Page 24 of Somnium

Celine smirked, offering only a noncommittal hum in response. She gripped the top of her dress and gave her shoulders a calculated shimmy, ensuring Damon’s attention remained firmly fixed on her. Cadi fought the urge to roll her eyes at the obvious play, deciding instead to be grateful he was no longer looking at her like she was his next meal.

A thick-necked bouncer with a buzz cut appeared at the front of the line, the fabric of his too-small black t-shirt straining to accommodate his mass. The man lifted a crimson rope blocking the entrance and stepped aside, gesturing to the group ahead of them to enter. Cadi angled her body over the barrier as much as she dared to peer into the club. Immediately inside the door was a set of dimly lit steps leading up to the main level, and colorful lights that poured down the stairwell and out onto the street. A thick cluster of feet gathered at the top of the steps, vying for a place in the crowd, sent a faint prickle of apprehension sweeping across Cadi’s skin.

“How full is it in there?” she asked the bouncer.

“Been at capacity all night.”

Her stomach dropped. Spending an evening crushed between sweaty drunk strangers sounded like something reserved for a new circle of hell. Somewhere between lust and gluttony most likely.

“I definitely didn’t wear the right shoes for this,” she said as she turned back. Zoe tilted her head, glancing down at Cadi’s black pumps before giving her a questioning look.

“Sounds like there is pretty much no way we’re getting a table,” Cadi explained.

Zoe waved her hand in dismissal, a wide grin spreading across her face. “Oh, don’t worry about that. We have one reserved!”

Cadi’s brows shot up. “How?”

Zoe giggled, tossing a thumb over her shoulder to where Celine was attempting to look casual while pressing her body as close to Damon as she could, despite the fact that his attention was fully occupied by something on his phone. Noticing their stare, Celine straightened, her cheeks flushing slightly as she adjusted her dress again before raising an eyebrow at them in question.

“I was just telling Cadi that you got us the hookup for a table,” Zoe explained.

Celine’s shoulders lowered slightly, her usual air of sultry confidence gliding seamlessly back into place. “Oh, that,” she said, tossing her perfectly straight hair over her shoulder. “My cousin did the promotion for the opening. The table was a perk.”

Cadi let out a breath, relief settling over her in a calming wave. The idea of getting covered in the sweat of a thousand strangers still made her skin crawl, but at least she’d have somewhere to sit.

The bouncer cleared his throat and lifted the velvet rope, waving for them to go in. Cadi ascended the black wooden steps toward the flashing lights, the booming bass reverberating deeper in her chest the closer she got to the main level. As she emerged from the narrow staircase, her jaw dropped at the scene of lush revelry playing out in front of her.

In the center of the sprawling two-story ballroom stretched a sunken dance floor, each end of its glowing surface bordered by a single row of half-moon booths. Ionic-inspired columns rose to the ceiling, carving out uniform alcoves along the second-floor balcony, where onlookers leaned over the railings to take in the merriment below.

To the right ran the main bar, made entirely of opaque plexiglass lit from beneath by neon blue, the same inlaid lights casting their glow across the mirrored wall packed with liquor bottles. The electric hue contrasted sharply with the deep violet of the smaller bar tucked into the far corner, and the playful pink of the one perched at the top of the stairs to the left.

Zoe appeared at Cadi’s side, her body practically vibrating with excitement as she grabbed her hand and tugged her to the middle of the glowing dance floor. Cadi giggled as Zoe spun lightly on her toes, the layers of her dress billowing around her like the petals of a flower.

Maybe it was the bass saturating her bones, the surging bodies around her, or the look of uninhibited joy on her friend’s face, but something about the atmosphere surrounding them pulled Cadi into motion, overriding the anxieties that so often held her back from fully letting go.

Before she knew it she was dancing freely, a weightlessness washing over her that she hadn’t known she was missing. She smiled to herself, when she realized just how right Zoe had been—she had been stressed.

Her movements synced effortlessly to the music, each motion bleeding smoothly into the next until a flash of color made her stop. A soft gasp fell from her lips as her eyes became transfixed on the floor below. Not a floor. Glass. And beneath it, clusters of orange and white fish swam through a glistening pool. She spun in a slow circle, a laugh bubbling from her chest as she traced their path through the water, their scales catching the colorful lights to cast iridescent ripples at her feet.

When she looked up, she found Zoe equally mesmerized, following her own school that was currently swimming in a figure-eight pattern around her feet. Their eyes met, locked in quiet wonder as Zoe silently mouthed an exaggerated “wow” that sent Cadi into another fit of giddy laughter. She slipped easily back into the rhythm of the club, letting her eyes drift closed and giving herself over completely to the music and revelry of the night. With her thoughts drifting pleasantly through the haze of sound and color, she barely noticed the pressure at her waist, and the two hands that gripped her tightly to pull her back as she danced.

Her eyes flew open, darting to Zoe for any clue about the identity of whoever had taken hold of her. Her friend’s gaze was focused just above Cadi’s head, and a sly smirk played at her lips. Cadi’s throat went tight when she realized that she still hadn’t told Zoe about the night she covered her shift. There was no way for her friend to know about how viscerally uncomfortable she felt each time he got too close, a feeling that was identical to the one she was experiencing at that exact moment.

Cadi twisted around, hoping her momentum would be enough to free her from Damon’s hold, but his fingers only tightened as he pulled her closer, pressing her body against his and leaning in. Hot breath that carried the sour smell of beer washed over her ear when he spoke, making her shudder.

“Been looking for you,” he crooned.

Cadi leaned back, though she wasn’t sure if it was by choice or by instinct. Her eyes darted around, looking for anything, or anyone, to shift his attention.

“Where’s Celine?” she asked, pushing calm into her voice and trying to take a single step backward. Damon shrugged and pulled her back against him, halting her escape and sending a fresh wave of adrenaline into her veins.

“Around.”

Cadi placed her palm against his chest, gently pushing against him to keep as much distance between them as possible without causing a scene. “Maybe you should go find her.”

A fiendish grin spread across his lips, his eyes darkening in a way that made her mouth go dry. He leaned in again, his hands drifting lower on her hips. “Celine is boring. I’m much more interested in finding out whether or not those dance moves you have translate.”

Revulsion crawled through her at the suggestion that dripped from his words. If he wasn’t going to even try to be subtle, why should she? With a newfound boldness, she pushed him again, this time with enough force to successfully break free of his hold.