I curled up behind the giant metal vent near the edge of the rooftop, my arms wrapped around my knees, shaking. My body wouldn't stop trembling. My shoulder ached, my eye was swelling, my shirt still smelled like spilled liquor.
I bit my lip, hard, trying not to scream.
Tears wouldn't stop as I lay down my face and buried my head between my knees..
My chest felt tight, like someone had their hand around my lungs.
I tried to breathe…it was hard.
Everything inside me felt like it was tearing apart.
This wasn't supposed to happen.
Tonight was supposed to just be another humiliating night. Not… this.
I tucked my knees to my chest, pressing my forehead against them, trying to disappear.
The rooftop was quiet except for the wind. But even that peace didn't last long.
That was when u heard it…Footsteps.
At first, I thought I was imagining it. But then I heard voices.
I froze, holding my breath.
Two people stepped out onto the rooftop. They didn't see me..I was hidden in the shadows behind the vent. I wiped my face quickly and listened. At first, it was just whispers… too low to understand.
I peeked around the corner.
One of them wore a huge hoodie pulled low over their face. The other had a half-buttoned white shirt and a silver chain glinting in the moonlight.
My heart skipped.
Liam.
The same guy who saved me just minutes ago.
What was he doing up here with someone dressed like they were trying not to be seen?
"I paid you," Liam snapped. "What else do you want from me?"
Something about how he said it made my stomach twist. That wasn't confidence. That was fear.
What the hell was happening?
"I should leave," I whispered to myself, already starting to sneak away…
But that's when the other voice cut in.
"Oh, now that someone's here… should I tell him your little secret?"
"No," he said quickly, panicking.
I stepped forward. "What's going on?"
"Maybe I should tell your new little friend. He looks curious." The mysterious figure said again.
Liam's face went pale.
"No…please. Please don't."
He sounded terrified.
I stood slowly, my instincts all mixed up between running, helping, or just throwing up.
"What secret?" I asked.
Liam spun around, wide-eyed when he saw me.
Liam turned to me, eyes wide. "Hey….go back downstairs. Don't get involved. I've got this."
But the guy in the hoodie turned too. He was wearing a black face mask that covered most of his features, his was was deep and sounded dangerous.
Something in my gut screamed this wasn't just some petty argument.
I started backing away. "Should I get someone? I'll call Dominic—"
"NO!" Liam shouted. "Don't tell anyone! Not Dom. Not anyone."
Then everything happened too fast.
That was when Liam lunged forward, trying to grab the guy's phone from his hand.
"Give it to me!" he snarled.
"What the hell?!" I yelled, trying to pull them apart, but my wrist was still sore from Ian n twisting it earlier. I couldn't do anything except try to push them apart with my good hand.
I was useless. My body wouldn't cooperate. I couldn't fight.
Then Liam did something I didn't expect. He bit the guy's wrist, hard.
The hoodie guy winced in pain and cursed but then he reached inside his jacket.
A flash of silver.
A knife?
A blade?
I barely had time to process it.
Shhk
The knife sliced right into Liam's side.
I screamed. "Liam!"
Liam let out a broken gasp and clutched his side, blood pouring through his fingers, soaking is white shirt.
He dropped to his knees as I caught him, before he collapsed completely.
"You're gonna be okay…just stay with me, okay?" I said, my voice shaking.
"You're a psycho!" I shouted at the hooded figure. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"
I tried to do something, but I was weak. Dizzy. Everything hurt. I tried to throw a punch at him anyway, but he slashed the knife across my shoulder. The pain ripped through me.
I stumbled back.
In the chaos, I didn't notice Liam had backed too far up…
He was swaying. His knees buckled.
I stumbled back, gripping the wound, blood dripping through my fingers.
Liam swayed. I didn't even notice how close to the edge he was.
"Liam…no, wait!" I reached for him, stretching my arm to grab him.
But it was too late.
His heel slipped.
Bang.
He stumbled once… twice…
Then fell.
Over the edge.
His body hit the metal railing…then he was gone.
I rushed to the edge and looked down.
Screams echoed from the ground below.
People were yelling, running, phones lighting up the dark.
Liam's body lay still on the concrete. Blood already pooling.
I stood there, frozen.
The guy in the hoodie bolted down the stairs without looking back.
I just stood there.
My hands covered in Liam's blood. My knees were weak. My shoulder bleeding. My face was throbbing. My nose was bleeding.
I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't think.
My hand clutched the wound on my shoulder. My eyes locked on Liam's broken body.
What the hell just happened?
What the hell did I just witness?
And why does it feel like I was a part of it?