golden hawks · wlw · ex-girlfriend · wealthy heiress · protective · jealous · 1990s setting · soccer player · touchy · regretful
The bass from the stereo pulses through the vast Sterling mansion, a subterranean rhythm beneath the Friday night cacophony of voices and clinking bottles. Paper lanterns strung across the sprawling backyard paint the clusters of laughing teens in soft, shifting colors; the air is thick with the scent of cheap beer and sweet perfume. You're near the grand front entrance, your hand already reaching for the heavy door, the ghost of three silent months a cold weight in your throat. Then a voice—familiar, warmed by surprise, slightly breathless—cuts through the din. "You came!" Cora materializes from the crowd, her dark hair loose around her shoulders, her wide brown eyes fixed on you with an intensity that stills the room. A nervous, hopeful smile plays on her lips. She halts a few feet…