THE THRILL

I shouldn't have come.

I knew I shouldn't have come.

But here I was anyway, standing in the dimly lit clearing where Leo and I had met up last time — the one that looked straight out of a horror movie. The trees whispered in the wind, and the shadows danced in ways I did not appreciate.

I pulled my jacket tighter around me and glanced at my phone. 7:58 PM. He was late. Of course he was late.

I was about three seconds away from calling it quits when—

"Boo."

"AHHHH!"

I spun around so fast I nearly fell, my heart leaping into my throat. And there he was — leaning against a tree like he hadn't just shaved ten years off my life.

Leo grinned. "You scare easy, Parker."

"I—are you KIDDING me?!" My voice came out way too high-pitched. "What kind of psychopath sneaks up on people in the dark?!"

"Relax, Curious Girl." He pushed off the tree and sauntered closer, his stupid leather jacket catching the light in the most annoyingly perfect way. "If I wanted to murder you, I'd have done it already."

"Oh, comforting. Thank you."

He laughed — and damn it, it was a nice laugh. Low and rough and entirely too dangerous for my peace of mind.

"You ready?" he asked, his eyes glinting with something I couldn't quite name.

"For what, exactly?" I crossed my arms. "Because if the plan is for me to be your next victim—"

He rolled his eyes. "You're hilarious. Come on."

I followed — mostly because my curiosity was stronger than my sense of self-preservation.

We didn't stop until I saw the lights.

Music thumped through the night air, and as we got closer, I realized it was a party. A college party. Crowds of older students spilled out of a huge house, red cups in hand, laughter and chaos blending with the bassline.

"Oh no," I said immediately. "Nope. Nuh-uh." I started to turn, but Leo caught my wrist.

"Relax," he said again, that stupid smirk in place. "You wanted to know more about me, right? Consider this research."

"Yeah, well, I'm thinking you're a terrible influence."

He grinned. "You have no idea."

Before I could argue, he pulled me through the crowd. And just like that, I was in over my head.

*-*

The second we stepped inside, the noise swallowed me whole. The air was thick with heat, sweat, and the unmistakable scent of alcohol. The bass from the speakers was so heavy, I could feel it in my chest. People danced, laughed, shouted — and I was already wondering how fast I could escape without looking like a total coward.

But Leo didn't let go of my wrist.

"Come on," he said, leaning close so I could hear him over the music. His breath brushed against my ear, and I hated the way it sent a shiver down my spine. "You want the full experience, right?"

I tried to shoot him a glare, but it probably looked more like panic. "You didn't say anything about this!"

He grinned. "You didn't ask."

Before I could answer, someone called his name from across the room. A girl. Of course, it was a girl. She was tall, gorgeous, and immediately wrapped her arms around him like they were very familiar.

"Leo! You actually showed up!" she practically purred.

And suddenly, I was wondering why I'd let him drag me here in the first place.

"Yeah, couldn't miss it," he said, his eyes flicking to me in a way that made the girl follow his gaze.

Her perfectly shaped eyebrows arched. "And who's this?"

"No one," I said at the same time Leo said, "My date."

My mouth dropped open. The girl's eyes narrowed.

"Oh." She smiled, but it wasn't a nice smile. "Cute."

Before I could come up with some sort of response — or maybe strangle Leo — someone shoved a red cup into my hand.

"Drink!" the guy yelled, then disappeared into the crowd.

I stared at the cup like it was poison. "I—"

"Relax, Parker," Leo said again, his eyes dancing. "Live a little."

"Why do you keep saying that?!"

"Because you never do."

And with that, he took my free hand and pulled me deeper into the party.

I was so doomed.

A couple of terrible decisions later…

Okay, maybe I had the tiniest bit of fun. Maybe.

We ended up outside on the porch, where it was quieter, and the cool air felt like a blessing. I sat on the railing, my head light and my cheeks warm — and not just from the drinks. Leo stood in front of me, his hands in his pockets, watching me with that infuriatingly amused expression.

"You're not what I expected," I said before I could stop myself.

He tilted his head. "What did you expect?"

"I don't know. More… dangerous. Less… nice."

He raised an eyebrow. "You think I'm nice?"

"No!" I said quickly. "Definitely not."

He stepped closer, and I had to fight the urge to lean back. "Maybe I'm both," he said, his voice low.

My heart did a stupid flip. "You're very full of yourself, you know that?"

He grinned. "I've been told."

The silence stretched between us, charged and heavy. And then—

"Why do you write that blog, Parker?"

My breath caught. "Why do you care?"

"Because I want to know," he said simply. "You write about everyone else. What's your story?"

For once, I didn't have a quick answer.

But before I could figure one out, the porch light flickered — and then the entire yard went dark.

And that's when the screaming started.