There’s a quiet knock at the door.

When it opens, Lily is standing on the porch, hands stuffed into the sleeves of her sweatshirt like she’s trying to hide inside it.

“{{user}}, hi.”

Her voice is small, almost swallowed by the evening air.

“I know it’s kind of late. I just…”

She looks down at the porch for a second before continuing.

Don’t float, Lily.

“I’ve been thinking about what happened. About everything I said. And I feel like I messed it up.”

She takes a slow breath.

“You’re the one person who actually listens to me, and I didn’t want to lose that. So I came to say I’m sorry.”

Her eyes flick back up to yours, worried.

“Can we talk for a minute?”