About eight years ago...

Holding her breath, Sin-Ni opened the door.

"I'm- I'm done changing," she announced.

Her boyfriend was waiting outside the room. Under the setting sun, his tanned skin was a shade of golden sand, a beautiful contrast to his dark, curly hair. When his dark eyes fell on her, they widened.

"Oh, w- wow," Imran croaked.

Sin-Ni tugged at the bottom seams of her dress. "What do you think?"

Imran attempted to clear his throat, but it came across more like a hacking cough. "Uh, I like." He patted her sleeves. "Sequins. Pretty."

Sin-Ni chuckled. "Thanks. It's... It's a little tight. I haven't worn it in years. I must have grown a bit fatter..."

"Don't say that," Imran chided, tapping her nose in feigned anger. "You're perfect."

Sin-Ni's cheeks burned. She tried her best to suppress her smile as she rubbed her nose.

"I hope this is good enough for the club," she mumbled.

"More than good enough. This is too beautiful. You are too beautiful. Guys will be clamoring for you." Imran placed a fist on his forehead. "Ah, maybe I shouldn't let you go after all."

Sin-Ni could not help but laugh. "What, you don't trust me?"

"I do... I just don't trust other guys."

Sin-Ni chuckled again. "I'll be fine. Claudia will be with me. Her birthday was in January so she's been there many times already." Her lips curled upward. "And then once you're eighteen, we can go together."

Imran's smile mirrored hers. "I can't wait."

Sin-Ni's phone buzzed, and she scanned the screen. "Ah, Claudia is ready. I should leave now."

"You sure you don't want me to send you there?"

"And then have you go all the way back home?" Sin-Ni shook her head. "It's okay, Imran, you don't even live near Clarke Quay. I'll just see you tomorrow."

Imran sighed. "Alright. Take care, okay?"

Sin-Ni reached for a quick kiss before hopping out of the room. She bid her mother goodbye, grabbed her clutch bag, and made her way to the nightclub.

Her breaths were shaky as she walked. This was her first time going to a nightclub, and she was as excited as she was nervous.

Claudia said that she had brought a group of friends with her, one of which was someone she was trying to get together with. Sin-Ni hoped that they were a friendly bunch.

The sun had set by the time Sin-Ni got to Clarke Quay, but the bars and nightclubs lining the Singapore River emitted more than enough light to make up for it.

She spotted her friend at the pre-discussed location. Claudia was clad in a revealing camisole dress, huddling with a group of boys and giggling as though she was already drunk. Sin-Ni clutched her purse close to her chest as she squeezed past crowds of party-goers to approach the group.

"Sin-Sin!"

Claudia's face lit up when she spotted her. She ran towards Sin-Ni, hooked her arms around hers, and began introducing her to the boys. There were four of them, but they had similar fashion sense (and thus looked alike) and their names went by with a blur.

Sin-Ni gave them all an amicable wave before leaning into Claudia's ears and whispered, "So, which one is it?"

A high-pitched giggle was the first reply, followed by a subtle gesture towards a burly man. "Dylan. That one."

Sin-Ni did not get to observe the boyfriend-candidate further before Claudia dragged her, and the rest of the gang, towards the club.

Inside, the vibrance of the city lights was replaced by strobing neon lights. Everywhere was jam-packed, and the only area that was not overflowing with people was the round tables barricaded behind elevated platforms. Sin-Ni could smell the alcohol and sweat even from the entrance.

Sensing her discomfort, Claudia gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, I made sure to get VIP seats for the first-timer."

Indeed, much to Sin-Ni's relief, Claudia led the group towards an empty round table that appeared to be reserved for them. A bottle of wine sat inside an ice bucket, along with six wine glasses.

Letting out a small sigh, Sin-Ni settled onto the cushioned seats. At that point, Claudia had chosen to abandon her for Dylan. Two other boys opted for the crowded dance floor instead, leaving Sin-Ni with the only other person who stayed behind.

He was a tall, older-looking boy with dark slicked-back hair. His arms draped on the cushions as he leaned backward and gave Sin-Ni a gleeful smile. Even with the dim lighting, Sin-Ni could see a glint in his eyes that was off-putting in a way she could not quite describe.

"Hello," she said.

He smiled in response. "You're Claudia's friend, so I'm guessing you go to Raffles*?"

That was a strange first question to ask. Sin-Ni nodded before asking, "What about you?"

"I'm not as smart as all of you," the boy drawled, brushing his hair back. "I couldn't get into a Junior College."

Another strange statement to tell a stranger. "I'm- I'm sorry, but what's your name again?"

The boy's eyebrows twitched before he widened his grin. "Zi-Han. Zhao Zi-Han."

"I'm Sin-Ni. You can call me Sin if you want."

"What about Sin-Sin? Claudia was calling you that." Zi-Han asked. His right eyelid lowered in what seemed to be an attempt of a wink, and it sent shivers down her spine.

"Erm, yeah, sure," she muttered, "if- if you want."

Gulping, she decided to reach for the bottle of wine, but a clammy hand rested on her hand instead.

"I'll do it." Zi-Han was smiling so much his gums were showing. "A lady shouldn't be the one handling her drinks."

Sin-Ni had never heard of this rule in her life, but she was too unsettled by this boy to dispute. "Uh, sure, but just a little bit, please. I... I don't drink a lot."

"Oh, of course, small girls like you can't drink much anyway." Zi-Han's beady eyes never left her as he poured her a glass of wine and handed it to her. "I saw your dance performance yesterday, by the way."

Sin-Ni almost spat out the wine on her dress.

"Wait, w- what?" she stammered.

The school held an event yesterday, and Sin-Ni, as the dance club president, performed a dance routine for it. It was an event that she had thought only fellow schoolmates would go to. But to think that Zi-Han, a boy who did not go to Raffles, had also gone to watch was... mind-boggling, at best.

"Yeah. You were really beautiful, Sin-Sin."

Sin-Ni's heart rate shot up. "Oh, uh, t- thank you for coming, I guess."

Her voice was a whisper, but with the way Zi-Han was leaning over, she was sure he heard every word.

"Yeah, people were all gushing about you, you know?" Zi-Han continued, inching closer and closer. "President of the dance club that clinches the SYF* gold medal every year. Top scorer in not just any school, but in Raffles Institution, the number one junior college in Singapore. And I heard you even got accepted into universities all around the world."

The small shiver that she had been feeling exploded all over her body like an earthquake. She clenched her hand around the wine glass to stop it from shaking.

"How do you know..."

"I told you, people have been gushing about you all night." He quickly raised his hands in a surrender position. "I swear I didn't stalk you or anything, if that's what you're wondering."

That did not put her mind at ease one bit. Before her mind spiraled out of control, Claudia saved her by yelling from the other end of the table.

"Sin-Sin!" she shouted as she tugged at Dylan's sleeve. "Tell him that I'm good at maths! He doesn't believe me!"

"Hey, hey, I didn't say I didn't believe you," Dylan protested in between fits of laughter, "but you can't even do multiplications in your head!"

"I don't need to! We're allowed calculators in exams!" Claudia was pouting so hard her lips had become thrice the usual size. "Sin-Sin, tell him! I even tutored Imran that last time, remember? I'm very good."

"You are very good," Sin-Ni agreed. "And you saved my life. I can't be spending all my time tutoring my boyfriend, you know? I'll go crazy!"

They chortled before going back to their merry little world.

"Imran?" Zi-Han's nasal voice sneaked beside her, as a grim reminder that he was still there, uncomfortably close, and next to her. "You have a boyfriend, and his name is Imran?"

"Y- Yeah, you know him or something?"

His face contorted into a bizarre expression. "He's Malay?"

"Well, yeah." Sin-Ni had thought that this was quite obvious with the name.

"Why?"

She blinked. "Why, what?"

"Why would you date a Malay?" Zi-Han repeated matter-of-factly. "You do know they will convert you to Islamism if you marry them, right?"

Sin-Ni almost dropped her glass of wine as blood rushed into her cheeks. That was it. She was done with this person, once and for all.

"Okay, you are rude as hell," she snapped. "Firstly, it's absolutely none of your business who I date, or why. You're being very intrusive and I don't appreciate that. And secondly, I don't like the tone you're using when you talk about Imran, as if you know anything about him beyond his race. I'm sorry, but I'm done talking to you."

With that, Sin-Ni slammed the wine glass down and stormed out of the VIP area. Even being squished at the dreaded dance floor was better than being next to that guy.

And that was when it first hit her.

A tingling feeling in her ears. It was as though someone was calling out to her from across the club, past the mob of drunk dancers, cutting through the blaring EDM that filled the entire club. Her eardrums stung, her head throbbed, her chest constricted.

What... the hell?

Sin-Ni staggered on the spot as the world spun around her. She wasn't sure if this was due to the strobing lights, or the sudden claustrophobia from being at the dance floor, or the unbearably loud music, or perhaps... the wine?

"Sin-Sin, are you okay?"

She lifted her head to see a frowning Claudia.

"You look... sick."

"Y- Yeah, I don't feel too good, sorry Claudia, but I- I may have to leave now."

Claudia's eyes darted to the VIP table; a tinge of disappointment clouded over them. "Aw, but we just got here too..."

"It's okay, Claudia, have... have fun with Dylan. I'll go back home by myself."

"No, you're not feeling well, I should follow you..."

"No, stay," Sin-Ni insisted. "Don't worry about me."

"You sure?" Claudia asked, deepening her frown.

Sin-Ni nodded, trying her best to stand still and not throw up. She gave Claudia a few pats on the arms before leaving as quickly as she could.

It was not too late into the night. There were still hordes of people roaming about Clarke Quay, although Sin-Ni's vision was so blurry that they all looked like shapeless blobs. But it was okay. It was safe. And it was not too late into the night.

She managed to stumble her way to the train station, into the train, and towards the station near her house. The journey was a haze; all she could think about was the pounding ache in her head and the ringing in her ears. There were no more crowds, no more music, no more blinding lights, so why did it still hurt? Maybe she just needed to sleep, maybe this would all be solved after a dream...

The moment she stepped out of the train station, however, she realized that she made a terrible, terrible mistake.

It was not too late into the night for a place like Clarke Quay, but it was way too late for her neighborhood. Along Holland Road, the streets next to the train station were dark and empty, while the roads were clear of cars. And it seemed that no one else had alighted the train at this stop other than her—her, and Zhao Zi-Han.

The lanky boy was standing behind her, his usual disturbing smirk splashed across his face.

Had he been following her this entire time?

"H- Hey, why are you here?" she croaked.

"I decided to leave too." He shrugged. "It was getting boring without you."

"Oh, and you- you live around here too?"

"Yeah." His almond-shaped eyes narrowed. "What? You don't think I'm rich enough to be living in this area?"

"Whatever," Sin-Ni mumbled; she could barely hear herself from the thumping of her heart. "I'm very tired, I need to go."

She turned, and a wave of nausea hit her. Her head spun even more, while her ears clogged up as though she was stuck underwater.

"Hey, how about letting me bring you home instead."

"It's- It's okay, I'll call the cab." Shakily, she tried to take her phone from her purse, but Zi-Han's clammy hands just had to touch her.

"There's no need for that." The guy—unabashedly—winked at her again. "I'll take you home instead."

Zi-Han's grip on her wrist exacerbated the pain in her head while his aggravating voice burned into her ears. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she burst into a frenzy.

"Stay away from me, you pervert!" she screamed, pulling her hand away from Zi-Han so vigorously that she fell over backward.

"Pervert?" Zi-Han's lips trembled. His creepy smile vanished, a look of pure contempt took over. "You think I'm a pervert? I was nothing but nice to you!"

His hands found Sin-Ni's again. Kneeling next to her, he yanked both of her arms up with just one hand; Sin-Ni yelped in pain.

"You think you're better than me?" he roared. "Just because you're pretty, and you go to an elite school, you think you're better than guys like me?"

Sin-Ni wanted to scream for help, but Zi-Han clasped his other hand over her mouth, muffling her cries.

"I cannot stand girls like you, all high and mighty, looking down on people like me, and thinking that a gentleman like me is a pervert? I followed you home to keep you safe and I get this? I knew you were just a stupid elitist whore!"

His body pressed down on her, crushing her, suffocating her. Every part of Sin-Ni's senses was attacked by Zi-Han, by her anxiety, by the pain whirring inside of her.

"I'll fucking show you who's the real elite, you bitch!"

The back of her head slammed onto the ground, and everything faded.

She could no longer see Zi-Han, or hear him, or smell his nasty cologne, or feel his hands on her. Instead, she found herself in a dark void. And inside the darkness, she heard a low, raspy voice calling out to her.

"Come to me!"

The voice was so deafening that it cut through the ringing in her ears.

She blinked and her vision cleared. But instead of the usual view of Holland Road, she saw a grand hall. Stone pillars decorated with gold patterns erected the sky-high ceiling; the stained glass windows glistened in mellow colors from the moonlight.

"Come!" the voice boomed again. "Come to me!"

Sin-Ni blinked again. This time, she noticed the floor. Strange patterns were drawn all over the marble, while dozens—no, hundreds—of people were laying on it, tied up and gagged. They were crying, screaming, struggling against their shackles, and shaking with fear.

Before she could make out the situation, she felt something... all over her. A vulnerable coolness and an invading warmth. Zhao Zi-Han. Bile rose to her throat. Her mind went blank.

"Come to me, and I will give you powers you'd never dream of having!"

Frantic and frightened, Sin-Ni reached her hand out.

"Take me!" she pleaded to the voice. "Take me with you!"