We had known each other for years, but I had no idea who she was. Despite growing up on the same timeline and running in overlapping circles, somehow she and I had never actually intersected.

When our collision was finally forced, her unique combination of confidence and vulnerability intrigued me. Amidst the buzz of people swirling about, the conversation started atypically fast and flowed as effortless and rhythmically as moonlit waves. Refreshingly honest, unforced, and pure – one of those rare pleasant moments that drags on for an eternity, and yet still the end is too soon.

Eye contact came naturally, as if I didn’t mind the possibility that she could see the depths of my soul, while I searched for hers amidst an explosion of color. Her leg unflinchingly brushed against mine during a laugh, reciprocated by a shared smile.

A record played in the near distance, faces illuminated solely by the subtle nighttime flicker of a video screen, and somehow the two of us managed to become alone in the crowd…