Eira POV
Eira wakes up gasping.
Her sheets are soaked with sweat. Her hands are shaking so bad she can barely hold the blanket. For a moment, she can't remember if she's awake or still dreaming. The apartment is dark. Silent. Her alarm clock says 6:47 AM.
She stumbles to the bathroom and splashes cold water on her face. In the mirror, her reflection looks terrified. Dark circles under her eyes. Pale skin. Normal. Nothing glowing. Nothing impossible.
It was a dream. That's what she keeps telling herself. The glowing eyes. The text messages. The car following her. The man on the subway platform. All of it was just her subconscious freaking out over something. Stress maybe. Or her mom's anniversary coming up next month.
But her hands still tingle.
She rubs them together, trying to shake the feeling away. It doesn't work. There's something under her skin that feels awake. Something that wasn't awake before.
Eira gets dressed for work in the same grey hoodie and black pants she always wears. Makes coffee. Tries not to think about glowing eyes. By the time she gets to her small apartment's desk, she's almost convinced herself that everything is fine.
Her laptop boots up. She opens her email.
There are forty-three new messages. Most of them are work stuff. Reports. Spreadsheets. Things nobody will read. But one email sits at the top with a subject line that makes her pause.
The subject says: You Are Invited.
The email is from someone named Victoria Ashford. An address Eira doesn't recognize. The message is short and simple.
Dear Ms. Voss,
You are cordially invited to an exclusive charity gala this Saturday at The Meridian Hotel. Black tie. 8 PM. This is a private event and attendance is by invitation only. Please confirm your attendance by Friday.
We look forward to seeing you.
Victoria Ashford Event Director
That's it. No explanation for why Eira got invited. No mention of how Victoria got her name or email. Just an invitation to a party Eira never applied for and never wanted.
She should delete it.
Instead, she reads it three more times.
Something about the email feels different. Not spam. Not random. Like it was meant for her specifically. Like someone knew exactly where to find her.
Her phone buzzes. It's Nova.
Nova is her only real friend. They met five years ago at a coffee shop where Nova works and somehow Nova decided that Eira was worth keeping around. Nobody ever makes that decision about Eira. People find her forgettable. Nova finds her interesting.
The text says: Girl we need to talk. I'm coming over after my shift. Don't say no.
Eira should say no. She's always supposed to say no to social things. But Nova won't listen anyway. Nova never listens.
By 3 PM, Nova is sitting on Eira's couch eating leftover pizza from Eira's fridge like she owns the place. Nova is everything Eira isn't. Loud. Colorful. Impossible to ignore. She's wearing a bright yellow shirt with mismatched socks and her dark hair is piled on top of her head in a messy bun.
"You look like someone murdered your cat," Nova says, mouth full of pizza.
"I don't have a cat."
"Exactly. That's how bad you look." Nova throws a pillow at her. "Seriously though, what's going on. You've been weird since you got to work yesterday. Kevin told me you left early saying you weren't feeling good but you texted me you left at one in the morning."
Eira doesn't know what to say. She can't tell Nova about the glowing eyes. About her hands lighting up. About text messages from her dead mother's phone. Nova would think she's losing her mind.
"I couldn't sleep so I left early," Eira says. "Bad insomnia night."
Nova studies her for a second like she doesn't believe that but decides to drop it anyway. She pulls out her phone and starts scrolling.
"Okay, new topic. You're going to hate me but I've been thinking about something and you need to hear me out before you say no."
"I'm already saying no," Eira says.
"See, that proves my point exactly. You say no to everything. You sit alone all the time. You work night shift so you never see humans. You come home and watch Netflix. That's your whole life and it's actually kind of creepy."
Eira wants to argue but Nova isn't wrong. That is her whole life.
"You're young and pretty. You could have friends. You could go out. You could actually live instead of just existing. So I'm saying this as someone who actually cares about you. You need to get out more. You need to see people."
"I don't like people."
"People like you. You just don't give them a chance." Nova grabs her hand. "Promise me you'll do something social this weekend. Something that isn't work or Netflix. Actually promise me or I'll be mad."
Eira thinks about the email. The invitation. The way it felt like it was meant for her.
"There's this thing," Eira says slowly. "A gala. Saturday night."
Nova's eyes go wide. She literally screams. Actually screams so loud that Eira thinks the neighbors might complain.
"You have to go," Nova says. "Oh my god, you have to go. What is it. Who's throwing it. Is it fancy. Please tell me it's fancy."
"I don't even know the person throwing it. Some woman named Victoria Ashford."
"Don't care. You're going. This is the universe telling you to get out of your apartment and do something with your life."
Eira tries to protest but Nova is already pulling her off the couch and dragging her toward her closet. Nova finds her a black dress buried in the back. It's simple. It hides her body the way Eira likes. It doesn't scream for attention.
"Perfect," Nova says. "You look hot. All mysterious and dark. Very secret agent."
They spend the rest of the afternoon with Nova helping Eira pick out shoes and doing her makeup. Nova keeps talking about how this is good for her and how Eira needs to be more social and how something good is going to come from this. Eira just listens and tries not to think about what happened in her dream on the subway.
By Saturday, Eira is having second thoughts.
She stands in her apartment looking at herself in the mirror. The black dress. Simple makeup. Hair down. She looks like herself but slightly less invisible. That should probably feel good. Instead it feels terrifying.
Her phone buzzes. Text from Nova.
Go have fun. And if you meet a hot guy, take his number. I want details.
Eira smiles despite her fear. She orders an Uber to The Meridian Hotel.
The drive takes twenty minutes. The hotel is massive and beautiful. Expensive. The kind of place Eira would never normally go. Valets take cars. Doormen open doors. Everything is gold and marble and beautiful.
She walks into the lobby and a woman in a headset approaches her.
"Ms. Voss?"
Eira nods.
"Welcome. The gala is on the twenty-third floor. Elevator to your left."
As Eira walks to the elevator, she has one final moment to turn around. To leave. To go back home and pretend this never happened.
She doesn't.
The elevator doors close and she ascends.
The doors open on the twenty-third floor and Eira steps into another world. Crystal chandeliers. Expensive people in expensive clothes. The smell of wealth and perfume. Everyone is beautiful in an unnatural way. Sharp eyes. Perfect skin. Perfect movements.
Eira moves through the crowd trying to be invisible. It's what she does best.
Then the air changes.
It's like electricity running through the room. Everyone pauses for just a second. Like something shifted in the atmosphere. Eira feels it hit her like a wave.
Across the room, a man looks up.
His eyes find hers and they lock.
He's the most beautiful thing Eira has ever seen. Tall. Dangerous. His eyes are a stormy grey that seem to see through her. His suit is black and perfect. But it's his expression that makes her heart stop.
He's looking at her like she's something he's been searching for his whole life, and starts walking toward her.