Chapter 22

**KAIA**

The Ivywood Manor is one of the popular girl sorority house on campus. I was struck with awe when we arrived at the house and saw how beautifully done the decorations were.

They really put the red and black theme into everything. It was perfect yet terrifying at the same time.

Every single female was wearing red and the guys had on different outfits but all in black. 

Amy wore a sexy red dress with a lacy scarf thingy that wraps around her neck and falls behind her back. She wore her hair down and her makeup was on point with all the smokey eye and stuff that made her look really pretty.

Dresses were not mandatory, anyone can wear anything as long as it's red

Dresses were not mandatory, anyone can wear anything as long as it's red. So, I decided to wear the red corset top she forced me to wear since I have nothing red in my closet. Not even a underwear. I paired it off with black high waisted cargo pants because I didn't want to wear anything else that's red.

I'd be walking around looking like a red traffic light, if I did.

But the outfit turned out nice. Especially when I wore my hair up in a ponytail and curled it, and left two curly strands out to frame my face.

The party was full on when we got there. Someone had played Drake inside the house and everyone was dancing and drinking, enjoying themselves.

Amy and I walked around, looking for some drinks. It almost took us twenty minutes to finally find the kitchen which was also crowded with people.

Amy managed to get us red solo cups filled with alcohol. We clinked our cups together before drinking from our cups.

Justin Bieber's classic 'Boyfriend' started playing and Amy and I started smiling before doing a little dance moves while singing the lyrics.

It was only five minutes into the dance, when someone suddenly swooped in and started dancing with Amy. He was grabbing her hips and they were doing a little grinding dance and I stopped and made a disgusted look before leaving them to it.

My cup was almost empty so I went back to the kitchen area for a refill. Two guys were standing close together, talking and blocking the countertop.

I slowly pushed my way between them and grabbed a bottle of rum and a can of coke as well. I poured my leftover drink inside the sink. Then, I started mixing the two drinks together inside my cup.

After filling it closer to the brim, I took a small sip and smiled to myself with satisfaction. My gut suddenly alerted me to look up and I did.

I immediately locked eyes with some guy across the room who was already staring at me.

He was watching me...

My stomach did the flippy thing when we made eye contact. He was wearing a black outfit with his arms showing, and black bands were tied around his forearms.

I couldn't figure out who he was because he was wearing a black neck gaiter around his neck, that fully covered his mouth and nose, only revealing his eyes.

I slowly put the cup back down on the counter and glanced at the red solo cup in his hand, his fingers were wrapped around it so tightly, it almost looked like he was squeezing it

I slowly put the cup back down on the counter and glanced at the red solo cup in his hand, his fingers were wrapped around it so tightly, it almost looked like he was squeezing it.

I quickly looked up at him again and his eyes slowly narrowed at me.

Okay, what is this dude's problem?

I rolled my eyes and turned away, pushing my way back through the crowd to head back to the dance floor and find Amy.

But even after I left the kitchen, the feeling of someone's eyes on me never went away and it left a chill running down my spine throughout the night.

**OoO**

Two cups. Five shots. One bottle.

That's how much I've consumed in one night. Usually,  I've been good at avoiding alcohol to stay out of trouble, yet tonight, I had completely lost my grip on my sobriety.

I don't know how long I've been standing in this corner or what time it was, but I was aware that it was late.

Amy and I had agreed to set the curfew at midnight. This works well for me, since I'll be able to get a few good hours of sleep before my lecture starts tomorrow.

Getting drunk was not part of the plan. I don't even remember the reason why I even started to drink this much anyway. It was not a good sign for me.

Meanwhile, Amy was nowhere to be seen. I think she might've ditched me, but that wouldn't be like her. So, I'm guessing she's probably getting laid in one of the upstairs bedrooms with some guy she met here.

Probably the same one she had danced with, but I wouldn't know.

I would've gone looking around for her, but I didn't want to risk it. I'm completely drunk, and anyone could easily take advantage of me at any time.

So, I'll just stay in this corner.

An uncomfortable feeling stirred at the bottom of my stomach, and I squirmed against the wall.

God, not now; please not now.

My bladder felt like it couldn't take it anymore, and I closed my eyes and breathed deeply through my mouth.

Fuck, it's not working.

The hallway was crowded, and the bathrooms were probably upstairs. I weighed down my options within five seconds before I completely gave up and rushed down the hallway.

I pushed my way through the crowd, mumbling a chorus of 'excuse me' and 'coming through' before I eventually made it to the staircase.

A few people were lingering on the steps, and I ignored them while running up the stairs. My head suddenly bumped into a brick wall along the way, and I stumbled back, reaching out to the railway to steady myself.

I slowly looked up, and a realization suddenly hit me when I saw it wasn't exactly a wall but an actual person.

A very familiar person, to be exact.

I squinted my eyes at him to get a better look, and it took me ten seconds to finally realize why he looked familiar.

It was the same guy from before. The one who was staring at me in the kitchen.

He was standing at the top of the stairs, arms folded, head lowered, with his eyes looking down at me.

I looked away and stepped to the side to keep going, but at the same time, he also moved and blocked my way.

The buzz had completely gotten rid of all of my other emotions. I can't even feel mad at the guy for standing in my way while I'm battling an internal crisis within.

I stepped to the opposite side and proceeded to move upstairs, but he also made the same move and blocked me again.

I threw my hands up in exasperation and finally looked up at him.

"Do you mind? I'm trying not to release my bladder here."

He raised his brows, and even though I could not see his whole face, I bet he was smiling with amusement right now.

"Where's Amy?" He suddenly asked. His voice was muffled behind the neck gaiter, which covered his mouth.

"I don't know, man. Just move out of the way so I can find the goddamn bathroom."

I took a step forward and pushed him aside while walking down the hallway. My vision started to blur and I pressed myself against the wall, slowly finding my way toward the bathroom, even though I don't even know where that is.

A cold hand suddenly wrapped around my wrist, and before I knew it, I was suddenly being pulled along the way by the same guy, and he was leading me further through the hallway.

Alarms started going off in my head as I tried to wrap my mind around the situation. I wringed my hand from his grasp, but his hand was so tight.

"Let go of my hand! I don't want to be raped! Please, I'm only 19!" I screamed while pulling myself away from him.

He kept pulling me until he suddenly opened a door and pulled me harder towards him. My face almost collided with his chest, but then he gestured toward the inside.

"The bathroom." He stated with an annoyed tone, and I slowly looked inside and finally realized it was indeed the bathroom.

I immediately smiled at him with appreciation.

"Thank you, kind stranger. Now, would you be kind enough to wait outside the door till I finish doing my business?"

I didn't wait for his response while going inside and closing the door in his face. Something already tells me that he was actually going to be waiting outside when I'm done.

I almost dozed off while peeing, and after I was done, I washed my hands and opened the door. A grin made its way to my face when I saw him leaning against the doorway outside. His arms were crossed, and he lazily looked up from the floor to see me.

"Where's Amy?" He asked again.

"Why do you want to know?" I replied while stepping outside.

"You're walking around drunk, and she's nowhere to be found."

I turned around and frowned at him.

"How do you know Amy anyway?"

He was quiet for about a minute before finally answering me.

"She's a friend."

I immediately scoffed. "I'm her only friend. So who the hell are you?"

His eyes slightly narrowed at me.

"That doesn't matter. Now, where did she go?"

I shrugged while yawning.

"I don't know. Probably with some guy right now."

"How are you planning to go back to the dorms then?"

I looked at him suspiciously while stepping closer, and he immediately leaned back away from me.

"How do you know that we stay in the dorms?"

His eyes glanced to the side before meeting mine again.

"She told me."

"Who told you?"

"Amy." I crossed my arms together and gave him a once-over.

That's weird.

Amy would've told me if she made friends with some guy, but this one does not fit any of the descriptions she had at least told me once before.

"Do I know you?" He blinked once before staring right back at me.

"No." He answered firmly.

"Okay." I walked past him, but then he reached out and stopped me by grabbing my upper arm.

I couldn't help but giggle while staring at his muscles, especially the arm that had grabbed me. I grabbed his bicep and squeezed it.

"You have really strong muscles."

He gave me a weird look in return.

"Can you carry me? I'm not that heavy, though, I promise. Please? You can actually carry me with one arm. Let's try it!"

He started pulling me along with him while shaking his head.

"Not going to happen." I pouted behind his back.

"Please? Please? Please?"

"No. Shut the fuck up."

"Okay."