Chapter Twenty-Eight

Two days have gone by and you hadn't seen Jenna. Every moment that passed made you more anxious. You had only slept occasionally and spent much of your time searching, but as you had feared, it was a fruitless search.

After Don had asked you if you had seen her, the two of you went to talk to Quince—it seemed like the best thing to do. He always seemed like the right person to talk to for obvious reasons, but this time he didn't say anything that helped. "I can't say much now. Try not to worry," He had said. Not helpful at all. You worried.

"You should give it a rest," Dianna called to you as you opened each door in the room she was staying in.

"I'm starting to lose hope. I can't let that happen," you shook your head.

"That's part of why you need a break. If you search nonstop, your spirit is going to dampen. Sit with me," she commanded. You found yourself seeing the logic in her words, so you sat beside her.

"I just don't know where she could have gone," you spoke. You felt like you did nothing but repeat yourself.

"I wouldn't worry. She's always been elusive," Dianna patted your shoulder comfortingly. You sent her a tired smile of your own in return.

"I can't help but worry," you replied. And I seem to be the only one who worries at all... It was true. Anyone you had told was unconcerned. Had this level of absence really been normal for them? Why wasn't your concern enough to spark theirs? You felt like you were looking more than even Don was, and he was the one who was worried first!

You sighed. "Maybe I could use a distraction," you admitted out loud. "At this point, I don't feel like I'll make any more progress."

"That's it," Dianna praised you with a smile.

"When do you think it will be long enough for her to have broken the rule?" you asked.

"What rule?"

"The seven-day rule...you can't go seven days without seeing at least two other occupants," you stated. Dianna should know what I'm talking about, you thought, remembering what Jason had said about Dianna in the past.

"I thought you needed a distraction," Dianna answered without answering. It frustrated you, but she was right. It was just hard to want to distract yourself. It felt like giving up.

You weren't giving up, though, you were just taking a break. At the end of the day, the decision to face the rest of the household was up to her. Even if you searched until the end of time, you couldn't force her to come out of hiding.

You were just worried that she wasn't hiding. You were worried that something happened, and you just didn't know what. Remembering your first encounter with Jenna, you realized she was always straight to the point. It was complicated but she wanted to make it simple. Was she right about something else being the cause of all this? Something darker...?

You couldn't think like that. She was just hiding away.

"I feel like we haven't had a lot of time together," Dianna interrupted your thoughts.

"We say that every time we hang out," you smiled teasingly. "I think we spend time together. And we have good conversations."

"That's true enough," she conceded. "Tell me what you think about all this."

"About all what?"

"About all of anything. I want to know your thoughts," she explained curtly as if it should have been obvious. Your thoughts? Instantly you thought about Jenna again, but you decided that she might not be the best topic of conversation right now.

Other than that, you couldn't really think. You didn't have any thoughts in your brain—not coherent ones anyway. You were frazzled. "I want to be held by someone," you admitted without much thought. Comfort. I want to be comforted.

"That's easy enough," Dianna said, her confidence clearly taking a boost as she easily pulled you closer and let your head rest on her chest. You blushed a little with your face resting gently on her boobs. With a sigh of relaxation, you held her back and tried not to think about anything, especially not about what you were saying about your relationship with Dianna. It wasn't much, but maybe that didn't matter. If there's one thing that Ryo taught you, it was that everyone in the house kinda wanted to use you for their own comfort, so maybe it was ok for you to use them back a little.

Not much. Just a little. It's not unreasonable to want to be held.

"I feel strange," you confided. "I feel like somehow this house has stripped me of my identity, and yet has shown me who I really am."

"I think that's normal to feel after dying. A lot of who we are in life depends on the life happening around us. In life, I was powerful, but here and now I am just as base as the rest of you."

"Mm. You still seem pretty powerful to me," you mumbled.

"Some things don't change I suppose," she answered with a smirk playing on her lips. She lost a lot in her death, but she could never lose her aura.

Her energy was scary from afar, but now that you were so close, it almost felt safe. Like you were protected. Whatever made Jenna hide away would never get you since you have people watching over you. You giggled. Right now, you felt lucky.

"What are you laughing about?" Dianna inquired.

"I don't know," you mused. "I think that despite everything, I really think it's all going to be ok. Now that I'm taking a deep breath, I'm starting to think that there might not be any reason to worry."

"That's a good way to think," she said softly, her head falling back on the couch and her eyes closed. It isn't always that you can hold someone close for no reason. She felt lucky, too.

But that feeling fades. You were thinking about Jenna more, your brain looping in circles. "Hey, thanks for talking to me. I think I'm ready to start searching again," you spoke hastily as you tried to pull away.

You were stopped by her grip tightening. She was disappointed. Did she really have to force you? It wasn't like that was her preferred method. "You just sat down. Take some time for yourself."

"I think if I sit any longer, I'll get antsy," you explained. Being restrained by her grip only made it worse.

"This was not nearly long enough of a break. I'm concerned for your wellbeing," she argued.

"Well, luckily I'm already dead," you joked.

"I'm being serious."

"I am too," you shot back. You tried to hide the fact that you were beginning to feel nervous for another reason now. Dianna maneuvered her way over to now be caging your form to the couch. The position screamed of Ryo. The two are similar in some ways...

But that wasn't what was important right now. "Dianna," you said evenly. "Let me go."

"No," she frowned, her eyebrows angling. "I'm not going to let you go off and chase Jenna nonstop." With that, you decided that you were just going to have to wait. You took a deep breath in and did nothing, waiting for her to react.

Too much time passed. You were both just sitting there, staring at each other. Weren't her arms getting tired? How was she still doing this? "Let me distract you," she spoke. She seemed to rarely speak in questions, and mostly in demands. It was probably a trait she got from her position in life, you realized.

"You are distracting me," you replied. The words were snappy but your tone was soft. You weren't sure what she was getting at. She was curious though, about what made everyone else want you so badly. She could understand her own feelings, but what was it about touching you that was so fascinating to so many of the residents here?

She didn't like that they were so interested. She was interested. You were starting to feel tense with her still staring at you while your own eyes shifted around the room. You could almost anticipate her leaning in and deciding to kiss you. How were you going to react? Kissing was still exciting and close, but your mind was occupied with other things.

In contrast, her mind was just filled with you. Almost cruelly so, five people in the house loved you to pieces and you weren't really sure what to do with that. You didn't even realize the extent of their affections yet, as they were just starting to realize it themselves, but you knew something was going on. "You're alluring, (y/n)," she spoke. You pouted when your face flushed and mumbled a 'thanks.' Her hands slid from your shoulders to hold your face in a pose you were familiar with, and, to confirm your suspicions, she leaned into you and kissed you. It was a surprisingly gentle kiss from the woman, you even found yourself relaxing into her somewhat. Not fully...just somewhat. She was soft and held you securely—you almost wanted to just go along with it. You couldn't do that, though. Not now.

She pulled away for you both to breathe. "I understand," she spoke with her eyes alert and analyzing.

"You understand...what?" you replied.

"Your flushed face and soft lips. I understand why everyone is after you. You're a catch... So sweet and very cute."

"Oh," was all you could manage in reply. How did you get in this situation? Was everyone here...sure? Were you really so great? You didn't know what to say. "I think I want to look for Jenna more," you said, feeling lost again.

"Come spend time with me again soon," she requested before moving to let you leave. You nodded once with little commitment and left the room. Dianna was strange—even her affectionate side (which should be warm) left you with chills.

You left—glad that she didn't resist your departure—and headed to where you thought Quince might be. You wanted his help, and you wanted to ignore whatever festering affections lied within the people in the House. You knocked on his door.

"(y/n)?" He answered as he opened his door. He seemed as if he wasn't expecting you.

"Yeah, I was wondering if you could help me for a little bit," you requested, as you nervously scratched the back of your neck. "I've been looking for Jenna, and I can't seem to find even a clue. I want to respect the privacy of her room, so I didn't go through her things, but she's definitely not in there, either." You were stressed, but glad to see him as usual. He always seemed to radiate peace on some level.

Although, in your memories, you recalled Jenna disagreeing with you on that. Why? He was so kind and calm—so unlike many of the people here. Not that you disliked everyone else—but you appreciated him.

"Here—why don't you come in here?" he said, opening the door wider. You hesitated. You really wanted to keep looking. You went in anyway, figuring that he probably had a reason.

"You need to stop looking for her," Quince spoke after closing the door. You tried to analyze his expression, but it was difficult. He seemed tense and cautious—while trying to also be comforting. You wouldn't say he looked angry. Maybe concerned?

"I can't," you denied. "I'm too worried about her. What if she breaks the seven-day rule?"

"She won't," he dismissed. He placed a hand on your cheek as if to hold you steady, and you unconsciously immediately leaned into him despite everything. "You don't need to worry so much."

"I can't help it," you disagreed again. He didn't like your disobedience here, but his heart also swelled with affection at how much you cared for your friends. At how much you cared in general. He wasn't sure what to do at this point.

He didn't regret what he had to do—what happened—but he didn't like seeing you so upset. he desperately tried to ignore the darker thoughts in his mind, but it was hard. "be patient," he reminded himself. There's no reason to lock you in his room. There's no reason to restrain you in any way. He wanted to...but more than that, he wanted to succeed this time. He wanted you to love him back.

"I wish I could tell you more, but the higherups are still discussing the situation," he spoke.

"Wait, so you know what happened to her?" you asked.

"I know...vaguely. I'm being honest when I say I wish I could tell you, but all I can say is that you don't have to look anymore," he spoke. He had hoped that would calm you, but he was wrong. You assumed the worst.

You began to cry, "is she okay? Did she die...again?"

Quince held you to his chest as you cried. "I'll tell you when I can," he said, squeezing tighter. "Just wait it out for a bit."

You were thankful for his comfort, but you knew there was no way you could stop looking for her.

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