"Do you really think that could happen?" Melissa asked, peeling off her scarf as she entered the room.

Milo grinned. "Murphy's Law. Better safe than snowed-in without snacks."

Zack was last to arrive, arms loaded with sodas and a huge bowl of popcorn. He paused to appreciate the setup—and the way Melissa's beanie made her eyes stand out. Not that he'd say anything, of course.

"Wow, you went all-out, Milo," Zack said, setting the snacks down on the coffee table. "It's like a survival bunker for movie lovers."

Milo took it as a compliment. "Exactly what I was going for."

Everyone settled in. Diogee curled up in a fuzzy dog bed wearing a tiny sweater that read "Paw-sitive Vibes Only." The heater in the corner hummed steadily, providing a comforting warmth to the room. But as the first movie began, Zack started to sweat under his hoodie. He was sitting between Milo and Melissa, and despite the falling snow outside, it felt like a desert inside.

Just turn it down a little, he thought. No harm in that.

So during a particularly suspenseful scene, when everyone was distracted by a screaming actress running from a very fake monster, Zack slipped over to the wall heater and twisted the dial down a notch. Click.

The heater made a sad little wheeze... and then fell silent.

Zack stared at it. "No, no, no…" He tapped the side. Nothing. He pressed buttons. Still nothing.

Then a cold breeze swept through the room.

Melissa tugged her hoodie tighter. "Is it just me, or did it suddenly get really cold?"

Milo looked up from his marshmallow-flavored popcorn. "That's weird. I just had the heater running…"

"I didn't touch anything!" Zack said, too quickly.

Melissa raised a brow. "Nobody said you did."

Milo shrugged. "It's okay! I've got space blankets, hand warmers, extra socks, and—oh!" He ran off to the garage, leaving Zack and Melissa alone for a moment.

Zack returned to the couch with a nervous smile. "Guess Murphy's Law strikes again, huh?"

Melissa rolled her eyes with a soft smile. "Yeah, guess so." She glanced at his hoodie, then the rising goosebumps on her own arms. "We might as well double up on blankets. Share the heat."

Zack's heart skipped. "Uh, yeah! Good idea. Heat. Science."

They scooted closer, pulling a big fleece blanket over them both. Zack tried to act casual as Melissa leaned into his side, resting her head lightly on his shoulder.

"This okay?" she murmured.

"Totally fine," he managed to say, staring straight ahead at the screen but not absorbing a single frame of the movie.

Milo returned a moment later with a stack of emergency supplies, including a thermal tent and three battery-powered heated socks (only one pair worked). He didn't seem to notice the new blanket arrangement.

"The heater's totally dead," he said, tossing everyone hand warmers. "But don't worry! I've got this covered."

By the time the second movie started, the power flickered. Then—snap—darkness.

"Welp," Milo said cheerfully. "That's the generator's cue!"

While he busied himself rewiring something near the circuit box, Zack and Melissa remained wrapped up together under the covers, lit only by the glow of a camping lantern.

"Not exactly the movie night we planned," Melissa said softly.

"No," Zack agreed. "But maybe kind of perfect?"

Melissa looked up at him, cheeks pink—not just from the cold. "Yeah. Kind of is."

Diogee barked once in agreement and trotted by with a blanket cape fluttering behind him like a hero in a snowstorm.

As snow continued to fall outside and Murphy's Law did its best to throw curveballs inside, three friends—and one heroic dog—weathered the cold together. And Zack? He secretly decided he definitely wasn't going to fix that heater anytime soon.