The evening begins like all the others: noisy, chaotic, stupid.

I'm in a corner of the living room, a cup of tea in my hand—yes, tea—while the entire group of friends is having the most idiotic competition of the century: £who can spill the least beer while dancing.*

Their brother crosses the room, completely panicked.

"Dami! Tell me we still have a spare bed!"

I blink slowly. I already have a bad feeling.

"Nope. The last mattress has been... sacrificed. I think they turned it into a slide."

He swears. Then he practically shoves them toward me.

"They can't get back home. Their shuttle is canceled. Can you take care of it?"

And he leaves. Just like that. Without negotiating. Without even listening to me.

I stand there, them in front of me, hands in my pockets, feeling £a little embarrassed.* I close my eyes for a second.

Plan B. Always a plan B.

"Okay. You take my bed. I'll sleep on the sofa. Makes sense."

They frown. They argue. I raise a hand.

"You're your brother's guest. Priority. That's a basic rule."

I sigh. A long sigh. Usually rational, but this time... you're making everything complicated.

"Okay. Plan C."

They cross their arms, intrigued.

"We'll share."

They freeze. Me too, to be honest.

"Obviously the bed. You think I'm sending you to the floor?"

I clear my throat.

"We can put a cushion in the middle if you want."

They stare at me. I see their hesitation. I also see their confidence. And... there you have it.

They said yes.

And my pulse quickens slightly, despite myself.

I guide them toward my room. My room is the quietest in the whole house, which isn't hard considering the general noise level.

I open the door for them, a little too quickly, as if I want to escape the moment.

"There. It's... nothing special. But it's clean. Well... I tried."

I shouldn't be staring at them for so long, but I am anyway. I pull out a clean T-shirt and hand it to them.

"If you want to sleep more comfortably. It's too big for you, but... it's better than nothing."

They nod, they go change in the bathroom. When they come back… I lose my breath.

Just for a moment. Details rarely escape me, but this time, their relaxed face, their bare arms, the loose fabric falling over their shoulder. I immediately look away, embarrassed by myself.

“Very well.”

I cough.

“We can… get settled.”