"Wake up, sleepyhead."
Dorian stirred. His neck was stiff. His back ached. The fluorescent lights of the art show hall were still on, buzzing faintly.
He opened his eyes. Lisa was sitting next to him on the bench, legs crossed, her hands in her lap. Across the hall, a janitor was mopping the floor, humming something tuneless.
"What time is it?" Dorian mumbled, groggy.
"Almost midnight." She tilted her head. "Art show ended hours ago. You've been lying here for like an hour. I came back to pack up the last painting and found you passed out."
He sat up slowly. Most of the displays were already taken down. The hall was mostly empty except for them and the janitor.
"You sold some pieces?" he asked.
"Three." She smiled. "Some rich weirdo bought 'Neon Wasteland.' A professor took 'Soft Violence.' And some guy with a beard bought 'Echoes of a Scroll.'" She shrugged. "Not bad for a first show."
"That's good, Lisa."
"Yeah." She looked at him. "You okay?"
He didn't answer.
She didn't ask again.
They sat in silence for a while. The janitor's mop squeaked against the floor.
Then Dorian stood up. His legs were stiff. His back popped.
He looked down at the floor. The bracelet was lying near his feet, right where Sarah had thrown it. Sunflower charm. Silver chain.
He bent down and picked it up.
The metal was cold in his palm. The sunflower charm caught the light.
He stared at it for a long moment. Then he slipped it into his pocket.
Lisa watched him but didn't comment.
"You need help packing up?" he asked.
"Yeah, actually." She stood, brushed off her jeans. "Just one left. 'The Hollow Embrace.' It's heavy."
They walked to her section. The single-line drawing of the two women, hands piercing each other's hollow chests, was still on the wall.
"This one didn't sell," Lisa said.
"Why not? It's actually my favorite."
Lisa raised an eyebrow. "You want to buy it? I'll give you the friends-and-family discount."
"I'm broke. Probably can't afford it."
Lisa laughed softly. She started unhooking it from the display. "People like art that hurts from a distance. This one's too close."
Dorian took the other side. They lifted it off the wall together.
"You don't have to go back to the dorm tonight," Lisa said quietly. "If you don't want to. My couch is open."
He looked at her. Her face was neutral. Not pitying. Not expecting anything. Just… offering.
"Okay," he said.
They carried the painting toward the exit.
---
The walk to Lisa's apartment was quiet. The campus was dark. Streetlights hummed overhead.
Dorian's jaw tingled. He touched it. Softer. Definitely softer.
He pulled up the system interface.
It flickered weakly. Red text.
DEBT: 15%
FIRST PAYMENT: IN PROGRESS
No quests. No timer. No instructions.
Just the number.
Fifteen percent. He didn't know what that meant. The ring was dark. Cold. Waiting.
He closed the interface.
---
Lisa's apartment smelled the same as last time.
Momo erupted in high-pitched barking the moment they walked in, tiny legs scrambling across the floor.
"She remembers you," Lisa said, setting the painting against the wall.
Momo sniffed Dorian's shoes, then his pant leg, then lost interest and trotted back to her bed.
"Even Momo wants nothing to do with me," Dorian said.
Lisa snorted. "She's just mad you didn't bring treats."
The last time she was that close to me, she peed on me, Dorian thought. Maybe this is better.
She grabbed a blanket from the closet and tossed it on the couch. "Bathroom's through there. Help yourself to anything."
"Thanks, Lisa."
She paused at her bedroom door. Looked back at him.
"I'm not going to ask what happened. You'll tell me if you want to." She shrugged. "But you're not alone, okay? Even if it feels like it."
She disappeared into her room.
Dorian sat on the couch. Momo was already curled up, snoring softly.
He pulled the bracelet from his pocket. Stared at the sunflower charm.
Then he lay down, pulled the blanket over himself, and closed his eyes.
The ring was cold on his finger.
The debt was still at 15%.
---
He woke up to something wet on his face.
Momo was standing on his chest, licking his chin with enthusiasm.
He sat up, groggy. Momo hopped off, tail wagging.
The apartment was quiet. Early morning light filtered through the thin curtains.
He folded the blanket, set it on the arm of the couch, and went to the bathroom. Splashed water on his face. Ran a hand through his hair.
When he came out, he walked back toward the couch—
And stopped.
Lisa's bedroom door was open.
She was standing at the corner of the living room, her back to him, bent over slightly, rummaging through a small mini fridge tucked against the wall. She was wearing nothing but a pair of thin panties. Her bare back was covered in ink—the dragon tattoo he'd only glimpsed before, now fully visible, winding down her spine.
She pulled out a bottle of water, stood up, and took a long drink.
Dorian's mouth went dry.
"Morning," he stammered.
She turned around, still drinking, still not fully awake.
"Hey, Dorian," she said casually.
Then she froze.
Her eyes widened. She looked down at herself. At her bare chest. At the bottle in her hand.
She screamed.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"
She dropped the bottle and scrambled back into her bedroom, slamming the door.
Dorian stood there, face burning. "You invited me!"
A muffled voice from behind the door: "OH MY GOD, I FORGOT YOU WERE STILL HERE. This is so embarrassing."
He heard shuffling, drawers opening and closing, more muffled cursing.
A few minutes later, the door cracked open. Lisa peeked out, now wearing shorts and a singlet, her face bright red.
"We're never speaking of this," she said.
"Agreed."
She stepped out fully, avoiding his eyes. Grabbed the fallen water bottle from the floor.
"I should probably get going," Dorian said.
"Yeah." She still wouldn't look at him. "Probably."
He grabbed his jacket from the couch. Paused at the door.
"Thanks for the couch, Lisa."
"No problem." She was staring at the wall. "You're welcome back anytime. Just text me first."
He left.
---
The walk back to the dorm was cold. His jaw still tingled. His stomach was still less flat.
He pulled out his phone. No messages from Sarah. From Priya.
A missed call. From Mom. Last night. He'd missed it in the chaos.
He shoved the phone back in his pocket.
---
He opened the door to his room.
Tyler was lying on his bed, scrolling through his phone. A video was playing—muffled voices, shouting. Dorian recognized the sound.
His own voice. Sarah's. Priya's.
The fight.
Tyler looked up. Didn't say anything for a moment. Then he turned the phone toward Dorian.
The video was already edited. Someone had added subtitles and a laughing emoji. It had thousands of views.
"It's making the rounds," Tyler said. "People are making memes. Saw one with the 'this is fine' dog over your face. Comments are brutal."
Dorian sat on his bed. Said nothing.
Tyler scrolled further. His eyes lit up. "Oh, and that picnic photo of you and Sarah? Hit a million likes!" He sat up, grinning. "A MILLION, dude. I said I'd shave my head if it hit a million." He ran a hand through his hair. "I'm not gonna, but still. That's insane."
He set his phone down.
"You look like shit," Tyler said.
"I know."
"You slept somewhere else."
"Yeah."
"With a girl?"
"Not like that."
Tyler stared at him. "So you're telling me you didn't sleep with someone the night after your girlfriend dumped you for sleeping with someone else?"
Dorian didn't answer.
Tyler leaned back. "That's actually impressive. In a terrible way."
"I'm getting breakfast. You want anything?"
"No."
"Okay." He stood up, grabbed his hoodie from the back of his chair. Paused at the door. "There's a sandwich on my desk. From yesterday. Probably stale, but it's something. And there's BLIMP in my drawer if you want some."
He left.
Dorian looked at Tyler's desk. A sandwich wrapped in plastic. Tyler must have left it there last night.
He ate it. It was stale. It was the first thing he'd eaten in almost 24 hours.
He lay on his bed. Stared at the ceiling.
Then he remembered the missed call.
He called his mom back.
She picked up on the second ring. "Hello?"
"Morning, Mom."
"Dorian. How was your night?"
He hesitated. The silence stretched. He could hear her breathing on the other end.
"Fine," he said. "Sorry I missed your call last night. Had some stuff. Was busy."
"What kind of stuff?"
"Just… stuff, Mom."
She didn't push. But she didn't let go either.
"You sound tired," she said.
"I am tired."
"More than tired. You sound…" She paused, searching for the word. "Heavy."
He closed his eyes. Heavy. Yeah. That was it. Like someone had poured cement into his chest and it was still drying, still getting harder.
"Everything okay?" she asked.
He wanted to tell her. Wanted to say I messed up, Mom. I hurt people. I'm becoming someone I don't recognize. But the words wouldn't come.
"You're eating?" she asked.
He looked at the stale sandwich wrapper. "Yeah."
"Sleeping?"
"Some."
A pause. Then, softer: "You know you can tell me anything, right?"
His throat closed up. I ruined everything, Mom. I lost Sarah. I lost Priya. Marcus won't even look at me.
"I know," he said. His voice cracked on the second word.
She heard it. He knew she heard it because the silence on her end went sharp, alert.
"Dorian." Not a question. A statement. A mother's radar.
"It's nothing, Mom."
"It's not nothing. I've known you your whole life. That wasn't nothing."
He blinked hard. The ceiling blurred.
"Just tired," he said again. "Exams."
She was quiet for a long moment. He could feel her not believing him.
"Your sister misses you," she finally said. "You should call her."
"I will."
"I love you, baby."
He swallowed the lump in his throat. "Love you too."
He hung up before she could hear the rest of it.
---
He set the phone down. Stared at the ceiling again.
The system interface flickered. Red text.
DEBT: 18%
FIRST PAYMENT: IN PROGRESS
It had gone up. Not by much. But up.
Great. The system gives me quests to ruin my life, then charges interest when I fail.
He thought about what his mom said. Heavy. She had no idea how heavy. The ring, the debt, the video, the comments, the silence from Sarah, the look on Priya's face, Marcus walking away.
All of it sitting on his chest.
And the system wasn't done with him yet.
---
He felt it before he saw it.
A sharp pain in his jaw—like something cracking.
He ran to the bathroom mirror.
His jaw was softer. Noticeably. He looked like his old self. Not fully. But closer.
The system interface flickered.
DEBT: 25%
FIRST PAYMENT ACCELERATING.
He touched his jaw again. Still softening.
The ring pulsed once—cold, not hot. A warning.
Then a new line of text appeared, glowing red:
NEXT PAYMENT: 3 DAYS.
Three days until something else was taken. Three days until the system demanded more.
No quests. No instructions. Just a countdown.
He stared at his reflection. His old self was coming back.
And he had no idea how to stop it.
---
[END OF CHAPTER 31]
---