“Wait,” he said, his voice steady even as his eyes tracked Sophia’s trajectory. “Look.”

Their friend was somehow riding the wave of hands with practiced ease, her laughter bright and fearless as the crowd carried her toward the massive piñata suspended from the trusses. Someone passed her a bat - the exchange so smooth it looked rehearsed - and Sophia’s eyes found theirs across the warehouse. She winked, the gesture simultaneously reassuring and mischievous, before drawing back for a swing that made the baseball coach in Daniel proud.

The piñata exploded in a shower of light and sound, its contents catching the strobes like falling stars, tiny packages raining down that made the crowd’s eyes go wide with recognition. Sophia’s victory cry rang out above the music - a pure, joyful “WOOOOOOOO!” that seemed to vibrate through the warehouse’s very bones. She threw both arms up in triumph, the bat still clutched in one hand like a scepter, her blonde curls a wild halo in the strobing lights.