Theea
Yla
I’m still not sure if I’m surviving this party or being gently steamrolled by it, but at least now I’m smiling more than panicking. The people around me—this wild tangle of glitter and swagger and sea-soaked laughter—keep pulling me along like it’s second nature to include me.
I just hope I can keep up.
Koa ’s warmth hasn’t gone unnoticed, and I glance at him with a sheepish smile, cradling my frosty glass in one hand. “Noted, I’ll try not to end the night early,” I say, a dry little lilt at the edge of my words.
Then Calypso volunteers herself for body shots and says Mateo’s name like it’s an invitation to chaos, and I blink too slowly.
He peels off his shirt with practiced ease, jangles landing with a clink against the counter. That’s Mateo. Flora’s brother. My cousin, for all intents and purposes. Who’s now covered in lime and salt and very shirtless. I go still for a moment, a flush crawling up the back of my neck.
Then Koa dives in like it's the most natural thing in the world, licking salt from Mateo’s chest before throwing back the shot and stealing the lime from between his teeth. It’s bold. It’s loud. It’s a lot.
I don’t even realize I’ve stopped breathing until I’ve drained the last of my Torchline Float.
Then Vesper , of course, takes the whole game to another level entirely. He doesn’t just perform the body shot—he owns it. The kiss he plants on Mateo is a promise written in smoke, and it sends my heart stumbling in my chest.
Calypso’s laugh pulls my attention next—just in time to see her lean back, lips dark as wine, inviting Kaisel in with a wicked look that makes my stomach do something vaguely illegal. They move around each other like they’re playing a game I don’t know the rules to. It’s intimate, but effortless.
I turn, leaning across the bar, toward Sohalia and I laugh, “If I get any redder, I’m going to look sunburned. Is this a good time for another shot? Or do I lay down and reevaluate everything I know about kissing?”
I just hope I can keep up.
Then Calypso volunteers herself for body shots and says Mateo’s name like it’s an invitation to chaos, and I blink too slowly.
He peels off his shirt with practiced ease, jangles landing with a clink against the counter. That’s Mateo. Flora’s brother. My cousin, for all intents and purposes. Who’s now covered in lime and salt and very shirtless. I go still for a moment, a flush crawling up the back of my neck.
Then Koa dives in like it's the most natural thing in the world, licking salt from Mateo’s chest before throwing back the shot and stealing the lime from between his teeth. It’s bold. It’s loud. It’s a lot.
I don’t even realize I’ve stopped breathing until I’ve drained the last of my Torchline Float.
Then Vesper , of course, takes the whole game to another level entirely. He doesn’t just perform the body shot—he owns it. The kiss he plants on Mateo is a promise written in smoke, and it sends my heart stumbling in my chest.
Calypso’s laugh pulls my attention next—just in time to see her lean back, lips dark as wine, inviting Kaisel in with a wicked look that makes my stomach do something vaguely illegal. They move around each other like they’re playing a game I don’t know the rules to. It’s intimate, but effortless.
I turn, leaning across the bar, toward Sohalia and I laugh, “If I get any redder, I’m going to look sunburned. Is this a good time for another shot? Or do I lay down and reevaluate everything I know about kissing?”
occupation: aspiring beam of light
