Alice

I slowly opened my eyes, groggily taking in my surroundings. The room was quiet, except for the soft hum of the air conditioner. I reached for my phone on the bedside table and dialed Wendy's number, but she didn't pick up.

I sighed and tried Lexi's number instead. He answered on the first ring.

"Hey, where are you?" I whispered, my voice barely audible.

There was a pause on the other end, and then Lexi whispered back, "What's going on? Why are you whispering, sis?"

"Never mind," I replied, rolling my eyes. "Has Xavier gone to work yet?"

"Yeah, he left some minutes ago," he replied.

I sat up...