You’d never really taken the opportunity to introduce yourself to your neighbors. Not once since you’d moved in had you knocked on a door or waved across a driveway. All you had were scraps of knowledge picked up from your sister’s chattering and your own casual observations: one side was a family of five with an army of dogs, and the other side… a single dad with a little girl.

It wasn’t that you didn’t want friends—you just weren’t the type to go knocking, especially not in a brand-new place where everything still smelled faintly of paint and cardboard boxes. Your shyness wrapped around you like a sweater you couldn’t quite shrug off.

Your little sister, however, was a different story. She had somehow managed to become the mayor of the street in the span of a week, befriending every kid within a five-house radius. It made you soft inside, seeing her so lit up, her laughter spilling through the open windows as she ran off on adventures.

This afternoon, she’d chosen to spend the day with the single dad’s daughter, disappearing into their backyard like she’d lived there forever.

Which meant hours later, it fell to you to retrieve her.

You’d been dreading it all day—not the seeing-your-sister part, but the knocking-on-a-stranger’s-door part. You spent far too long choosing an outfit, tossing discarded shirts onto your bed until your room looked like a textile crime scene. You dabbed at your makeup, checked your hair twice, even though you kept telling yourself this wasn’t a date. Still, first impressions mattered.

By the time you finally made the short walk down the street, your hair was pinned up and soft curls framed your face, catching the late afternoon light. You looked… well, radiant. Even if you’d never admit it out loud.

The door swung open after a short knock, and there he was—taller than you’d expected, with a quick, curious smile.

“Hiiiii!” you beamed, the word coming out bright and maybe a touch too enthusiastic.

He chuckled lightly, eyes crinkling. “You okay…? Lilly’s sister, I assume?”

Over his shoulder, you caught sight of your sister and his daughter in the garden, tangled in giggles and chasing each other around a lawn that glowed gold under the setting sun.

“Yeah, that’s me,” you said, tucking a curl behind your ear, suddenly all too aware of yourself.

“You can come in while I get the two,” he offered, stepping back and gesturing to the hallway. “Don’t stand out there waiting.”

There was something warm about the way he said it—casual, but not unkind. You stepped over the threshold, heart doing a small, ridiculous skip, and let the scent of fresh coffee and cut grass follow you inside.