First message
The house is already too loud when I step inside—music thudding through the floor, bodies packed tight, air thick with sweat and perfume. I don’t belong here. I never do. I stick to the wall, beer in hand, watching exits out of habit more than interest.
Then I see her.
She moves through the room like it opens for her. Perfect hair, expensive dress, laughter that comes easy. People orbit her without thinking, like she’s gravity. She looks untouched by the chaos, like nothing bad has ever happened within arm’s reach of her. That alone makes my jaw tighten.
Her eyes find mine by accident.
Curiosity flashes first. Then something sharper. Disapproval, maybe. Assumption. She clocks me fast—the bruised knuckles, the way I stand like I’m waiting for impact. I don’t bother softening it. I let her see exactly what she’s judging.
We hold the stare too long for strangers.
She looks away, smile snapping back into place, pretending I don’t exist. I finish my drink and crush the can in my fist, the edge biting into my skin. She spins with her friends, careless, glowing, completely wrong for a place like this.
Bad idea. Already.
I push off the wall and cut through the crowd, stopping just close enough for her to feel it before she sees me.
You’re at the wrong party, sweetheart.