Chapter 20 Fake apology
Sera's Pov
The photo lay across my knees like it was waiting to be understood. I had been staring at it for so long the edges felt warm. It was just Selene and Brielle outside the school, both smiling, both pretending to like each other more than they did. But the shadow behind them didn’t belong to anything. Or anyone. It stretched too far, too dark, like it had weight.
Like it had been watching.
I held the picture close to my face. “What were you trying to show me, Selene…”
I remembered the day this picture was taken. I had been standing a few steps away, annoyed at how Brielle kept taking pictures like she was some celebrity. There was nothing suspicious then, no shadow or something hovering, but there it was now.
My door rattled suddenly. I jerked up in shock. The vibration came from my phone. I grabbed it and frowned.
Brielle was calling, perfect. Just what I needed while I try to be at peace.
I considered ignoring her. But ignorance never kept Brielle away. If anything it gave her a reason to show up in person, and I did not want that.
I answered with a sigh. “What is it?”
Her voice came soft. Too soft. “Sera… can you listen for a minute?”
“No promises.”
She took a breath. “I want to apologize.”
I blinked. Apologize? Brielle didn’t apologize. She excused, explained, redirected, manipulated, never apologized.
“For what?” I asked.
“For how I treated you. For what I said last week. For… everything.” Her tone stayed small. Careful. “I want things to be different.”
I stared at my wall. “You want something.”
“No,” she insisted. “I’m having a small birthday thing tonight. Just a few people. I want you to come.”
I laughed once, dry. “No.”
“Please, Sera. I’m trying here.”
I heard chatter behind her. Music. Someone aughing. She was already in party mode.
“Why me?” I asked.
“Because Selene would want us to get along,” she said.
That hit wrong. “You’ve heard from her?” I whispered.
“No,” she said quickly. “I just… I keep thinking she’ll come back soon, and I don’t want any drama when she does.”
Drama? As if a missing girl was a rumor and not a disappearance.
Still, my curiosity wouldn’t let me hang up. “Why tonight?”
She hesitated. “Because I found something. And I want to show you.”
“What did you find?” I asked.
“You’ll see if you come.”
I rubbed my forehead. I knew this was stupid. I knew she was lying. But something, maybe desperation, maybe hope, pushed me past my better judgment.
“What time?”
“Seven thirty. And… dress nice,” she added.
I almost hung up again, but I bit down the irritation. “Fine.”
She sounded relieved. “Thank you, Sera. Really. Thank you.”
I ended the call before I said something I’d regret.
By seven thirty the sky had turned a deep blue. Brielle’s house glowed from the end of her driveway like a lantern. People crowded the porch. Music boomed. I could already feel my skin crawling as I walked up the steps.
I had dressed in a simple black dress. Nothing too flashy. Nothing Brielle could mock.
But the moment I stepped inside, every head turned.
“Look who actually came,” someone whispered.
Brielle stood in the center of the living room, holding a sparkly cup and wearing a smile that looked painted on.
“oh my goodness , Sera!” she said loudly, drawing more attention. “You dressed up.”
Some kids laughed. Not loud, but loud enough.
Heat rose up my neck. I turned toward the door. “I’m leaving.”
Brielle grabbed my wrist before I could escape. “Wait. I want to show you something.”
“I don’t want to see anything,” I muttered.
“It’s about Selene.”
My heart stopped mid-beat. The room dimmed. The noise faded. Only her voice stayed clear.
“Show me,” I said.
She guided me toward a table against the wall, her smile fading as she moved. She reached behind a stack of gift bags and pulled out a picture.
“I found this under my door this morning,” she said. “I think you should see it.”
She held the picture behind her back for a dramatic pause. I almost ripped it from her.
Finally she turned it around and my breath caught.
It was Selene and Brielle again, but this time they were standing on the old bridge. The picture was grainy, darker, maybe taken at dusk. And behind them stood a tall figure. Almost like it wanted to be seen.
“Where did you get this?” I whispered.
“I told you,” she said. “Someone left it for me.”
I reached for it, and she let me take it. Her confidence seemed to slip for the first time all night.
“There’s something else,” she said quietly. “Last night… someone was outside my window.”
My chest tightened. “Who?”
“I don’t know. But I swear I heard someone say your name.” Her eyes darted around the room. “And when I looked outside, I saw someone in the yard. Just… standing there.”
I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry. “Did you tell anyone?”
“No,” she said. “I didn’t want people thinking I was crazy.”
Too late for that, I almost said.
Before I could ask more, the lights flickered once. Twice.
Laughter died. Music cut for a second as if someone unplugged it.
“Did you pay your electric bill?” someone joked.
The lights steadied again, but something felt off.
“What was that?” I whispered.
“I don’t know,” Brielle said.
A group of girls across the room snickered. “Look at her. She’s freaking out over a photo.”
More laughter spread.
Brielle stepped back from me. The nervous look was gone, replaced with something smug.
And suddenly I realized quickly. This had been her plan.
She wanted me on display. She wanted a reaction. She wanted to watch me crack in front of everyone.
Of course she did.
“You planned this,” I said quietly.
Her brows lifted. “Planned what?”
“You invited me here so you could embarrass me.”
“Sera,” she said, laughing softly. “You’re being dramatic.”
“You never apologized. You never meant any of that. You just wanted an audience.”
More people watched us now, pretending not to, but failing.
Brielle tilted her head. “If you feel embarrassed, that’s not my fault.”
I clenched my jaw. “You’re pathetic.”
She gasped, loud enough for everyone to hear. “Wow. And here I was trying to be nice.”
“Nice?” I scoffed. “You don’t know the meaning.”
Someone recorded us. I heard the quiet click of a phone camera.
I stepped forward and held the new picture up to her face. “You want attention? Fine. You can have it. Explain this.”
Brielle pushed my hand away. “It’s just a prank.”
“You’re lying.”
She lifted her chin. “And you’re crazy.”
The word hit me like a slap. The same word she had thrown at Selene a year ago.
I breathed out slowly. “If you think I’m leaving this alone—”
A crash exploded from the back of the room. Everyone screamed and scattered as a stack of gift boxes toppled over by itself.
But I saw a shadow, standing exactly where the boxes had been.
My heart stuttered. Brielle shrieked. “What was that?!”