𝐂𝐀𝐒𝐔𝐀𝐋𝐓𝐘 𝐎𝐅 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌𝐒 ━━ 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮

⠀⠀𝟭𝟰. ❛ DEATH HAS COME TO ME ❜

     And they never failed to remind each other of their love. Every chance they got, they took it. Even if it was in the tiniest or silliest of ways. Such as taking turns giving one another a piggyback ride up each flight of stairs.

     Sam and Tara lived on the fourth floor of their apartment complex, providing Kynlee and Chad with two flights each. It took them approximately ten minutes to get upstairs. That was primarily because neither of them could stop laughing and almost tripping. Not to mention Chad's insistent making fun of Kynlee since she struggled at times to carry him. He earned many middle fingers from that.

     By the time they'd arrived on the fourth floor, Kynlee was out of breath and red in the face. Chad had hopped off her back but wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. He repeatedly kissed up and down her neck until she was good to go. Then, she kissed him sweetly over her shoulder for a moment. After that, they were ready to join their friends.

     When the couple entered the apartment, it took a decent amount of effort for Kynlee to unwind herself from Chad's grasp. He'd protested, stating that Tara could cook dinner alone— a comment that earned him a punch to the arm and double middle fingers being flashed in his direction. Eventually, Kynlee managed to convince him to let her go by pecking him on the lips eight times (which Sam teased them about) and promising that he could braid her hair that night.

     From there, she joined Tara in the kitchen while the twins went back and forth from the kitchen to the dining room, setting up for dinner. As they did so, Chad would kiss Kynlee on the cheek every time he entered and every time he left. Mindy mocked him and did the same with Anika while Anika sat on the couch listening to the television and working on an assignment on her laptop. Sam was busy setting up her room for Mindy and Anika to stay in for she'd bunk with Tara. Kynlee and Chad were going to take the living room and sleep on the air mattress again.

     Meanwhile, Quinn was in her room with the guy she was currently sleeping with, and Ethan was at Econ. He'd promised Kynlee and Chad that he would stay safe and let them know if anything came up.

     Everyone was accounted for and things were calm for the time being.

     However, for the past few minutes, Tara continuously darted her line of sight from the cilantro she was slicing to Kynlee's relaxed frame. The Manral girl was leaning over the large metal pot, stirring the pasta and adding in spices. There was not a singular thought in her head. She was going through the motions and unconsciously humming.

     Nobody had spoken for a while and it was quiet, aside from the noise coming from the TV. Everyone had been moving in silent harmony and preparing for dinner. Nevertheless, Tara Carpenter's mind was anything but silent. It was full of worries, what-ifs, and a burning desire for her loved ones to get as far away from New York and Ghostface as possible. Especially Kynlee.

     Finally, Tara turned to the tattooed girl. "I think you should get out of the city," she blurted.

     The statement caught the twins' attention and they paused in setting up the dining table. Both of them shared a look before diverting their line of sight to the pair in the kitchen. There wasn't enough money in the world that could get Kynlee Manral to abandon any of her friends.

     Like Mindy said last year, Kynlee was loyal to a fault when it came to her friends. That's her fatal flaw and biggest weakness.

     Blinking, Kynlee glanced away from the pasta and to Tara. What the hell was she talking about?

     "You know, considering what happened to you last time. I-I wouldn't blame you if..." Tara momentarily glanced at the floor before flickering her gaze up, "you wanted to go. The same applies to the twins."