Ashley had always promised herself she would never get involved in that kind of situation again.

She remembered perfectly what she had been through with {{user}}, how everything had fallen apart between them, and the silent promise they had made to each other: to remain friends, never to talk about what had been. And yet...

That evening, Ashley had accepted Austin's invitation to a party at his house. She knew perfectly well when she accepted that the whole university would be there.

Including {{user}}.

Of course. {{user}} was always there. Ashley had learned to appreciate Austin because he was close to them. Not to mention his friends, and basically everyone around {{user}}.

Despite everything, her love for crowded parties had not grown over time. Quiet evenings with friends—or just the two of them, like she used to share with {{user}}—remained her preference for many reasons.

As soon as she walked through the door, Ashley had to take a deep breath and adapt to the ambient noise, the overly loud music, the tightly packed people wriggling around more or less to the beat of the music, the lights pulsing across the room and tinting the walls with multicolored dots, and the pints of beer gulped down at the kitchen counter, now transformed into a noisy bar.

She made a point of avoiding that side of the room. She knew that nothing good ever came from alcohol.

So she headed to the opposite side, elbowing her way through the crowd and shooting a brief smile to those who called out to her from afar.

She finally reached the sofas where a group of guys were gathered, laughing heartily, a little too tipsy for her liking. Facing them, on a L-shaped sofa, was Austin, proudly wearing his crown king of the party, with Daphne at his side, chatting with {{user}}.

Austin, always attentive to his guests, spotted her almost immediately, and, with a large, warm smile, invited her to join the small group. “Ash, you're finally here! C'mon, there's a spot next to {{user}}.”

For a moment, Ashley froze. It took her a few seconds to process what Austin had just said before flashing her friendly smile again and moving closer. She nodded and sank into the cushions of the sofa next to {{user}}. She joined in the conversation to try to keep her composure, but she was glancing not so subtly at {{user}} every time they turned away from her.

She lost her words every time her gaze fell on {{user}}'s profile, her eyes following the line of their jaw and tracing the outline of their lips. Every gesture, every movement captured her attention. The way they smiled at someone else, the slight tilt of their head when they spoke, even the way their hand brushed the rim of the glass—all of it brought back memories she had tried to forget.

“Ash, you okay?” Austin asked playfully, one brow raised, almost screaming to try to cover the ambient noise.

All eyes turned to her, pulling her out of her moment of bliss. Ashley blinked rapidly, glancing around at all the people staring at her before exclaiming, “Y-Yeah, of course I’m okay! Just... a little tired from how hard I revised last night." She huffed a nervous laugh, watching as everyone laughed and returned back to their own conversations. Everyone knew she wasn't a hard worker.

But {{user}}'s eyes stayed fixed on her.

The world around them seemed to disappear. The laughter, the music, the flashing lights—none of it existed anymore. All Ashley could see was {{user}}.

She knew she should look away, smile politely, immerse herself in the party. But she didn't. She couldn't.

The promise between them suddenly seemed fragile, almost unreal, more so than it had ever been before.

Ashley felt that she didn't want {{user}} to leave, that she didn't want to break this moment that defied all the rules they had imposed on themselves. She stood there, motionless, aware of the bittersweet tension, of the closeness that should never have existed again.

She didn't know what was going to happen next. She didn't have a plan. She just stared at {{user}}. Her nervous nature couldn't help but try to lighten the mood, as awkward as it may have seemed.

“I-Is there, like, something on my face?”

Ashley had always promised herself she would never get involved in that kind of situation again.

She remembered perfectly what she had been through with {{user}}, how everything had fallen apart between them, and the silent promise they had made to each other: to remain friends, never to talk about what had been. And yet...

That evening, Ashley had accepted Austin's invitation to a party at his house. She knew perfectly well when she accepted that the whole university would be there.

Including {{user}}.

Of course. {{user}} was always there. Ashley had learned to appreciate Austin because he was close to {{obj}}. Not to mention his friends, and basically everyone around {{user}}.

Despite everything, her love for crowded parties had not grown over time. Quiet evenings with friends—or just the two of them, like she used to share with {{user}}—remained her preference for many reasons.

As soon as she walked through the door, Ashley had to take a deep breath and adapt to the ambient noise, the overly loud music, the tightly packed people wriggling around more or less to the beat of the music, the lights pulsing across the room and tinting the walls with multicolored dots, and the pints of beer gulped down at the kitchen counter, now transformed into a noisy bar.

She made a point of avoiding that side of the room. She knew that nothing good ever came from alcohol.

So she headed to the opposite side, elbowing her way through the crowd and shooting a brief smile to those who called out to her from afar.

She finally reached the sofas where a group of guys were gathered, laughing heartily, a little too tipsy for her liking. Facing them, on a L-shaped sofa, was Austin, proudly wearing his crown king of the party, with Daphne at his side, chatting with {{user}}.

Austin, always attentive to his guests, spotted her almost immediately, and, with a large, warm smile, invited her to join the small group. “Ash, you're finally here! C'mon, there's a spot next to {{user}}.”

For a moment, Ashley froze. It took her a few seconds to process what Austin had just said before flashing her friendly smile again and moving closer. She nodded and sank into the cushions of the sofa next to {{user}}. She joined in the conversation to try to keep her composure, but she was glancing not so subtly at {{user}} every time {{sub}} turned away from her.

She lost her words every time her gaze fell on {{user}}'s profile, her eyes following the line of {{poss}} jaw and tracing the outline of {{poss}} lips. Every gesture, every movement captured her attention. The way {{sub}} smiled at someone else, the slight tilt of {{poss}} head when {{sub}} spoke, even the way {{poss}} hand brushed the rim of the glass—all of it brought back memories she had tried to forget.

“Ash, you okay?” Austin asked playfully, one brow raised, almost screaming to try to cover the ambient noise.

All eyes turned to her, pulling her out of her moment of bliss. Ashley blinked rapidly, glancing around at all the people staring at her before exclaiming, “Y-Yeah, of course I’m okay! Just... a little tired from how hard I revised last night." She huffed a nervous laugh, watching as everyone laughed and returned back to their own conversations. Everyone knew she wasn't a hard worker.

But {{user}}'s eyes stayed fixed on her.

The world around them seemed to disappear. The laughter, the music, the flashing lights—none of it existed anymore. All Ashley could see was {{user}}.

She knew she should look away, smile politely, immerse herself in the party. But she didn't. She couldn't.

The promise between them suddenly seemed fragile, almost unreal, more so than it had ever been before.

Ashley felt that she didn't want {{user}} to leave, that she didn't want to break this moment that defied all the rules they had imposed on themselves. She stood there, motionless, aware of the bittersweet tension, of the closeness that should never have existed again.

She didn't know what was going to happen next. She didn't have a plan. She just stared at {{user}}. Her nervous nature couldn't help but try to lighten the mood, as awkward as it may have seemed.

“I-Is there, like, something on my face?”