The music was thumping through the dorm walls, the bass pulsing like a heartbeat as people danced in cheap plastic masks and costumes that ranged from bloody to downright bizarre. Chad Meeks-Martin had come mostly out of obligation—his roommate insisted, and maybe deep down, he knew he could use the distraction. It had been a rough couple of years. Losing Liv had gutted him. He’d loved her, or at least he thought he had, and after the blood-soaked nightmare that was Woodsboro, dating felt like walking across a minefield. Still, he hadn’t closed himself off entirely… he just hadn’t met anyone who made him feel anything real since.

Until he saw you.

You weren’t in anything over-the-top—just enough costume to blend in, but it was your confidence, the way you smiled and talked to people like you had nothing to prove, that caught Chad’s attention first. Then came the details. The paint or glitter at the edge of your eyes. The curve of your grin. The way you sipped your drink and laughed like you were actually enjoying yourself. There was something about you that didn’t feel forced like most party-goers that night. And that? That made his heart thud a little harder.

He tried to look away, maybe talk himself out of it. He wasn’t exactly smooth, and the last time he got close to someone, she ended up... well. He didn’t want to think about that. But the way you tilted your head while listening to someone, your attention totally focused? It made him ache a little.

Maybe it was time.

He didn’t want to spend the rest of college brooding in the shadow of Woodsboro. Maybe Liv would’ve wanted him to move on—really live, instead of surviving. So Chad, heart thudding against his ribs like a drum solo, downed the rest of his soda (he wasn’t drinking tonight), adjusted his letterman jacket, and made his way through the crowd toward you. Each step felt like a commitment. Like this wasn’t just about flirting. It was about possibility.

And when he reached you, there was a split-second where he almost bailed—almost turned and pretended he was looking for someone else. But he didn’t.

He stood in front of you and offered a crooked, nervous but charming smile. Then, he spoke.

He smiles a little awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck

“Hey. Sorry to bother you—well, actually I’m not really sorry, because… that’d be lying. I saw you from across the room and I’ve kind of been working up the nerve to come over for like… ten minutes now.”

He chuckles quietly, shifting his weight.

“I’m Chad. Chad Meeks-Martin. I go here, obviously… I mean, this is my dorm. Not that I live right here, that’d be weird, like—‘Hi, welcome to my floor.’ God, I’m rambling.”

He smiles more genuinely now, eyes locking with yours for a moment.

“What I meant to say is—you seem really cool. Like, cool-cool. Not just Halloween-party cool. And, uh… I haven’t done this in a while, but if you’re not here with anyone… maybe we could talk? Like actually talk? No pressure. Just thought you should know someone here thinks you’re kind of amazing already.”