Alex called to Kip over the voices of the dozens of people around her. He smiled in relief but it quickly faded when he saw she was alone.

"Where's Jeremy?" asked Alex.

"He and Violet went looking for you. I would text her but I have her phone."

The pit in Alex's stomach was getting bigger. From the look on Kip's face, he was getting anxious. She shouldn't have walked away like that, but maybe that's a sign.

"Hey, Kip. I'm going to go look for them upstairs. I'm sure they're fine."

"I'll look for them too."

She gave a reassuring rub on his shoulder before moving past him. It took awhile for her to find the door to the staircase and gave it a good push.

"Hey, don't let the door close!"

Alex grabbed the door, her heart pounding frantically. Violet descended around the corner, joy flooding her face.

"Oh, thank God! Alex, you rescued us!"

"Us?"

Jeremy solemnly followed Violet. Alex bit her lip, unsure of what to say. Violet enveloped her in a hug.

"We were locked in. Where's Kip? I need to get my phone from him. I don't care about carrying it around the rest of the night."

Alex chuckled, "He went looking for you too."

Once they exited the staircase, Jeremy gently touched her arm. Alex took a deep breath, bracing herself.

Before she could manage a sound, he said, "Violet told me about Jason."

Her whole body gradually became cold, goosebumps becoming visible on her skin.

"I know how he hurt you. Did you really think I would do that?"

Alex thought about that first day she saw him. Jeremy read the disbelief in her face.

"I see. Well, I'll make this easy for you."

Jeremy started to walk away but Alex pulled him back. Alex's cheeks started to turn rosey. For the first time, she looked vulnerable.

"I'm sorry. I know it's not fair. I've been trying so hard not to compare you to him. It's just that scars like that are hard to heal, you know?"

Jeremy stayed quiet, looking down at his shoes.

"Guess it's hard for both of us to move on, huh?"