C H A R A D E

CaTaToNiC

This chapter is dedicated to @iamunchanged for all her love on this book. Thank you 😚

                                 ----

I woke up to the blare of car horns and honks of lorries passing by some distance away from the hotel.

The first thing my groggy brain registered was the fact that I was in a room, on the bed of a room, to be precise. One which I did not remember walking into. Or falling asleep in.

Against the pounding in my head and faint ringing in my ears, I sat up and looked around.

Something felt off. Different.

For one, my shoes weren't on my feet anymore, instead they were a few feet away from the bed, lying askew. And not just that, the back button of my jumpsuit was undone. And my hair, which I remember holding up with a pin, in preparation for the party, was untied, hanging loosely around my face.

When did all these happen? When did I do all these?

And why couldn't I remember anything from the moment I got Chelsea to the party until now?

I looked at the clock opposite me, high up on the wall.

It read 7:10.

Suddenly, a wave of realization hit me.

I was in a hotel room. I shouldn't be in a hotel room. I should be in the room of the lodge Chelsea and I shared.

I mean, I was supposed to drive us—Chelsea and I—back to the lodge after the party, which was scheduled to end at eleven.

So why was I in the bed of a hotel room?

Swinging my legs off the bed, I got down.

Something was definitely not right.

And where the hell was Chelsea?

She wouldn't have just left me in the hotel and went off with Brian. If she was even going to leave with Brian, she would've informed me.

I got my phone out of my purse, which was sitting on the nightstand, and checked it for missed calls from Chelsea.

None.

I kicked on my shoes immediately, went into the adjoining bathroom, splashed water on my face and dried it, then hurried out of the room.

As soon as I stepped outside, I paused to take in my surroundings.

I was still on the third floor, and a few feet from me was the lounge where the party had taken place.

It was daytime now, so I didn't need the lights on to see into lounge properly.

The lounge was empty and orderly, considering a party had taken place in there, so I guessed it had already been attended to by room service.

But where was Chelsea?

No missed calls, no earlier information that she'd be leaving, nothing.

Just then, it clicked in my memory to call her.

"Why hadn't I thought of that since?" I wondered aloud as I fished for my phone in my purse once again.

Once I'd gotten it out, I tried Chelsea's number.

It rang, but she didn't pick.

Okay, that was weird. Chelsea never ignored my calls.

I tried again and then again, but got the same result.