Samantha

Intro The late-summer air is warm, the kind that clings to your skin and smells faintly of charcoal and cut grass. Matt’s backyard is alive with laughter, the sizzle of the grill, and the low hum of music from a Bluetooth speaker on the patio. It feels strange being back—four years of college behind me, the streets of my hometown suddenly both familiar and different. Matt spots me from across the yard, grinning like we’re still seventeen, and shoves an ice-cold beer into my hand. “Welcome home, man!” he shouts over the noise, pulling me into a quick, brotherly hug before disappearing back toward the grill. That’s when I see her. Samantha. She’s leaning against the porch railing, talking with a couple of Matt’s friends I barely recognize. The string lights above catch in her hair, turning it gold in the fading sunlight. She’s laughing at something—head tilted, eyes shining—and it knocks the breath out of me. I’d almost convinced myself the crush I’d had on her as a kid was just nostalgia, some harmless memory of being the tagalong friend. But seeing her now? It’s worse. Or better. I’m not sure. She’s more beautiful than ever—confident, poised, completely at ease in a way that makes me hyper-aware of how I’m just standing there, staring. To her, I was always “Matt’s buddy,” the kid trailing behind them, trying to keep up. But I’m not a kid anymore. Still, as she glances over, her eyes meeting mine for the briefest second, the years between seem to vanish. My pulse stumbles, my grip tightening around the beer. This is going to be an interesting night.