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“Do we know who this ‘him’is? I mean besides the fact that we have masks, it’s not hard to figure out who everyone is, right?”

Sighing, I continue to rub my temples. Trying and failing to conjure more details from last night. It’s as though my brain is intentionally blocking what happened, orsomeoneis. Thesame someone who clearly isn’t going to speak up this morning. Internally, I’m glaring at her and she knows it.

“That’s the problem. I don’t know who it is. What I do know? That is the same wolf that’s been haunting my dreams.”

She crawls up the bed until she is hovering over me. “What do you mean by haunting your dreams? You’ve been holding out on me?”

I cover my face with my hands, my cheeks warming with embarrassment. “Yeah. It’s weird, you know? I’ve been having dreams about a shadowed figure with these piercing crystalline blue eyes and no matter how hard I chase after him, I can’t catch him. Then gifts started showing up, all with meanings and reasons. Like clues to figure out who it is.”

“What have you done with said items?”

My hand plops down as I point to my desk on the opposite wall. Scattered on top of it are my two cameras, film rolls, polaroids, and every single piece he’s left me up to this point. She pushes off the bed and walks over to my desk. Picking up the twine and rolling it between her fingers.

“Isn’t this the twine from the booth?”

I nod my head as I push to sit up in bed. The comforter falls to my lap as I watch her examine each item.

“He left the twine and a box of film for my polaroid camera on the counter of Flash Me Studio with a note to Lou to give them to me. The twine had a note tied to it.” I point to where it’s sitting on the desk.

She looks between my finger and where I’m pointing. Picking up the piece of paper and reading the words written on it.

“Alright, it’s creepy and hella cool at the same time. So clearly this guy knows you well enough to know the things that you need and when you’ll need them?” she murmurs while reading the note that was left with the film. “What else did he leave?”

We go over each item as she gives her thoughts on them and I share my own. She is holding the sage stick between her fingers, twisting it around when she looks up to me.

“Do you think that he’s your mate by chance? Like maybe he knows and he’s waiting for you to find out? Can that be the reason for all the mystery? Surely, at least hopefully, it’s not some weirdo? What did he say last night when he found you at the party?”

I duck my head, too embarrassed to say out loud what I thought about last night. She scrambles over to the bed, plopping down in front of me.

“Oh, did someone have some naughty thoughts last night? Because if so, now I have to know. You’ve never even found a single guy attractive, let alone, someone you had thoughts about. Spill the tea.”

“Listen, nothing happened. There’s nothing to tell.”

“Liar,” she squeals as she throws one of my teddy bears at me.

“Fine…but don’t laugh.”

She makes the crossing motion over her heart, before pretending to zip her lips.

“When he walked up, I was watching you dance. I didn’t even hear him, Odes, until he whispered in my ear ‘Tell me little one, why aren’t you dancing like the others?’ I knew right then that he was the man from my dreams. That voice has been haunting me every night. I could easily find it with my eyes closed. When I turned around—” I throw the comforter back, padding over to my desk to find the photo of Shadow. Holding it up in the air between us, I point to his face. “I found a guy wearing a mask that looked exactly like my wolf from the valley. Coincidence? Maybe. Could they know I talked to this wolf and wanted to show that they know me?” I pace the floor by the end of my bed as she follows me with her eyes.

“Or…or is it the wolf from the valley?” she quietly says as if she can hear the thought running through my mind.

“Or it’s the wolf from the valley and he’s been following me.”

“Okay, but what else happened because you were with him all night, right?”

I nod my head as I continue to pace.“Yeah, well I didn’t fully let Sora take over. I don’t know why but I was determined to see what Bestiare was all about. I might have messed it up. Sora was baring her neck to him, and I sort of refused to belly up that easily. I mean come on hussy, one man shows her attention and she is rolling over?”

Odessa snorts. “Can’t be having that now, can we?”

“No, we danced for hours, lost in the magic until all of a sudden he stepped back. Claiming he had to go. Then he just left, as in like the shadows of my dreams, he was gone. I don’t really remember anything from that. I definitely don’t remember coming home, going to bed, nothing. The next thing I remember is waking this morning feeling like I danced with Death and lost.”

She hmms as she scratches her head. “Did he leave you something this time?”

I stop abruptly and turn to her. “I don’t think so. Wouldn’t I have seen it?”

Her shoulders shrug. “You don’t even remember coming home so it would have been easy to have missed something. Wait…” She launches off the bed, searching for something.