The following days blurred together. Natalie couldn't say exactly when it began, but she always found herself returning to the same place: the club.
She couldn't explain it. She could try to rationalize it, tell herself it was just fun, just an escape from routine. But deep down, she knew there was something else. Something pulling her, calling her as if invisible threads were tied to her body, guiding her back to that place where lights pulsed, where shadows danced, where Rose waited.
Every time she left, it felt like pieces of her memory were being torn away. Conversations vanished, details slipped from her mind. Yet one thing always remained: the sensation. The shiver on her skin, the warmth spreading through her veins, Rose's touch and the taste of surrender. That, she never forgot.
Within just a few nights, Natalie began missing classes. She slept during the day, made excuses, said she was tired, that she needed to "clear her head." Kara's messages piled up on her phone, unread. Sometimes Natalie opened them but didn't answer. Other times, she simply let them sit there, as if the life outside the club were less real.
But Kara noticed.
She noticed the absences, the distant look, the voice that no longer carried the same energy.
And she decided to act.
It was in the middle of the afternoon, on campus, that Kara finally found her alone.
"Nat…" she called softly, yet firmly.
Natalie turned slowly, as if being pulled out of another world. Her eyes, faintly reddened from sleepless nights, focused on her friend.
"Hey, Kara…" she tried to smile, but couldn't hide the exhaustion.
Kara crossed her arms.
"Are you really okay? Because you've been acting weird. You barely talk to me, you're skipping classes, disappearing without saying anything. And honestly, I'm not stupid. Something's wrong."
Natalie looked away. She felt the weight of the accusation, but she couldn't tell the truth. She couldn't say she had become prey and accomplice to a creature she barely understood.
"It's nothing, I just… I'm tired. I'm overwhelmed, you know? Classes, work, routine…"
"That doesn't convince me, Nat." Kara stepped closer.
"Does this have anything to do with Rose? Because if it does, you need to tell me. You're the only person who knows about my secret with Alice."
Natalie's heart raced. She swallowed hard but lifted her head, forcing her voice to stay steady.
"No, Kara. I swear it doesn't. Forget it, it was just a misunderstanding, I… I just need time, okay?"
Kara was silent for a few seconds. She watched every microexpression, trying to decide if it was the truth or a well-rehearsed lie. Finally, she sighed.
"I just don't want you to lose yourself, Nat. If you need anything, you know I'm here. Don't push me away."
Natalie nodded, offering a fragile, almost broken smile.
"I know… I'm sorry. And thank you."
But that very night, Kara's words had already vanished from her mind like smoke. All that remained was the desire. The calling.
And she answered it.
The walk to the club felt automatic. The streets, the lights, the distant sound — everything conspired to guide her back. And when she entered, it felt like sinking into warm, familiar, inevitable waters.
Through the crowd, those eyes found her. Rose was there, as always. Beautiful, dangerous, irresistible.
Natalie stopped, still for a moment, breathing deeply, feeling her heartbeat quicken.
And then she walked toward her.
Again.