After months of persuasion, Alice finally won. Victoria agreed to party. She wanted this for a long time, and now, after all the effort, she was here.

Alice dressed her in a strapless sundress patterned with dark flowers. "classy" she called it. Something that would catch the eyes. Victoria didn't like it, but the mirror forced her to admit: it made her look good. Uncomfortably good.

It felt strange, to be in something so... attention-grabbing. But tonight, the dress was part of the deal.

As the party started, Victoria stood awkwardly at the entrance. The room buzzed with noise and chatter. The space wasn't big. It wasn't small. But it was crowded. People looked at her, then looked away. Alice left to grab drinks, and Vic was left alone, trying to appear calm.

She wasn't sure she liked it. Part of her wanted to escape—go back to her corner where she could think and breathe. The other part, the one Alice was always pushing, felt a spark of curiosity. This was new. It was... different.

She adjusted her stance. Tugged at the dress that clung too close.

Alice returned, smiling, holding two cups of something clear, sharp-smelling. She pushed one into Victoria's hand.

"Relax," Alice said. "It's just a party. No one bites. Well, mostly."

Victoria forced a thin smile, but she didn't drink. "I know. I'm adjusting."

"You'll be fine." Alice said with her eyes scanning the crowd. "Trust me. You'll get used to it."

"I'm not sure I want to," Vic said quietly, still holding the drink.

Alice laughed. "If you're uncomfortable, just find me. I'll be around. And remember, they're more scared of you than you are of them."

"That's spiders," Victoria said weakly.

Before Alice could reply, a boy approached. Tall, dark-haired, with an easy confidence that made him look like he belonged here. He brushed Alice's arm in a way that was familiar, intimate.

Alice turned to him, her face lit up in a way she'd never seen. This was a different Alice.

"I was wondering when you'd show up." Alice said warmly.

The boy leaned and whispering something in her ear. Alice laughed, louder than usual, then glanced at Victoria as if apologising.

"I'll be right back, okay? Just... mingle. You'll be fine."

Victoria opened her mouth to object, to tell Alice to stay, but Alice was already being pulled into his orbit.

"Sure. I'll manage," she said quietly.

Alice hesitated for a fraction of a second, then she was gone. And Victoria was alone again, with her drink full and untouched.

***

Victoria scanned the room, trying not to look like a outsider. Most faces were strangers, locked in conversations, laughing, moving they all knew their roles. The few faces she recognized seemed absorbed in genuine connected.

Then, she saw him. A boy standing alone, tall with muscular build. Not much, but enough to notice. He leaned against the wall near a dim light. He was just like her—someone pretending not to notice how out of place they were.

She hesitated. She wasn't sure what to do. One sip from her cup gave her just enough courage. She moved through the clusters, doing her best to appear casual.

The boy noticed her. His expression shifted from neutral and distant to vaguely curious. He didn't seem alarmed or eager. Just interested.

"Hi," Victoria said, stopping a few steps away.

"Hi."

Up close, he was taller than she had thought. Easily six feet. He stood upright. she could see the muscles beneath his shirt. Lean but strong, like someone who did calisthenics. It's unusual in the shelter.

There was something about him that suggested he'd rather be anywhere else.

"I'm Victoria," she said, awkwardly. She cringed at her own words. Who introduces themselves like that?

"Abi," he said, calm and even. No handshake. No small talk. Just his name. But then again, she did the same.

"You're new here, right?" she asked.

"Yeah, first time." his eyes flicked around the room. "It's... different than I expected."

Victoria gave a faint smile. "Not many places to hide."

Abi's lips curved slightly, a hint of a smile that quickly faded. "You're alone too?"

"Yeah, Kinda sucks."

Abi nodded. "Being alone here feels... Wrong. Like it's unnatural." He leaned against the wall. "I actually prefer being alone."

"Yeah, I get it." she said. "I came with my friend, but she ditched me for a boy. Total betrayal."

Abi gave her a knowing look. "You could always make friends. Great comeback story."

"Like who?" Victoria said. "Everyone's wrapped in their own little world. No one's looking at me."

He scanned the room, then pointed. "There."

Victoria followed his finger. There stood a woman in a fitted suit and a short skirt. Her body was toned and elegant. The suit hugged her curves. She was clearly more attractive than Victoria. Beside the woman were two young men, tall, between 22 and 25. They were deep in conversation.

The woman's face, it seemed familiar somehow.

"Don't you know her?" Abi asked.

"She looks... familiar."

"Look closer."

Victoria did, and suddenly, she realized. "Wait... That's the council member, isn't it?"

Abi nodded. "Yeah, you should talk to her. I hear she's looking for a younger girl to join her." He paused, then, "Plus, people it's smart to make connections here."

Victoria looked at the group. Something about them felt wrong, too strange for her. The older woman swept the room with her eyes. Her presence was commanding, it overshadowed the two large men beside her. They looked like shadows compared to her and not because they're black. But it wasn't just the physical presence; there was something about that group in particular that she didn't want to step into. She felt an instinct telling her that if she went further, it would only leave her emptier.

She turned back to Abi. "you really think so?"

"if you want."

Victoria hesitated. Then chugged what's left of her drink. It burned going down. The heat didn't help but she still moved.

"Fine." she pushed herself toward the group.

The exchange went about as well as she expected. The woman was polite, but cold. The two men barely acknowledged her existence. Their attention was elsewhere. Victoria didn't need to hear their words to feel their disinterest. She could see it in the way they barely glanced at her, as if she wasn't worth the effort of conversation.

She returned to Abi. He was watching her with an unreadable expression.

"How was it?" He asked.

"Not what I expected." She had refilled her cup on the way back. "They're not exactly warm and fuzzy."

Abi smiled of amusement. "Most people here aren't."

Victoria leaned against the wall beside him. The awkwardness still lingered, but something about his presence made it bearable. "I guess we're exceptions then."

"Speak for yourself." there was a trace of humor in his voice.

After that, they talked for the rest of the evening. It could have been a few minutes, or hours—she couldn't tell. It felt natural, like the words came without thought. Abi listened when she spoke, and his words were always just what she needed to hear. Never too much, never too little. He didn't intrude on her thoughts, didn't push her in directions she didn't want to go. He was perfect, in every way. But what mattered most to Victoria was that he understood her, as if he truly saw her.

Abi was like her—an outsider.

***

The evening faded into the early hours morning. Victoria had lost all sense of time. A few more drinks made her a little hazy, but she was comfortable. She had finally settled into the rhythm of the party.

Looking down at her cup, she shyly murmured. "I think I really like something about you." The words felt awkward but she they weren't wrong.

Abi didn't hesitate. He met her eyes. "I think I feel something about you too."

Victoria's heart skipped a beat. Her breath hitched. The moment felt too intense, too sudden. She looked away, trying to distract herself. She scanned the room, looking for Alice, hoping to find the distraction she needed. But Alice wasn't there. She hadn't been around for a while. She felt lost, unsure of what to do next.

Abi noticed her discomfort. "What are you looking for?"

"My friend..."

Before she could say more, Abi was moving toward her. In one fluid motion, he pushed her against the wall, and without a waring his fist was in her face.

The strike was unexpected. There was no time to think, no time to react—just the sharp press of his knuckles against cheek, everything else fading into the background.

After a long, breathless moment, Victoria managed to regain control. The punch had shaken her, snapping her out of whatever dazed state she was in. Her heart hammered in her chest as she pushed Abi away.

"What the f**k?" she asked aggressively yet calmly.

Abi stuttered. "I thought you were giving me a hint... weren't you?"

Victoria's eyes widened with disbelief. "F**k no!" she snapped. "Not this early, not like this—I just met you today!"

Her words were sharp, but panic was rising in her chest. Without another word, she turned and ran away. She ran through the crowd, looking for alice.

Her mind was a blurring as she tried to balance her steps. But as she glanced around the room, she realized was happening. The party, the people—it was all wrong.

The room, it felt like a jungle, an massive fight that broke out of no where. people were now tangled together, punching and kicking, fighting like animals. The violence in their movements, the aggression on their faces, felt suffocating.

Then, she spotted Alice, her friend. In the middle of it all. It was like she was dancing. Her body shined with sweat, but her eyes sparkled with a twisted kind of joy.

Alice was screaming out in bursts of adrenaline with each punch. It was strange sight. She looked... alive. Too alive.

Disgust rose in victoria's throat. This wasn't her Alice. This wasn't what she'd signed up for. She couldn't breathe, couldn't comprehend the madness around her.

With a final look at Alice, Victoria turned on her heel and ran. The chaos of the party, the aggression in the air. She needed to get out. She needed to escape this world.

on patren, they do something other than fighting. if you know what i mean.