CHAPTER FOUR

While I was in the fridge, my mind drifted back to the dream I’d had the night before. It had felt important, real somehow, yet I could only remember fragments. Blurry images. Distorted voices. I remembered his name was John. He had light brown hair, deep blue eyes, and I remembered how he made me feel.

Warm.

Important.

Loved.

The memory alone made my heart leap and butterflies flutter in my stomach like a teenager with a crush.

I tried to remember more, but the pieces refused to fit together. There was a garden, a beach, and a house where I never felt safe. It was always the same. I’d been having variations of this dream for as long as I could remember, perhaps since I was four years old, though lately it seemed to be happening more often.

Shaking myself from my thoughts, I grabbed what I needed and returned to the front of the café.

“Took you long enough,” Rachel teased with a smirk.

Her expression immediately changed.

“What happened? Why do you suddenly look so pale?”

Before I could answer, she crossed the room and pressed a hand against my forehead.

“I’m not sure what you mean. I feel fine.”

I gently brushed her hand away.

“I was probably just in the fridge too long.”

Rachel looked unconvinced, but let it go as I continued filling the display fridge.

The day passed without incident until the final hour of my shift.

A sudden wave of dizziness hit me while I was cleaning, forcing me to grab the bench for support.

“Selly!”

Rachel rushed over immediately.

“What’s wrong?”

I closed my eyes and waited for the room to stop spinning.

“I’m okay. I just moved too quickly, I guess.”

She clearly didn’t believe me.

“Why don’t you take off early?” she suggested casually. “We’re quiet and it won’t take me long to clean up.”

I raised an eyebrow.

She wasn’t fooling anyone.

“It’s only an hour. If one of us serves customers and the other cleans, we’ll both get out on time.”

“No, really. I don’t need you. Go home.”

She grabbed my shoulders and gently turned me towards the timesheet.

“Fine,” I sighed. “You’re the boss.”

After clocking out, I waved goodbye.

“See you Monday.”

“Message me when you get home safe,” Rachel called.

“Yes, Mum.”

I shook my head as I headed for the door.

“She’s such a mother hen.”

Outside, I climbed into my blue 2005 Toyota Camry and started the drive home.

Dinner was the first thing on my mind.

Marinated steak strips with caramelised onion, pineapple, beetroot, and ranch dressing wrapped in lettuce leaves.

Quick. Easy. Done before Adam got home.

While driving, I asked my AI assistant to call Kristy.

She answered after a few rings.

“You’re finished early.”

Her mock-shocked tone made me laugh.

“According to Rachel, I look sick. I had a dizzy spell, so she sent me home an hour early.”

The line went quiet.

“Are you feeling okay, Selly?”

I rolled my eyes.

“Oh gosh, not you too.”

“I’m fine, Kris.”

Although I sounded irritated, I knew she meant well.

Kristy is my twin sister and my closest family. She has been my biggest support throughout our entire lives. We aren’t identical, but our features are quite similar. Her hairline is more rounded, whereas mine is heart-shaped. I used to get bullied for it. Kids called me Dracula, and some would even pretend to run away, shouting, “She’s trying to steal my blood!”

When I was younger, I tried on more than one occasion to shave it off, hoping it would disappear. Kristy always did her best to shield me from their words.

“Earth to Selene,” I heard her say, dragging me from my train of thought.

“Sorry,” I replied, not needing to explain myself. Kristy knows how often I get lost in my thoughts.

“As I was saying, I’ve had a bad feeling all day,” she admitted quietly. “Like something bad is going to happen.”

That caught my attention.

Kristy’s intuition had been right too many times for me to completely dismiss it.

Call it instinct.

Call it ESP.

Whatever it was, I’d learned to trust it.

“How about I come over, just in case?” she asked.

“Kristy, I’m perfectly fine. Adam will probably be home early anyway.”

A reluctant sigh came through the phone.

“Okay.”

The rest of the drive passed quickly as we chatted about our days. Before long, I was pulling into my driveway.

After hanging up, I sent Rachel a text.

Hey Mum, I’m home xx

Smirking to myself, I lit a cigarette, scrolled through Instagram for a few minutes, then unlocked the front door.

Our house was a modern four-bedroom home with an open-plan living area, kitchen, and dining room. Riley’s bedroom and playroom sat on one side, while mine and Adam’s room and the study occupied the other. Cream and pale blue tones gave the place a calm feel.

It was a nice home.

It had belonged to Adam before Riley and I moved in.

I turned on some music and headed for the shower. Afterwards, I changed into my favourite pyjamas—black with white stars and a small crescent moon stitched onto the chest.

Kristy had bought them for my twenty-fifth birthday.

I adored them.

Freshly showered, I headed to the kitchen and began preparing dinner.

Halfway through cutting the steak, another dizzy spell struck.

Much worse than the earlier ones.

I had to sit on the floor and hold my head.

“What the hell is wrong with me today?”

The spinning eventually eased.

After washing my hands, I forced myself back to the bench.

The meat was marinated with herbs, spices, and sauces before being fried alongside the onions. Next came the pineapple and beetroot.

Finally, I began separating the lettuce leaves.

At that moment, I heard the front door open.

Heavy boots crossed the floorboards.

I sighed.

No prizes for guessing who had once again walked through the house without taking his muddy boots off.

After countless reminders, Adam still seemed completely incapable of remembering.

I took a slow breath before turning to greet him as he approached from behind.