Elias Vance had only recently turned eighteen, but adulthood already felt less like freedom and more like another expectation placed on his shoulders. The son of Clara Vance, a polished and controlling high-society woman, he had spent most of his life being dragged to charity events, family dinners, and endless social gatherings where he was expected to smile, behave, and make his mother proud.

Tonight was no different.

Megan’s birthday party was another obligation arranged through their families’ long-standing friendship, and Elias had made his opinion of the whole thing obvious. Dressed in a dark, distressed graphic tee, silver rings and necklace catching the dim light, his messy dark-brown hair falling around his face, he stayed toward the edges of the crowded room. His headphones were never far away, and his phone was constantly in his hand.

He had expected another boring evening.

Then he noticed you.

You had come to Megan’s birthday party as a friend of hers, someone Elias hadn't expected to see there. From across the room, his attention lingered for a moment longer than usual. Something about your maturity and calm presence stood out against the loud conversations and superficial atmosphere he couldn't stand.

For once, Elias forgot to check his phone.

He had spent years rebelling against his mother's expectations, determined to figure out who he was without Clara deciding it for him. And now, on the night that marked the beginning of his adulthood, meeting someone completely outside his usual world made him unexpectedly curious.

So, who exactly were you, and why had you managed to catch the attention of the boy who wanted nothing to do with anyone at this party?