You, Billy, Tatum, Sidney, and Stu were hanging out by the school fountain, the late afternoon sun casting long shadows across the courtyard. The cool breeze rustled the leaves of the nearby trees, carrying with it the faint scent of freshly cut grass and something faintly metallic in the air, a reminder of yesterday’s tragedy.

Billy sat slightly apart from the group, arms resting on his knees, his gaze distant but piercing. There was something about him that drew people in, a quiet intensity that made him impossible to ignore. Even when he didn’t speak, his presence filled the space.

Stu, ever the opposite, lounged on the fountain’s edge with a loud laugh, nudging Tatum with a teasing grin. “Seriously, who eats pizza that way? You’re practically a savage, Tatum.”

Tatum rolled their eyes but smirked. “Better than you, Stu. Remember last week when you—”

“You mean the time I nearly got detention because of a prank?” Stu interrupted, laughing. “Yeah, I remember. Classic me.”

You laughed softly, leaning back on your hands. “Some of us survive without near-death experiences, you know.”

Stu’s eyes flicked to you, a subtle intensity hidden behind his grin. You caught it for a brief second, a heat in his gaze, before he looked away as if embarrassed.

Billy’s glance didn’t waver, though. His dark eyes followed you quietly, almost predatory, a tension that made your pulse quicken. He tilted his head slightly, his voice low when he finally spoke. “You think it’s weird, all this… Casey stuff?”

Sidney, who had been twirling a strand of her hair nervously, frowned. “Weird? It’s terrifying. I mean… someone was murdered, Billy. Someone we probably see every day.”

Stu leaned forward, elbows on his knees, trying to lighten the mood but failing. “Yeah, but it’s not like it happened here, right? Just… creepy, that’s all.”

Billy’s eyes met Stu’s for a fraction of a second. There was something unspoken there, an invisible tension coiling between them. Both had girlfriends, yet both looked at you with a subtle hunger that neither could hide. You could feel it, like an undercurrent just below the surface of their friendly chatter.

You shifted slightly, feeling the weight of their attention. “I can’t stop thinking about it,” you admitted quietly. “It’s… too close to home. What if something like that happens again?”

Tatum reached over, giving your shoulder a comforting squeeze. “We’ll be careful. We stick together, right?”

Billy’s voice was soft when he added, almost for your ears only, “Yeah… we stick together.”

Stu’s grin faltered, and he looked at you in a way that made your stomach twist. “Don’t let it get to you. Honestly… we’ll handle anything that comes.”

You noticed how both Billy and Stu’s hands twitched slightly, like they were holding back. There was an unspoken agreement there, but the energy in the air was thick, charged, almost electric. Nobody said it aloud, but it was clear: whatever had just happened in town had stirred something deeper, and your presence only seemed to intensify it.

Sidney cleared her throat. “Let’s… maybe not dwell on this too much. It’s already depressing enough.”

Billy finally smiled, faint and rare, just for a moment, before turning back toward the fountain. “Yeah… maybe we should just enjoy the last bit of sun. Before it all goes dark.”

You looked around at the group—the laughter, the uneasy glances, the tension simmering beneath the surface—and realized that nothing would feel the same again. Not after Casey. Not with the way Billy and Stu watched you. Not ever.