cementalitiesâ:
âOh.â Jesse adjusted his position so he was propped up on his elbows, stuck in a weird limbo between sitting and laying down. Oh. Why was that always his go-to response? Oh. Like if the sky were to open up and a fleet of alien spaceships landed directly in front of him, weapons at the ready, the only substantial verbal response he could offer would be that one singular vowel as he stared at them slack-jawed. Not âplease donât kill me!â or âI mean no harm!â or âsure, Iâll show you where the nuclear weapons are!â â just âoh.â âEveryoneâs too loud,â he said after a pause. âAnd every party is the same, you know. Like, same people different faces. Sometimes it feels like Iâm just, like, living the same night over and over again. But,â he hesitated, tugging at a strand of hair that had wriggled its way free from the others. âI donât know. Might just be me. What about you?â He nodded in her direction then, finally sitting up completely as the bed springs squealed in protest. âHiding from someone? Ran into an ex?â
  as he continued to speak, the girl was quite shocked to hear his words. most guys their age would disagree with him and not only that, but she was sort of relieved she wasnât the only one who shared those sentiments. âuh, no. i feel the same exact way. itâs like this everywhere. new town, but the same people just different names. â his next words provoked a small laugh to leave her lips. âno, not at all. iâm not really from around here. though, i guess iâm not really from anywhere.â she paused, soon realizing how morbid she sounded. âmilitary family, yâknow? my dad gets sent all around.â jess was quick to add. âiâm jessica by the way. jessica davis. i just moved here last week. i met some girls and they invited me, but i donât know why i even came. this isnât really my scene anymore.â













