The Precise Art Of Staying Alive

Chapter 20 - The Precise Art Of Suspicion

The rest of the night blended together in a haze of flashing lights and laughter, and I'd woken up on the couch in the living room, my hair knotted and an empty cup in my hand. We'd spent the majority of the day cleaning the mess from the party, vacuuming up glitter and confetti, popping balloons and desperately trying to shampoo stains out of the carpet, to mixed success.

Eventually, the house had almost returned to its pristine state and I dragged myself to my room, changing into a black skirt and high-necked white shirt, before pulling on a dark red sweater over it. Wearing the clothes, I felt somewhat like myself again, and a little bit less of a mess. I'd taken my make-up off in the morning, but hadn't brushed my hair, which took the better half of an hour, running the bristles through my knotted hair until it no longer resembled a fur ball.

Finally, I walked downstairs, feeling energised, humming a tune to myself. I'd barely talked to anyone since the party, since most of the day had been focused on frantically cleaning the house in case the chaperone arrived, but I was excited to talk to everyone more, especially given that Theo and I weren't skating around each other in our conversations. My humming turning into singing, high and sweet, I walked into the living room, the soft hazy glow washing over me. The day had turned cold and bitter, and I could see rain smashing relentlessly against the enormous windows, fog rising up to make the world a grey-haze, blocking out the sun so it seemed as if it were night. Theo and River were sitting on the couch, and Nicole took up the armchair we normally shared, so I made my way to the other, waving to Theo as I went.

"Hi bestie." I teased, and Theo rolled his eyes.

"If you're going to be that annoying this entire trip, I'd prefer you to go back to ignoring me." Theo drawled.

"Annoying, me? Never." I replied, plopping down in the chair. Theo sighed, looking to Nicole.

"Can you tell her she is? Especially when drunk." Theo added, shaking his head in mock disappointment.

"I wasn-" I began, River laughed, cutting me off.

"Don't even try. You explained to me your theory that Bender and Brian from The Breakfast Club are secretly spies - and siblings - and were working to infiltrate the school, who were discretely running a drug factory." River said. I frowned briefly, trying to place the memory.

"I don't remember that." I said tactfully.

"Not to mention you asking Asher if he and Reid were exes, and your attempts to make us become "friends"." Theo added, amusement clear in his rich voice.

"Oh. I remember that." I said, somewhat sheepishly. My memories of the night were blurred, and searching through them only made my head ache, so i was glad of the silence that followed, signifying that that particular embarrassing conversation was over.

"So, does anyone know where Nadia is?" I asked, noting her absence. River shook her head, and Nicole and Theo looked clueless.

"She said she was going to try her dress on, the one for tomorrow night. I haven't seen it yet, but Nadia's says it's beautiful." River offered. I didn't doubt that she would look beautiful, but privately suspected that if she did, the dress would have little to do with it.

"She does like entrances." Theo murmured softly, almost inaudible. I tried not to flinch at his harsh words, to let him know I heard him, but I still winced slightly. Nicole's eyes shot to Theo, as if she'd heard him to, and River shifted in their seat, tactfully ignoring the comment.

"I do." An elegant voice announced, and I turned to see Nadia strolling in, her face indecipherable. Nadia was dressed in what could only be her dress for the ball, a long, slinky dress that clung to her figure, cut-outs at her ribs and waist showing dark skin shining against the pure white of the dress. The dress was sleeveless, and the neck of it climbed her throat, leaving a strip of skin underneath her chin, the rest of the dress following her silhouette down to her feet. It would've been surprisingly modest if it were not for the cut-outs, but it was elegant nonetheless, and Nadia, even with her hair unstyled and no make-up, save for flecks of gold in the corners of her eyes, looked like a princess, graceful, regal and entirely unattainable. As Nadia walked to the centre of the room, her eyes passed over me, something like pity flashing in them for a second, before her bored gaze returned. I felt fear pass over me, choking my throat and made to stand up, but Nadia's eyes flicked to me, avoiding my gaze.

"Sit. You all need to stay here." She said, and the lack of laughter in her voice made me sit back down, however anxious I was.

"Nadia? What's going on?" River asked, confusion palpable in their voice.

"Just...wait." Nadia said, standing in the centre of the semi-circle made with the couch and armchairs, framed by the brick fireplace.

"For what?" Theo asked irritably, frowning, and as Nadia turned to him, a familiar smile spread across her face, one of secrets and laughter. I felt myself let out a sigh of relief, maybe things were normal after all. See? You needn't have worried. Everything's fine, just Nadia being Nadia.

"How did you all enjoy the party?" Nadia asked, the question seemingly innocent. Words flashed to my head, damming, painful words, and I gulped, trying to push them away.

"It was fun. I don't remember that much though." I said lightly, and Nadia turned to Theo, Nicole and River.

"What about the rest of you? How was the party, or more specifically, the end?" Theo stared at Nadia, his brows furrowed slightly, before leaning back.

"As Rhea said, it was good. The balloons were a fun touch." Theo said smoothly. Nicole and River made various sounds of agreement, and Nadia's smile turned to a slight pout.

"Are you sure? I mean, I did see Nicole look quite pale after I made my entrance, actually, you looked rather sick. River, on the other hand, was such a bright red and seemed so nervous. As for Theo, well, all of that glancing around, were you looking for someone? And the silence? You have such a lovely voice, why not use it." Nadia cooed. I watched, shocked as Nicole, River and Theo each reacted to the barbs, their eyes wide, Nicole, as Nadia had said, turning white, River flushing, and Theo's eyes narrowing, his eyes turning a dark grey. Nadia's eyes slid past me, focused on something behind me as she spoke.

"And Rhea. You know, I've never seen you drink that much. Ever. It was interesting though, especially the part when you seemed to black out for a second. You were pretty fun, I must say." Nadia said, and whilst her voice wasn't cold, it didn't have any of the warmth that I had come to associate with her. I couldn't bite back, couldn't seem to do anything but sit there mutely in horrified silence. Nicole and River seemed frozen too, and even Theo took a second to collect himself before he spoke.

"And your point is?" He asked sharply. Nadia's face broke into a smile, one that was actually her, the kind she made when gossiping and sharing secrets, excitement and life glinting in her eyes, pouring from her. She looked at all of us again, and this time, her eyes locked into mine as she talked, dark seas of laughter and fun.

"My point is, Theo, that you are all hiding something. And, instead of sitting and being boring about it, we're going to do something fun. We're going to play a game. And, spoiler alert, at the end, you won't have to hide anything anymore. Sounds exciting, right?"