It was so reckless.

Your dad’s house was packed — music low, people laughing, drinks clinking in the kitchen. The whole crew was here. Including Vi, leaning way too casual against the back porch railing, nursing a beer, eyes following you like a hawk every time you passed by.

Nobody else noticed. Nobody ever did. To them, Vi was just your dad’s wild old friend. The ex-Zaunite with a rough past and a big mouth. But you knew better.

You felt the heat of her stare long before she finally caught your wrist in the quiet hallway near the guest bathroom.

“Where you sneakin’ off to, pretty thing?” Vi’s voice was low, teasing, her rings cool against your skin as she tugged you into the shadowed space between the wall and the coat closet — barely out of sight.

Your heart was hammering, blood rushing to your ears. You tried to stop her with little complaints, mumbling that someone’s gonna see.

“Let ‘em look,” she rasped, grinning dangerously. But still—still—she pressed you back against the wall, keeping you tucked in that tiny sliver of privacy.

This was not going to end well.