The party pt.1

Later that night, Bryce heads to the Capa Delta sorority house for the party Cortney mentioned she'd be attending as well. The bass thrummed through the walls before Bryce even reached the front door, the pulse of the music vibrating in his chest as he climbed the steps. Strobe lights flickered through the windows, casting fractured shadows across the porch where a few smokers lingered, their laughter drowned out by the heavy beat. Bryce adjusted his jacket, scanning the crowd inside as he stepped through the doorway. Bodies pressed together in the dim light, sweat and perfume and something else he cant place in the air, something metallic, primal, that made the hairs on his arms stand on end. His gaze swept across the room, past the grinding couples and red plastic cups littering every surface, searching for Cortney's familiar face. Then he saw her. Cortney stood near the staircase, her back pressed against the banister as a tall figure loomed over her—a man Bryce didn't recognize.

Cortney’s fingers tightened around her cup, the cheap beer inside sloshing as the stranger leaned closer. His breath was warm against her ear—too warm, almost feverish—and his voice curled around her like smoke

??? - "You a cute one" he murmured,

his lips brushing the shell of her ear. She should have laughed, should have shoved him away with a sarcastic remark. But the words slithered under her skin, pooling low in her belly. Her pulse stuttered, her throat going dry as his hand settled at the small of her back, possessive and sure. Across the room, Bryce’s footsteps approached

The stranger’s fingers tightened imperceptibly on Cortney’s waist, his smirk deepening as he caught Bryce’s reflection in the nearby mirror Bryce’s jaw clenched.

Bryce - “Hey,” he called,

voice sharp over the music. “

Bryce - You good, Cort?”

Cortney blinked, as if surfacing from a dream. Her lips parted, but before she could answer, the stranger’s thumb traced the ridge of her hipbone through her dress.

Cortney answered with a breathless little gasp that didn’t sound like her at all.

Cortney- “I’m—I’m fine, Bryce.”

Her fingers twitched around her cup, nails denting the plastic. The stranger chuckled, low and knowing, his breath stirring the hair at Cortney’s temple.

??? - “She’s more than fine,”

he said without turning, his thumb still circling her hip in slow, deliberate strokes.

??? - “Aren’t you, sweetheart?”

Bryce took another step forward, his pulse hammering.

Bryce- sweetheart, so it's he...well your boyfriend then Cortney Bryce says,

A little disappointed if isThe words tasted bitter on his tongue, but the way Cortney’s breath hitched—the way her pupils dilated as the stranger’s fingers dug possessively into her hip—told him everything he didn’t want to know. The stranger finally turned, his smirk slow and deliberate, revealing a flash of unnaturally sharp canines.

??? - "Something like that," he murmured,

his voice dripping with amusement. There was something wrong here—something deeper than just some asshole hitting on Cortney.

Bryce’s instincts screamed at him to grab Cortney and drag her away from that predatory grin, but his feet stayed rooted to the floor. Cortney’s fingers trembled against her cup, her knuckles whitening as the stranger’s lips brushed the curve of her ear again.

??? - "Lets take this else were..somewere more ..private girl"

he whispered, just loud enough for Bryce to hear.

Cortney- Alexander..i.i

Bryce - Alexander...wait your my roommate thats never their.

The realization hit Bryce like a punch to the gut. The stranger—Alexander—was supposed to be his elusive roommate, the guy who left empty bottles in the fridge thatvwas syained red and disappeared for weeks at a time Alexander’s grin widened, his fingers still tracing slow circles on Cortney’s hip.

Alrxander - "Surprise," he purred,

his voice dripping with mock sweetness. Cortney’s breath came in shallow gasps, her body swaying slightly as if caught in a trance.Cortney’s fingers twitched, her drink slipping from her grasp and hitting the floor with a wet splatter. She barely noticed. Every nerve in her body was alight, her skin hypersensitive beneath Alexander’s touch. His lips brushed the shell of her ear again, and she shuddered, a whimper escaping her throat. Bryce lunged forward, grabbing her wrist.

Bryce - “Cort, snap out of it!”

But Alexander’s grip tightened, pulling her flush against him. His eyes—dark, endless—locked onto Bryce’s.

Alexander “She doesn’t want to go ..do you Cortney,” he murmured,

his voice velvet and dangerous.Bryce’s grip faltered as Cortney leaned into Alexander’s touch, her body betraying her with every shuddering breath. His throat tightened—this wasn’t just attraction. It was something hypnotic

Bryce- “Cortney,” Bryce tried again

, voice rough.

Bryce - “Look at me.”

Her lashes fluttered, but her gaze stayed locked on Alexander’s smirk, her lips parted