Page 76 of Into The Darkness

The moment that familiar nickname escaped his lips, I was done for. It felt like destiny, almost too good to be true. All I ever yearned for was that picturesque life where I’d stumble upon an adorable guy in a quirky meet-cute. Yet, none of that was my reality. Instead, I found myself drawn to the one person I was explicitly warned to avoid on campus. My life seemed like a whirlwind of implausible scenarios, and somewhere within that chaos, love had stealthily crept in. That is the funny thing about love. Sometimes, the best love came in the most unexpected ways. Before I even went to class today, I knew what I would tell Ash. I knew what I needed to do. After today, it only confirmed I needed to give him every part of myself if that meant we could be together. I had been immature and selfish.

The rain poured down on us, drenching us to the bone. Ash’s fingers swept wet strands of hair away from my face, his touch tender yet urgent. He tilted my chin up, seeking answers within my gaze.

Exhaling a mixture of relief and apprehension, I rose onto my tiptoes, closing the gap between our faces. “I’ll do it. Tomorrow. At the party,” I declared, our lips dangerously close. It felt like after what happened earlier, this was the opportunity for me to take back the control of my sexuality, making it my choice and something I wanted to do for Ash . . . with Ash.

“You don’t have to,” he whispered, our breaths mingling.

“But it’s the only way for us to be official?” His nod was almost imperceptible. “If I take this step for you, I need something in return.”

“Anything,” he vowed.

“No more lies.” He pulled away from me slightly, his jaw ticked, and I corrected what I said because I knew there would always be some level of secrets between us.

“No lies about things that involve me.”

“Okay.” He spoke after a few moments of silence. “Can we go eat, though?” A smile tugged at his lips.

“Only if you erase what that creep tried to do to me.” I winked, trying to make light of a shitty situation. Without hesitation, his lips crashed onto mine, reigniting a fierce longing. I missed him, his touch, his taste—every facet of him felt like an essential part of me.

“Promise me you won’t ever leave me again, Ember.” His voice held an almost desperate edge, as if he couldn’t bear the thought of it happening.

“I promise,” I replied, the sincerity of my words resonating in the air between us. A life without Ash was simply unfathomable, a void I had no intention of experiencing.

Chapter thirty

She was freaking out. She had texted me all morning asking me what she should wear, how much she needed to drink, and begging that I wouldn’t let her get drugged again.

What I was asking of her was not something small. She held so much fear over coming to another party. I was an asshole for doing this, but this was the only solution I could think of to appease my dad and prevent any situations like Ale happening again.

“You could have just not listened to your dad,” Rain said as he walked into my room.

“And what? Piss him off more?”

“You could have just not done it. Broken this weird fucking tradition we have here.” Rain rubbed his eyes. I knew how he felt about these. They made him uncomfortable, and he never participated.

“It’s not the actual initiation I am worried about. I am just worried about her coming to a party after last time. She’s freaking out.”

“Yeah, but she doesn’t know it was us who did it, does she?”

“No. She thinks it was just someone at the frat. She’s worried it’ll happen again.”

Rain sighed and took a deep breath in.

“Do you think you are a little in over your head? Managing a lot with your dad breathing down your back, school, the Den, and then prepping for this bonfire?” Well, when he said it aloud . . .

“I’ve got it under control.” Rain offered me a tight smile, then went to leave. “See you later.”

I paced at the rear entrance of the house, the crunch of leaves underfoot echoing my anxiety. Above us, a solitary light and camera perched ominously, but I repositioned us to avoid their direct line of sight.

A brisk breeze rustled through the air, casting a chill that left me questioning the wisdom of this rendezvous. I leaned against the house’s dark weathered panels, gazing up into the night sky. The clear night revealed a scattering of stars, their twinkling mirroring the light Ember had brought into my life.

“Hey,” she said as she rounded the corner. She wore a tight dress that hugged every single curve, with a jean jacket on top. Her hair was pulled back in a cascading braid.

“Did you walk?”

“Yeah.”

“I could have picked you up,” I said, and she shook her head.

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