The city hummed around Ethan, vibrant and alive, but all he could feel was the cold weight of dread creeping up his spine. The neon lights from the shop windows blurred together as he walked, his mind racing. Every word Lila had spoken, every strange, unsettling detail, replayed over and over in his head, like pieces of a sinister puzzle he couldn't stop himself from assembling.
Her voice still echoed in his ears, soft and sweet, laced with an edge he hadn't noticed at first. It wasn't until the final moments, when the mask of charm had slipped just enough, that he realized how deep he had gotten—how far beyond the surface her true nature lay.
He stole a glance at her from the corner of his eye, watching her as they walked through the busy streets, blending into the crowd yet somehow standing out. Lila moved with a strange kind of grace, each step deliberate and calm, as though she was completely unaffected by the chaos around them. Ethan's stomach twisted.
How had he gotten here?
His fingers itched to check his phone, to somehow escape the growing tension that knotted in his chest. As if sensing his thoughts, Lila's gaze flickered to him, catching his eyes in a way that made his throat tighten. Her smile was soft, almost reassuring, but it did nothing to ease the anxiety clawing at him.
"Something on your mind?" she asked, her voice light, teasing even.
Ethan swallowed, trying to force his pulse to steady. "No, just thinking about work. It's been a long day."
A lie, but a necessary one.
He pulled out his phone, his fingers tapping on the screen as if it held the answer to his growing discomfort. In that moment, desperation guided him. He had to get away, now, before the evening spiraled further into something he wasn't prepared for—something he wasn't sure he could escape from.
"Ah, damn," Ethan muttered, faking a glance at the screen as he brought the phone to his ear. "I need to take this, it's work. Looks like I've got to head back to the office."
Lila's response was immediate, but not what he expected. She didn't seem surprised or disappointed. Instead, her lips curved into a knowing smile, as though she had been waiting for this exact moment.
Her eyes, dark and unblinking, locked onto his. "Of course," she said, her voice smooth and gentle. "I understand. Work comes first."
Ethan nodded, forcing himself to smile, to pretend everything was fine. He needed to stay calm, to act normal. "Yeah, I'll... I'll catch you later."
She took a step closer, and for a brief second, Ethan felt the world narrow. Her hand reached out, resting on his arm. Her touch was firm, sending a shiver through him, but there was something else—something almost tender, as if she wasn't just letting him go, but marking him in some way. Claiming him.
"We'll meet again soon," she murmured, her voice low but filled with certainty.
Her words wrapped around him, sinking deep into his mind like a hook that wouldn't let go. Ethan's heart skipped a beat, and he found himself nodding, almost mechanically, even though every instinct screamed at him to run. He needed to leave, to get far away from her, yet her presence seemed to cling to him, tightening its grip with every second.
"Yeah," he said quietly, stepping back. "We'll see."
With that, he turned, forcing his legs to move, to carry him away from the unsettling calm in Lila's eyes. The city buzzed around him, people jostling past as he quickened his pace, his breath coming faster now. The distance between them grew, but the sensation of her touch lingered, as though it had imprinted on his skin, burning into him.
He didn't stop until he was a block away, his pulse racing and his hands trembling. Ethan paused, leaning against a lamppost, trying to steady himself. His breath came out in uneven gasps, his mind still reeling from the encounter. The streets were busy, people laughing and chattering, completely unaware of the storm raging inside him.
Why hadn't he noticed it sooner? The way Lila's words twisted, how her charm had darkened as the night wore on. It all seemed so obvious now, but in the moment, he had been too captivated, too drawn in by her beauty and mystery to see it for what it was. She had played him, manipulated his curiosity, drawing him deeper into her web.
He ran a hand through his hair, trying to shake off the growing sense of paranoia creeping over him. Was it all in his head? Maybe he was overreacting. Maybe she was just eccentric, and he was letting his imagination run wild. But no—there had been something wrong, something darker lurking beneath her words.
His phone buzzed in his hand, snapping him out of his thoughts. It was a message from Mason.
Hey, how's the date going?
Ethan stared at the screen for a moment, the normalcy of it almost jarring. What could he even say? That he had barely escaped a night with a woman who seemed more like a character from a nightmare than someone he should have been dating? No, he couldn't explain it—not without sounding crazy.
"It's over". Heading home, he typed back.
He stuffed his phone in his pocket and started walking again, his legs carrying him through the familiar streets. His apartment wasn't far, and as the lights of the city flickered overhead, he focused on one thing: getting home. He just needed to be in his own space, away from the unsettling aura Lila had cast over him.
But as he turned the final corner and his building came into view, the unease didn't fade. The feeling that Lila's presence still clung to him, like a shadow he couldn't shake, gnawed at him. Her words echoed in his mind, soft but heavy, sinking into him with an inevitability that terrified him.
"We'll meet again soon."
Ethan swallowed hard, his chest tightening as he reached his door and fumbled with the keys. His hands were shaking, his pulse still too fast. He had never felt like this before—so deeply unsettled, as though he had brushed up against something far beyond his understanding.
He pushed the door open and stepped inside, the familiar scent of his apartment offering a brief sense of comfort. But even here, even in the safety of his own space, the feeling of dread lingered, coiled tight around his chest.
With a deep breath, Ethan leaned against the door and closed his eyes, trying to calm his racing heart. He was safe now. He had left Lila behind.
But in the silence of his apartment, with nothing but his thoughts to keep him company, he knew it wasn't that simple.