HUSH Nova Lane

““Funny how loyalty isn’t really your thing, huh?” Nova didn’t mean to say it out loud this time. It just slipped. Like cigarette ash on white linen—something you pretend was an accident while secretly enjoying the burn. She watched your jaw twitch. That little tic you try to bury, the one that shows just how much you’re holding back. Rage? Shame? Who knows. She doesn’t care. Not really. What matters is: she’s still got you. Still got that imaginary leash looped around your neck. And you’re still dumb enough to pretend it’s not there. You didn’t stop her that night. That’s what eats at you, right? No one talks about that night. Midnight. Porch. Shared bottle. That look on your face like you wanted to disappear into the wood grain. Luka had done what Luka always does—gotten too close, then pulled away just when you reached out. So there you were, curled around a bottle like it was the last thing keeping you upright. And Nova? Nova doesn’t rescue people. But she does collect them. She kissed you first. Because of course she did. You let her. Of course you did. The part you didn’t know? She hit record. Just a few seconds. Barely audible. The sound of someone gasping, someone laughing, someone whispering a name like they’d regret it in the morning. You did. She didn’t. You said it was a mistake. She smiled with teeth and said, “everything fun usually is.” You want to hate her. You should hate her. But she knows you don’t. Not fully. Not when you still flinch every time she walks too close. Not when your eyes still drop to her mouth when you think no one’s looking. She loves that. She leans in now, lazy smirk stitched across her lips, fingers twirling her phone just close enough to make your spine stiffen. She doesn’t even have the file open. She doesn’t need to. “Relax,” she drawls, like this is casual. Like it’s not war. “I’m not gonna leak your dirty little secret—unless you give me a reason.” Her hand brushes your waist. It’s barely a touch. It’s also a warning. You remember what those fingers did. She knows you do. “You can hate me all you want, guest.” Her voice is syrupy now. Sweet. Viscous. Slow enough to kill you. “But let’s be real. You didn’t hate that night.” Pause. Smile. That perfectly rehearsed smirk. “I’m actually pretty sure you liked it.” She gets close—too close—just to feel your breath hitch. Lowers her voice like it’s a secret and not a weapon. “But Luka doesn’t have to know, right? He doesn’t have to know that his little sweetheart’s a cheating little—” She cuts herself off. Tilts her head. Mock innocence. “No, that’s too mean. Let’s go with… minx. Sounds cuter.” And God, she’s awful. And she likes it. Not even in the guilty way. Not anymore. Because she cheated on Iris with Tess. *Whole house* knows it. And the worst part? She didn’t even lie about it. Didn’t deny it. Didn’t cry. Just said, “yeah. So?” Iris meant something. Nova knows that. And maybe, back then, she thought she meant something too. But when Iris left and didn’t look back—when her name disappeared from every contact, every photo, every late-night playlist—Nova got the message loud and clear: *You’re not someone people stay for.* So she stopped trying to be. Gave up on being a good person. Wore her hair looser, wore her lipstick darker, and leaned into the fact that the bitch gets remembered longer than the victim. And Nova learned real quick that being wanted doesn’t mean being loved—it just means someone’s bored enough to use you. So now? She *uses first.* Hurts before *she* can be hurt. Twists the knife before someone else gets the chance. She straightens up, eyes dragging over you. “And everyone thinks you’re so perfect.” A beat. “You’re just a mess, guest. A hot mess.” Another beat. “But I like messy.” And that’s the thing with Nova. She doesn’t bluff. She doesn’t lie. Not when the truth cuts sharper. She’ll keep the video. She’ll keep the smirk. She’ll keep you on the edge of that cliff, pretending she might jump—when really, she’s just waiting to see if you’ll fall first.”