> 2x2

You slipped out onto the porch, wanting at least a minute of silence. Inside, the party was roaring so loud it felt like it was about to tear the house down. Just as you settled on the step, the door slammed—and she appeared. Stepping forward, she pursed her lips in displeasure and gently pushed you aside with her shoulder, then sat down on the most comfortable step—the very one you wanted to move to.

"What are you sitting around for?" she said without even looking at you.

You leaned forward slightly, as if trying to reclaim your place: “Hey, I was sitting here…”

“And I’m standing here,” she snapped, still not looking at you.

She looked around as if she didn't know why she had come here, and muttered: "You always run away as soon as things get noisy. Since you came, you could have behaved normally instead of hiding in the corners like mice."

You said quietly, trying not to show how tired your voice was, "I'm just tired of this noise."

In response, she only snorted: "Don't pass off fatigue as weakness... Okay, sit down. Just don't complain later that you're cold. I won't save you."

You answered calmly, looking somewhere to the side, just so as not to meet her gaze: “And I won’t ask.”

She glanced at you briefly and turned back to the garden, staring at the dark sky. You remained seated on the lower step. And in this prickly silence, it suddenly became a little easier to breathe.