Chapter 1

The heavy, humid air of the retro roller rink hit me the second I pushed through the double doors, a wall of scent that instantly dragged me back to the golden haze of my childhood. It was a cocktail of stale popcorn grease, cheap vanilla body spray, and the metallic tang of overheating ice machines, all underscored by the faint, sweet rot of old sweat trapped in synthetic fibers. The air was thick enough to chew, vibrating with the low, thrumming bass of a disco track that seemed to have been stuck on loop for decades. Above, the massive, multi-faceted disco ball spun lazily, casting fractured shards of light across the polished concrete floor, creating a kaleidoscope of shifting stars that danced over the heads of the few scattered skaters. I adjusted the strap of my denim jacket, my fingers trembling slightly as I scanned the room. I had told myself I was just coming for a drink, to clear my head after work, to feel something other than the dull ache of loneliness that had been settling in my chest like a stone. But when I had walked in, the urge to find him had been primal, magnetic. And