"Your smoking-hot, dark chocolate boyfriend at 12 o'clock," Kali says, tilting her head toward Matt, who waves at Val. Val just stares back, unsure, as he moves ahead, brushing past Sam and Chris, who are standing by some trees.

"Shut up," Val mutters as Matt starts walking toward her, leaving her momentarily speechless.

"Hey, Val, it's, uh... been a while," Matt says, rocking back and forth on his heels, his hands tucked into his jacket pockets.

"Yeah... one year exactly," Val replies with an awkward smile.

"Can we talk alone?" Matt asks quickly, his tone making Val's eyes widen slightly.

"Uh, I guess," she says, hesitating before following Matt to the area in front of the cabin.

"Hey, Matty!" Kali calls after him as they walk away. Matt turns and waves back at her. Val glances over her shoulder at her sister before continuing to follow him.

Kali saunters over to Ashley, eager to strike up a conversation. "Hey, Ash!"

"Hey, Kali. How's it been?" Ashley asks, hugging her knees to her chest.

"It's been okay. Val and I have just been working nonstop so we don't end up homeless," Kali jokes, prompting a chuckle from Ashley.

"What about you?" Kali asks, rubbing her arms for warmth.

"Not much, really. So, pretty good," Ashley says casually.

Kali nods, glancing at something—or someone—behind Ashley, making Ashley shift uneasily.

"Nice catching up with you," Kali says, turning to leave.

"Wait, so you're with someone else now?" Val asks Matt, her voice edged with tension.

"Kind of," Matt admits hesitantly. "But I still love you, Val. I really do. I just... I need to know if you can forgive me and still love me." He reaches for her hands, holding them gently.

"I want to say I do—I really do—but I don't know if I can trust you," Val replies, slowly pulling her hands away.

"You can," Matt insists. "I know it's hard, but trust is something I'm willing to work on. I'll prove it to you."

"You don't know it yet, but I will," he adds, making Val smile faintly despite herself.

"I missed you," Val whispers, looking down, her voice barely audible.

"Same here, Valerie," Matt says softly, almost to himself.

"But wait—who are you with?" Val asks, snapping her head back up to look at him.

"Look," Matt says, exhaling deeply, "I'd rather tell you inside where we're not freezing to death. But I will tell you—just don't get upset."

Val's brow furrows in confusion as the two of them stand there.

Kali glances behind her, then abruptly changes direction, walking toward the trees.

"Ka—Hey, Star," Josh calls out, quickly following her.

Kali stops and turns to face him. "I'm shocked you're talking to me after ghosting me for an entire year."

"I-I'm sorry," Josh stammers. "It wasn't for bad intentions, I swear. I wanted to talk to you—I really did."

"Then why didn't you?" Kali demands. "I would've talked to you. I still feel bad about the incident. You know I miss them too."

"Are you okay, though? I mean, they were your sis—"

"Hey, stop, stop, stop," Josh interrupts. "I'm good."

"You sure?" Kali presses. "Your words say one thing, but your actions say something else."

Josh sighs, his tone softening. "I love that you're checking on me, but I'm good, really. We're supposed to be having fun tonight, not dredging up what happened last year. This year..." He trails off, then perks up. "This year's supposed to be the party of the year!"

"Booze, partying, and just having fun," Josh says, his voice dropping slightly as he steps closer to Kali, his hands brushing her waist.

Kali laughs softly, letting him pull her close for a moment before snapping out of it. She steps back, shaking her head. "I'd love to have fun, Josh, but I know something's wrong." Her tone turns serious, her gaze piercing.

Before Josh can respond, Chris shouts from a short distance away. "Hey, lovebirds! I'd rather not see you two going at it in the snow before we even get inside."

Kali rolls her eyes as Josh smirks. "Hey, maybe you could learn from us," Josh teases. "Might help you finally get some alone time with Ashley."

"Yeah, I'm going to talk to Val now. I'll leave you to your jokes," Kali says, turning on her heel and walking away toward her sister.

"Hey, you two!" Kali says, walking up to Matt and Val and slipping between them.
"So, what are we talking about?" she asks, glancing back and forth between the pair.

"Kali, maybe now isn't the time," Val says, shooting her sister a look.

"Sorry, my bad," Kali replies, leaning against the railing before slowly backing away.

"I guess we're just going to sit in silence," she mutters under her breath, exhaling sharply.

The three of them stand awkwardly together, the quiet stretching on for a solid ten minutes. Finally, the faint sound of a door unlocking breaks the silence. They all turn as a group of people rushes toward the cabin door, prompting them to follow.

"Home sweet home," Josh says as he steps inside.

"'Sweet' is definitely not the word I'd use," Matt mutters under his breath.

"You know what? It feels good to finally be inside—even if it's still freezing," Ashley chimes in, rubbing her arms.

"Well, then, let's start a fire," Josh suggests enthusiastically.

"Nothing's changed at all in here," Val says, glancing around the dimly lit cabin.

"Yeah, nobody's been up here," Josh replies.

"Even with all the police?" Ashley asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Not much action's been happening," Chris says, his voice low as he steps further inside.

"What's up, party people!" Mike shouts, striding into the room with Jess by his side.

Before Jess chimes in with a cheerful, "Heyyy!"

"Why the hell are you here?" Kali calls out, her voice cutting through the chatter.

"I was invited. Thought that was pretty clear," Mike replies, his tone smug.

"You shouldn't have come," Kali says sharply, walking toward him. "Out of everyone, I expected Jess—because, let's be real, she loves the attention—but you? You just shouldn't have shown up."

"Whoa, easy there, cowgirl," Mike says, raising his hands defensively.

"What did you just call me?!" Kali snaps, her voice rising.

"I said 'cowgirl.' It's a free country, Kali," Mike retorts, his smirk widening.

Kali starts to storm toward him, fists clenched, but before she can reach him, Josh rushes over, grabbing her by the waist and lifting her off the ground.

"Hey! Hey! They wouldn't want this," Josh says firmly, holding her back.

Kali breathes heavily, glaring at Mike. "You're lucky I have a brain," she spits before Josh sets her back down and walks off to tend to the fire.

Mike smirks, raising his hands in mock surrender, and heads over to the couch with Jess, who giggles as they settle in.

Kali mutters something under her breath before walking over to Val. Val places a hand on her sister's shoulder.

"You good?" Val asks softly.

"I'm fine," Kali replies, brushing it off but staying close to her sister.

"Oh my God, that is actually just so gross," Emily says, walking in to see Jess and Mike on the couch.

"Looks like you're not the only one starting the party," Val jokes to Kali, nudging her lightly.

"Are you trying to swallow his face whole?" Emily quips, making a disgusted face. Matt tries to nudge her to stop, but she waves him off and keeps going.

"Seriously, can she be any louder? No one's trying to steal your territory, honey," Emily adds, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

"Excuse me, did you say something?" Jess snaps, standing up from the couch.

"Oh, did you not hear me? Was your sluttiness too loud?" Emily fires back, crossing her arms.

"Sounds like someone's bitter she didn't make the cut," Jess says with a smirk.

"Yeah, it's all one big cattle call with your 'dreamboat.' Congrats—you're the top cow," Emily retorts, rolling her eyes.

"Real original. Cuts real deep calling Miss Homecoming a cow," Jess says with mock hurt.

"Em, come on," Matt tries to intervene.

"No, Matt, shut it," Emily snaps, silencing him.

"Stay out of it, you dumb oaf," Jess says dismissively.

"Hey! Watch it!" Val yells, stepping forward to defend Matt.

"Oh, please, Val," Jess sneers. "You think you're the only one who can stand up for him? Afraid someone's going to play with your toys?"

"You're such a bitch!" Val snaps, stepping closer to Jess, her hands balling into fists.

"Whatever. Your opinion—and Emily's—don't matter to me. Couldn't care less," Jess fires back, shrugging.

"At least I have the brains to think for myself," Val retorts. "Scholarship, honor roll—meanwhile, you're busy sleeping your way to popularity."

"Who needs grades?" Jess says, flipping her hair. "Not my problem I've got natural advantages you wouldn't know anything about."

"Matt found someone who doesn't need to beg for his attention," Jess taunts.

"Are you serious? That's rich coming from someone dressed like that," Val bites back.

Jess turns to Mike. "She's obsessed with me, isn't she?"

"Guys, stop!" Matt pleads. "This is out of hand. There's no need to fight!"

"Yeah, Val! Why are you defending your ex-boyfriend, huh?" Jess presses, her voice growing more aggressive.

"Oh my God, what is wrong with you?" Emily exclaims, stepping forward.

"Enough!" Josh cuts in. "This isn't why we're here. If we can't get along, maybe we need a break. Mike, why don't you check out that guest cabin I mentioned earlier?"

Mike nods. "Yeah, okay. Come on," he says, leading Jess out of the room. She glares over her shoulder at Emily and Val before leaving.

Emily turns back to Matt. "Matt, where's my bag?"

"Huh?" Matt asks, confused.

"My bag! The small one with the pink pattern—the one I got on Rodeo Drive," Emily clarifies impatiently, making Val glance at her sister in confusion.

"You know, from the Italian shoe place? Where I got the stilettos, and you knocked over the rack drooling over the girl at the counter?" Emily continues, her voice rising.

"Well... she was just asking about my letter jacket," Matt stammers, glancing at Val briefly before looking back at Emily.

"Right, because she really cared about your designer letter jacket," Emily says, rolling her eyes.

"Maybe we forgot it," Matt mumbles.

"Does that even sound like me? You must've left it at the cable car station," Emily says, exasperated.

Matt groans. "Fine. Let's go."

"Come on, Matt. We'll be back soon," Emily says, grabbing his hand.

"And then we can get warm," Matt adds, his tone suggestive.

"We can get very warm," Emily purrs, making Val's eyes widen in disbelief.

Before they can leave, Val steps in front of Matt. "You hooked up with Emily?" she asks, her voice low and disbelieving.

"Val, it just happened," Matt says, looking at her with guilt in his eyes. "But I swear, I still love you."

"Clearly, not enough," Val says coldly. "I'm going to find a room and take a nap." She storms off as Emily drags Matt out the door.

"Well, that was... something," Sam says, breaking the awkward silence. "I'm going to take a bath."