Irene's well-worn silver sedan rolled around a final corner, music blaring out of its open windows and into the otherwise quiet neighborhood. Its amber headlights roved across the line of vehicles parked along the street to glint off of mirrors and windows as they passed. They parked a bit farther from Vinny's house than any would have chosen otherwise, but it couldn't be helped. This party in particular always drew a large crowd.

Kaitlyn stepped out of the passenger seat and breathed in the cold night air. It stung her nostrils, the sudden shift from the cloying warmth of the car making it seem even colder by comparison. The rest of her companions joined her on the sidewalk shortly after, stretching as they did.

"Geez!" Cedric complained. "Talk about cramped. My legs were already killing me from Nationals, but now? I don't know if I can even walk…"

Rachel rolled her eyes in amusement. "Oh, stop whining. We were barely even driving for twenty minutes. And besides, Kat gave you plenty of legroom."

"Would've had more if I was sitting shotgun…" The guy muttered, shooting a glare in Kaitlyn's direction.

She spared him an apologetic grin. She felt a little bad using her foreknowledge to steal the front seat from Cedric. At the same time, whatever guilt she had was completely nullified upon seeing Rachel get all flustered when squeezed next to her crush.

That was totally worth it. Maybe I didn't have to tease her so much, but, well… we'll call it payback for all those loops she did the same to me.

"Hey, if you need a lift, just say the word!" Alex called, squatting down as though to invite Cedric on his back. "You're scrawny enough for me to carry!"

"How? Just… how are you not dead?" Cedric groaned. "Seriously. Do you have a secret twin or something I don't know about? Is that how you've got so much energy?"

"Dang. Was I really that obvious?"

The group continued chatting as they approached Vinny's house, shivering slightly every time the wind kicked up. Nationals had been as fun as she'd remembered. Even more so, actually, considering that she actually had money to spend on the various stands and vendors this time. It had also helped to satisfy her curiosity about something.

Despite having left the team behind ages ago, some part of Kaitlyn had always wondered how Nationals had gone after that fateful reset. Did it stay the same as before? Or did Alex's improved mindset lead him to earn better placings now and forevermore? Now, she finally had her answer.

Alex had finished at fifth place. It was far better than the twenty-fifth he had managed in most of his endings, but not quite as good as the third place of his romance ending. She wasn't entirely sure what to think about that. But the improvement did make her smile.

I think it's a good thing. He's doing better, even on his own. I knew it before, but this is just more proof.

Everyone else had fared much the same in their races, with no obvious changes. Though that was to be expected. Why would anything else change?

It didn't take long for the group to climb the front steps of the whitewashed house. Glowing lights flashed out from half-lidded blinds, making the building itself appear as though it were half asleep. The appearance was somewhat spoiled by the dull thump of bassy music that became audible as they approached, though.

A short while after Cedric knocked, the door swung open, allowing music and conversation to pour out of it in a deluge. A ruddy-faced fratboy-type stood silhouetted in the light, his face breaking into a wide grin as he saw them. "Ayy, Cedric! Finally, you got your lazy ass over here!"

"Hey, Ryan!" The two clasped hands and went in for a brief hug. "Thanks for having us, man. How you been?"

"Ah, you know," the broad-shouldered male scratched his stubble. "Classes suck, but what can ya do? Come on in."

Ryan ushered them all inside, offering them a myriad of drinks as he led them to a central table. Kaitlyn grabbed a cup—a water, just to be safe—before the group began to disperse among the crowd of new and familiar faces. She and Rachel claimed a spot near the wall, each nursing their respective cups. They watched the mass of intoxicated bodies milling about for a while, chatting about the day and other things. But eventually, another one of Kaitlyn's curiosities got the best of her.

"So. Have you asked Cedric out yet?"

Kaitlyn watched in satisfaction as Rachel nearly choked on her drink. Incredibly, she didn't cough once as she stood and slowly recovered her wits. "Well. What an… unexpected question, sweetie. Am I so easy to read?"

"Hmm, not exactly. I'm pretty good at picking up on stuff like that though. So, have you?"

Rachel paused for a moment, swirling the contents of her cup as she intentionally avoided Kaitlyn's gaze. Eventually, she spoke. "...No, I haven't. I assume that if he had any interest, he would ask me himself."

Kaitlyn shook her head with a sigh. Of course. I knew that, but kind of hoped things would go better. I mean, they seemed like they might have made something happen after the night market…

It wasn't like she really expected things to have changed. Still, maybe they could. They just needed a nudge in the right direction.

"Rach… I get that. I really do." She gave her a level look. "But you have to understand something."

"Yes?"

"Cedric—he's an awesome guy, don't get me wrong—but he's also… how do you say… oblivious? Like, completely?" Kaitlyn nodded across the room to the round table, where he and Ryan were in the process of doing shots together. "As in, as much as I can tell you like him, I really really don't think he has a clue."

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Rachel just shrugged. "Perhaps you're right. At the same time, my point still stands. He hasn't expressed any interest, either."

"Yeah, obviously. Because he thinks you're way out of his league."

The dark-haired girl looked taken aback, her eyebrows shooting up to her forehead. "What? Why on earth would he think that?"

"Uh, why wouldn't he?" Kaitlyn shook her head. "C'mon, Rach. It's not even just that you're pretty, which you totally are. You're also really smart and one of the best runners on the team. Do you realize how intimidating that is? And to also be super nice on top of it? I honestly don't blame him."

Rachel fell silent, thinking about her words for a moment. "...Well. If that is true—and that's a very large if, mind you—that makes things a bit complicated, now doesn't it?"

"Eh? Not really." Kaitlyn elbowed her in the side. "The way I see it, it just means you might have to step up. If you want to, of course. But I have it on good authority that it would work out."

They both watched the guy in question between the ever-shifting crowd, catching glimpses of his cheery face. It was already turning a rather obvious shade of red, and although they couldn't hear his words over the din, Kaitlyn was certain that they wouldn't sound nearly as coherent as usual.

I hope she does go for it. Because I don't think he'd listen to me this time around. We're not nearly close enough for that.

With a long sigh, Rachel downed the rest of her drink and pushed off from the wall. "Well, I suppose I have a lot to think about. In the meantime, I should probably go make sure that fool isn't about to drink himself into a complete stupor…"

Grinning, Kaitlyn raised her cup to her friend. "Good luck. You might be a bit late for that."

Rachel just rolled her eyes. "And yet it feels like we only just got here… You don't mind if I go babysit?"

"Nope. I'm probably going to wander around for a while and say hi to people. Don't worry about me."

"Alright, sweetie. You'll know where to find me."

With that, Rachel turned and disappeared into the crowd, the light flickering off her skin as she gracefully snaked between partygoers. Kaitlyn watched her go, then scanned the crowd for her other team members and set out.

Compared to before, she felt a lot more comfortable alone at the party this time. Not only that, but she actually did know people. She spent at least an hour talking to various friends, flitting from group to group with the flow of conversation. It felt… nice.

Dang. I never realized how big of a difference it makes to know people. She frowned. I mean, I've always known a handful of them at these things, but that's about it. Now? It feels like I can go wherever and still find a familiar face. A face that finds ME familiar, too.

It made the crush of people feel a lot less lonely than it usually did—something she was incredibly grateful for.

Eventually, she needed a break. Between the socialization and how dang hot the house got with this many people inside, Kaitlyn found herself craving a moment to herself. Bidding goodbye to a group of Irene's friends, she carefully navigated through the crowds and toward the back door. The fresh air greeted her as it swung open, a welcome reprieve from the stuffy, alcohol-suffused atmosphere inside.

The music faded to a dull thrum behind her as the door closed. She took a few steps toward the railing and leaned out, sighing in relief as she looked over the backyard lawn below.

This has been a good loop, hasn't it?

Looking back on things, she really had accomplished a lot. But despite all that, it hadn't felt like she'd overtaxed herself. All of this productivity had felt healthy and useful, like a good way to move forward. It had been real progress.

Only four more weeks.

Kaitlyn sipped from her water. Now that the end of the loop was approaching, maybe it was time to think about the future a little bit. It was a little premature, sure, but those last few weeks would be gone in the blink of an eye. That, she was sure of.

Let's see… There's a lot of what I'm doing now that can carry over. But I might have to make some sacrifices and shift around my priorities a bit.

Obviously, getting an earlier start on her software engineering job was high up on the list. Working at Fink was going really well, and between the experience, the money, and how much she enjoyed it so far, she couldn't see any reason not to come right on back. However, that did introduce some new problems.

With how many hours she'd been putting into it, she found that she was having to make more sacrifices than just working at Chella's. Working full-time required her to set aside a huge chunk of her day, practically as much as when she'd been grinding out classes.

I can cut back on lab, music, and Kate's Kitchen. Those are the big ones. She stopped. Well, and cross country. I kind of want to come back and join again next loop, if only for the running and the people, but I don't have to come to all the events. I can still do everything if I really want to, but… honestly, I don't see the point in pushing things too far.

She hummed in thought, her gaze drifting up to the sliver of moon hanging in the sky above. Her choice really hinged on one thing—what route she'd be aiming for next.

…Yeah. I should probably start thinking about that, too.

There were two options available to her—Elliot's romance route, or Vinny's. There were other routes she hadn't unlocked, sure, but she didn't particularly want to think about those. Best she could hope for was that they weren't all required for her to get out of here. If she could get out, of course.

Skirting away from that line of thought, Kaitlyn refocused. I'm pretty well set up for an Elliot ending, actually. I've got a lot going on in lab, my piano skills are almost reasonable now, and I even know a lot of encounters that I can find him at. I've even got a lot of leads for what his route might need from me.

Between Elliot's rich, famous dad and Esme, she had some pretty solid ideas for what to look into regarding the ginger's troubles. On top of all that, it would be pretty easy to spend a lot of time around him, especially if she tinkered with her work schedule just a little bit. The path forward seemed pretty clear.

Or I could go for Vinny…

She looked around at the porch, running her hand across the white-painted wood of one of the pillars. Even after all this time, it still felt familiar. Living in the house for a few months had really made it feel like a home away from home. But despite that, the idea of looking into his route felt like a much taller task.

I'm sure he'll let me stay if I just ask, like usual. Especially if I'm cooking. But what in the world am I supposed to do for him? Am I supposed to help him get back into college at Rosedale? Stop drinking? Be less of an asshole jerk?

All of those, while theoretically possible, seemed like massive hurdles that she didn't even know how to approach yet. Assuming any of them were even right. She had no clue what the blonde needed or even wanted, much less how she could fit into that picture.

With a sigh, Kaitlyn came to a decision. Pursuing Elliot made the most sense right now. She would look into Vinny if she could, though that was a big if considering how far out of the way the guy was. Still, it was the best she could do.

As she began refining her plan, a flicker of movement caught her eye. Kaitlyn looked over as another figure leaned back against the railing at her elbow.

"Enjoyin' the view?"