truth or dare - game on series #1

Stella

The dorm felt eerily quiet without Bree.

She had left earlier in the afternoon, heading home for the weekend to celebrate her mom's birthday. It wasn't a big deal—I used to be alone all the time before I met her. But lately, I'd gotten so used to her being around that the silence now felt loud.

I sat on my bed, hugging my knees, my mind wandering.

Was he going to come again?

No. That would be ridiculous.

One night like that should've been enough. I didn't ask him to stay the first time, and I certainly wasn't expecting him to keep doing it. It's not like he owed me anything.

But still... curiosity got the best of me.

I hesitated for a long moment before getting up and walking to the door. I didn't even know what I was expecting to see—an empty hallway, most likely. But when I opened the door and peeked outside...

He was there.

Sitting on the ground, his back against the wall, looking at his phone.

This time, he had a pillow and a blanket with him.

I blinked, unsure of what to say. "Are you seriously planning on staying here again?"

He looked up at me, completely unfazed, and gave a small nod. "Yeah."

I crossed my arms, leaning against the doorframe. "Someone's going to call the cops on you."

He smirked slightly. "Let them."

I sighed, shaking my head. He was impossible.

Instead of going back inside, I stepped forward and sat down on the floor across from him, mirroring his position.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked, my voice calmer this time.

He didn't answer right away. He just looked at me like he was trying to find the right words. Finally, he shrugged. "Because I want to."

That was all he said.

And somehow, that was enough.

We sat in silence, so quiet that we could hear the girls' conversation in the room next to our.

I smiled as I noticed the basketballs on his blanket, as if it belonged to a little boy.

"Did you always want to play basketball?" I asked out of nowhere.

Cameron leaned his head back against the wall, thinking. "I don't know. I mean, my dad definitely wanted me to. That's kind of how it started."

I frowned. "But do you actually like it?"

He let out a small chuckle. "I do. But sometimes, I think about what it would've been like if I had a choice. If I'd ever really wanted something else."

I nodded, understanding more than I wanted to. "I get that."

"Yeah?" he tilted his head at me.

I sighed. "I mean... I didn't really choose a lot of things in my life, either. My epilepsy kind of decided things for me. I had to change plans, change dreams, adjust to a lot of things that didn't feel fair."

His expression softened. "That sucks."

I snorted. "Yeah. It does."

We sat in comfortable silence for a moment before he spoke again.

"Okay, tell me something random about you."

I raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. Something I don't already know."

I knew what he was doing. He was trying to cheer me up, to make me think about something else, anything other than epilepsy. Because I guess I'm an open book to him and he saw how much I hate talking about it. So I thought for a second. "I hate strawberries."

His eyes widened dramatically. "What? Who the hell hates strawberries?"

I laughed. "I do. They taste weird."

"You're insane." He shook his head. "That's an actual crime."

I rolled my eyes. "Fine, your turn. Tell me something random about you."

He grinned. "I can say the alphabet backward."

I scoffed. "No way."

And just like that, he started reciting it flawlessly—"Z, Y, X, W..."

My jaw dropped. "Okay, that's a crime."

He laughed, and for some reason, it made my chest feel warm. I hated how easy this felt. How, for a little while, I forgot about everything.

Forgot the hurt.

Forgot the anger.

Forgot how complicated everything had become.

Until I yawned, and Cameron gave me a pointed look.

"As much as I love that you're actually talking to me," he said, "you should get some sleep."

I rolled my eyes but stood up anyway. He was right. I was tired.

I turned toward the door but hesitated for just a second before looking back at him.

"Goodnight, Cameron," I said softly.

He smiled. "Goodnight, Stella."

And for the first time in a long time, I went to bed feeling... a little less alone.