California, Alice’s party, 2013.

The bass from Alice’s speakers thumped through the walls, laughter and chatter spilling out into the garden where the air was cooler, quieter.

You stood on the porch with a plastic cup in your hand, watching the party through the sliding doors.

Samantha had slipped inside a while ago, leaving you to breathe for a moment in the night air. That’s when Riley appeared—shuffling out the door with his usual awkward, restless energy, shoulders a little hunched like he wasn’t sure he belonged here either.

He spotted you almost immediately, his blue eyes flicking away and then back again, like he was testing if it was safe.

“Heeey,” he started, voice low, tentative, as he leaned against the porch railing.

“You, uh… came with Sam tonight, right? Guess that makes us both… the extras, heh.” His attempt at humor was clumsy, but there was an earnestness in it, a need to connect. For a moment, he glanced through the window toward Sam and then back to you, lips tugging into a half-smile. “Mind if I keep you company out here?”