We stood there, frozen, every second stretching like an hour. I could hear my own heartbeat, loud and fast, thudding against my chest. Zaara was still beside me, tense. My hand brushed against hers, cold and trembling.
The voice returned, spilling from the speakers. "Are they telling the truth?"
A pause.
That silence was torture. Like standing at the edge of a cliff, waiting to be shoved off.
Then, one of the men in black, the same one who'd barged in on us earlier in the restroom, gave a single nod.
I jumped in quickly, my voice cracking a little.
"Please… don't hurt her."
I instinctively stepped slightly in front of Zaara, like I could protect her with my body, like I could somehow shield her from whatever punishment they had planned.
There was another pause.
Then finally, that same cold voice again. "Free them."
The guards slowly lowered their weapons. One by one, they backed away and began to file out of the room without another word, like nothing even happened.
"There will be a short meeting tomorrow morning," the voice added casually. "Have a nice day."
Then silence.
Complete, eerie silence.
No one said a word. Not at first.
But they all stared.
Eyes followed us as we returned to our spots. Stiff glances. Judgmental. Curious. Some suspicious, some even impressed, but all of them uncomfortable.
Zaara didn't speak either. She just sat, quietly on her bed.
I didn't know what scared me more, the voice… or the way everyone was looking at us.
As I sat on my bed, I kept replaying everything again.
How close we'd just come to being erased. How much worse it could've gone.
And still, beneath all of that, every pair of eyes in the room was now watching us differently.
I wanted to go talk to her, but honestly, I was nervous.
What was I even supposed to say?
Hey, sorry I blurted out that we were making out in front of a room full of armed guards and traumatized contestants? Yeah, that would go well.
The truth was, I panicked. Saying we were making out felt like the only thing believable enough to get us out of that situation. But now it just sounded like a careless kiss and tell.
Dinner came, but nobody touched their food. No laughter, no chatter, just low whispers and quiet glances. I could feel them, the murmurs aimed at us. Zaara and I had officially become the topic of the night.
Well, everyone except the chubby guy who went around begging for leftovers. He clearly had no shame, and no fear. But maybe that was his way of coping.
Then, Carter limped toward the center of the room. He raised his voice enough to pull everyone's attention.
"Listen up, everyone," he said. "Tomorrow morning, we've got that meeting, yeah? So I'm saying we speak up. All of us. We tell them we want out. That we're done with this damn game. Together."
He paused, eyes scanning the room. "Whatever happens… I'll take the responsibility. But only if you all stand with me. Please"
"I have an eight-year-old daughter," he said. "I didn't even get to tell her goodbye. I told her I landed a job, something that could finally change everything for us. But the truth is… no one wants to hire a man who limps. Not even the system I gave my youth, my body. Everything to. I just want to make it home to her."
The room stayed quiet, but people began nodding slowly. One by one. Even Theo lifted his head.
His voice cracked, just a little. "The government doesn't care about people like us. But maybe we can still care for each other."
Then Carter walked over to Zaara. I couldn't hear what he said, but I saw her face soften. She nodded, even gave a small smile.
And for a second, I felt something settle in my chest.
Relief.
She was okay.
At least for now.
Then, out of nowhere, Nomi appeared beside me, quiet like a ghost. She leaned in close and whispered into my ear. "You lied."
I flinched. "Hey, blondie," I said with a nervous chuckle, trying to play it cool.
She stepped in front of me, arms crossed, eyebrows raised like she was reading my soul.
"Your eyelids are twitching. You're avoiding eye contact. Your pulse is visible in your neck. And you just called me 'blondie', a nickname you've never used before."
She narrowed her eyes.
"You're hiding something. So, spill."
I couldn't help but laugh. She caught me red-handed, and damn, she was good, way too observant for her own good.
"Okay, wait, hold up what are you now, Nomi? A secret agent? A mind reader?" I said, still trying to brush it off.
"Technically, we kissed. That's all that happened."
She tilted her head like she didn't buy a single word.
"I don't even think the kiss even happened," she said slowly.
"And if it did, it was just a cover-up. Something to distract. You know what I think? I think you're using that kiss to bury something deeper. Something you're not ready to talk about."
I swallowed, unsure if I should laugh again or take her seriously.
She stepped back slightly, still eyeing me.
"Besides, who just randomly kisses someone they met less than 24 hours ago?"
I smirked and shrugged.
"Chill, Nomi. I do."
I leaned against the wall, folding my arms.
"Huhh, If you really knew me before I got dragged into this mess, you'd know I kind of had a reputation for that."
She didn't laugh. She didn't blink.
She just stood there, reading me like I was a puzzle she was two seconds away from solving.
"A player," she said, rolling her eyes.
"Exactly," I said, raising my hands like she caught me in the act.
She stared at me for a second longer then cracked a small smile.
God, she was sharp. And I was seriously outmatched.