Chapter 18 Another Warning Dream
Outside, the rain hit her face like tiny needles. She pulled her hood up, heart still thudding from the argument. The air smelled like wet earth and rose petals, a scent she’d come to hate.
The campus was nearly empty. A few students hurried by, their umbrellas glowing faintly under the street lamps. The campus fountain overflowed with rainwater, its marble edges slick and dark.
Lila shoved her hands into her pockets and started toward her dorm. Each footstep splashed softly in the puddles, blending with the rain’s steady rhythm.
Maybe Asher’s right, a small voice in her head whispered. Maybe Mercer was too attentive, generous, and too perfect.
But then she remembered Beckett’s cold stare, the way he’d spoken about obsession in class as if it were a virtue. The jar of rose petals was on his desk.
No. She couldn’t let herself doubt again. Not now.
Thunder rolled across the campus, low and distant.
She walked faster.
Somewhere behind her, a door creaked open. She heard it faint but distinct through the rain. Lila turned, scanning the dim walkway between the dorms.
There was nothing. Just the wind rippling through wet leaves.
She exhaled and kept walking.
A minute later, she heard it again. Footsteps, this time it was soft and her follower walked carefully.
She froze.
The sound stopped too.
Her heart started to race. She turned her head slightly, pretending to look at the buildings across the campus while her eyes flicked toward the shadows.
A few students were still outside, silhouettes under umbrellas, laughter echoing from the direction of the student center. But behind her, the path was empty. Just rows of wet pavement and a single flickering streetlight.
You’re imagining it, she told herself. You’re jumpy because of the fight.
Still, her pace quickened. Her sneakers splashed in shallow puddles, her reflection breaking apart beneath her feet.
She heard another sound, but closer this time. The faint squelch of a shoe on soaked grass.
She spun around. There was no one in sight.
The rain hissed in her ears. A gust of wind tugged at her hood, pushing cold drops against her cheek. The nearest lamppost buzzed weakly, light trembling.
She scanned the darkness again, every nerve in her body on edge.
Nothing moved.
Slowly, she turned back toward her dorm, her pulse pounding.
A group of students passed ahead, two girls and a boy, laughing as they shared an umbrella. Their voices cut through the night, light and careless, almost mocking how tightly wound she felt.
Lila forced herself to breathe and walk.
She reached her building door, keycard in hand. The scanner beeped, the lock clicked. She slipped inside and leaned against the door, eyes closed.
Her pulse refused to slow down.
For a long moment, she just stood there, listening to the rain hammering the roof. The sound filled the empty hallway like a heartbeat.
She looked down.
A trail of wet footprints led across the tile floor hers, she thought at first. But there were others beside them, but larger ones.
They stopped just behind where she stood.
She turned slowly.
A single drop of water fell from the ceiling above her. Then another.
She glanced up and froze.
Wedged into the metal grate of the air vent above her was a dark red, rose petal.
She hurried through the hallway, which was dim and silent. Most students had already gone to sleep or were pretending not to be afraid of walking alone at night. Lila fumbled for her keycard with shaking fingers and swiped it. The door beeped open.
She shut it behind her and locked it twice.
The room was dark except for the faint blue glow of her desk clock. 9:00 p.m.
She dropped her bag onto the chair, peeled off her damp hoodie, and sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the floor.
Asher’s words echoed again.
“He’s manipulating you, Lila. You don’t see what’s happening.”
She clenched her fists until her knuckles ached. “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” she muttered to the empty room. “You didn’t know her. You didn’t know Serena.”
Her voice cracked on the last word. She buried her face in her hands and stayed like that for a while listening to the rain easing outside, the hum of the building’s old pipes, the lonely pulse of silence between sounds.
When she finally lay down, the sheets were cool and stiff against her skin. Her mind wouldn’t stop spinning from faces, roses, blood, and Serena’s voice. It took almost an hour before sleep finally dragged her under.
The dream began in silence.
Not the peaceful kind, but the sort that presses against the ears until it feels alive. The world around her shimmered faintly, white walls, long corridors, a glow like hospital light.
“Serena?” her voice echoed.
A figure appeared, barefoot, and walking slowly.
Her sister, Serena.
Lila felt her body move toward her without willing it. “Serena, wait!”
Serena didn’t turn. She kept walking, her long red hair against the white. When Lila reached out to touch her shoulder, her hand went through her like mist. A faint scent of roses lingered in the air.
Then Serena turned. Her eyes were bright, too bright. Her lips moved, forming words without sound.
“What?” Lila whispered. “I can’t hear you.”
The world flickered like a projector skipping a frame. And then Serena’s voice came, soft but clear. “Lila, he gave me roses too.”
Lila’s breath caught. “What do you mean? Who?”
Serena smiled sadly. Behind her, the white walls began to bloom with color like deep red roses pushing through the cracks, twisting up like veins. The air was filled with petals falling like snow.
“He said they were for love,” Serena murmured. “He said they’d never die.”
Lila’s voice trembled. “Serena, who?”
Serena lifted her hand. A single rose rested in her palm. It dripped blood down her wrist.
“You’ll know,” she said softly. “When he sends yours.”
Then the corridor shook, glass splintering, roses bursting into flame.
Serena’s face flickered between alive and dead, between laughter and a scream.
Lila screamed her sister's name and woke up with a gasp, her throat raw, and sweat damp on her skin.
The room was dark again. Her sheets tangled around her legs, her pulse thudding like a drum in her ears. For a second she didn’t move. The dream still clung to her, every image was sharp and heavy. She could still smell roses. Still hear her sister’s voice echoing faintly.
Her eyes adjusted slowly. Her desk lamp sat dark, her books exactly as she’d left them. Everything is quiet and still.
Until she noticed something on her pillow.