Chapter 4 Room 1908

 MILA

The next evening felt colder than usual even though the air was still warm. I stood on the sidewalk across from the tallest hotel I had ever seen. The building shone under bright lights. Golden letters spelled out the name above the wide glass doors. Polished marble steps led up to the entrance. Through the windows I could see glittering chandeliers hanging from high ceilings and people in expensive clothes walking slowly across shiny floors.

I did not belong here. Every part of me knew it.

My old shoes looked dirty against the clean sidewalk. My simple dress felt thin and cheap. I had borrowed it from Janet, and even then it still looked like something a rich person would never wear. Guests stepped out of shiny black cars. The women wore sparkling jewelry. The men carried leather bags that probably cost more than my whole year of tuition. They glanced at me once and then looked away as if I was invisible.

I took one step forward and then stopped. My feet wanted to turn around and run all the way back to the dorm. I could still go home. I could still tell Janet I changed my mind. But then the pictures in my head came back—empty wallet on the bed, the university message counting down seven days, the cold feeling of having nowhere to sleep. Those pictures pushed me forward again.

I crossed the street and walked up the marble steps. The doors opened by themselves. Cool air and soft music wrapped around me the moment I stepped inside. The lobby smelled like flowers and money. My heart beat so hard I was sure the people at the long reception desk could hear it.

A woman in a neat black suit smiled at me. “Good evening. How may I help you?”

My voice came out small. “I’m here for Room 1908.”

She typed something on her computer, then picked up a phone and spoke quietly for a few seconds. When she hung up she smiled again, polite and calm. “The guest is expecting you. The elevators are to your right. Nineteenth floor.”

I nodded and walked toward the elevators. Each step felt heavier than the last. The shiny floor reflected my face. I looked scared. I pressed the button and waited. When the doors opened I stepped inside alone. The numbers climbed slowly—ten, eleven, twelve. My hands were sweating. I wiped them on my dress. Nineteen lit up. The doors slid open.

The hallway was quiet and long. Soft carpet covered the floor. Fancy lights glowed along the walls. I counted the doors until I found 1908. My hand shook so badly I had to make a fist before I could lift it. I knocked once. Then again, softer.

The door opened.

Aaron Revencrest stood in front of me.

The world seemed to stop. All the air left my lungs at once. Panic flooded every part of my body so fast I felt dizzy standing still. Aaron—the stepbrother of the future Alpha, one of the most known faces on campus. If anyone ever found out I came here for him, my life at Silvercrest would be over. The rumors alone would destroy me.

He looked at me without smiling. His eyes moved over my face and then down to my shaking hands. He saw the fear. He saw me ready to run.

“You can leave if you changed your mind,” he said quietly. His voice was calm, almost gentle. “No one is forcing you to stay.”

I almost turned around right then. My body leaned toward the hallway. Freedom was only a few steps away. But the empty wallet flashed in my mind again. The seven-day warning. The cold dorm room I would lose. The streets I might sleep on. Those pictures held me in place harder than any hand could.

I swallowed the fear as best I could and stepped inside.

The door closed behind me with a soft click that sounded too loud. The suite was huge. Soft lights glowed against cream-colored walls. Wide windows showed the city lights far below. A long couch and low table sat in the middle of the room. Everything smelled clean and expensive. The quiet felt heavy, almost painful. Every second stretched out and made the air harder to breathe.

Aaron walked over to a small table where a bottle and two glasses waited. He poured a clear drink into one glass and held it out to me.

“Here,” he said. “It might help you relax.”

I stared at the glass. My fingers did not want to take it. I told myself one drink would calm the shaking in my hands. I took it. The glass felt cold. I held it tightly so it would not slip.

We stood a few steps apart. The silence stretched again.

“You look nervous,” Aaron said after a moment.

“I am,” I answered. My voice sounded strange in the big room.

He nodded once. “That’s normal. Sit down if you want.”

I did not sit. I stayed near the door, still holding the glass. He leaned against the back of the couch and watched me. Neither of us knew what to say next. The quiet grew thicker.

I lifted the glass and took a small sip. The liquid burned a little going down. I hoped it would stop the wild beating of my heart. I took another sip because standing there with nothing to do felt worse.

Aaron spoke again, his tone still even. “You can put the glass down if you don’t want it.”

“I’m fine,” I said, even though I was not fine at all.

A strange heaviness started at the edges of my vision. The room tilted just a little. I blinked hard, thinking it was only fear. But the dizziness grew stronger. The walls seemed to lean inward. My legs felt soft and far away, like they no longer belonged to me.

The glass slipped from my fingers.

It hit the floor and shattered. The sound cracked through the quiet suite. Tiny pieces of glass scattered across the carpet. I tried to step back, but my knees gave way.

The last thing I saw was Aaron moving toward me, one hand reaching out, his face changing from calm to surprise. Then the darkness rushed in from every side and swallowed everything.