** The block was loud that night—bachata coming from somebody’s apartment, cars driving by with music blasting, and people posted up outside the bodegas like it was their living room.

Eva was walking home with her headphones in when she heard somebody yell her name.

“Eva!”

She turned around and saw Ethan leaning against the fence, wearing a hoodie and smiling at her.

“Why you always following me?” she asked, laughing.

“I’m not following you. We just live on the same block.”

“Mhmm. Sure.”

Ethan walked beside her anyway.

They stopped outside the bodega, sharing a bag of chips while they talked about everything and nothing. He kept making her laugh, and every time she looked at him, he was already looking at her.

“What?” Eva finally asked.

“Nothing.”

“You keep staring.”

“I like looking at you.”

Eva smiled and looked down. “You’re corny.”

“But you like me.”

She looked back at him. “Maybe I do.”

Ethan smiled, stepping a little closer.

“Maybe?”

Eva laughed. “Okay… I do.”

For a second, the noise of the whole block seemed far away. It was just them under the streetlight, with the music from the nearby apartment still playing in the background.

Ethan smiled. “Come on, ma. I’ll walk you home.”

And Eva let him, secretly hoping the walk would take a little longer.