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Zora and Edith have been absorbed into Tessa’s family; they try to wave us over, but it’s a no-go for the twintroverts. We

end up ditching the multipurpose room to wait for them downstairs, in the student center lobby.

Nat keeps shooting me these brow-furrowed looks, like I’m a half-solved puzzle. Makes me wonder what my face is saying.

The problem is, I don’t know the name for this feeling. It’s not out-of-body, exactly. More like I’m a transposed song—everything’s

an inch to the left of where it should be. And now I’m on a weathered lounge sofa, just like the one we sat on with Walter

upstairs. Nat’s tucked up, cross-legged, beside me; Mark’s half-sprawled in a nearby armchair, lost to his phone.

“Hey, you’re good, right?” Nat says, after a moment.

I look up. “What? Yeah, I’m fine. Why?”

“I don’t know. You just seem kind of... under-reactive, I guess?”

I laugh. “How am I supposed to react?”

“You’re not! You’re just, like, surprisingly mellow for a girl who met THE Walter Holland.”

There’s a twinge in my chest, and I hate it.

“I mean, it’s not like he’s my bestie.” I shrug. “He’s a YouTuber.”

“Yeah, but I thought it went really well, right?” She looks at Mark, who tips a palm up and nods. “Were you, like—”

The elevator dings, and the doors slide open.

“Oh,” Nat says faintly, as Mika steps out. They’re on the phone, but they shoot us a smile when they pass us; Nat looks so

shell-shocked, I let out a laugh.

“Are you okay?” I reach out to hug her.

She rubs her cheek. “I wasn’t ready.”

Which gives me a pang out of nowhere. With Walter, I think I was too ready. Just a few too many daydreams. A little too much if-only. In hindsight, it’s so clear I set myself up for failure.

How could reality measure up? How could it even come close?

And tonight was good! That’s the truly unhinged part. It was basically a perfect interaction. The hug, the vibes, the fact

that I even managed to speak in his presence. I don’t even know what else I could have hoped for.

Maybe I just wish it was real.

The elevator opens again—Zora and Edith, this time. And Imogen and Tessa and Tessa’s whole family. Here’s a very normal relationship

milestone: meeting your best friend’s girlfriend’s sister’s girlfriend’s parents. Hearing Tessa run through introductions

is like when your rabbi starts listing out all the Abraham genealogy.

“So, Rachael’s my sister—she’s your age. And Dan was here, but he’s graduating tomorrow, so he, uh, went home early.”

“And he’s definitely telling the truth about that,” Rachael chimes in, perching on an armrest. “Absolutely, in no way is he

out partying off campus right now.”

Tessa laughs. “Right. So. Dan’s definitely back home, definitely getting a full night’s rest, so he can wake up nice and refreshed

for the big day tomorrow. Incredible. Good for him. And, uh, yeah! These are my parents.”

“And we even have names!” Tessa’s mom adds, with a wry little headshake. “Very nice to meet you. Kelly Waxman, and this is my husband, Geoff Minsky.”

“Geoff with a G.” Tessa’s dad leans in for a handshake, which sets off a whole cascade of handshakes.

“This is truly so wonderful.” Kelly tilts her head, smiling. “How long have you guys been fans of Walt’s content?”

Zora and the twins turn to look at me so pointedly, the whole group bursts out laughing. “Um.” I grin. “Yeah, I don’t know.

I’ve followed him for years. Since, like, the ukulele days. But I actually like his solo stuff better.”

“Oh, no question,” says Geoff.

I point at him. “Yes! You get it.”

“I mean, we may be slightly biased.” He smiles.

I smile back, slightly baffled—but before I even have a chance to wonder about it, the elevator opens again.

“Minskys!” Walter crosses straight toward us. “I thought you left!”

My mouth falls open. “Wait.”

Rachael jumps up, greeting him with a full-on bear hug. And then Tessa hugs him, and her parents hug him, and—

“So you guys... definitely all know each other,” I say.

“Oh, yeah,” Edith says. “Tess and Walt are cousins.”

“They’re...” I blink. “How?”

Edith nods thoughtfully. “How are cousins made? Um, okay. When two couples love each other very much—”

“No, I mean. I just didn’t—” I shake my head, looking from Walter to Tessa. “You have different last names...”

“Yeah, that happens sometimes,” says Mark.

Natalie pats my arm. “I think she’s glitching.”

Edith laughs. “Sorry! I don’t know why I thought you knew that.”

“I kind of hijacked Dan’s graduation.” Walter rubs the back of his neck, smiling faintly.

“Oh. Okay, yeah,” I say. “This makes... so much sense.”

“All right, I think us hotel people better split. What time are you leaving tomorrow, sweetie?” Kelly nudges Walter’s bangs

out of his eyes. “Can we treat you to breakfast before the ceremony?”

“I don’t know yet.” He tilts his head from side to side. “I should probably figure out dinner first.”

Silence drops like a curtain. Time itself seems to stop.

“You haven’t had dinner yet?” Kelly asks.

Tessa shakes her head, eyes glinting. “You really just said that in front of a whole group of your Jewish relatives.”

Walter’s eyes go wide. “Oh.”

“Sweetie, when did you eat ?”

“Lunch? I don’t know. I drove straight here.” He shrugs. “I had some chips in the car.”

“You’re joking,” says Rachael.

“Straight from Scarsdale ?” Kelly looks horrified. “Oh, you must be starving.”

“Mom, we’ve got this. I’ll feed him,” Tessa says, giving him a firm pat on the arm. “Go to bed.”

“Isn’t there a little cafeteria around here? How late is that open?” Geoff asks, peering around. “You know what? I’ll run

back upstairs and ask those Grad Committee girls.”

“No, I’m fine. Seriously. I’ll grab something,” Walter says. “I promise.”

“I don’t know what’s open.” Kelly frowns. “I don’t know. I’ll feel better if—”

“Mom! We’ll be fine. I literally go here,” says Tessa. “I will feed this starving child.”

Kelly narrows her eyes, looking from Tessa to Walter. “You’ll text me when you find a restaurant?”

Tessa clasps her hands. “Yes. Good night. We’ll text you from the diner—” Kelly starts to reply, but Tessa heads her off at

the pass. “And it’s definitely open. Because it’s a diner. Okay, who’s hungry?”

It takes me a second to realize she means all of us, including Walter.

All of us, including me.