•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

She was a monster,

a Gorgon,

generally described as a winged human female

with living venomous snakes in place of hair.

Those who gazed upon her face would turn to stone.

She's Medusa.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

I wasn't sure what I'd expect from a party, but it certainly wasn't this;

The Peterson's living room was packed with guests -- mostly from our school. They cheered and chatted away in excitement as the place gradually heated up with their boisterous activities.

Someone swaggered towards me. He bumped my shoulder before hitting the wall head-on and falling limp to the ground.

I take it back. This is definitely a party.

Hunter wasn't joking about making a thrilling event. I stirred my plastic cup and looked at the Apple juice. It had a weird orange color. I shrugged and took a sip. Not a second later, I spat it back into the cup.

It tasted like Vodka.

Who adds Vodka to apple juice?

I sighed and glanced around the room, trying to find Liam but there was no sign of him. Maybe he wasn't the party type.

I kept my search and found Dimitri playing pool with another classmate at the opposite end. A few people converged to take a look at the game. There was a score and they all cheered. Dimitri hooted louder than the others.

He was the game nerd in the school and is mostly claimed the winner for all of them. Hunter had tried to compete with him most at times but Dimitri keeps winning the bet.

I glanced somewhere else and caught something surprising.

On one of the sofas in the living room was Liam and beside him was Phyllis; Hunter's stalker. Her dark hair with pink strips fell down her shoulders. She gave a good laugh at something Liam said and pressed against his side, her pink skirt gradually riding up her thigh as they conversed in low tones.

Is she trying to get Hunter's attention by hanging out with the new kid?

She leaned closer and kissed Liam, her hands groped his chest, trying to get beneath the silk fabric. I couldn't look away.

It took a while before Liam returned the kiss. He cupped her cheek with a bare hand. And with every second, it became more intimate.

Where were his gloves?

He broke the kiss but Phyllis grabbed his shirt, needing more. Liam's green eyes snapped to mine and my heart skipped a beat. Phyllis was oblivious to it as all her concentration was on him. He smirked at me and I felt something grow warm in my chest before glancing away.

Where are the triplets?

I walked out of the hall and down the corridor. I turned to the kitchen and pushed the door open.

"You three are the most stubborn niños I've ever seen!" Aunt Callida's Mexican accent rang through the entire place. She had worn her yellow apron with her hands on her hips.

"What did I do?" Hunter touched his chest and pointed at his brothers. "They are the ones who got hurt not me."

"Whether hurt or not, none of you can be trusted to be on your own without getting in serious trouble." She looked at Pedro and Zion who lined up beside Hunter.

Zion still had his bandage around his forehead and Pedro's purple eye had turned darker than before. I guess she just found out about their bruises.

Hunter leaned away from the counter, "Don't worry Aunt Callida, I'm sure my brothers are perfectly capable of..."

"Silencio!"

Hunter immediately sealed his lips and Aunt Callida continued. "You're lucky I allowed a party after all these gruesome things I'm seeing."

She walked towards a drawer and brought out a first aid kit. Then she walked back to Zion who slowly unwrapped his bandage. Her eyes caught sight of me and she stopped.

Her expression from before disappeared as she smiled. "Mi Querido, Penelope. How are you doing?"

The triplets turned to me. Pedro gave a nice smile, Zion watched with one eyebrow raised, and Hunter as usual frowned like I was some flea meant to be killed.

"I'm fine, Aunt Callida." I smiled back.

"I think this is my queue to leave," Pedro said as he walked towards me.

"You stop right there young man."

Pedro instinctively froze in his tracks. His expression was a silent curse for his best attempt of evacuating the sinking ship. He turned around and spoke between his teeth. "Yes, Aunt Callida."

"Don't forget to apply ointment."

"Sure do, Aunt Callida." He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and urged me out of the kitchen within seconds. "That was a tough one. Don't you think so, Chips?"

"She just cares about you."

"I know that, Cherry."

We stepped back into the hall and I looked around. "Where's Gwen and the girl you were paired up with?"

He smiled as he maneuvered us through the sea of teenagers and young adults. "Emily couldn't come because she said something about little siblings at home. And Gwen is there."

He pointed to the empty sofa where Liam and Phyllis previously sat. Gwen was all by herself as she tapped busily on her phone, trying to pass the isolation. She pushed her glasses up and lightly straightened her ginger hair before moving back to her device.

"Excuse me for a moment," he spoke near my ear before heading towards Gwen.

He grabbed two plastic cups from a moving tray and plopped down next to her, keeping a reasonable distance between them. He didn't want to scare her off.

He raised one cup.

Gwen watched him with wide eyes and smiled. She timidly grabbed it and sipped. There was no reaction to the drink.

This means, she either doesn't have vodka in her cup, she's a good drinker or someone is trying to drug me.

Pedro begun his charm as he spoke energetically with her and Gwen's smile grew wider with each passing second.

I sighed and made my way up the stairs to one of the guest rooms, trying to get some privacy. A lot of things had changed since last night and I needed to find a way to help Zion. I turned the doorknob of one room and walked in. I froze at the situation before me.

Liam and Phyllis.

Phyllis sat on one of the tables with her legs wrapped around Liam's waist as they busily kissed.

Liam's shirt was gone. The muscles of his broad back ripples with movement as he indecently touched Phyllis in every possible way.

Wrong room.

I reversed in quick steps and knocked the door closed. Liam's head jerked up and faced me. I felt my heart plummet at his eyes. There were in slits, like a cat. His lips tilted into a smile. That only freaked me out; my hand fumbled behind me, searching for the doorknob.

"Penny, do you mind?" Phyllis looked irritated at my intrusion, her arms wounded around Liam's neck.

"You don't see it?" I breathed. Somehow I couldn't take my eyes off his.

Phyllis furrowed her eyebrows and looked between a smirking Liam and me. "See what?"

She can't see the thin slits? Am I going crazy?

I was speechless as those green predatory eyes bore into mine. I felt my heart race and my body heat up like last time. Then there was another; Something like an invisible string pulling me towards him, convincing my feet to make a step forward.

"Penny are you alright?" Phyllis asked. Liam's grin never faulted as he watched me.

I have to get out of here.

Finally grasping the doorknob, I rushed out of the room and found my way down the stairs -- two at a time. I was so focused on the steps that I bumped into someone and my drink spilled onto a white shirt.

"Oh my, I'm so sorry." When I looked up I paled.

An angry Hunter was fuming before me. His Amber eyes were filled with fury and resentment.

"I didn't mean--"

"What is your problem!" The place suddenly turned quiet and the music stopped as everyone turned to us.

I flinched from his harsh tone and found my footing. "I didn't see you--"

"Yeah? Then I guess everything you do is nothing but a mistake. I didn't invite you here and I don't want you here. Why don't you stay home like all the other freaks--"

I slapped him. The sound cracked in the air as Hunter's face snapped to the side, a red handprint on his cheek.

"You're a jerk!"

Utter silence filled the air, permitting only the sound of Hunter's harsh breaths. He looked back at me, his rage had intensified. For a moment his amber eyes glowed before dimming down. His hands clenched tightly to his side.

I called his bluff. "If you want to hit me, do it. I dare you."

He stood there for a second or two, his knuckles turning white from his clenched fist. "Get out." He passed me and walked up the stairs.

When he disappeared around the corner I became very much aware of my surroundings. I found myself breathing fast with everyone staring back at me. Zion and Pedro were mysteriously nowhere to be found. I blinked, trying to contain my emotions.

I won't let Hunter get to me.

The walls were suddenly closing in and I began hyperventilating.

I ran.

Through the crowd, out the door, and into the night. There was only one place I could go to, and it wasn't home.

Where do you think she's going then?

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