Chapter 2: The Shadow Beneath
The warmth of the fire wrapped around me like a heavy blanket, but my mind was still spinning. I stared into the flames, trying to shake the chill from my bones, yet the memory of the snake’s cold, calculating eyes refused to leave me.
“Stop thinking about it,” Aria said softly, sitting down beside me. Her hand grazed my arm, and I flinched involuntarily. She noticed—of course she did—but said nothing.
“You’re really jumpy today.” Her tone was light, but I sensed the sharpness beneath it, like a blade wrapped in silk.
I forced a laugh. “It’s the rain... and the snake.”
Aria gave me a look—part skeptical, part concerned. “You’re always restless, Ira. As if something's haunting you.” She tilted her head, studying me, her sharp green eyes glimmering like emeralds in the firelight. "Maybe if you stopped reading all those thrillers, you’d get a good night's sleep."
I smiled weakly and stuffed a cookie into my mouth to avoid replying. Aria’s gaze lingered, making my skin prickle.
Why do you always look at me like that? The question burned on the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed it down with the crumbs.
“Anyway,” Aria continued, pulling out her phone, “Mom’s furious. I told her you’d be back by 9, and now it’s nearly midnight. You need to come up with a good excuse before she grounds you.”
I groaned. “I’m too old to get grounded.”
“Tell that to Mom,” she said with a smirk, her eyes glinting with a wicked amusement.
Something about the way she smiled made me uneasy, but I shook off the feeling. She’s just looking out for you. That’s what friends do.
Or so I told myself.
---
Later that night, I lay in my bed, staring at the ceiling, unable to sleep. The storm outside had subsided into a soft drizzle, but the strange heaviness in my chest remained.
I closed my eyes, trying to focus on the steady rhythm of raindrops against the window. But the darkness behind my eyelids was alive, crawling with memories—memories I couldn’t quite place. Shadows shifting on the edges of my mind. Whispers just out of reach.
And those eyes.
I jerked upright in bed, my heart pounding. What was that snake doing in the middle of the street? Was it real—or just my mind playing tricks again?
My phone buzzed on the nightstand, and I grabbed it, grateful for the distraction. A new message flashed on the screen:
Unknown Number: Stay away from Aria if you want to stay alive.
A shiver ran down my spine. I stared at the message, my thumb hovering over the screen. Was this a prank? A mistake?
Before I could respond, another message appeared.
Unknown Number: You don’t know what she’s capable of, Ira.
I felt my throat tighten. What the hell? I glanced at the door, half expecting Aria to burst in with that familiar smirk on her face.
I locked my phone and tossed it on the bed, trying to calm the storm building inside me. It’s nothing. Just some idiot messing with me. But the words stuck to me like thorns.
I tried to sleep, but the message kept flashing in my mind, over and over.
---
The next morning, sunlight streamed through my window, making the storm feel like a distant dream. I rolled out of bed, my body aching from the restless night.
Downstairs, I found Aria in the kitchen, humming to herself as she poured coffee into two mugs. She looked up as I entered, her expression bright and cheerful—too cheerful.
“Morning, sleepyhead,” she chimed, sliding a mug toward me. “Rough night?”
I nodded, wrapping my hands around the warm cup. “Yeah... didn’t sleep much.”
Aria’s smile wavered for a split second—so fast I almost missed it. “Really? I thought you’d sleep like a baby after all that running last night.”
Something in her tone made my stomach twist, but I forced a smile. “Guess not.”
She leaned against the counter, sipping her coffee, her eyes never leaving mine. “By the way... you didn’t get any weird texts last night, did you?”
My heart skipped a beat.
“Texts?” I echoed, trying to keep my voice steady. “No... why?”
Aria shrugged, but her gaze was sharp, cutting through me like glass. “Just curious.”
I took a sip of my coffee, the bitter liquid burning down my throat. How did she know?
Before I could say anything else, Aria’s phone buzzed on the counter. She glanced at the screen, her smile returning.
“I have to run some errands,” she said, grabbing her bag. “I’ll be back soon. Don’t get into trouble while I’m gone, okay?”
I watched her leave, the door clicking shut behind her. The moment she was gone, I pulled out my phone, my hands trembling.
The messages were still there, staring back at me like a warning.
Stay away from Aria if you want to stay alive.
---
I spent the rest of the morning pacing the living room, the words playing on repeat in my mind. Something wasn’t right.
Aria had always been protective—sometimes overly so—but this... this felt different. How did she know about the texts? Why would someone warn me about her?
I needed answers.
The logical part of me knew I should tell someone—maybe even call my parents—but another part of me, a deeper, darker part, wanted to know the truth for myself.
I grabbed my jacket and slipped out the door, the cool morning air nipping at my skin.
If Aria was hiding something, I was going to find out.
And if that snake on the road last night was a warning, I wasn’t about to ignore it.
YOU ARE READING
INFATUATED HATE
Romance"Cloaked in the shadows of his ruthless world, he finds her - a burst of color in his monochrome existence. She is his rainbow, the one he despises with a fervor as intense as his desire. In the delicate balance between love and loathing, their tumu...
