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The bass thumped through Moon’s house, shaking the walls and rattling the glass doors that led out to the backyard. The air was heavy with the mingling smells of cheap beer, perfume, and chlorine from the pool.
Tory weaved her way through the crowd, her jaw set, her fists clenched. The party wasn’t her scene, not the Instagram perfect house, not the trust-fund kids sipping spiked punch, and definitely not the shiny, carefree faces of people who didn’t know what it felt like to struggle.
But she wasn’t here for them, nor for anyone.
But since she was there now, she might aswell get something to drink.
She spotted him standing near the patio, leaning against the edge of the pool fence.
Larusso's boyfriend.
What was his name?
Rory? No maybe Rob? Robi? Robby?
He looked like he didn’t want to be here either. His arms were crossed over his chest, his expression distant, his eyes scanning the crowd like he was counting the minutes until he could leave.
She hesitated for a moment, but only a moment. Tory Nichols wasn’t the type to overthink things. She walked up to him, her combat boots making faint thuds against the polished floor.
“You look like you’re having the time of your life,” she said, her voice cutting through the noise.
Robby blinked, startled out of his thoughts. He turned to look at her, his brow furrowed. “Tory, right?”
She nodded, leaning against the fence beside him. “And you’re the golden boy from Miyagi-Do. Guess neither of us fit in here.”
He gave her a wry smile, glancing down at the drink in his hand, a soda, she noticed. “Yeah, this isn’t really my scene.”
“Then why are you here?” she asked, tilting her head, her tone rude.
Robby shrugged. “Sam wanted to come. Thought I’d tag along.”
The mention of Sam LaRusso made Tory’s stomach twist. She tried not to let it show, but the faint tightening of her jaw betrayed her.
“Ah, so you’re one of those guys,” she said, her tone teasing but sharp. “Doing whatever your girlfriend wants, even if it sucks.”
Robby’s lips twitched, but he didn’t laugh. “It’s not like that. I just...” He stopped, shaking his head. “Never mind.”
Tory raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “What? You don’t like her dragging you to these rich kid parties either?”
He hesitated, then sighed. “It’s not that. It’s just... I’m not used to this. Any of it. The nice houses, the perfect families, the fake smiles.”
Her gaze softened, just for a moment. She understood that feeling too well. “Yeah,” she said quietly. “I know what you mean.”
For a while, they just stood there, watching the chaos of the party around them. A group of kids splashed in the pool, someone cranked up the music, and the laughter grew louder. But it all felt distant, like they were standing in their own little bubble.
“You’re not what I expected” Robby said finally, breaking the silence.
Tory smirked. “What’d you expect?”
“I don’t know,” he admitted, scratching the back of his neck. “When I heard about you and sam fight, I thought you’d be... I don’t know, more intense. Then we saw each others at the roller rink and you were just like that. But now...”
She laughed, a sharp, bitter sound. “Oh, I’m intense. You just caught me on a good night.”
He smiled at that, a real one this time. “Fair enough.”
For the first time, Tory let herself relax a little. She didn’t know what it was about Robby or whatever his name was, maybe it was the way he seemed just as out of place as she felt, or the fact that he didn’t look at her like she was a problem waiting to happen.
“Hey,” she said suddenly, turning to face him. “You don’t have to stay, you know. If you hate it here, just leave.”
Robby looked at her, surprised. “And go where?”
“Anywhere,” she said with a shrug. “Sometimes it’s better to get out before the night gets worse.”
He didn’t respond right away, but she could see the wheels turning in his head. After a moment, he nodded. “You know what? You’re right.”
Tory stepped back, motioning toward the door. “Go. You don’t owe these people anything.”
Robby hesitated, then smiled again, this time with a hint of gratitude. “I wish I could.”
As she walked away, he leaned back against the fence, watching her go. She didn’t know why she’d bothered talking to him, maybe it was the loneliness she saw in his eyes, the same kind she saw in herself.
Or maybe, just maybe, it was because she knew that in a world full of people pretending to be something they weren’t, Robby Keene was just trying to figure out who he really was.
And that was the first time she actually saw him.