Serena's POV
By the time we trudged back into the apartment, my throat was dry, my hair was sticking up like a haystack, and Sarah was already chanting "ramen, ramen, ramen" like it was some holy prayer.
But then we froze.
Lena was at the dining table, hunched over her notebook like her entire GPA, future career, and chance at surviving the apocalypse or world war depended on it. Her hand was moving so fast across the page it looked like she was trying to break a world record for Most Words Written in One Breath.
We just stood there, dripping karaoke chaos, watching her.
"Uh… hi?" Sarah said, still clutching her bag of chips like a microphone.
Lena jerked her head up so fast I swear her neck cracked. Her eyes went wide like she'd just been caught robbing a bank. Then snap! she slammed the notebook shut and practically hugged it to her chest.
Suspicious. Suspicious with a capital S.
"Whatcha writing?" Sarah asked, leaning in like the nosy queen she is.
"Nothing!" Lena's voice was a pitch too high. "Just… homework. Notes. Definitely not serial killing plans."
Sarah raised her brows. "Nobody said anything about serial killing, but thanks for clarifying."
I bit my lip, trying not to laugh. The way Lena's face turned pink made it so much worse.
"Okay," I said slowly, dropping onto the couch. "But just so you know, the way you just hid that notebook? Top ten most suspicious things I've seen in my entire life. Right next to Sarah's dance moves during Bad Blood at the karaoke earlier,you need to see it. It was awfully ugh"
"HEY!" Sarah shouted, throwing a chip at me.
"Anyway," I continued, ignoring her. "If we all end up missing one day, I'm telling the police to check under Lena's mattress first."
Lena groaned, turning away from us like that would erase the giant red flag she'd just waved. "You guys are impossible."
But the way she clutched that notebook tighter? Yeah. Definitely not just math homework.
The next morning, I woke up looking like something the cat dragged in. Hair sticking out in five different directions, face puffy, basically a walking zombie. The worst part? Sarah already had her phone out.
Click.
The sudden flash burned through my eyelids like lightning, and I shot up from bed with a groan. "Delete. That. Now."
Sarah, of course, grinned like she'd just captured a masterpiece. "Catch me if you can!"
She bolted for the door only to immediately smack her shoulder against the frame and trip over her own foot. The fall was so dramatic it deserved background music.
Naturally, I grabbed my phone. Click.
"Now we're even," I said sweetly, waving my victory photo in her face.
"Ugh, betrayal! You're supposed to love me no matter what.she groaned from the floor like a Shakespeare character.
I rolled my eyes and headed for the bathroom. "Shut up, drama queen. I'm taking a bath before you post my suffering to the world."
By the time I came out, clean and dressed, Sarah was up too, brushing her hair and humming like she hadn't just faceplanted minutes ago. We both grabbed our bags and poked our heads into Lena's room.
She was already sitting at her desk, scribbling furiously in that little notebook of hers, like her life depended on it. The moment we walked in, she snapped it shut and stuffed it under a pile of books.
Suspicious much.
"Anyway," Sarah said, completely ignoring Lena's shady behavior. "We're going out to grab Starlight concert T-shirts. Try and find something else to do besides writing on that weird,suspicious book"
"Okay drama queens," Lena replied way too fast, not even looking up.
We exchanged a glance but didn't push it. Whatever secret she was keeping could wait ..we had merch to hunt.
She waved without looking up from her mysterious notebook, and we left.
The second we stepped outside, guess who we ran into? Yep the same two guys from yesterday, looking like they'd been waiting for their dramatic re-entry into our lives.
The taller one grinned. "Finally, we meet again. I'm Noah."
The other gave a little salute. "And I'm Dan. Now we're officially not strangers."
I blinked at Sarah. She blinked at me.
…So the flirty guys actually had names. Who knew?
Sarah, of course, wasted zero seconds. She crossed her arms and tilted her head like she was judging them in some imaginary talent show. "Finally? What are you guys, our long-lost cousins or something?"
Noah laughed, hands stuffed casually in his hoodie pocket. "Not cousins. More like fate."
Dan nodded solemnly, like he'd just dropped a deep philosophical truth instead of pure nonsense. "Yeah. Fate… or really good timing."
I squinted. "Or stalking."
Sarah elbowed me, whispering, "Don't ruin the vibe."
But honestly, the vibe was already questionable. They had that weird mix of confident and unserious, like they'd practiced lines in the mirror before bumping into us.
"So, where are you two headed?" Noah asked, his grin not fading. "Don't tell me you're rushing off to another karaoke battle."
Sarah put her hands dramatically on her hips. "Nope. Concert merch. Only the most important mission of the year. Starlight T-shirts, limited edition, probably already selling out as we speak."
Dan gasped like she'd just told him the world was ending. "You're going to the concert too?"
I raised a brow. "What, you thought we were just walking around with tote bags for fun?"
He ignored the sarcasm and turned to Noah, eyes wide. "Dude. This is literally destiny."
Noah gave me a look, half apologetic, half you'll get used to him. Then he leaned closer. "If you're smart, you'll let us tag along. We're expert line-cutters."
"Wow. What a noble life skill," I deadpanned.
Sarah, however, was already nodding like she'd been hypnotized. "Fine. But if we miss our size because you two slow us down, I'm suing."
Dan put a hand on his chest, grinning. "Don't worry, small but mighty, right? You look like a medium."
Sarah's eyes widened. "Excuse you? Are you calling me fat?"
"No!" he panicked immediately, waving his hands. "I meant like medium vibes! Not body! Vibes!"
I slapped a hand over my mouth to keep from laughing, because Sarah's glare could've burned a hole through the sidewalk.
"Relax," I said, smirking. "If we were measuring vibes, you'd definitely be an extra small, Dan."
He gasped like I'd just mortally wounded him, and Noah burst out laughing so loud that random pedestrians turned to look.
Great. Just what I needed. More chaos before the concert.
The bell above the store door gave a sad little jingle as we walked in, and instantly the blast of AC almost knocked me over. Heaven.
We were supposed to be heading straight for the Starlight merch corner, but of course Noah and Dan's attention went immediately sideways. Like, beeline-to-the-lingerie-display sideways.
Sarah and I exchanged a look, then slowly walked up behind them.
"You here for concert T-shirts," Sarah said sweetly, "or lace bras?"
I added, tilting my head, "Or… are you guys just gay and forgot to tell us?"
That got a chorus of the ugliest sounds I've ever heard in public "ew!" "pfft!" "tch!" like a pair of middle schoolers who'd just been accused of liking vegetables.
Sarah put her hands on her hips, nodding. "Mm-hm. That was sus. Are ya?"
"NO!" they chorused at the same time, offended to their very souls.
We both lost it. Just burst out laughing right there in the middle of the store, while Noah muttered something about "respect" and Dan tried to look cool but ended up tripping over a hanger stand.
Still giggling, Sarah grabbed my arm. "Come on, let's get what we came for before these clowns embarrass themselves further."
We headed toward the T-shirt section, and sure enough, the guys trailed after us like guilty puppies.
As Sarah and I flipped through the T-shirts, holding them up like we were judges on Project Runway, Noah leaned lazily on the rack like he owned the place.
"Black looks good on you," he said casually, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
I squinted at him. "Wow. Revolutionary fashion advice. What's next? Water is wet glass?"
Dan snorted so hard he nearly tripped over the shoe display behind him. Sarah immediately jumped on it, eyes sparkling with mischief. "Oh my God, please don't tell me you're this clumsy at concerts too."
Dan straightened, smoothing his shirt like he hadn't just embarrassed himself in public. "Clumsy? No, no. I like to call it… dramatic flair."
"Uh-huh of course" I said, tossing a folded shirt over my arm. "If you trip over the barricade later, don't expect us to save you."
Noah grinned, watching this whole circus with his hands tucked in his hoodie pocket. "Good thing you'll both be there, then. Who knows? You might need us more than we need you."
Sarah gasped, pointing at him with the hanger she was holding. "Excuse me, mister confidence, but if anyone needs saving, it'll be you. We've got stamina. We're trained for war."
"What kind of war?" Dan asked, genuinely confused.
"Fan wars," Sarah said without missing a beat. "The deadliest kind."
I couldn't hold it in. I laughed. Loud. And for a second, even Noah cracked and joined in, shaking his head like we were insane. Which, maybe, we were. But at least we were having fun.