07

7

Conrad let out a soft chuckle, his thin lips brushing against my ear as he whispered.

"Come home with me tonight, will you?"

"Go to he—"

Before I could finish, he silenced me, forcefully stealing all the air from my lungs.

Under the influence of alcohol, the blood in my body surged like molten lava, coursing through my veins.

My vision gradually blurred, as if being corroded drop by drop by acid, the pain almost robbing me of my ability to think.

Drenched in sweat, I leaned against him, lacking the strength to push him away, feeling as if I had returned to that dark period of my life.

Staring desperately at the dazzling, colorful world around me, I felt completely out of place.

"Conrad, can't you just let me go?"

...

I sank like a block of wood to the bottom of a well.

Perhaps I fell too hard.

The pain was unbearable.

But I was already numb, unable to feel anything.

"Melody!"

I heard him calling my name.

He no longer seemed to wish me dead like he used to.