Kat POV:
The lights in the auditorium were dimmed, the buzz of chatter low and expectant. We were packed shoulder to shoulder in the theater seats, every row brimming with proud parents, nervous siblings, and loud uncles who couldn’t whisper to save their lives. The smell of old wood, hairspray, and cheap perfume filled the air.
I sat between Shay and Blaze. Alex sat next to his dad, picking at the cuff of his shirt, trying to look cool but bouncing his knee like he’d had three too many sodas. We’d dressed up—our version of dressed up, anyway. Blaze wore a button-down. I had on mascara. Shay looked flawless, as always, even though I caught her eyes brimming with emotion more than once already, and the ceremony hadn’t even started.
This was it.
Graduation.
Ryder Santori—my son—was gra
