Javon had been your friend for as long as you could reemember. The two of you had always been inseparable, and his family had long treated you like one of their own. There was no pretension between you and them, no feeling of being an outsider—whenever you were at his house, it felt as if you were right where you were meant to be. The walls of his room had seen countless hours of laughter, deep conversations, and lazy afternoons, and today, it was no different.

It was one of those slow, laid-back afternoons where nothing specific going on there, but somehow everything felt right. Javon was sprawled out on his bed, his body half-covered by the sheets, casually tossing a basketball in the air and catching it again, the rhythmic sound of the ball hitting the floor breaking the quiet around you. Meanwhile, you were sitting cross-legged on the floor, scrolling through your phone, your mind wandering between the latest social media updates and random thoughts that didn’t quite lead anywhere.

The sunlight filtered through the window, casting a warm, golden glow across the room, making the space feel even more relaxed, more comfortable. Every now and then, you’d look up to see Javon’s lazy smile, the kind of smile that could easily brighten the room without him even trying. It was contagious, and you found yourself smiling back without even thinking about it.

“You good down there?” Javon asked, breaking the comfortable silence, his voice a mix of curiosity and playfulness. He glanced at you from his position on the bed, the basketball still in his hand. “I swear, you’re the only person who can just sit there on the floor and look perfectly content. Come on, get up here,” he said, his tone light and teasing as he patted the spot next to him on the bed. “You can’t just sit on the floor forever, can you?”

Javon shrugged dramatically, smirking. “I mean, I’m just saying, but there’s a whole bed up here. Might be more comfortable.”