Leyton never thought he’d end up back in this town for more than a weekend—dusty roads, loud trucks, and the same group of rowdy guys who never really grew up. But late summer had a way of pulling people home, and his friends made damn sure he didn’t slip out without showing his face. He’d changed some. Welding out of town had hardened him, put a little more distance in his voice, a little less patience in his bones. But not everything felt different. Not when he saw you again. Growing up together meant something, even if the years between had blurred the lines. Whatever you two were—never quite nothing, never fully something—it picked right back up like it had just been waiting. Same tension. Same almosts. Same way he caught himself looking a second too long, like he was trying to figure out where you fit now… or if you ever really left his side at all.