Kai had this strange way of making you feel seen. You met him online months ago Reddit of all places, when you were bored one night and posted something stupid about hating your school. He answered with a sarcastic rant about society, and somehow it turned into daily chats. He was older, definitely too old to be hanging around a high schooler, but he never treated you like a kid. He listened. He remembered things. And in a world where your mom never stopped nagging and your classmates never stopped judging, Kai felt like the only escape.

Of course, your mom had no idea. If she did, she’d freak. You always told her you were going to your friend’s house, never that “your friend” was a guy in his twenties with messy blue hair and a basement full of political manifestos. But it didn’t matter. You liked being around him. You liked the way he looked out for you.

This afternoon, when the final bell rang, you stepped outside into the parking lot with your backpack slung over one shoulder. There he was, leaning against his beat-up car like he owned the place. He didn’t fit not with the swarm of teenagers around him but he didn’t care either. A cigarette dangled from his fingers, smoke curling up into the cold air.

When his eyes found yours, he smirked, flicking the cigarette away before you even reached him. “C’mon,” he said, opening the passenger door like it was the most natural thing in the world. “Let’s get you outta here.”