4 seconds left.
"I have... not," I said.
The countdown alarm blared instantly after I spoke. My whole body froze.
Did I say it in time?
Was I about to be shark food?
Was I going to die right there?
Was the trapdoor about to open beneath me?
My heart pounded so hard I thought everyone in the room could hear it. My hands were trembling uncontrollably. I stood there, frozen, staring at the floor below me, bracing for something…anything.
Then, just as quickly, a new number flashed on the screen.
I let out a shaky breath.
Oh my god.
I wasn't going to die.
No sharks. No water. No horror show.
I stepped out of the spotlight, my legs weak beneath me. As I moved back into the crowd, Zaara rushed to me and wrapped her arms around me without saying a word. She held on tight.
"You scared the hell out of me," she whispered against my shoulder.
"Same," I muttered, barely able to speak.
The next contestant made their way under the spotlight.
The game continued.
One after the other, names and numbers flashed on the screen. Questions were asked…brutal, personal questions, and this time, everyone answered. No one hesitated. No one lied. No one wanted to end up like Piper.
The image of her being dragged under, her screams, that shark…..God, it was burned into everyone's memory now. It wasn't just a fear anymore. It was real. And it changed the game.
Everyone was terrified, but alive. For now.
The game had ended, but the fear it left behind hadn't.
They led us back to the dorm in dead silence. No one said a word.. The hallways felt colder this time, tighter somehow, like the walls were laughing at us, enjoying the sight of our broken spirits.
My legs dragged beneath me, heavy and numb, but I kept moving. It's not like I had a choice. That moment under the spotlight replayed on a loop in my head, the voice, the question, the ticking timer... Piper's death. Over and over again like a nightmare I couldn't wake up from.
When we finally made it back, the iron door slammed shut behind us.
Zaara sat quietly on her bed, rubbing her hands together like she was trying to scrub the memory off her skin.
I dropped down across from her, back against the icy wall. I didn't even realize I was still trembling until she looked over at me and asked,"Are you okay?"
I met her eyes. "I don't know," I said truthfully. "That question they gave me... it wasn't random. It was personal. Way too personal."
"You didn't do anything wrong," she replied gently. "They want to break us down, one by one. That's the game."
"I know." I exhaled sharply. "But still… how the hell do they know everything about us? That one wasn't just luck. It was targeted."
The room was still. Unsettlingly quiet. It felt like even the air didn't want to move.
Then Carter, the limping ex-soldier broke the silence.
"You still think it's just a show?" he asked, turning his tired eyes toward Theo. "You saw what happened.You still think this is fake after what we just saw?"
Theo didn't answer. He just stayed hunched over, head buried in his knees. Whatever fight he had earlier... it was gone now.
No one else spoke.
And for the first time since we got here, I think we all felt it…..really felt it.
We weren't contestants anymore.
We were prisoners.
And this wasn't a game.
"I hate this place," someone muttered from the corner.
"We all do," I whispered back.
I leaned closer to Zaara and said under my breath, "They know everything… our secrets, our fears… maybe even our dreams."
Zaara's eyes widened. "Oh my god, Vincent. Piper was right. She said something that makes sense now."
She grabbed my hand for a second and whispered fast, urgent, "There's something you need to know. Meet me in the restroom in three minutes. Same one I saw you in last night. Don't do anything that'll draw attention. If anyone gets suspicious, we're both screwed."
She stood up casually and walked off like nothing was wrong.
I sat there frozen for a second.
Why'd she have to mention last night?
I was still trying to erase that moment from my brain, especially after everything that just happened.
I waited for a while, quietly counting down three minutes in my head, since there was no clock, it was the only way to keep track.
Once I was sure the time was up, I casually slipped out of the room and walked down the hallway toward the restroom.Just as I reached the stalls, Zaara suddenly rushed out and grabbed my wrist, pulling me inside with her.
She yanked me close, that our bodies were touching in the tight space. Since I was taller, she had to tilt her head up to meet my eyes, her finger pressed gently to my lips as she made a hush sound. I leaned down instinctively, trying to hear whatever it was she had to say.
But we were so close. Her breath was warm against my skin. My whole body tensed, not from fear this time, but something else entirely. Her presence was magnetic. And those lips… oh my god those soft, pink, plump full lips. I tried to focus on what she was saying, but my eyes kept drifting. God, I couldn't stop staring at them.
A part of me, completely out of line, just wanted to lean in and taste them.