Always sunny on campus

The afternoon sun poured over campus, casting long shadows from the trees and stretching across the green and the old wooden benches where Kendra and her friends sat. It was summer break, with just two weeks left before the next semester started, and the campus had taken on a quieter pace. Less stress, more sun, and just enough time to breathe before life kicked up again. Laughter drifted through the breeze from all the groups across the grass, but none as magnetic as theirs.

Kendra leaned back, sipping her protein shake and adjusting her sunglasses. Her legs were crossed, her posture relaxed, but her mind wasn’t. It hadn’t been, not since that night.

Alyssa Rivera sat beside her, legs perfectly crossed, her arms resting on the table as she scrolled through her phone with one hand and sipped iced coffee with the other. Tall, sleek and always dressed like she was headed to a casting call. Alyssa was her best friend, her ride or die, the brutally honest and loyal one who never let her forget who she was. Her boyfriend worshipped her and everyone else kind of too.

Across from them, Tessa Monroe sprawled like she owned the whole lawn, tank top riding up her waist and sunglasses sliding down her nose. Her curls bounced as she talked. She was their party girl and the group's chaos, the wild card with a mouth that didn’t know boundaries. Tessa thrived in the nightlife, danced like nobody was watching, and flirted like it was oxygen. She had a bit of a reputation, a known flirt and a bit of a slut, though no one on campus quite knew just how much of one. She wore the rumors like glitter, impossible to ignore. She's always one breath away from doing something scandalous.

Next to her, perched quietly sat Naomi Lin. Headphones looped around her neck, a laptop half closed in her lap, and a hint of yesterday’s eyeliner still smudged under her lashes. Petite, composed, and always observing, she was the most grounded of the group. Calm, quiet and thoughtful, the only one of them who could study for an exam and analyze a friend at the same time.

"So what’s everyone doing this weekend?" Kendra asked.

"Well," Alyssa added with a proud grin, "Liam’s taking me to that sushi place I love. Private room. Candles. Probably trying to convince me to move in with him again."

"You’re such a wife already," Tessa teased.

"And you’re such a walking scandal" Alyssa shot back.

"Damn right," Tessa laughed. "Which is why I’ll be emotionally attached to the bartender’s dick under the counter at Pulse, for exactly six hours before I ghost him forever."

Naomi smirked softly. "I’m going to see my parents. Dad’s grilling. Mom’s gonna ask about grades. Typical peace and trauma."

They all chuckled, then looked at Kendra.

"What about you, Miss Perfect? Jake sweeping you off your feet again?" Tessa wiggled her brows.

They all turned to Kendra, waiting.

She paused, lips curling. "Jake has something planned. It’s our one year anniversary. He just told me to show up at his dorm later tonight with something fancy to change into."

"Ooooh," Tessa sang, before suddenly leaning in with a devilish grin.

"Or… you could ditch all Prince Charming stuff and come out to Pulse. Finish what you started."

Kendra froze, only slightly, but enough. Naomi gave the smallest smirk. Alyssa let out a laugh but it sounded like she didn’t mean to let it slip.

"Tessa!" Kendra snapped softly, glancing around. "We’re not talking about that."

"Oh come on," Tessa grinned. "It’s not like you"

"No," Kendra cut her off, her voice firm. "It was a mistake. One stupid mistake. We’re deleting it, mentally, emotionally, digitally, out of our systems. Can we please forget it ever happened?"

Tessa opened her mouth to say something else but Alyssa said something instead "We get it. Sorry. I shouldn’t have laughed. It’s serious."

Kendra let out a breath. Her expression serious. "Nobody can know. I mean it. It only happened because I was drunk. Like actually drunk. For the first time in my life. I always told myself I’d never get that far, never drink enough to lose control. And then… I did. And I woke up with the worst hangover of my life and a memory I want erased. It was a stupid slip-up and I hate myself for it"

"Yeah," Alyssa muttered, dryly. "A slip-up. Into his pants."

Kendra’s eyes widened, then they all burst out laughing, partly at the shock, partly at the pain.

"Don’t say that," Kendra groaned, half-laughing herself. "It’s not funny. I already feel terrible. I love Jake. He’s the love of my life. I swear I will never get that drunk again. Ever."

She said it like a vow. Like a prayer.

Naomi’s voice was soft, thoughtful. "You’re right. It is serious. But… if you really never let it happen again, and you learn from it… maybe it was a lesson more than a sin. And you did stop yourself."

Alyssa raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, but only when I pulled her out of that guy’s lap. Then she snapped out of it. God knows what else would've happened if I hadn’t stepped in. Not like you" she added pointedly, glancing at Tessa, "who just stood there laughing and filming it."

Tessa shrugged without shame. "Everyone has a role to play, baby. Naomi didn’t even have one. What did you do, huh?"

Naomi looked up from her iced tea, eyebrows lifted. "Hey. I was being productive. I studied."

That cracked them up again, the tension breaking.

"Productive my ass" Alyssa said, shaking her head.

Tessa twirled a strand of her hair and let out a low whistle. "Honestly, I don’t know if I could’ve stopped myself. Fuck, that guy looked like he walked out of a Calvin Klein campaign."

Kendra shook her head and finished the last of her shake. "Well, I did. And I’ve already got my own movie star. Tall, hot, loyal, Captain of the football team. What more could a girl want?"

She stood, slinging her gym bag back over her shoulder.

"Come on. Let’s go lift something heavy."

"Gym time?" Alyssa asked.

"Yep," Kendra nodded and took a long sip from her protein drink. "Burn off all the bad decisions."

"Or sweat them out," Naomi added.

The girls rose from the bench, laughter returning to their voices. But even as they walked toward the gym, that moment still hung in the air fragile and unspoken. A memory they were all pretending to forget… but none of them really had.