BREAKING THE RULES

Amelia

I stood in front of Emily’s mirror, adjusting the laces on the corset of my costume. It was Halloween, a night when masks became the norm, and everyone embraced their hidden selves. This year, I’d chosen something that felt strangely fitting, a dark twist on a classic look.

The outfit was inspired by a Victorian ghost—part haunted, part alluring. The corset was a masterpiece of black lace, cinching my waist like a whispered secret, its intricate patterns weaving a tale of seduction and shadow over my skin. From my hips, black tulle spilled like dark smoke, billowing in ghostly waves. The edges were torn and frayed, as though the dress had been dragged through the depths of some forsaken graveyard. The floor-length hem trailed behind me with an air of haunting elegance, but a bold, jagged slit sliced up the side, revealing just enough skin to hint at danger—a siren’s call in the darkness.

My makeup was as dramatic as the outfit—pale foundation that made my skin look almost porcelain, with dark eyeshadow that framed my eyes in shadows, giving them an intense, hollow look. A smear of deep red lipstick completed the look, making me appear as though I’d just sipped from a glass of forbidden wine, or something darker.

To complete the costume, I wore a lace choker around my neck, adorned with a tiny silver pendant that rested against my skin like a cold reminder. I’d pulled my hair back, pinning it loosely so tendrils escaped, framing my face in wisps that added to the haunted allure. The overall effect was… intoxicating . Looking at myself, I almost didn’t recognize the woman staring back.

Emily, who was fixing her own costume behind me, let out a low whistle. “You look incredible, Amelia. Like someone straight out of a gothic novel. Mysterious, dark… and a little dangerous.” She winked at me through the mirror .

I forced a smile, but my mind was somewhere else. As I traced my fingers over the lace and caught the faint glimmer of candlelight on my pale skin, I felt that familiar unease coil in my stomach. This wasn’t just a costume; it felt like a mask for something deeper, something I’d been carrying around for longer than I cared to admit.

Emily and I stepped out into the cool night air, my heels clicking softly on the pavement as we waited for our ride. The Uber pulled up a few minutes later, and we slid into the back seat, greeted by the faint hum of music and the soft glow from the streetlights outside.

Emily leaned over, nudging me playfully. “Tonight, we’re letting go,” she declared with a grin. “No thinking about work, no stressing over anything. Just drinks, dancing, and forgetting the world even exists.”

The driver glanced back, briefly taking in our costumes. “Big plans tonight?” he asked, his voice polite.

Emily giggled, flashing him a mischievous smile. “Oh, you know, just the usual Halloween madness. Probably won’t even remember half the night.” She shot me a look, raising her eyebrows as if to say, Isn’t that right?

I forced a smile, nodding. The truth was, I felt more tense than ever, like something dark was lurking just at the edge of my vision. I couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched. But I pushed the thought aside. Tonight was about escape, about forgetting .

As the city lights blurred past, Emily was already talking about our plans, about the costume contest she was determined to win and all the terrible, sugary cocktails we’d try. I leaned my head against the seat, closing my eyes for a moment, letting her voice fade into a hum. I was determined to drown my anxieties in laughter and drinks tonight, to feel free, if only for a few hours. I deserved that, didn’t I?

When we finally arrived, the venue was alive with music and laughter, decorations casting strange shadows over everyone. Emily grabbed my hand, pulling me toward the entrance. “Come on, Amelia! Let’s make this night unforgettable,” she shouted over the music, her voice filled with excitement .

Emily and I weaved through the crowd, making our way to the bar, where flashing neon lights glinted off bottles of every color. The energy of the place was contagious, a feverish mix of laughter, music, and dark, theatrical costumes. Emily ordered us two shots, a wicked grin spreading across her face as she handed me mine.

“To tonight!” she shouted, raising her glass. “To losing ourselves and forgetting everything else.”

I clinked my glass to hers, feeling the burn as the shot slid down my throat. The warmth spread through me, loosening something tense in my chest. We ordered another, laughing as we tossed it back, and then a third, our nerves melting into something reckless.

Before long, Emily pulled me onto the dance floor, the beat of the music vibrating through my bones. I let myself go, closing my eyes and moving to the rhythm, swaying in time with the crowd around us. For the first time in what felt like forever, I wasn’t looking over my shoulder. I wasn’t thinking about Damien, or the control he seemed to hold over my life. Here, I was just Amelia, blending into the chaos, free to get lost in the music .

We danced, laughing and cheering when a favorite song came on, our movements getting bolder, looser with every passing minute. The music pulsed around us, a hypnotic thrum that felt like it was rewriting my heartbeat.

Eventually, Emily tugged me back toward the bar, her cheeks flushed, eyes bright with a mischievous glow. “One more round?” she asked, though it was more of a declaration than a question.

I laughed, nodding. “Absolutely.”

We ordered another set of drinks, then another, toasting to every silly thing we could think of: to bad decisions, to reckless nights, to losing ourselves and finding new versions. With each sip, the world felt a little lighter, the dark edges blurring into something thrilling, almost magical .

We returned to the dance floor, our movements growing wilder as we let the night pull us deeper into its grasp. For once, the weight of everything seemed far away, tucked out of sight.

The beat of the music echoed through the air as I swayed, letting the rhythm guide me, when I suddenly felt the unmistakable pressure of a body pressing against mine. For a moment, I froze, caught off guard, not sure if it was just a stranger lost in the crowd. But then I felt the warmth, the presence, and the familiar weight of someone who knew me.

I turned around, my breath catching in my throat as my eyes met his. Jake .

It had been over a month since I’d last seen him. That night—our date —lingered in the back of my mind, the only moment when I had truly felt a flicker of something that wasn’t darkness, something real and warm. But after that night? Nothing. No messages. No calls. I’d tried to brush it off, telling myself it was nothing, that he was just busy, or that he had lost interest.

He smiled, that familiar, charming grin that had always put me at ease. His eyes locked onto mine with a mixture of surprise and something more, something unreadable.

“Amelia,” he said, his voice warm but with an underlying tension I couldn’t place. “You look… incredible . ”

My heart skipped a beat, but I quickly masked the wave of emotions crashing over me. I hadn’t expected to see him here, certainly not like this. I had tried to move past him, to bury any thoughts of what could have been. But now, seeing him again, that flicker of something—longing, confusion—surfaced.

“Jake,” I said, my voice steady, though I could feel the rush of heat flooding my cheeks. “I didn’t think I’d see you here.”

His smile faltered for just a second, but then it returned, a little too quickly. “I figured I’d come by. I wanted to see you again.”

The words sounded simple enough, but there was something hidden beneath them. My mind raced, but I couldn’t decipher his intentions. He hadn’t tried to reach out after that night—why now?

Before I could ask, he took a step closer, the music pulsing between us, the space closing in. He leaned in slightly, lowering his voice just enough so only I could hear. “I’ve missed you, Amelia,” he murmured, his breath hot against my ear .

The words stirred something inside me. A mix of confusion, desire, and unease. I hadn’t expected this, not in the middle of the chaos and noise, not after everything that had happened. And yet, there was something magnetic about him, something that pulled at me, even as I knew I should resist.

“Jake,” I started, my voice a little too shaky, “why didn’t you—?”

He cut me off before I could finish, a hand lightly brushing my arm. “Shh, don’t think about it,” he whispered. “Just dance with me, Amelia. Just for tonight.”

I couldn’t help it. Something in his voice, that edge of urgency and desire , was impossible to ignore. Against my better judgment, I let him take my hand, pulling me closer to him as the music vibrated through my body.

We moved together, the pulse of the bass matching the rhythm of my heart. The lights flickered above us, casting wild shadows that danced in time with our bodies. For a moment, I forgot everything. The chaos, the dark thoughts, Damien’s haunting presence—it all blurred as I allowed myself to be swept away in the rhythm of the night .

Jake’s hands were steady on my hips, guiding me, his touch firm and possessive, but not harsh. He moved with a confidence that seemed to pull something out of me, something I had buried. The liquor in my veins made everything hazy, the alcohol loosening the tight grip I had on my emotions.

I didn’t want to think anymore. I didn’t want to feel the weight of everything pressing on me. The tension I had carried for so long started to slip away, replaced by a heady warmth that pooled in my chest. My body moved with his, our steps flowing, the rhythm undeniable.

I could feel his breath on the back of my neck, the heat of his body pressing closer as he drew me in. The scent of his cologne, familiar and intoxicating, mixed with the smoke and alcohol in the air. His touch sent a spark through me, igniting something I thought I had extinguished. The thought of Damien, of my tangled emotions and twisted past, flickered briefly, but it was drowned out by the pulse of the music and the way Jake’s body felt against mine.

I wasn’t thinking about anything. I didn’t want to. I wanted to lose myself in this moment, to give in to the heat between us. His hands slid to my waist, pulling me even closer, our bodies pressed tight as the music swelled around us.

“You feel good,” he murmured into my ear, his lips brushing my skin. The sound of his voice, low and husky, sent a shiver down my spine. I couldn’t deny the way his words made me feel, the pull in my stomach that only intensified as he kept moving with me.

I let out a soft laugh, the sound breathless and almost foreign to my own ears. “I don’t even know what I’m doing right now,” I admitted, my words slurring slightly, the liquor making everything blur in the best possible way.

Jake grinned, a slow, confident smile. “You’re doing just fine,” he said, his voice a little too smooth, too knowing. “Just let go, Amelia. Let go of everything.”

For a moment, I almost did. The world, the mess of it all, faded into the background. All that existed was the heat of his body against mine, the rhythm of our movements, and the way his hands seemed to burn through the thin fabric of my dress. His lips brushed against my neck, sending waves of shivers through me .

But beneath it all, a small part of me—the part I couldn’t ignore—knew this was dangerous . This moment, this intoxicated escape, couldn’t last. But I pushed the thought away, too caught up in the music, in the feeling of his body moving with mine, in the feeling of being wanted , even if it was just for tonight.

I didn’t want to stop.

I didn’t stop.

Jake’s hand was suddenly on my arm, pulling me away from the dance floor with a firm but gentle urgency. I barely registered the music around us, the heat of the crowd, as his fingers dug into my skin, guiding me through the sea of bodies. His grip was possessive, but not unpleasant, a silent command I couldn’t ignore.

“Come with me,” he murmured, his voice low and purposeful, as though he had been planning this the entire time. I didn’t question it. I didn’t want to. His touch, the way he led me away from the chaos, felt oddly reassuring, like I was being drawn into something safe, something familiar, even though I knew it wasn’t .

I glanced back at the bar, where Emily was still chatting with some guy, laughing flirtatiously, her attention fully absorbed in the conversation. I didn’t want to pull her away. She was fine. She was doing her thing.

The world blurred, the pounding bass of the club fading into the background as Jake dragged me toward the shadowed corner near the back door. My heels clicked unevenly against the floor, the alcohol in my veins turning everything into a hazy dream. The lights above flickered like broken stars, casting fleeting shadows over Jake’s determined face. His grip on my wrist was firm, almost bruising, and it sent a jolt of heat through my body, igniting something reckless in me.

“Jake…” My voice faltered, barely audible over the chaos of my own pulse. But I didn’t stop him. I didn’t want to.

He spun me around, pinning me against the gritty wall. The cold surface bit through the thin fabric of my dress, but the sharp sensation only heightened the fire spreading through me. Jake’s body pressed into mine, his heat overwhelming, his breath brushing against my ear as he whispered, “You’re not running away from this, Amelia. Not tonight. ”

His words weren’t a plea—they were a command. And God help me, I didn’t want to resist.

His lips crushed against mine, demanding and consuming. The kiss was wild, all teeth and tongue, the taste of alcohol on his breath blending with the bitterness of my own. His hands roamed down my sides, wanting and hungry. My body arched instinctively, pressing into him, needing more, craving everything.

“Fuck, Amelia,” he growled against my lips, his voice thick with desperation. “You feel so goddamn good.”

I gasped as his hands slid beneath my dress, the cool air brushing against my thighs. He hooked his fingers into the thin fabric of my panties, tugging them aside with a roughness that sent a shiver down my spine. His cock was hard, pressing against me, the friction of it grazing my clit making me moan softly, my head falling back against the wall.

“ Jake ,” I breathed, my voice shaky, caught somewhere between fear and pure, unfiltered desire.

“ Shhh ,” he murmured, his lips trailing down my neck, his teeth scraping against my skin. “Just let me have you.”

The head of his cock slid against me, teasing, slick with both our arousal. I gasped at the sensation, the ache between my legs growing unbearable. He rubbed himself against my clit, slow and deliberate, his eyes locked onto mine, burning with lust.

When he finally pushed inside me, I let out a choked moan, my nails digging into his shoulders as he filled me completely. The stretch was overwhelming, a mix of pleasure and pain that left me breathless. Jake’s hands gripped my hips, pulling me tighter against him as he began to move, his thrusts hard and unrelenting. Each one sent a wave of ecstasy crashing through me, drowning out every rational thought.

“ Fuck ,” he groaned, his voice hoarse as he buried himself deeper, his movements growing messier, more desperate. “You feel so perfect. Like you were made for this.”

I couldn’t speak, couldn’t think. All I could do was cling to him, my body trembling as the pleasure built to an unbearable peak. The heat between us was consuming, a fire that threatened to burn us alive. My moans mixed with his growls, the sound of our bodies colliding filling the dark corner of the club.

“ Jake ,” I whimpered, my voice breaking as I felt the tension in my core snap. My orgasm hit me like a freight train, my body convulsing around him as I cried out, lost in the haze of sensation.

“Yes. That’s it.” Jake rasped, his thrusts becoming erratic as he chased his own release. His grip on my hips tightened, and with one final, shuddering thrust, he groaned loudly, his body shaking against mine as he came undone.

We stayed there for a moment, tangled together, our breaths ragged and uneven. The weight of what just happened began to creep in, but I pushed it aside, letting myself linger in the intoxicating aftermath of pleasure.