HEADACHE. A whirling ache sprinkled throughout my scalp, waking me from my drunk-filled slumber. Soft groans poured from my lips as I tried to move my body, but it wouldn't budge.

My eyes blinked, the bright lights attacking them like antibiotics on bacteria. Shit. I didn't even feel this bad when I woke up in that abandoned room a few weeks ago.

It took several long minutes of me blinking my eyes before they adjusted. The pool room slowly swam into view, along with the mass of bodies surrounding me.

Yaz and I were lying vertically with our heads resting on Rucker's chest and stomach while Khan and Sebastian slept on our legs. Everyone was still covered in sticky food. Parts of me wanted to laugh at the view of tangled body parts, but my pounding head halted all sounds.

Alcohol was the devil. Never again. It was fun in all, but this after effect? Fuck that. The pain in my head started to become so great that I just settled back in place, hoping I would go back to sleep.

Betinia.

My body jolted upright, ignoring the swift agony as I heard my name being called once again. Just like all the times before.

I moved so fast that I kicked Khan who was lying on my thigh. He shuddered awake and yawned. "Uh, my head," he whispered, sitting up.

"Sorry," I said, looking around the messy pool room, trying to see where the voice came from. I heard that voice at least three times now. Who was calling me?

"It's okay," Khan said, wiping his eyes before turning to me. A shocked expression covered his normally blank face. "Fuck."

Khan never cursed like that before. Well not since he was on E earlier. "Is the ex still in your system?" I asked before chuckling.

He ignored my question and pointed to my face. "Did you guys do that after I passed out?"

I touched my face. "Do what? We all passed out together." When I glanced down at my fingers, bright pink lipstick stained my tips, a light strawberry scent hitting my nostrils. "What the hell's on my face?"

I kept touching my face, seeing more pink lipstick covering my hands. The strawberry scent was beginning to make me feel nauseous. My gut told me this wasn't some joke from my teammates. Someone else did this.

Khan leaned closer, eyes brightening. "Someone put X's all over your face in pink lipstick." His eyes left my face, catching onto something behind me. That's when his face paled. "Oh shit."

"What?" I turned to follow his gaze, kicking Sebastian and elbowing Yaz in the process. On the tiled wall behind us, written in the same pink lipstick that was on my face, it read:

X marks the spot. Layla was first. You're neXt.

"Holy shit," I whispered, feeling the blood in my face harden. Layla's killer was in here with us. They could've killed all of us last night, but instead, they wrote on my face.

"Wait, didn't we see this same writing on the wall in your bathroom?," Khan asked. "Before we cleaned it?"

We did. "Yeah," I said, wiping my hands on my legs, spreading that strawberry scent all around my body. "We thought it might've been Gmie or Demo, but what if it was someone else?"

This strawberry scent was similar to the strawberry scent that I kept smelling around this place over the past few weeks. I thought it might've come from a cameraman, but what if I was wrong?

"What's going on?" Sebastian asked, stretching.

"Go back sleep," Yaz mumbled, still not moving.

Sebastian turned to me and jerked. "What the fuck? What's on your face?"

"Layla's killer did it," Khan said, pointing to the back wall with the writing.

It took a few minutes for everything to register, and Sebastian turned red. "Wait, what?" He turned to the locked door. "How did they get in?"

"I don't know," I said, touching myself. They were after me, and they had me. I was dead to the world earlier, and they just walked away. They must've got off on fucking with me.

"Rucker," Sebastian said, hitting him and then Yaz.

Rucker moaned, wigging back in place. "Annabelle's sucking my dick in my dream. Go somewhere, sunflower."

A look of intense annoyance blanketed Sebastian's face. "Someone's trying to kill Betinia and possibly us. They got into the pool room somehow."

Rucker popped up like the undertaker, sleep marks all over his face. "What?" he asked, rubbing his eyes.

His sudden movements pushed Yaz off him, but that didn't faze her. She wrapped her arms around herself, cuddling into the floor pillow underneath her, clonking out again.

"Look at the wall," Sebastian said, pointing.

Rucker stared at the wall for a moment before turning back to me. "Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. How the fuck did this happen? The doors were locked." He turned to me. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," I said, trying to wipe the pink lipstick off, but it was so thick. "They didn't do anything to me besides this. I think they just want to fuck with me. For now."

Rucker turned to Yaz and poked her. "Yaz. Get up. We have an emergency."

"Is the room on fire?" Yaz asked, eyes still closed.

"No," Rucker said with a sigh.

"Flooded?"

"No."

"Then it's not an emergency," Yaz said, still not moving.

"Someone's trying to fucking kill us," he shouted, fingers clenching.

"Isn't everyone trying to kill us?" she asked. "Still not a reason to get up."

Rucker growled. "I'm about to get your hair wet again."

Yaz popped up. "I'll fuck you up," she said, looking at him and then all of us. "Why you got pink shit on your face?"

"I had x's on my face, but I think I smeared them," I said, pointing to the back wall.

Yaz glanced at the wall and then closed her eyes. "No one can give us a fucking break, can they? Layla's killer couldn't take a fucking week break or go on vacation or something?" She shook her head. "How did they even get in?"

Rucker crawled to his feet. "Fuck if I know and that  bothers me. They literally could've killed us all." He looked so enraged that I knew the cocaine-high Rucker was completely gone.

"Who the fuck is it?" Yaz asked, wiping her face.

"I don't know," Rucker said, walking over to the glass doors. It was still locked, so he punched it, causing the whole glass wall to shatter.

Sebastian wiped some hair out of his face. "We definitely don't need to unlock the door now," he said, rolling his eyes. "You really need to calm down."

"Why, cake batter?" Rucker said. "Someone's trying to play fucking games with me and I ain't the one. No one fucks with me."

"What if it was just Jookie or something?" Yaz asked. "The doors were locked, right?"

Or it could've been one of them — one of my teammates. No, it couldn't be. I tried to remember what happened before I passed out. We drank some more after the food fight, and then we all sort of passed out together.

Khan got up and picked up his iPad. He tapped on it, swiping a finger across the screen before sighing. "The footage is blocked. I can see up until four am, and we're all passed out, and then it just skips to seven am and you're all marked up."

"Of course, it's blocked," Jookie said on the loudspeaker in the pool room. "Layla's killer hasn't been revealed yet so they can't be shown." He let out a joyous laugh. "Good morning, my little contestants. Did you enjoy your party? I hope I get an invite next time."

"Fuck you and fuck this," Rucker said, walking through the now open entrance. "I'm finding Layla's killer. Now."

"I think we should follow him," I said, crawling to my feet.

We all shuffled after him, avoiding the broken glass on the ground. The halls hummed with an emptiness until we got to the kitchen.

Rucker barged in first through the swinging door. A masculine squeak immediately followed his entrance.
Khan went in next and the rest of us followed.

We walked in on Fee at the stove, unbothered while Rucker held Aries off the floor by his hoodie.

Chi glared from the counter. "What are you doing?"

"Someone broke into the pool room and threatened us," Rucker said with thick malice. "Do you guys know anything about that?"

"No, we don't." Chi folded her arms over her chest. "Both of us were in my room last night."

"Put me down," Aries said in a commanding tone. The tone sort of fell flat because his feet were dangling in the air like a six-year-old on an amusement park ride.

"Or what?" Rucker glared at him.

Aries stayed silent and just hung there. "Please put me down."

"Someone killed Layla and now they're after us," Rucker said, looking at Chi.

"Wouldn't Gmie be your best suspect?" Chi rolled her eyes. "That bitch is plotting on everyone."

"The killer wrote in pink lipstick," Rucker said, pointing to my face and then to Chi's pink lips.

Chi looked at me and let out the most condescending cackle. "Uh, that's cheap shit, honey. I wouldn't dare wear that drugstore crap." She wiped a finger on her lip and showed us her clean finger. "I wear long-lasting lipstick, and it's made of gold. That looks like it came from Rite aid or CVS." She turned to me. "I'd wash your face asap. Cheap stuff like that clogs pores."

Rucker narrowed his eyes at her. "You could be lying."

"Prove it then," Chi said, as she stalked over to him and pulled Aries out of his grasp. Once Aries plopped to the ground, Chi grabbed his non-bandaged hand and pulled him out of the kitchen through the pantry.

The pantry. That's when everything clicked. The secret passageway. That's how Layla's killer got in. They must've found it too!

"Where's that bitch, Gmie?" Rucker stomped out of the kitchen through the swinging door. The rest of my team followed behind him but not me.

I ran to the armoire and flung it open. The usually neat stacked cans had been moved, and the opening that I fell through before was now exposed again. Shit.

It was my fault. I should've told them about the secret passageway before, but I didn't know if I could trust them then. I meant to tell them after the whole Layla thing, but it slipped my mind.

My nails dug into my palm. How could I tell them now? Rucker would be pissed but wasn't it worse to keep on lying?

"You okay?" Sebastian asked, coming up behind me.

I wouldn't keep lying. I should just tell them. They'd have to understand, right? "I know how Layla's killer got in," I said, turning to him.

His eyes widened. "How?"

"Remember when you lied for me," I said. "You told everyone I was in the pool room when Layla got murdered, but we both knew I wasn't."

"Yeah," he said, rubbing his head. "I never asked where you really were, but I knew you didn't kill Layla. I just figured you had a good reason for keeping your true location a secret."

"You trusted me that much?"

Sebastian smiled. "Of course."

I bit my lip, feeling my heart swell a bit. "The reason I kept it a secret was because I found a secret passageway. It leads from the kitchen to the pool room. I didn't tell you guys about it during Layla's murder because I didn't know who I could trust. But when it was all over, I meant to say something, but I totally forgot about it until just now." I shook my head. "That's still no excuse. I'm sorry."

Sebastian touched my arm. "It's okay. Really. Who doesn't have secrets here? And when Layla got murdered, no one could be trusted. It was a very intense time, so I understand."

My tummy tumbled, fierce intensity shivering up my spine. "Rucker won't see it that way." He will think that I didn't trust him and—

A piercing scream hit the air, and Sebastian and I booked it out of the kitchen while Fee continued cooking, still unbothered.

We followed the loud noises down the hall and around the corner. Up ahead, we spotted Yaz holding Gmie against the wall as Rucker blocked Demo from interfering. Khan stood back, observing everything.

"Get away from her," Demo screamed, trying to tackle Rucker out of the way, but he was too strong. Her bandaged hand kept slapping at his chest, as tears came out of her unbandaged eye. "We didn't do anything."

"We don't have to tell you guys nothing," Gmie snapped, pushing Yaz away. "You better get your welfare—"

Yaz punched Gmie in her mouth in one clean swoop.
Upon connection, Gmie flopped to the ground like a dying fish, arms fluttering around like a demented windmill.

Demo screamed again and lurched at Yaz. Yaz dipped out of the way and used her leg to trip her. In one swift movement, Demo fell to the floor, faceplanting while sobbing. "You guys are such assholes," she said, trying to sit up but her damaged hand prevented her from getting a good grip.

Gmie stayed on the ground, sitting up against the wall. She spat blood onto the floor, a shiny redness coating her teeth. "I hope whoever killed Layla fucks all of you with a pipe before slitting your throats."

Yaz kneed Gmie in the face, knocking her head back into the wall. "And I can't wait to watch you die a slow horrible death. I promise to throw a party afterwards and fuck in your honor."

Demo somehow got up and threw herself at Gmie, protecting her. "You w-won't do anything to her," she said, breathing hard, tears staining her face. "S-stay away from her."

Gmie let out a dry laugh. "Guess you guys are the new bullies now, huh?"

"I'm not a bully." Yaz grinned. "This is just payback for all your snide ass comments."

"I hope you all fucking die," Gmie said. "And—"

"This is fucking hopeless," Rucker said, interrupting her. "We're not getting anywhere with anybody."

"Beating someone up won't get you anywhere," Gmie spat out before snickering. "Just makes them want to get revenge and kill you even more. But I guess your brain is too dense to figure that out yourself."

"Look here, bitch," Rucker started, but Sebastian interrupted him.

"We know how the killer got in," Sebastian said.

"What? How?' Rucker hurried over toward us, completely forgetting about Gmie and Demo. His eyes were so determined and angry that I knew this wouldn't end well for me.

Sebastian turned to me and Rucker followed suit.

"Um follow me," I said, making my way down the hall. My heart rate accelerated in my chest, making every step I made sound like a huge boom in my ears.

In the pool room, I moved the large potted plant and hit the tiled wall behind it, revealing the secret passageway. "I wasn't where Sebastian said I was when Layla died. I l-lied." I avoided their gazes. "The reason I was dirty when we all found Layla's body was because I fell through the armoire in the kitchen and discovered a secret passageway."

"If you go through the armoire, it leads you here?" Khan asked, pointing. His interest was definitely peaked.

"Yeah, you fall down a small ledge and you come to a hallway that leads you here," I said.

"And you didn't think to tell us this last night?" A redness colored Rucker's skin as his eyes went wild.

"I got sidetracked," I said, looking at him.

Yaz tapped my shoulder. "It's fine. We didn't know each other well then. I get it."

"Yeah, it's not a big deal," Sebastian said.

Rucker ignored them. "Because you lied and kept this from us, we all could've been murdered in our sleep last night."

My teeth sank into my lip. "I'm sorry I didn't—"

"Trust me," he finished for me, tone savage.

Tiny tingling sensations sizzled through my fingertips, moving up my arm to my throat as my heart crashed into the pit of my stomach, twitching like it just got stabbed. "When Layla was found in my room and everyone thought I did it, I got scar—"

"I never thought you did it." Rucker wrinkled his forehead. "I knew from the jump you didn't do it. I never once suspected you."

His words felt like a kick to the spleen, making my head dizzy. "But—" I started, trying to find a way to fix this.

"And if you didn't trust everyone else," Rucker started, eyes narrowing to slits. "You should've at least trusted me. If you didn't want to tell everyone else, you could've just told me. How many times were we alone together?"

Small droplets began to form in my eyes, as my entire bloodstream hummed like it was full of annoyed bees. "I'm sorry," I whispered, voice becoming like a thick jam.

"Your sorrys mean nothing to me," Rucker said. "I could've died last night because you—my partner didn't trust me."

"Look, I don't blame her," Yaz said, coming to my defense. "She found it right before we became a team. I don't blame her for not trusting us—"

"But she found it after we became partners, right?" Rucker let out a dark laugh that made my stomach hurt. "Or are you going to lie again?"

"I found it after we agreed to be partners." My voice came out tiny and soft.

"Rucker, I think—" Yaz started.

"This doesn't concern the rest of you," Rucker snapped. "We're just allies. I made her my partner." He turned to me. "When we cut each other's hand, that blood pact meant something. It wasn't just some fake bullshit that I do with everyone. I've only done that with two other people," Rucker said, standing up straight. "That's the reason why I told you I had to think on it because I don't make promises I can't keep. I don't jump into things all willy nilly. I die before breaking my word. When I made us partners, that meant that I would be open with you about everything. Just like a partner is supposed to fucking do! I did that, and I thought you would do the same. Guess I was the dummy."

Everything in my body froze, only my eyes blinked because tears kept streaming from them, dripping down my cheeks and chin to my sticky collarbone. I couldn't even speak because everything hurt, and it wasn't a physical pain that I could slap a band-aid on or take a painkiller for. This pain went much deeper; it couldn't be mended by traditional means.

"I feel like you fucking used me." Rucker sucked in his cheeks. "Why be partners with me if you didn't trust me? Oh, I know why. Why not use the big angry brute who can protect you, huh? He's not smart. I'll use him until he's dead."

It wasn't like that, I wanted to scream, but my tongue wouldn't work.

Rucker released a bitter laugh. "I knew you were smart, but I can't believe you pulled one over on me. Me. Congrats."

It wasn't like that. It wasn't like that. It wasn't like that. It wasn't like that. No matter how many times I tried to speak those words, they never formed on my lips. The sloppy tears just continued to fall like raindrops on closed windows.

"I kill people for doing shit like this to me," Rucker snapped, charging at me.

Sebastian and Khan formed a wall in front of me, blocking me from him, which made Rucker laugh even harder.

"Can't believe she still has you two fooled," he said before laughing. He stared at me with dead, unmoving eyes. "Guess we know why you're here now. Just another cold-hearted, manipulative bitch. You're no better than Gmie. At least Gmie's upfront with her shit."

A numbness painted my lips and tongue every time I tried to speak or defend myself. But even so, what would I even say? I deserved everything I got. I should've trusted him when we became partners.

Khan spoke for the first time. "I know manipulative people, and she wasn't manipulating us. If she was, wouldn't she have taken advantage of us last night? Yaz was drunk and I was high and you were gone."

"Just leave me the fuck alone," Rucker said, flipping us off before walking away.

The frozen sensation that took over my whole existence shattered into pieces when my heart rocked in my torso when I saw him leaving. I couldn't let him end it like this. I couldn't.

I shouldered Khan and Sebastian out of the way and ran for Rucker, tugging on his shirt like a six-year-old begging their mom for candy.

Rucker whipped his body around, throwing me off him and to the ground. Eyes wild like a beast in heat, he looked me in my face, lips thinning. "I'm done with you. Stay the fuck away from me. When you see me, act like I don't fucking exist because I'll be doing the same to you."

He stormed away as my heart dropped into my intestines, festering like flees on skin. I did the only thing I could do — I sobbed.

♟♙♟