Page 45

I watch her go, suddenly wondering what the hell that was about.

“What?” Ali asks.

“Nothing.” I say then finish my drink. Maybe I should slow down.

Probably.

But I don’t.

A server walks through the crowd carrying a tray of tiny glasses.

Mariah grabs three.

“Absolutely not.” Ali says but Mariah hands her one anyway.

“Absolutely yes.”

“What is it?”

“No clue.”

“That makes it worse.”

I lift mine to my nose and sniff. Honey, apple and something herbal I can’t quite place. A little card propped against the tray catches my attention.

THE REVEL

Drink. Dance. Indulge.

“Oh, this place is fucking ridiculous.” I say before knocking it back.

Sweetness hits my tongue first, almost too much of it, followed by a bitter aftertaste that makes my nose wrinkle. Then the warmth comes. It slides down my throat and spreads through my chest, growing hotter instead of fading until I cough and press a hand against my sternum.

“What the fuck is in that?”

Mariah makes a face. “Regret.”

Ali puts hers down untouched.

“Coward.” I tell her.

“Survivor.”

The band switches songs, and a cheer ripples through the crowd as someone tosses something onto the bonfire. Flames surge upward, sending a wave of heat across my face.

For a second, everything becomes too bright. Not blurry. Not drunk. Sharp.

The orange flames burn brighter against a sky so black it looks endless, and even the grass beneath my feet seems impossibly vivid. Every scent around me rushes in at once, smoke and alcohol tangled with seat, perfume, food and the damn Earth beneath it all.

It should be overwhelming…

Instead, I breathe deeper. And just as quickly as it came, the sensation fades.

“Huh.”

Mariah grabs both of my hands. “Come on.”

She pulls me back into the crowd, and within seconds, I’m moving with her again. Except something has shifted. Not around me. Inside me.