Their friends finally returned to the fireside, bringing with them a handful of new faces. The group had grown, their voices rising in a cacophony of laughter and chatter. While the others reveled in the rowdy atmosphere, Nile found himself retreating inward. The buzz of conversation swirled around him, but the feeling of too many bodies in too little space began to gnaw at him. It was stifling.

Nile stood abruptly, brushing off the seat of his jeans. “Hey, guys, I think I’m going to go check out the rest of the party, ok?” His voice cut through the noise like a tentative anchor, pulling a few curious glances.

He caught Dom’s eye across the firelight, her gaze steady and questioning. Her expression softened when he raised an eyebrow, silently inviting her along.

“How about you, Dom? Wanna join me?” he asked, his tone casual, but his eyes hopeful.

Dom didn’t hesitate. She rose gracefully, her leather boots crunching on the gravel as she accepted the hand he extended. Her touch was warm, familiar, and it steadied him in a way the chaotic scene couldn’t.

Feeling left out, Peanut let out an excited bark, his tail wagging furiously. The small hound darted toward Nile, circling his feet like an insistent toddler.

“Of course you can come too, boy,” Nile said with a chuckle, reaching down to scratch behind Peanut’s slightly pointed ears.

Peanut barked again in reply, his energy boundless as he leapt over a nearby log. Without waiting for further confirmation, he darted ahead, his nose twitching as he navigated the sea of partygoers like an enthusiastic guide.

From the shadows, a sleek feline figure slinked into step behind them. Charlie’s silent presence was a comforting constant as they began their journey.

The duo -now a quartet, counting the ever-loyal Peanut and the enigmatic Charlie- wove through the chaotic gathering, navigating the maze of parked cars and makeshift fire pits scattered across the resort's sprawling base. The echoes of laughter and faint strains of music grew softer as they moved toward the forgotten ski lifts, their path illuminated by the faint glow of scattered lanterns and the occasional flash of phone lights.

Dom tilted her head back, watching the silhouette of the mountain loom above them. The ski lifts, once bustling with eager skiers and snowboarders, now hung lifeless against the starless sky.

Reaching the forlorn ski lifts, Dom took the lead. She approached the bottom-most chair, her fingers brushing the cold metal as she set it swinging gently. The rhythmic creak of the old machinery filled the quiet air, a stark contrast to the distant hum of the party below.

Nile leaned casually against one of the lift’s support beams, his hands buried in the pockets of his jacket. “You know what? I’ll be right back,” he said, his tone laced with a touch of mystery. “Wait right here.”

Dom raised an eyebrow, skepticism flashing across her face. “Okay, sure. At least I’ll have Peanut to keep me company, eh, boy?” She smirked, patting the loyal hound on the head. Peanut let out a contented whuff, his small tail thumping against the gravel.

“I’ll just be a moment, I promise,” Nile said over his shoulder as he jogged toward the darkened control building.

Dom shook her head, a bemused smile playing on her lips. She settled onto the chairlift, its worn padding cold against her legs. Her gaze wandered, drawn to the soft rustling of leaves in the trees and the faint threshing sound of Peanut’s tail as it struck the ground. For a moment, she let herself relax, her thoughts drifting lazily through half-formed daydreams.

I wonder if this is finally going to be the night…

Stolen story; please report.

Her musings were interrupted by a sudden lurch. The chair began its ponderous ascent up the darkened slope, the whirring of the machinery a low, mechanical growl.

“What the -” Dom muttered, gripping the edge of the chair as it swayed slightly. She twisted in her seat, her eyes scanning the base of the lift.

Her heart skipped as she spotted Nile sprinting toward her, a wide grin plastered across his face. “Hey!” he called, his breath visible in the chilly air.

With a last burst of speed, he lunged for the moving chair, his hand gripping the cold metal bar just in time. Dom laughed as he swung himself aboard, settling beside her with an audible huff.

“Smooth,” she teased, the corners of her mouth quirking up.

“Always,” Nile shot back, brushing imaginary dust off his jacket. “What can I say? I like to make an entrance.”

Peanut barked excitedly below, his paws scrambling against the rocky slope as he followed the chair’s slow ascent. His enthusiasm was contagious, drawing smiles from both of them.

Dom’s laughter rang out, bright and unguarded. “Well, now isn’t this a surprise.”

Her gaze lingered on Nile, his face illuminated by the faint glow of the distant fires below. His eyes sparkled with mischief as he shrugged, pulling a folded blanket from under his jacket.

“It wasn’t anything, really,” he said, his tone nonchalant. “Just had to figure out how to break the lock and flip a switch or two. Voilà.”

Dom rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t suppress her smile. “Of course. Nothing is ever simple with you, is it?”

They rode in companionable silence, the soft creak of the lift and the rhythmic rustling of Peanut’s paws against the dirt the only sounds accompanying them. As they ascended higher, the sprawling chaos of the party below transformed into a sea of twinkling lights, each fire pit a tiny star against the vast darkness of the resort.

When the chair reached the peak and came to an abrupt halt, a shuddering clank echoed through the quiet night. The background hum of the machinery faded, leaving them suspended in serene stillness.

“Looks like we ran out of gas,” Nile said with a mischievous grin. He gestured grandly to the view below. “Oh well. I promised you a great sky show, didn’t I? I present to you, ‘A Sea of Stars.’”

He draped the blanket over their laps, his movements easy and unhurried. When his hand came to rest on the seat between them, Dom hesitated for only a moment before placing hers on top of it. The gesture was simple, but it carried the weight of unspoken feelings.

“It’s beautiful,” she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.

Leaning into Nile’s shoulder, she sighed, the tension that had been knotting her chest slowly unraveling. The cool night air brushed against her skin, carrying with it the faint scent of pine and distant smoke. Below, Peanut had taken up his self-appointed role as their sentinel, his ears twitching at every faint sound. Charlie, ever the silent observer, crouched beneath their lift, her golden eyes reflecting the faint glow of the fires below.

A fat raindrop splashed against Charlie’s tail, prompting a disgruntled flick. She retreated further beneath the chair, her fur bristling as she glared at the darkening sky. Peanut’s low whuff of laughter earned him a sharp look from the feline, but he quickly resumed his watchful stance.

Above, the clouds churned like a restless ocean, their shifting shapes casting eerie shadows across the mountainside. Dom’s thoughts mirrored the sky, turbulent and unresolved.

Ok, it’s now or never… I’ll just have to ask him.

“Nile, about us…” Dom’s voice broke through the quiet, hesitant and tinged with an edge that immediately grabbed Nile’s attention.

The words lingered in the crisp night air, curling between them like visible breaths in the cold. Nile turned his head slightly, the blanket shifting as he adjusted his arm around her. The chair swayed gently beneath them, the soft creak of the lift almost rhythmic against the backdrop of distant, muffled party sounds.

About us? The phrase echoed in his mind, heavy with implications. His stomach tightened with a sudden wave of nerves. Did she mean what he thought she meant? Was she talking about… that? What was he supposed to say? The thought hit like a drumbeat, and Nile barely managed to keep his expression neutral.

“What about us?” His voice came out steadier than he felt, though the edge of curiosity - and something deeper - crept into his tone. He shifted slightly, both to face her better and to hide the sudden clamminess of his hands. The question wasn’t just for her. He needed clarity himself, because the idea of us - of them being more than what they were - was something he’d spent years shoving into the quiet corners of his mind.

Dom sighed, and Nile felt his chest tighten in response. She wasn’t looking at him anymore, her gaze fixed somewhere distant, as if searching for courage in the faint lights scattered across the valley below.

“Is there, I mean - have you ever thought, you know, about us?” Her words were soft but deliberate, like the first hesitant steps onto an unsteady bridge. She glanced down at her hands, twisting the edge of the blanket between her fingers as if it were her last tether to solid ground.