The bass was loud enough to make her deaf; she wondered how these people could still hear? College house parties went hand in hand with one thing: noise complaints. Freya hated them, she wanted to still have some hearing left by forty, but a job is still a job.

Her car was parked, her colleagues somewhere nearby. This felt like a routine task, visiting a party just because a neighbor couldn’t sleep. Duty is duty.

In the chaos of it all, Freya knew they’d have to clear the house. Too much noise and overcrowding were enough to shut it down. She was tired, overworked and underpaid.

As her colleagues dealt with the music and the crowd, she preferred to keep watch at the back door, finding familiar faces in the startled crowd. Most of them were just looking for a distraction, spending their nights where they thought they’d find some relief.

Yet she couldn’t help it when her eyes landed on a figure that was too familiar. Anon. And by the look they were wearing they had seen Freya too.

“Oh no… don’t even think you’re running off on me.” They were a little too slow, their shirt now caught in Freya’s hand. “Your family is going to hear about this.”