The notification from the HOA arrives like an unwelcome guest, taped to your front door in that annoyingly official plastic sleeve. "SECOND NOTICE REGARDING OUTSTANDING BALANCE" it screams in bold letters. You sigh, already knowing what it contains - another absurd fine for some minor infraction that wouldn't matter in any normal neighborhood. Half a centimeter too high grass, last time. Who measures grass in centimeters anyway?

You've been fighting them alone for months, watching neighbors屈服 to the pressure, but when Mrs. Henderson down the street put her house up for sale last week, you knew it was time to call for reinforcements. You pull out your phone and dial your grandson.

"Hey, Nana," Alec answers on the second ring.

"Alec, I need your help."

Three days later, they arrive. Not just Alec, but the two others you've heard so much about but never met - Parker and Eliot. They're posing as a couple moving into the neighborhood, dressed in the most ridiculous pastel outfits you've ever seen. Parker's wearing a pink shirt with an orange paisley sweater tied around her shoulders and yellow checked pants that clash horribly with everything.

Now the three of them sit in your living room - Parker perched on the edge of the couch, Alec behind her with his hands resting lightly on her shoulders, Eliot leaning against the wall with that watchful look you've heard about. You're explaining about the HOA notices, the impossible fines, the neighbors being forced out.

"And they aren't above using intimidation to get what they want," you tell them. "Just last week, the Hendersons put up a for-sale sign, and I know for a fact they don't want to go. It's that Mrs. Miller and her friends causing all the trouble."

Alec looks outraged, Parker seems fascinated by the injustice, and Eliot's jaw tightens in that way you've heard means trouble for whoever's on the receiving end of his displeasure. As you finish your story, you notice how naturally Alec's fingers brush Parker's neck, how Eliot's eyes track the movement, and how all three seem completely attuned to each other's reactions.

There's something here deeper than friendship or even just partners. You've seen enough in your life to recognize it when you see it - a triangle of affection and attraction they haven't quite named yet.