, his voice flat. "We haven't heard anything. You're fine to go back outside."

A witty remark forms in my mouth. It's actually impossible for him to hear anything since he's been wearing headphones this whole time. He's almost too dismissive of everyone else in the club, too.

"Well, I was asking someone else," I tell him, "Someone who didn't have headphones on may have heard something."

The captain's eyes narrow for just a moment, as though he's trying to read something deeper in my words. But after a long pause, he exhales through his nose, not bothering to look around the room at the others.

"You can go back outside now. We're busy," he repeats, his tone sharper this time.

I frown, eyes flicking to the others' faces. Some of them wear uncomfortable smiles as I feel my neck heat up.

"Okay, well, thanks," I mutter, trying to control the heat creeping up my spine. Even as I step back into the hallway, I can't stop feeling that something is off. The sound of the water has stopped, but now there's something else—like the faintest hum in the air, vibrating beneath the surface.

I turn to walk down the hall, trying to focus on my task. Just stick to the routine, I tell myself. Routine is safe. Stick to what you know.

But the lights flicker, and my stomach lurches.

It's not like a normal flicker. It's like the world itself is glitching, like reality is momentarily unsure of its own shape. The hall distorts for just a split second, enough for me to wonder if I'm imagining it. But the hum is still there, growing louder, buzzing at the back of my mind like an insistent mosquito.

This happened to the others too, I tell myself, it's not just you.

I blink hard, trying to recalibrate my senses. The hum feels like it's inside me now, a vibrating thread pulling tight across my spine. The hallway stretches unnaturally, the end of it seemingly farther away with each step. I look down at my feet, wondering if I'm walking slower or if the floor is somehow shifting. My sneakers scuff against the tiles, grounding me to reality. Whatever's happening, I need to focus.

One step at a time. Just keep moving.

But as I near the corner that leads to the next wing of the school, I freeze. Something is wrong.

The dripping sound returns, louder and more distinct. My eyes dart to the corner, the part of the hallway bathed in shadow despite the overhead lights. There's a puddle on the floor, its edges expanding slowly but steadily, creeping toward my shoes. The liquid glistens under the flickering lights, shimmering faintly like oil on water. It doesn't make sense—there's no source. No pipe, no spill, no ceiling leak. Just... the puddle, spreading unnaturally.

Don't get close, my instincts scream, but curiosity tugs harder. Against my better judgment, I take a cautious step forward, leaning slightly to see if I can catch a better angle on the mystery.

A shadow moves within the puddle.

Not over it—in it.

I stagger back, my breath hitching. "What the—"

"Are you lost?"

The voice is sudden, sharp, and right behind me. I spin around so fast I almost lose my balance.

It's Logan.

I relax, the shadow moving away just as Logan approaches me. "Avra? What the hell are you doing here?"

I point to the puddle. "I heard water dripping from the West Wing, but it seems like this is where it's coming from—"

Logan squints at the puddle, searching for something around us. "How can you hear the water dripping from that far away, that doesn't make any sense. Unless you have superhuman senses."

I shake my head. "That's why I'm confused."

He gulps, stepping closer, his boots halting just short of the expanding liquid. "Avra, I don't think this is just water." His voice is low now, each word deliberate, cautious.

I glance back at the puddle, my pulse quickening. "What do you mean 'not just water'? It's just... leaking or—"

"No." He cuts me off, his tone sharp. "Look closer. It's sizzling."

I stare, my chest tightening. Sure enough, the edges of the puddle are fizzing, tiny bubbles forming and popping in a quiet, disturbing rhythm. The liquid almost seems alive, pulsing slightly as it spreads further, curling closer to Logan's boots.

"What the hell..." I mutter, taking another step back. The hum in the air seems louder now, almost pressing against my skull. "Sizzling? Water doesn't just—what is this, Logan?"

He goes back into the chemistry lab he was in and comes back with a piece of litmus paper. "Well, let's try figure it out."

Sure enough, the litmus turns bright red in contact with the liquid.

I gape at the litmus paper, now a vivid red, practically glowing. Acid. The puddle is some kind of acid—but not the normal kind. It doesn't smell corrosive or pungent, and it doesn't eat through the floor as expected. Yet here it is, sizzling quietly, fizzing like it's waiting for something.

Logan steps back, his expression unreadable as he flicks the litmus paper to the floor. "It's strong. Stronger than anything we've worked with in class."

"So, someone wanted to give me an acid burn?" I ask quietly.

Logan turns to me, concern etched in his eyes. "I don't know but, I'm scared. This is worse than what happened with Amelia or Jessica."

"You didn't tell me about what actually happened to Amelia or Jessica, you just told me to be careful."

He circles the puddle, not getting any closer than he needs to. "There's something I need to talk to Jax about. Will you help me clean this up first, though?"

I'm not afraid of Logan, but I don't like the hesitation in his voice. Whatever he's not telling me, it's big—something bigger than just an acid puddle appearing out of nowhere.

For once, I have proof I didn't imagine something.