Total pages in book: 177
Estimated words: 178117 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 891(@200wpm)___ 712(@250wpm)___ 594(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 178117 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 891(@200wpm)___ 712(@250wpm)___ 594(@300wpm)
I wonder if Nathan’s there.
“Drink?”
I almost jolt up and down from the sudden voice in my ear.
Someone’s right behind me with three cups. “Damn, they’ve got servers here?”
The guy laughs. “No, I’m a pledge. We help out with parties.”
I grab one of his cups, wondering what’s inside. “Ah, so this is part of the hazing?”
He nods. “The nicer side.”
What does that even mean? “Nicer?”
“Yeah, the bad shit comes later.”
“What kind of bad shit?” I ask.
He shrugs. “Oh, they make you drink some laced stuff. There’s some nude runs, beer throwing, lots of chugging, a pissing contest, some more drinking. Anyway, that’s what I’ve heard. I’ve yet to go through it. This is my second day.”
I’ve seen the beer-throwing thing. Not something I’d want someone to do to me. But I doubt that’s the worst they can do.
“Well, good luck with that. Thanks for the drink,” I reply, and I walk off.
“You’re welcome! If you need more, you know where to find me,” the guy yells after me.
But I pour his drink into the first potted plant I can find. No way am I touching any of these because next thing I know, I’ll be stumbling through the streets, blacked out from it being laced.
No thanks.
I head into the main room, overwhelmed by how many people are here. People dance and bump into each other, grinding away to the music. Booze is flung around and lands on someone’s dress, but no one seems to care. They all cheer, and some guy even starts licking it off her skin.
I turn the other way and head into the room on the left. A kitchen that’s barely recognizable as the entire counter is covered with bottles of liquor. Two girls are making out on the sink, and I don’t want to barge in on their fun, even though the place is filled with people.
I head back into the main room and look around, trying to focus.
That’s when I spot that face I saw in my sister’s diary.
Nathan.
He’s going upstairs.
My eyes home in on him wearing that clear red hoodie that stands out among all the other people here, and I immediately go for the pursuit.
But there’s a whole bunch of people in my way. I struggle to cram between the bumping bodies. The sweaty and hot place makes it hard to breathe as I push my way through the crowd.
By the time I get to the stairs, he’s long disappeared. But he can’t have gone outside, which means he must be in one of the rooms, and I’m going to find him.
I rush up the stairs, barely avoiding some beer spills on the steps. I step aside and pass by a couple making out on the banister. I go into the first room I find, but it’s just some trashed student chamber filled with dancing people.
The next one is a random student’s room, and someone crashed on the bed, vomit dripping down onto the carpet. Gross.
I head farther down the hallway and open the next door, but there’s literally two boys on the bed having sex. Jeremy and Calvin. And I just busted in on them going ham on each other. Fuck.
“Sorry!” I say, blocking my eyes with my hand. “Wrong room.”
“No worries, babe,” Jeremy calls, laughing. “Just close the door, will you? Thanks.”
“Of course,” I reply, embarrassed.
I quickly run off to the last few doors in the hallway, but when I push the door handle, it’s jammed. Locked. Fuck.
“Sorry, taken!”
Must be a bathroom.
I don’t want to lose the opportunity to find Nathan, and there’s a bunch of rooms up here that I haven’t checked yet, so I move on. And the next door I open is the first one that isn’t filled with people dancing or fucking around.
The room is huge, much larger than the other ones I’ve seen, and there’s a lot of expensive-looking furniture. The closet is open, and I can spot the Armani from here. Jesus. Kayla and Crystal weren’t lying when they said the Society guys were rich as fuck.
However, what surprises me more is the number of skulls in the room. Paintings, penholders, wallpaper, carpet—literally everything is decorated with skeletons. Like a literal reminder of death.
I walk farther into the dark room, ignoring the chill in my heart, and look around. I gently call out, “Hello? Anyone here?”
But there’s no response.
There’s another door in the back and a light is on. A private bathroom maybe?
I walk toward it, wondering if Nathan might be showering or taking a piss in there. I don’t fucking care if his ass is hanging out or he’s butt naked, I’m going to confront him about that fucking note, and I’m going to find out if he bullied my sister to death.
I grip the door and open it up.
There’s no one inside.
What the fuck?
Suddenly, the door behind me closes.