desertion

87

MILES

It was like watching the sun rise after weeks of storms. Lydia's smile had returned-bright and full, the kind that lit up the room. Her laugh, so infectious and genuine, was back, filling every quiet moment with joy. She looked like herself again, and none of us could be happier.

Right now, we were all hanging out at Isabelle's house. Her parents were out of town, and after some serious convincing, Eddie had finally let Lydia out of the house. He had been hesitant when we mentioned spending the night here, but in the end, he agreed-though not without a long list of ground rules.

Lydia was sitting on the couch beside Isabelle, her smile unwavering. Delilah was on her other side, the three of them chatting about something that must've been hilarious because Isabelle and Delilah were laughing uncontrollably. On the other side of the room, Nate and Tyler were in their own world, cracking up about football or something equally ridiculous.

Julian and I were sitting on the floor, leaning against the coffee table and talking about life. It felt good to have moments like this again-no tension, no fear, just normalcy.

Suddenly, Delilah burst into laughter again, Isabelle joining her. Lydia, however, just tilted her head, looking adorably confused. Before I could ask what was going on, music blasted from the TV speakers. Isabelle and Delilah were on their feet in an instant, dancing around the room like maniacs.

Lydia watched them, a smile tugging at her lips, her confusion turning into amusement. Delilah darted over to Tyler, grabbing his arm and pulling him up, much to his loud protests. Isabelle followed suit with Julian, dragging him into their impromptu dance party.

I grinned, standing up and heading over to Lydia. "Come on," I said, taking her hand and pulling her to her feet.

Her laugh rang out as I led her to Nate, who was sitting on the couch with his arms crossed. "Come on, Nate!" I said, motioning for him to join us.

Nate shook his head firmly. "No thanks."

Lydia rolled her eyes, an exasperated but playful look on her face. "Oh, you're coming," she said, grabbing his arm and tugging him up.

He groaned but didn't resist too much. "You're impossible," he muttered, but I could see the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Lydia and I started dancing around him, over-the-top and ridiculous. At first, Nate just stood there, looking like he wanted to bolt. But after a few minutes of our antics, he finally cracked, laughing so hard he nearly doubled over.

Lydia and I exchanged a triumphant high five before she ran off, joining Isabelle and Delilah in the middle of the room.

"Shake It Off" by Taylor Swift blared from the speakers, and Lydia grabbed a second microphone, joining Delilah in an impromptu karaoke session. They danced around the room, singing at the top of their lungs.

Isabelle and Julian twirled around, barely keeping time with music, while Tyler stood awkwardly off to the side, swaying just enough to count as dancing. Nate plopped back onto the couch, laughing as he watched the chaos unfold.

I stayed where I was, leaning against the wall and watching Lydia. She looked so happy, her cheeks flushed and her hair bouncing as she danced. It was the Lydia I knew-the Lydia I'd fallen for.

The song ended, and Lydia and Delilah collapsed onto the couch, breathless and laughing hysterically. Isabelle joined them, her face red from dancing.

I sat down next to Nate, still smiling. "It's good to see her like this again," I said quietly.

He nodded, his eyes on Lydia. "Yeah. It feels like everything's back to normal."

And he was right. For the first time in weeks, it felt like we were all back to where we were supposed to be. The laughter, the smiles, the music-it was all ours again.