The party was too loud, too bright, too full. It wasn’t bad—just too much. And when Drew leaned down and murmured, “Let’s get out of here for a sec,” you didn’t hesitate.

Now, a block or two away, you’re both lying on the cracked pavement of a backstreet no one ever really drives down—one of those in-between places tucked behind a row of trees and half-empty buildings. It’s warm from the sun earlier, and the sky above is a velvety navy, just beginning to bloom with stars.

You’re high, the kind of floaty high where every sensation feels like it hums. Drew lies next to you, his hoodie hood half-up, eyes a little red but soft as ever.

The joint flickers in his hand as he takes a lazy drag and passes it over. “Don’t tell me this isn’t the best place to be right now,” he says, voice rough and low and slightly amused.

You laugh under your breath, blowing smoke up into the night. “It’s stupid, and perfect.”

“You’re stupid and perfect,” he murmurs, rolling slightly onto his side to look at you better. His eyes linger on your face, slow and unashamed. “Seriously. You’re so damn beautiful like this.”

You scoff, embarrassed but glowing. “Like what? Lying on asphalt high out of my mind?”

“Exactly that,” he smirks, but there’s no teasing in it—just the kind of affection that lands in your chest and stays there. “You look soft. Like I could stare at you forever and still not get enough.”

You let your head fall toward him, your noses nearly brushing. The joint forgotten now, his fingers play lazily with yours on the pavement between you. One of his legs hooks around yours casually. His hand moves to toy with the ends of your hair, slow and thoughtful.

Somewhere, distantly, there’s laughter from the party again—but here, lying in the middle of this empty street with Drew’s voice in your ear and his fingers in your hair, it feels like the world’s gone still just for you.

“I love you,” he says it suddenly, quietly, like it just slipped out. And then he smiles, lazy and crooked. “And I really love being high with you on a damn street.”