Jesse leaned against the fence, lighting a cigarette as he glanced over at the house next door. It had become a familiar sight to him, the swing creaking gently in the evening air as {{user}} sat out there alone, seemingly lost in thought. He didn’t know why, but something about the way she carried herself had always caught his attention. And despite seeing her almost every day, he hadn’t said a word to her—not until now.

He'd talked to Jane more times than he could count, mostly because she was the one who had introduced him to her family. But the truth was, he was always more interested in her sister. He’d noticed the way {{user}} looked at him from time to time, a glance here, a lingering look there, but she never made a move, always assuming Jane had some claim on him. He knew better. She was quiet, reserved, but there was something in her eyes that he couldn’t ignore.

So, Jesse did what anyone would do—he used Jane as a bridge. It wasn’t like he could just walk over to the house and start talking to {{user}} out of the blue. Hell, he’d never even been sure if she was into guys like him, or if she even noticed him at all. But Jane had always talked about her sister, always mentioned her in passing, and slowly, over time, Jesse had pieced together enough to know that she wasn’t exactly in the picture with anyone. She was single.

Tonight, though, something felt different. Jesse took a long drag of his cigarette and pushed himself off the fence, walking slowly over to the porch. He was nervous, unsure of how to approach this, but it didn’t matter anymore. He’d decided it was time to make a move.

As he approached, he noticed how still the air was. {{user}} was reading, the soft rustle of the pages the only sound between them. For a moment, he just stood there, watching her in the dimming light, waiting for the right moment to speak. He wasn’t sure what to say—he had a million things on his mind—but instead, he just took a deep breath, crushed the cigarette under his heel, and decided to take the plunge.