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Y/N AND HER FRIENDS STEPPED INTO THE FRAT HOUSE with a mix of curiosity and trepidation. It was their first time at such a party, and it showed—eyes darting everywhere, trying to take in the chaotic energy. The place reeked of sweat, spilled beer, and a faint trace of something sweet and smoky that she couldn't quite place. She winced, instinctively pulling her sleeve over her hand to push open the sticky front door.

"Are you sure about this?" She asked Ri-na, who was already tugging her toward the living room.

"Relax, unnie!" The girl chirped, practically bouncing on her heels. "This is how Americans party, right? Besides, you need to loosen up. You've been sulking for days."

"Sulking?" y/n scoffed, but before she could defend herself, a guy in a Breaking Bad hazmat suit stumbled past, spilling beer all over his "meth beaker." y/n sidestepped just in time, muttering under her breath, "This is already a disaster..."

By 12:45 PM, the vibe began to shift. y/n found herself reluctantly intrigued. The music blared from a set of massive speakers, vibrating through the walls and making her chest thump in rhythm. Strings of neon lights crisscrossed the ceiling, and a fog machine in the corner pumped out clouds that made everything look hazy and surreal. People were laughing, shouting, and dancing with reckless abandon.

"Here, try this!" Mary handed y/n a neon-blue mocktail in a plastic skull-shaped cup. "No alcohol, I swear. But it glows in the dark—how cool is that?"

The girl hesitantly took a sip. It tasted like cotton candy mixed with regret, but she wasn't about to complain. "It's...something," she said diplomatically.

At 1:10 PM, she was warming up to the atmosphere. After a few rounds of carnival games set up—including one where she hilariously failed to toss a ping-pong ball into a goldfish bowl which was filled with goldfish snacks and beer instead of a goldfish and water—she found herself laughing more freely. A random guy dressed as a cowboy walked up to her at the snack table, holding a plate stacked with hot wings.

"Hey, you're the girl who almost knocked over the beanbag pyramid, right?" he said with a grin.

"Almost?" y/n raised an eyebrow, feigning offense. "I completely knocked it over, thank you very much."

The cowboy laughed. "Fair point. I'm Jake, by the way. You want one of these wings? They're deadly spicy."

Y/n hesitated but grabbed one anyway. The instant the sauce hit her tongue, her eyes watered, and her face turned red. "Deadly spicy? More like demonic!" she gasped, fanning her mouth.

Jake chuckled. "Told you! But hey, you survived. That's impressive."

"I'll add it to my resume," y/n quipped before walking away, waving off Eun-ji's hysterical laughter.

By 2:00 PM, y/n was officially having fun. She and Ri-na decided to brave the "haunted maze" set up in the basement. The entryway was draped in black plastic sheets, and fake cobwebs hung from the ceiling. A college senior wearing vampire fangs greeted them with an exaggerated Transylvanian accent. "Enter if you dare!" he boomed, stepping aside to let them in.

"Oh, please," The y/h/c-haired girl muttered as she ducked under the cobwebs. "How scary can this be?"

Five minutes later, she regretted everything.

The maze was pitch-dark except for occasional strobe lights that made everything look jerky and surreal. Distorted Halloween music played from hidden speakers, and costumed actors jumped out from the shadows at every turn. Ri-na screamed more than she cared to admit, clutching her friend's arm so tight, it almost bruised, as they stumbled through the winding corridors.

"I swear, if something jumps out one more time..." y/n started, but before she could finish, a maniac with a fake axe came barreling toward them, yelling at the top of his lungs. Without thinking, y/n grabbed the nearest prop—a plastic shovel—and whacked the guy square in the face.

"AHHH! WHAT THE—" the axe man shouted, breaking character. He doubled over, wheezing. "It's fake! The axe is fake, lady!"

Ri-na burst out laughing, tears streaming down her face. "Unnie, you just assaulted him!"

"I panicked!" y/n yelled defensively, dropping the shovel as two other actors appeared, chasing her out of the maze.

"NEVER ENTER AGAIN!" They cried...

Back in the main party, Ri-na couldn't stop retelling the story to anyone who would listen. "She hit him so hard, his wig almost flew off! I thought I was going to die laughing!"

Y/n groaned, burying her face in her hands. "I'm never going to live this down, am I?"

"Nope," Mary said cheerfully, handing her another glowing mocktail. "But hey, you're a legend now. Everyone's talking about the girl who fought the axe guy."

"I didn't fight him," y/n muttered. "I defended myself from your iron grip, actually."

Jake, the cowboy from earlier, overheard and wandered over. "Wait, that was you? The axe guy's been sulking in the corner ever since."

"Great," y/n said dryly. "I'm a menace to society."

"More like the life of the party," Jake said with a grin. "You should come to these more often."

***

Y/n was exhausted but exhilarated as the party buzzed around her. She had danced, eaten her weight in greasy snacks, and narrowly avoided becoming a viral internet meme after her infamous haunted maze incident. But now, the noise, the people, and the flashing lights were beginning to feel like too much. Her body ached for calm, her throat felt dry, and she needed a moment away from the chaos as her thoughts drifted to Kwon and his grandma.

"I'm going to get a drink," she said, nudging Eun-ji, who was mid-conversation with a group of rowdy partygoers debating the scariest horror movie villain.

"Water or one of those glowing potions?" Ri-na teased without looking away from the group.

"Whichever doesn't make my teeth light up in the dark," The girl quipped, already heading toward the makeshift bar. The table was draped in a spiderweb-printed cloth, with plastic bats hanging from the ceiling. Bowls of candy and carved pumpkins lined the counter, and a tired-looking guy in a Frankenstein mask poured drinks for a small line of partygoers.

Y/n sighed in relief as she approached the bar, away from the overwhelming crush of bodies on the dance floor. She placed her hands on the edge of the counter and glanced at the list of mocktails scribbled in chalk on a sign. She was just about to order something simple when a sharp, irritated voice broke through her thoughts.

"For the last time, no! I don't want it, okay?"

Y/n turned her head. A few feet away, near the bar's edge, a guy was leaning over a girl dressed as a skeleton, holding a shot glass dangerously close to her face. The girl's white face paint and intricate black detailing couldn't mask her expression—a mix of annoyance and barely concealed discomfort.

"Aw, come on," the guy slurred, clearly tipsy. He wore a cheap pirate costume, the fake eyepatch dangling lopsidedly from his forehead. "It's just one drink. Don't be so uptight."

"I said no," the girl snapped, her tone sharp but calm. "Take a hint and leave me alone."

But the guy didn't back off. Instead, he chuckled, leaning closer. "You're at a party, babe. Don't act like you're too good for it. What's the point of coming if you're not going to have a little fun?"

Y/n felt her stomach churn. The girl, despite her composed retorts, was clearly cornered. Her back was nearly pressed against the counter, and her hands clenched into fists at her sides. The pirate guy wasn't taking no for an answer, and the casual confidence with which he ignored her boundaries made her blood boil.

Without thinking, the girl stepped forward, her boots crunching against the sticky floor.

"Hey," she said, her voice cutting through the surrounding noise like a blade. Both the pirate and the skeleton girl turned to look at her. y/n's face was calm, her expression unreadable, but there was a dangerous edge to her tone. "She said no. You deaf or just stupid?"

The guy blinked at her, his bravado flickering for a split second before he smirked lazily. "And who are you? Her bodyguard?"

Y/n tilted her head slightly, her eyes narrowing as she took in his face. Recognition hit her like a jolt. It was Jae-chul... how shocking. The memory of their last interaction, which happened to be the fight that got him hospitalized was still fresh in both of their minds, and her lips curled up into a dangerous smile.

"Oh," she said, her voice dripping with mock amusement. "Jae-chul. Fancy seeing you here."

The guy froze, his smirk vanishing as recognition dawned on him. His face paled, and he instinctively took a half-step back. "I-uh..."

Y/n stepped forward, closing the distance between them with a deliberate, predatory ease. "What's the matter?" she drawled, her voice low and menacing. "Didn't think I'd notice you? Or did you think I forgot the last time you decided to test me?"

Jae-chul stammered, his bravado crumbling like wet paper. "I wasn't. I didn't...?"

"You didn't what?" The girl interrupted, her tone sharp enough to make him flinch. "You didn't think I'd stop you from acting like a spineless creep? Let me guess—you thought if you put on a shitty costume and harassed a girl at a party, nobody would call you out. Real brave of you."

"I wasn't harassing her!" he protested weakly, his voice barely audible over the thumping bass of the music.

"Really?" The girl said, arching an eyebrow. Her voice dropped lower, enough to make him lean closer in fear of missing a word. "Because to me, it looks like you're the same pathetic, insecure coward who gets off on pushing people around. Funny how you never learn, huh?"

The boy opened his mouth, but no sound came out. His eyes darted nervously to the small crowd that had started to gather nearby, their curiosity piqued by y/n's unrelenting stare and the tension crackling in the air.

"Let me make this crystal clear," y/n continued, her tone cold and deliberate. She jabbed a finger toward his chest, making him flinch. "If I ever catch you pulling this crap again—ever—you won't just be crawling away like last time. I'll make sure the entire school knows just how small and pathetic you really are. Got it?"

Jae-chul swallowed hard, his face pale as a ghost. He nodded quickly as he tried to back away.

"Say it," She demanded, her tone stern. "Out loud. Got it?"

"Yeah, I got it," he mumbled, barely able to meet her eyes.

"Good." y/n's lips curled into a sweet smile. "Now fuck off before I decide to remind you the lesson you clearly forgot."

Without another word, Jae-chul left, eyeing the blonde he was harassing earlier, practically tripping over himself as he disappeared into the crowd. Only then did the skeleton girl mutter out a curse, the tension in her shoulders easing slightly as she stared at the y/h/c-haired girl with a mixture of surprise and something else y/n couldn't quite place.

"Are you okay?" She asked, her voice softer now. "He didn't--"

"I'm fine," the girl interrupted, straightening and brushing off her costume. "I could've handled it, though."

Y/n blinked at the familiar voice over the music. Something about the way the girl carried herself, the slight edge in her tone, felt...familiar. The skeleton paint didn't fully disguise her face, and the girl's heart skipped a beat as recognition hit her like a freight train.

"Tory?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

The girl's eyes narrowed, and she crossed her arms. "y/n."

Y/n's stomach twisted. Of all the people she could've run into tonight, it had to be her. The blonde girl she'd left behind, the girl who had once been a friend, then something like an enemy, and now... she wasn't sure what Tory Nichols was to her anymore.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

"I could ask you the same thing," Tory shot back, her tone guarded. She looked away, her expression unreadable. "But I guess this is your turf now, huh?"

Y/n frowned, the unspoken bitterness in Tory's voice cutting deeper than she expected. "I didn't mean to—look, are you okay? That guy..."

"I'm fine," Tory interrupted again, her voice firmer this time. "Thanks for stepping in, though. He was getting on my nerves."

"Yeah, well," Y/n said awkwardly, shoving her hands into her pockets. "Couldn't just stand there and do nothing."

For a moment, neither of them said anything. The noise of the party swirled around them, but it felt distant, like they were standing in a bubble of unresolved tension. Finally, Tory broke the silence.

"You didn't have to do that," she said, her voice low. "I had it under control."

Y/n gave a small, humorless laugh. "Maybe. But consider it payback."

The blonde blinked, frowning slightly. "Payback?"

Y/n hesitated, glancing down at the floor before meeting Tory's gaze. "For the last party we were at together. You remember—the one where you pulled me out of that mess? I may not have all my memories of the day, but I remember very clearly that you didn't hesitate."

Tory's expression shifted, her frown softening as the memory surfaced. "That was different," she muttered, looking away. "You were..."

"Doesn't matter," y/n interrupted gently. "You had my back when I needed it, and I never forgot that. So... tonight? I had yours."

For a moment, the blonde said nothing, her jaw tightening as she processed her friend's words. When she finally looked at her, there was something unspoken in her eyes—something raw and complicated that neither of them seemed ready to address.

"Guess we're even now," Tory said, her tone neutral but not unkind.

Y/n nodded, a small smile tugging at her lips. "Yeah. Even..."

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