I lasted three weeks before I pushed open the greasy door and stepped into the Dive bar. Bob glanced up from behind the bar and gave me a nod, like he was expecting me. Daniel, Maple, and Jason all sat in the corner booth. Nothing played on the jukebox. Maple waved at me and instead of heading directly to the bar, I went over to the booth. There was enough room to sit down next to him at the round wooden table. Jason had gained a level, he was now level 9.

"Hey guys," I said. "Congrats on the dive."

"Alex! I thought you weren't coming back," said Jason. His blue eyes stared right at me, then he suddenly glanced away. "Thanks."

"Well, Daniel invited me to stop by after I saw him at the gym." I flashed Daniel a smile. He was a good guy, and I wondered how close he'd been to my dad. The day after my first dive, I’d checked out the card hed given me and stopped by the gym. He'd given me a tour and a routine to complete on my own. My whole body ached afterward, but my morning run usually took care of the soreness. When I got one-on-one time with Daniel, we spent it on combat training. With a hammer.

"Oh, you're working out at Daniels. Does that mean you’re going to dive again?" asked Maple. "I don't think any of us had been aiming to Dive tonight." He glanced at Jason who shook his head.

I hesitated before answering.

"Don't put pressure on her," growled Daniel. "Divers move at their own pace. You need to know..."

"...You can complete the dive before you go in," said both of the guys. Daniel had stopped talking when they took up the rest of the sentence.

I chuckled at all of them. They had to be close, or at least spend way too much time together. Given that Daniel was old enough to be their dad, in any other situation it'd be strange. But here, Daniel knew what he was doing and tried to teach them how to stay alive.

"Don't worry, you'll learn all of his sayings," said Maple. "They might be corny, but he hasn't been wrong yet." Maple had a soft drink in front of him in a red plastic cup with a black straw.

"Jason, your wings are up," called Bob from behind the bar.

Daniel got up to let Jason get out of the booth. Jason shot me a smile. "Can I get you something?"

"A soda would be good," I said, before he headed to the bar.

Daniel slid into the booth, moving next to Maple to give Jason plenty of room when he got back. He leaned forward and smiled. "You might want to check out the songs before you decide. There are a few new ones in the stack."

My gaze flickered over to the Jukebox, which I'd been ignoring. As long as I hadn't thought about it, I wouldn't think of the thrill of running through the jungle. Or the rush of knowing I'd won. The ten grand in my bank account had been really nice. It’d paid for my tuition for the semester, with enough left to put a bunch into savings. I might even get a car in a couple of months.

Jason came back to the table carrying a few red plastic baskets. He set down a large one filled to the brim with wings, another had crinkly fries with ketchup, and the last onion rings with what looked like ranch.

"Oh, please say those are to share?" I asked. I loved onion rings, especially with ranch.

Stolen novel; please report.

Jason gave me a double take. "Yeah, Bob made extra. Be right back." This time when he came back from the bar it was with drinks for everyone. He set a large soda in front of me with a straw. "That was weird. Bob had the onion rings setting out and said they were for you."

"They’re my favorite," I said, grabbing one and dunking it in the ranch. I took a big bite with glee.

Daniel glared at the bar, which drew my attention. A tabby cat sat on the bar.

"Is that a cat?" I asked Maple softly.

His head snapped to the bar, and his eyes widened. "Oh man, the cat is here.”

Jason turned to look as well. "Too bad I'm not diving." He saw the questioning look I had. "The cat is good luck."

Daniel scowled. "The cat has been here during both good and bad dives."

Jason rolled his eyes and grabbed a wing, dipping it in blue cheese before taking a bite.

I grabbed another onion ring and demolished it before taking a sip of the soda. It was a lemon-lime variety that I preferred. First the onion rings, and now the soda. Talk about coincidences. I glanced around from my spot to see if there were any other Divers in the bar, but we seemed to be it.

The table went quiet as Maple ate the fries. Daniel sipped on a drink in a glass. It smelled smoky from where I sat. Once my onion rings were gone, I wiped my hands on my jeans and stood up. "I'm gonna see what songs are in the stack. Just curious, you understand."

I could feel eyes on me as I turned toward the jukebox. There were a few songs way too high: a level 6, and two level 5s. The hair on the back of my neck rose when I flipped to the next song.

White Winter Hymn by Pentatonix.

"That's the one," said someone over my shoulder.

I snapped my head around to see who was speaking. Yet, no one was there. The guys were all in the booth talking softly, none even looking in my direction. Bob set a glass on the counter next to the cat, who sniffed it. I turned back to the Jukebox and moved to the next song. By the time I got to the end of the stack, I was humming it.

Finally, I flipped back to it. I wanted to dive this song. I needed to, and I couldn't explain why. Without stopping to think, I headed to the bar.

Bob glanced up as I approached. "Alex, whiskey on the rocks?"

"Yes, please."

He set a glass down that already had a square ice cube in it. Bob poured an amber liquid over it, then capped the bottle and put it away. He set the drink in front of me, paused, then added a token. The metal token stood out on the wooden bar top and I couldn't look away.

"Meow."

My head snapped up to the cat who’d spoken. I swore he’d said something. The tabby's fur was a coat of golden caramel, and it stirred. The animal’s gaze was unwavering. I blinked first, then grabbed the cool token. A chill spread to my fingertips as I held it.

"Hey Alex, you diving?" asked Maple.

"Yeah, there’s a song I gotta do." I wasn't sure how I suddenly stood back in front of the Jukebox, but there I was sliding the token into the slot. The clang as it hit other tokens sounded loud, louder than it should have. I looked over the song once more with a nod. This song I could do. I smiled.

The cat meowed again.

"Maple, how about you let Alex use your jacket?" asked Bob. He glared at the cat as he spoke.

Everyone at the table froze, then Maple jumped up, grabbing his jacket out of the booth. "Here, take it."

I grabbed the coat as he tossed it at me, then hit select. The song started playing in the bar and Jason froze. A look of horror came over his face as I slid the black wool jacket on over my t-shirt. It had been chilly earlier, but I hadn't thought to grab a coat. I’d planned to be back at my apartment before the temperature dropped this evening.

"That song's level three," whispered Jason. Despite the whisper,I heard him across the room. That wasn't right, it was level two…but this time when I looked at it, it clearly said Third Press.

The counter started at 2 minutes and 47 seconds. The first line of the song filled the bar. I licked my lips and turned to face the bathroom. I couldn't look at any of them. Somehow, I'd selected a song higher level than me.

I could do this. That voice had urged me to select it for a reason, just like the first one. I strode across the room and pushed open the bathroom door. An icy wind whipped through the bar, then I was swallowed by bright whiteness.