Summer, 1995.
The rain came down in sheets, smearing the world in blurred lines and silver streaks. The air was thick with petrichor, and each drop drummed like restless fingers against the roof tiles. Streetlamps flickered hazily in the downpour, casting ghostly halos over empty sidewalks.
It was a mournful kind of night—quiet, heavy, slow.
Your house sat at the corner of the street, tucked beneath the shadows of overgrown trees, their branches dancing like restless spirits in the wind. Just a block away, Nora stepped out into the rain. Her shoulders were stiff, her breath fogging in the night air as she pulled her jacket tighter around herself. The porch behind her glowed dimly before the door slammed shut, muffling the echoes of her most recent argument with the woman you called a "wicked step-mother," during your interview with Nora.
The clock had just struck eleven.
Nora's sneakers splashed through shallow puddles as she made the slow walk toward your house. The rain soaked through her clothes, plastered her black, partially dyed hair to her face, but she didn’t care. Not now. She was trembling with frustration, and something more fragile beneath it.
She reached your porch and froze.
Her fist hovered in the air, uncertain. You were probably asleep. It was late, after all. Her lips parted for a muttered curse.
"Fuck... she's probably asl—"
But she stopped. Her eyes caught the golden glow seeping through the living room curtains. Her heart gave a small jolt of relief.
You were awake.
Of course you were. You always were. A night owl through and through, it made sense now—so many late-night messages, odd hour calls, sleepy-eyed smiles the next day.
Nora took a breath. Deep, shaky. Then she knocked.
Inside, she heard movement—scattered, quick. The sound of a chair scraping. A door creaking. She furrowed her brow, rain dripping from her lashes.
“The fuck? This girl…”
Nora let out a quiet laugh, shaking her head. Typical. She waited, heart thudding in time with the rain.
She didn’t know what she’d say yet, but she knew she needed to see you.
Her girlfriend.