Page 2 of Ice-Cold Obsession

I set my phone down. Carla spent her last year here. She met Gabriel and fell in love with him, and let him break her. I still can’t believe no one noticed she was falling apart until it was too late.

Mom and Dad think I transferred here to feel closer to Carla’s memory. They think being at Northstone will help me heal and that I’ll somehow find closure by walking in her footsteps. But they have no idea what I’m actually planning, and that’s better for everyone.

If they knew the truth, they’d try to stop me. They’d say I was being irrational or that I let my grief consume me. But they don’t understand. They didn’t see the texts on Carla’s phone or the way she changed in the months before she died. Each time she visited, she seemed quieter somehow, as if something essential had been drained out of her, but I thought it was just regular college stress.

I .continue unpacking my bags. The clothes go in the dresser, my toiletries in the bathroom, and my textbooks on the desk. I work quickly because staying busy keeps my mind from spiraling.

When I’m done, I dig through my suitcase for the outfit I picked out weeks ago. It’s a simple sundress that’s fitted but not too tight. It’s the kind of thing Carla would’ve worn. Sweet, approachable, and completely non-threatening.

I lay out the dress on the bed and stare at it. I changed my last name over the summer to my mom’s maiden name, and the paperwork went through without any issues. Gabriel won’t recognize it, and even if he somehow remembers Carla mentioning a sister, he won’t connect me to her. We don’t look that much alike anyway. Carla had lighter hair and softer features, and I’ve always been different.

I sit down on the edge of the bed and let myself think about Carla for a moment. She used to braid my hair. She’d sit behind me on the couch and work through the tangles with her gentle fingers, humming some song I can’t remember anymore. She was patient and kind, and everything I wasn’t.

When she went to college, I thought she’d come back different. More confident, maybe. Or more sure of herself. But instead, she stopped calling as much. Stopped smiling. And when I asked her what was wrong, she’d just say she was tired or stressed about her classes.

I didn’t push, but I should have.

The last time I saw her, she hugged me for a long time and I asked if she was okay. She just nodded and said she loved me, and then she left.

A week later, she was dead.

I stand up and go back to the closet, opening it to look at Gabriel’s photo again. His face stares back at me from the center of my research, surrounded by all the details I’ve collected. Everything I need to know about him is right here, and I’ll use it all.

I grab my phone and check the time. The party probably started an hour ago, which means it’ll be crowded enough that slipping in unnoticed will be easy.

I pull the sundress off the bed and hold it up against myself in the mirror. The light blue fabric brings out something softer in my features that I haven’t seen in myself since before Carla died. I look younger and innocent.

I start getting ready, taking my time with each step. I put some mascara and a soft pink lip gloss because anything more would be too much.

When I’m done, I barely recognize myself. The reflection staring back at me looks soft, pretty, and completely harmless. The kind of girl who couldn’t possibly have revenge on her mind.

Perfect.

I check myself one more time. The dress comes to just above my knees, and the neckline is modest. Everything about my outfit screams sweet and approachable, and there’s nothing that would make Gabriel think twice about talking to me.

I grab my phone and wallet, tucking them into a small crossbody bag. I’ve been planning this for months, and I know exactly what I’m going to do.

But as I’m about to walk out the door and face Gabriel for the first time, I feel something tighten in my chest. Maybe it’s my nerves, or the fact that once I do this and put myself in Gabriel’s orbit, there’s no going back.

I take a deep breath and close my eyes. Carla’s face appears in my mind, and it’s not the smiling version from the photo but the hollow one I saw during her last visit home, and I think about the sister who barely spoke and who moved through our house like a ghost.

That’s what Gabriel did to her. He took someone full of life and hope and turned her into a shell, and then he threw her away.

I open my eyes and look at myself in the mirror again.

Gabriel Santelli has no idea what’s coming for him.

I sit back down on the bed and pull out my phone again, scrolling through the party photos Gabriel’s friends are already posting. The house looks packed, and everyone seems drunk and happy. It’s crowded enough to blend in but intimate enough to actually talk to him.

I study the faces in the photos, trying to memorize who’s in Gabriel’s inner circle. The guys he’s always photographed with, and the girls who hang around them. I need to know who matters to him so I can figure out the best way in.

There’s one guy who appears in almost every photo with Gabriel. He’s tall, with dark hair and an easy smile. They’re always close, their arms around each other’s shoulders. The guy’s probably his best friend.

I save a few of the photos and then check the address again. It’s not far from campus. My heart beats harder just thinking about it.

I’m going to get close to Gabriel, make him trust me and care about me, and then I’m going to destroy him the way he destroyed Carla.

It sounds simple when I think about it like that, but I know it won’t be. Getting close to someone means letting them get close to you too, and I can’t afford to forget what he is or what he’s capable of doing to the people who trust him.