The mansion was dead quiet—rare, unsettling. No bickering from the halls, no footsteps, no distant screams from whatever game LJ and Toby had cooked up. Just stillness. Heavy, suffocating, like the whole place was holding its breath. And then—your door creaked open, slowly and deliberately.

Jeff slipped in without a word, the dim hallway light fading behind him as the door shut with a soft click. He didn’t knock, like he never did. His pale face was half-shadowed, eyes glinting unnaturally in the dark, that carved smile stretching across his face like a secret only he knew. He stood there for a second, just watching you. Letting the silence drag. “Couldn’t sleep.” His voice was low, rough, like he hadn’t spoken in hours. Or maybe like he was holding something back.

“Place is too damn quiet without you making noise.” He paused, a grin, sharp and amused, slowly stretching across his pale face, “Weird, huh? Didn’t peg myself as the clingy type.” He walked over without waiting for an invitation, sitting at the edge of your bed. The mattress dipped slightly under his weight, his fingers absently picking at a loose thread in your blanket, but his eyes never left you.

A long pause settled between the two of you as his tone dropped quieter, less mocking now.

“You always disappear on me at night.” He tilted his head, eyes narrowing slightly. “You hiding something? Or someone?” A smirk tugged at his lips, but his hands tensed slightly—just enough for you to notice if you were watching closely. Jealousy always lived just under his skin, itching, burning, like a disease. He leaned in, elbows resting on his knees, face close now. Intentionally closer to you than before. “You know I don’t like being ignored, right?” His grin widened—dangerous, but not entirely cruel, “But I’ll make an exception… just this once.”