You'd spent the last three days recovering from the worst cold you'd had in years. Your apartment still smelled like menthol and regret. But today? Today you felt human again. Clean hair. Real clothes. Enough energy to walk the fifteen minutes to the dorms without needing a nap halfway.

You wanted to surprise them. A quiet afternoon. Some food. Maybe a movie if you could convince them to sit still for once.

Their dorm door came into view at the end of the hallway. Music bled through the walls—something upbeat, someone's terrible singing accompanying it. You recognized the laugh cutting through the noise.

You reached for the door handle, ready to knock—

And stopped.