Chapter 54: E.D.E.N

The thought crept back in, uninvited. I opened my eyes, glaring at the water droplets on the tile in front of me as if they were to blame for my spiraling thoughts.

Why did she do it? Was it a spur-of-the-moment thing? Did she mean it? Was she—?

No. I shut the thought down before it could take root. I wasn’t about to let myself spiral further into questions I didn’t have answers to.

I scrubbed my hands over my face, letting out a frustrated sigh that was swallowed by the sound of the running water.

Tomorrow. I’d figure it out tomorrow. Right now, I just needed to survive the night without overthinking myself into oblivion.

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The insistent buzzing of my phone yanked me out of a dreamless sleep, and I groaned, rolling over to escape it. The morning light seeped through the curtains, reflecting on the bed like a spotlight aimed directly at me. Of course. Why wouldn’t it? I rolled again, trying to shove my head under the pillow and block out both the light and the incessant buzzing.

But no matter how much I twisted and turned, it didn’t stop. If anything, it felt like I was rolling directly into the source of the sound, which only made me groan louder in frustration.

Finally accepting my fate, I pushed the pillow off my head and cracked one eye open. My phone sat there where my head had been, lighting up over and over again, buzzing like an angry insect.

“What the fuck…” I muttered under my breath, glaring at the device like it had personally wronged me. It had okay? It did.

I grabbed it, and the first thing I saw was my faint reflection in the dark screen. My hair was an absolute disaster—wild strands sticking out in every direction, with a bunch of it somehow in my mouth.

“Ugh.” I pffted the hair out of my mouth and made a halfhearted attempt to push it back. It didn’t work, but at least It felt like I tried.

I swiped the phone open with my face ID, my eyes squinting against the brightness of the screen. The notifications flooded in like a tidal wave.

What the hell was going on? Who was ruining my morning like this?

I tapped on one notification, and it redirected me to Google Messages. The first message I saw was from the school, reminding me to arrive early. That wasn’t unusual, given the circumstances, but it didn’t explain the overwhelming number of other messages.

I tapped another notification, this one from the school blog. It redirected me to a recently deleted post. The replies were still there, though, a flurry of students commenting and arguing about… something. My heart skipped a beat. Was it about Heather? It looked like it was.

I scrolled further, trying to piece together what was going on, but just as quickly as I started, everything disappeared. Replies, the deleted post notice—everything.

I tilted my head, confused. Did the school just take everything down?

Still feeling groggy, I tapped on another notification, which led me to WhatsApp. Apparently, someone had added me to a group chat.

The group name? **YESSSSSSSS!!**—Hmm mm with eight S’s and two exclamation points.

What even was this?

The chat had over a thousand messages, all from names I might've recognize but didn’t particularly care to see in my notifications this early. They were all chatting excitedly about something, but it didn’t make sense to me.

Maybe it was because I’d just woken up, but trying to figure out what they were so hyped about was like trying to solve a puzzle without the corner pieces. I scrolled up, then back down, trying to make sense of it, but nothing clicked.

Finally, I tapped on the last notification, this one sent late last night. As I read through the message, the haze in my mind cleared enough for me to process the words. Read it again to make sure I wasn't seeing things.

And then I had to read it again.

Out loud this time to confirm.

*'Congratulations, Ms. Torres,'* I muttered, my voice hoarse and raspy from sleep.

I cleared it and continue, *'You have been selected by the Extracurricular and Students Life Department (EASLD) as one of the students who performed exceptionally well in school activities and the recent tests. You are therefore invited to join the upcoming school trip and tour to E.D.E.N following the SAT Subject Tests.'*

I paused, rereading the part about E.D.E.N. My heart beating.

It continued:

*'This tour is both a reward and an opportunity for personal growth and exploration in a unique and inspiring environment. You are expected to visit the department office before the end of today to pay the required fees, get the trip letters to your parents to sign the necessary documents.*

*Failure to do so will indicate that you are not interested, and your position will be given to another student.*

*We look forward to your participation in this exclusive opportunity.'*

I stared at the message, my brain struggling to process it. E.D.E.N. The E.D.E.N.

This was a joke, right? A cruel, twisted joke.

I blinked at the screen, rereading the message for the hundredth time. I was going to E.D.E.N. E.D.E.N. The place I’d been obsessing over, researching, dreaming about—finally within reach.

My chest tightened with excitement and disbelief. I could already feel the rush of anticipation coursing through me. After everything.

I opened the WhatsApp group again, scrolling through the flurry of messages. The discussion were starting to come together now. The group wasn’t just a random collection of students, it was directly tied to the E.D.E.N. trip. No wonder people were so hyped.

But there was sadness too. I scrolled further, seeing messages from students expressing their disappointment and jealousy.

**'I wish I got in. This sucks.'**

**'How can they choose her and not me?!'**

**'Congrats to everyone going! Make sure to take pics for us peasants 😭.'**

So, not everyone was invited. That much was obvious now. The group seemed to hold both the chosen few and those who were left out, all mixed together in one chaotic mess that didn't let me sleep.

Curious, I tapped on the group’s participant list, scrolling through the names. A few familiar ones popped up, people I expected to see, some people I've interacted with before, including Blanche and Frankie.

Frankie.

My stomach twisted. My hand freezing mid-scroll as my brain decided to gift me with the vivid memory of last night.