---
Raven's red eyes slowly opened, a throbbing headache attacking him as he returned to consciousness.
"GLANG!"
His attempt to move his hands resulted in failure. Turning his blurry vision toward them, he saw that he was bound by chains—the cold iron digging not only into his wrists but also into his legs.
'What the hell happened? Why am I tied up? Why am I so drowsy?'
As Raven looked around, he tried to piece things together, but his mind felt submerged—its depths inaccessible to him. His vision was starting to clear, and he could finally comprehend what he was looking at.
Blood.
Everything around him was covered and stained in blood—from the walls to the floor, even the lights. A shiver ran down Raven's spine.
'Where the hell am I? What happened?'
His mind raced, trying to put together the missing pieces. Aria had accepted his confession. He was on his way to her house, and then…
"SWISH!"
The fog clouding Raven's mind lifted, and with it gone, the memories came rushing back like a freight train. The date, the food, and Aria's last words.
'That bitch. She drugged me.'
Anger welled up inside Raven. Just when he had thought things were finally looking up, the girl he had been crushing on for years had drugged him—and intended to kill him.
'When I get my hands on her, I'm going to—'
Raven took a deep, long breath.
'Calm down, Raven. Wasting energy on anger makes no sense. Right now, my first priority is to escape before she comes back. After that, I'll figure out how to deal with her.'
"Ouch!"
A jolt of pain tore Raven from his thoughts. Looking down, his breath caught in his throat.
The sight before him left him speechless.
Aria was crouched over him, completely focused on what she was doing. Her back arched just right, giving him the perfect view of her big, rounded bubble butt—a sight that would usually have his little brother roaring with energy.
But what she was doing stripped all the appeal from what should have been a beautiful sight.
Aria's snow-white hand, stained with blood, moved with delicate precision as she used a razor-sharp saw to cut through Raven's leg.
"What the fuck are you doing?!" Raven screamed, his voice laced with fear and panic.
Aria's usually cold, smooth voice held an edge of manic glee.
"Oh, you're awake."
She tilted her head, studying him.
"It seems the dosage wasn't high enough. You weren't supposed to wake up. My apologies."
Her entire body was covered in blood—from her hair to her beautiful face, and even her once-bright yellow sundress was now stained with hot crimson.
But that wasn't what sent shivers down Raven's spine.
It was the smile on her face.
It was dangerous, wild, and filled with madness. Even her usually cold blue eyes weren't so cold anymore. They were sparkling with joy.
This was the first time Raven had seen emotion on Aria's face, and it truly terrified him.
But then, Raven's fear faded.
Maybe it was the realization that he couldn't escape. Maybe he had simply accepted his fate. Or maybe… for some other reason entirely, he became completely calm.
"Why?"
He asked the one question that had been on his mind this whole time.
Aria's face scrunched in confusion.
"Why? Why what?"
Then her expression lit up.
"Oh, I get what you're asking me. You're asking why I want to kill you. Or rather, why I'm going to kill you."
She grinned, pointing at his face.
"It's your eyes. Those ruby-red eyes of yours… They're beautiful. And I want to eat them."
She said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"It's the only reason I accepted your confession, really."
Raven couldn't help but laugh.
"Let me get this straight. You went on a date with me… because you wanted to eat my eyes?"
He tried to shrug, but the chains stopped him.
"I guess that makes sense. But… why are you cutting off my legs, then?"
Aria gave him a deadpan stare.
"Isn't it obvious? I'm going to eat all of you, not just your eyes. Duh."
Her expression suddenly changed to one of curiosity.
"You're taking this surprisingly well, though. Most people would be begging, kicking, and screaming for me to let them go. But you're calm. Too calm."
"Honestly, I don't know either," Raven responded. "One second I was panicking, and the next I wasn't. I think it's the realization that I'm gonna die, so as a coping mechanism. My brain makes me feel at peace in my final moments. Does the reason really matter now?"
"Inter—"
Just as she was about to respond, a white light enveloped the room.