Behind me, Ace chuckles as he follows along. When we’re safely away from them, he gives me a grateful look. “Thanks. He’s just...aggravating. I wasn’t even lying—my piano lesson really was canceled. My instructor has the flu. Not that he cares.” Ace sighs, scratching the back of his head. “I’m sure he’ll tell Dad either way.”

“And he’ll look stupid when he does,” I say, squeezing Ace’s hand. “Forget him.”

He huffs a rueful laugh, pulling me closer and leaning his chin against the top of my head. “I wish.”

I sigh, wrapping my arms around his waist. “Family, am I right?”

“Family,” Ace agrees solemnly.

Later, we’re holding hands and walking back to Ace’s house when something splashes against the back of my neck. When I turn to Ace, there’s a drop of water sliding down the ridge of his nose.

A clap of thunder sounds, and I jump in surprise, clutching Ace’s hand tightly enough to cut off circulation.

“Are you scared?” he asks, having the nerve to sound amused.

I scowl. “No. I just don’t want to get a cold. Your house is a long walk from here.”

Ace rolls his eyes but his lips curl up in one corner. “You’ll be fine, Karina. Plus, haven’t you always wanted to kiss in the rain? It happened in like half the Bollywood movies we watched.”

“You’ve seen like four.”

“It still happened.”

“I resent that.”

Not a moment later, the rain decides to pour down in buckets, drenching us both.

Ace laughs in delight, because I’m apparently dating a lunatic. His bad mood from before has all but evaporated, as if the rain is the equivalent of sunshine for him.

He slips his hand out of my grasp and extends his arms on either side. I watch as he tilts his face toward the sky and closes his eyes, a wide smile across his face.

“What’s wrong with you?” I say, shouting to be heard over the pouring rain.

“Join me!” Ace says back, eyelashes fluttering open to reveal striking kaleidoscopic eyes. “Live a little.”

I give him an unimpressed look as I push wet hair out of my face. “You can’t keep saying that, you know. I live just fine, thank you.”

Ace laughs again and shakes his head. “Baby, come on.”

I jolt at the endearment and the way my pulse starts rocketing. It’s nothing like his joking sweetie in front of his family, in front of my friends. This isn’t for show.

This is me and him, alone in a storm, and he’s giving me the most beautiful smile and calling me baby.

Despite the freezing rain, I feel impossibly warm.