29

“A’ight?” Mike greeted the couple with a lazy wave. His eyes flicked briefly to Alice, but he didn’t seem surprised to see her.

It was strange, but Alice was beginning to feel at home in Adam’s house. His family—the dog and now the brother—seemed to have accepted her presence without question. She found it oddly comforting.

“What are you watching?” Adam asked as he flopped onto the sofa, grabbing Alice’s hand and tugging her down beside him.

“Some show about, like, ex-cons getting their lives together,” Mike replied, his voice flat but mildly entertained. “This one guy was a proper gangster. Stabbed someone, went to jail, now he’s out and, I dunno, a motivational speaker or some shit.”

Alice glanced at the screen. The man being interviewed didn’t fit her mental image of a reformed gangster. He looked like an ordinary guy, sitting there in a sweater vest, talking passionately about second chances.

“He’s hilarious though,” Mike continued, chuckling. “Keeps cracking jokes about his past, like, ‘Yeah, I stabbed a guy, but I didn’t know it’d be this much paperwork.’ Absolute maniac.”

“Can’t we watch something else?” Adam asked, interrupting.

Mike smirked. “Oh, is this a date? Should I make myself scarce? Maybe let you two watch one of those corny rom-coms?”

“Shut up,” Adam replied, rolling his eyes. “I just wanted to check out that new horror film on Netflix—the one people say is too scary to finish.”

Alice’s ears perked up. “Ooh, I’ve been wanting to watch that too!”

“Well, guess I’m outvoted,” Mike grumbled dramatically, tossing the remote to Adam. “You two enjoy your little cuddlefest. I’m off to bed.”

“You don’t have to leave,” Adam said, glancing at his brother as Mike stood and stretched.

“Nah, I’ve got an early start,” Mike replied, stifling a yawn. “Night.”

“Goodnight, Mike,” Alice said politely, smiling as he walked off.

When she turned back, she caught Adam giving her a funny look, his brow slightly furrowed.

“What?” she asked, blinking.

“Nothing,” he said, shaking his head, though the corner of his mouth twitched like he was suppressing a grin.

Before starting the movie, Adam turned to her. “Do you want a drink or snacks or something?”

“Tea would be nice,” Alice said, smiling sweetly.

Adam groaned, his head tipping back dramatically. “I was just being polite, you know.”

Alice rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll make it myself.”

She stood and headed for the kitchen. After all the cleaning she’d done during her previous visits, she had a pretty good idea of where everything was. While waiting for the kettle to boil, she found herself absentmindedly tidying up—wiping down the counters and washing a few dishes left in the sink.

“Hey, while you’re at it, make me one too,” Adam called from the living room. “There’s a bag of snacks in the cupboard by the fridge.”

“Yes, Sir, Boss,” Alice muttered under her breath, suppressing a grin as she grabbed mugs and tea bags.

A few minutes later, she returned with a tray bearing two mugs of tea and a selection of snacks. Adam lit up like a kid at Christmas.

“Aww,” he said, looking up at her with a smirk. “Such a good little housemaid.”

Alice narrowed her eyes at him as she set the tray down. “Keep it up and next time you can make your own damn tea.”

He just laughed, clearly unfazed. As they settled on the sofa, Adam reached out and slid an arm around her waist, pulling her close. Alice resisted the urge to protest, too comfortable to argue.

The opening scene of the movie unfolded with ominous music and dark, foreboding visuals. Adam, unimpressed, leaned back and casually started narrating. “So, let me guess—this guy’s gonna die first, that chick’s secretly the killer, and by the end, the big twist is... yeah, something like that.”

Alice stared at him, wide-eyed. “You can’t possibly know all that already.”

“Just watch,” he said smugly.

A few minutes later, the music swelled, signaling an imminent jump scare. Alice tensed, clutching Adam’s arm and burying her face in his chest.

“This dude ain’t even scary,” Adam said, laughing.

Braving a glance at the screen, Alice immediately regretted it. The monster—a grotesque, pallid figure with hollow eyes and a gaping mouth—lunged at the camera. She shrieked and dove back into Adam’s chest.

“He’s scary! He’s really scary,” she whimpered.

Adam scoffed. “I could take him.”

Alice pulled back just enough to look at him, incredulous. “He’s literally noncorporeal. What are you gonna do, punch a ghost?”

“Exactly,” Adam said, grinning. “His whole thing is scaring people to death, right? Just don’t get scared, and boom—he’s powerless.”

“You mean to tell me,” Alice said slowly, “that if that thing showed up in your room at 3 a.m., you wouldn’t freak out?”

Adam shrugged. “Nope. But the dudes from Thirteen Ghosts? Now, those might make me break a sweat.”

Alice’s eyes lit up. “You’ve seen Thirteen Ghosts? I love that movie!”

They spent the rest of the film chatting and laughing, occasionally commenting on the predictable plot. To Alice’s surprise, Adam’s predictions were eerily accurate. She couldn’t tell if he’d seen the movie before or if he just had a knack for guessing tropes, but either way, she wasn’t about to call him out.

When the credits rolled, Adam let out a loud yawn, stretching his arms above his head. “You ready for bed?”

Alice hesitated, biting her lip before nodding. “Yeah... I think I am.”