Her irritation flared instantly. "What are you doing here?"
Isaac leaned one shoulder against the doorframe, his gaze calmly surveying her face. "Nothing much. Just checking if Emily's around."
Jade scoffed, flipping her hair with a theatrical gesture. "Are you blind? Do you see anyone else in here? Obviously, I am the only one in the room."
"I see," Isaac replied quietly.
His eyes moved around the room briefly, taking in the scattered snacks, the open laptop, and the jeans kicked into a corner near the closet. Then his gaze drifted downward for just a fraction of a second before returning to her face. A slow, amused smile touched the corner of his mouth.
"You know," he said, his tone casual, almost contemplative, "for someone who acts all tough and aloof, you sure do like cute things."
Jade's frown deepened. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Isaac did not answer. Instead, he let his gaze drop deliberately to her legs.
She followed his eyes downward.
Her brain caught up a second too late.
Earlier, she had stripped off her jeans to get comfortable, grabbed one of Emily's loose cropped vests from the wardrobe, and had not given a single thought to putting on shorts. It had not seemed important at the time. She was alone. There was no reason to think about it.
Now, however, a very prominent, very embarrassing teddy bear print stared back at her from the front of her underwear.
"WHAT THE F..."
The scream tore out of her before she could stop it. She lunged backward, her heel catching the edge of the rug. Her arms shot out for balance as she stumbled, nearly going down completely before she caught herself and scrambled the rest of the way to the bed. She grabbed the blanket off the mattress and yanked it around her entire body, pulling it so tightly that the fabric bunched in her fists.
"GET OUT! GET OUT, GET OUT, GET..."
"Why should I?" Isaac said, still standing exactly where he was, his voice carrying that same unbothered calm. "You were the one who opened the door."
"I DID NOT KNOW IT WAS YOU!" she shrieked, her face burning so hot she could feel it in her ears. "WHO JUST WALKS INTO SOMEONE'S ROOM WITHOUT KNOCKING?"
"Someone who was invited in," he replied simply.
Jade opened her mouth to retort, then stopped.
He was right. She had swung the door open without checking. She had assumed it was Emma or maybe even Victoria, or literally anyone else in the world besides him. And now here she was, standing in the middle of Emily's room, wrapped in a blanket like some kind of burrito, teddy bear underwear hidden beneath it all.
The humiliation hit her in waves. She had never in her life let any man see her like this. Not once. She had always been in control of that. Always. The idea that it was him of all people who had witnessed her standing there in her underwear made her want to flip the entire room upside down.
She swallowed hard, forcing her voice down from a shriek to something that at least resembled composure.
"Just," she said, her voice low and shaking, "get out. Please."
Isaac tilted his head slightly. The amusement in his eyes was unmistakable. "Oh, that is a surprise. The idea of you saying 'please' is genuinely disturbing, you know."
Jade's eyes narrowed into a sharp glare. "You better get out now while I am still being nice."
"Right," Isaac said, nodding slowly. "Your nice side? Sure is convincing." His gaze moved over her again, unhurriedly, taking in the blanket wrapped around her like armor. Jade felt it immediately and unconsciously pulled the fabric tighter, hating herself for the reaction even as it happened.
"All that aside, I was thinking about the money," he said. "The five hundred dollars you took from me and the promise about deleting that video. Yet, strangely enough, Emily still ended up with a copy."
Jade let out a sharp, mocking laugh, clutching the blanket to her chest as she tried to regain her footing. "Oh, so that is why you are creeping around? You are actually upset about the money?" She tilted her head, her tone dripping with false sweetness. "Give me a break. You should be thanking me for the life lesson. Never trust a girl who has dirt on you." She smirked, her voice hardening. "Besides, Emily deserved to know the truth. That is just called being a good friend."
She threw the word "friend" at him like a weapon, masking her humiliation with a layer of pure venom. She expected him to get angry, shout, or even demand his money back.
Instead, Isaac simply watched her.
"Makes sense," he said, giving a slow, almost mechanical nod. "In that case... I guess I do not have to feel guilty about what I am about to do."
Jade's smirk faltered, her brow furrowing as she felt the shift in the air. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"Oh, nothing," Isaac replied lightly, taking a deliberate step further into the room.
Jade stepped forward sharply, placing herself firmly in front of him, the blanket trailing behind her like a heavy cape.
"Hold on," she snapped, jabbing a hand toward his chest. "What do you think you are doing? Who told you that you could just walk in here like you own the place?"
Isaac did not flinch. He simply looked down at her hand, then back up at her face, his expression disturbingly serene.
"Relax, will you?" he said, his voice smooth in a way that instantly irritated her. "All I did was walk through a door you opened for me."
She scoffed. "Because I thought it was someone normal, obviously. Not you."
"Normal is overrated," he replied, his voice dropping to a low, steady tone. "And you should take your hand off me."
Jade blinked in annoyance, ready to snap back, until she realized her hand was still pressed against his chest. With an irritated huff, she jerked her hand away.
"Whatever," she muttered.
He turned back and closed the door. The soft click sent a chill down her spine.
"What the fuck?" Jade snapped, disbelief coloring her voice. "Why the hell did you close the door?"
Isaac did not answer. He just stood there with his back against the wood, staring at her with that same unreadable calm.
Seeing this, Jade shook her head in disgust. "You know what? I do not even want to know what sick shit you are thinking that makes you believe you can enter this room anytime you like." She wrapped the blanket around herself properly and reached for the door handle. "I will just take this case to Victoria. Since she was more concerned about privacy this morning, I think she needs to know that everyone..."
"You will do no such thing."
The words did not sound loud or threatening, yet they struck her with an intensity that made her skin prickle.
Jade's hand halted midair, fingers hovering inches from the doorknob. She tried to complete the motion, to turn the handle, but her arm simply would not respond.
"What the hell?" She stared at her own hand in confusion. "Why can not I...?"
She tried again, concentrating harder, but nothing happened. Her arm felt disconnected from her will. Instinctively, she reached with her other hand to grab the doorknob, but that arm would not move either.
Panic began to creep in as she realized the problem was not just her hand. "What is happening to me?" Her voice came out smaller than she intended.
Turning her gaze up toward Isaac, her movements felt strangely sluggish. "What did you do?" Her eyes searched his face desperately. "Why can not I move?"
Isaac continued to watch her with that same calm expression, as if her growing distress was exactly what he had expected.
"You look tired, Jade," he said softly, slowly stepping away from the door. "Have you been sleeping well?"
"What? No... what does that have to do with anything?" Frustration sharpened her voice. "Why are you even asking that? I just said I can not move. What the hell did you do to me?"
Isaac did not respond directly. Instead, he continued as if she had not spoken. "You know, sometimes when you are overtired, your mind plays tricks on you," he said, strolling casually toward the nightstand. He picked up the half empty soda can she had been drinking from. "Makes you think you are awake when you are actually still dreaming."
His eyes flicked back to her, a small, knowing smile gracing his lips. "Is that what is happening now, Jade? Are you dreaming?"
"No, I am not. What are you saying?" she shot back, but her voice wavered. She did not believe it. This felt too real, too detailed. Yet something about Isaac's calm certainty made her second guess herself. What if he was right? No, that was not possible. She had not even slept since she came back, so how could this be a dream?
"Are you sure about that?" he murmured.
"Of course, I am sure," she snapped, but her voice lacked confidence. "I am not stupid, and I know when I am awake."
"Then you will not mind if I freshen this up for you."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, folded piece of paper that looked like a page torn from an old book, crimson in color.
He unfolded it over the can's opening. Jade watched in confusion, wondering what he was trying to do. He carefully tore a tiny piece from its edge, letting it flutter down into the orange liquid. It dissolved instantly, leaving no trace.
"Drink," he commanded, holding the can out to her.
"Get that disgusting thing away from me," she said sharply, but her eyes remained locked on the can.
"Take it," he insisted, his voice losing its softness, taking on a hard edge that vibrated through her bones.
To her shock, her arm moved. It rose on its own, like a horrifying puppet in a twisted show. Her fingers wrapped around the cold aluminum, lifting it to her lips while her mind screamed in silent protest. She could not understand why her body refused to listen to her, why it obeyed his words instead of her own will.
She tilted her head back and drank. The liquid still tasted like regular orange soda. No different from before, or perhaps a little sweeter.
"What the hell was in that?" she spat the moment she finished, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.
Isaac smiled, noticing she had not finished it all. He tore more pieces from the paper and dropped them into the nearly empty can. "Finish it."
Her body moved against her will once more. She tilted her head back and drained the rest, the last of the orange liquid disappearing down her throat.
"Perfect," Isaac murmured, that smooth calm returning to his voice.
"Perfect?" Jade glared at him with pure venom. "What the fuck did you just make me drink, you psycho?"
Isaac ignored her outburst, instead gesturing toward the center of the room. "Stand right there. And do not move unless I tell you to."
"Oh, hell no. I am not..." she began, but her words died as her body lurched forward on its own. Her legs carried her to the spot he had pointed at, each unwilling step more terrifying than the last.
"How the fuck are you doing this?" she demanded, her voice cutting sharp with rage and fear. She could feel it. Her legs were not responding to her anymore. The realization crawled straight down her spine. Controlling someone's body was not possible... and doing it with just words was even worse.
Once she reached the center of the room, she tried to move again. Step toward the door, pivot, anything. But nothing happened. Her feet stayed rooted to the floor, completely unresponsive, as if someone had locked her joints in place.