The gymnasium lights felt harsh and artificial after the soft glow of the art exhibition, and the lingering scent of popcorn and cheap hot dogs hung in the air, a testant to the festival’s end. The last of the families were filtering out, their chatter echoing in the large, emptying space.
Kofi stood by the exhibition panel, carefully taking down Thea’s frad drawings one by one. Nina was beside him, handing him pieces of bubble wrap she had sohow produced from her bag, while Ruby was thodically wiping down the fras with a soft cloth before he wrapped them. Jake was on lookout duty, his eyes scanning the thinning crowd for any sign of Jessica, a self-appointed guard for an enemy that had already retreated.
Thea was a few feet away, clutching the small, first-place ribbon the art teacher had pressed into her hand just before the festival closed. ’First place. I got first place.’ The concept was a foreign object in her mind, sothing she couldn’t quite process. Her drawing of the single, outstretched wing had won the student choice award. People had voted for her work. They had seen sothing she had made, and they had liked it.
Nina glanced over at her, then nudged Kofi with her elbow, a silent instruction. He finished wrapping the last drawing, slid it into the portfolio, and walked over to where Thea was standing.
"You ready to go?"
She looked up from the ribbon, her eyes wide and still a little dazed, and she gave a small nod.
The group walked out of the school and into the cool evening air, the parking lot nearly empty now, streetlights casting long shadows on the pavent.
"So, that was a complete and total victory," Nina announced, breaking the quiet. "Operation: Art of War was a flawless success. Jessica was humiliated, Thea is now a celebrated artist, and Jake did not say a single weird thing for an entire afternoon. I’m calling it a miracle."
Jake, walking beside Ruby, puffed his chest out just a little. "I have officially retired my carbohydrate-based conversational tactics. My new focus is on historically accurate piracy and mutual interests."
Ruby offered him a small smile. "You were very knowledgeable about the rigging on a seventeenth-century sloop."
"I do my research."
’She thinks I’m knowledgeable. This is so much better than the bread thing.’
Kofi looked over at Nina, the streetlights catching the glitter on her nails as she gestured wildly, recounting their victory over Jessica. ’She really is sothing else. She turned a potential disaster into... this.’ He felt a familiar warmth in his chest, a feeling he was trying very hard to ignore.
Nina caught him looking, her own train of thought coming to an abrupt halt. The easy, triumphant energy between them suddenly shifted, the mory of the bonfire, of his disastrous confession, a silent ghost that was always there, just under the surface. ’Don’t make it weird. Just be normal. We’re just friends.’
She quickly turned her attention back to the group at large. "Okay, so a victory of this magnitude requires a celebratory feast. My treat. There’s a ran place downtown that isn’t terrible. We’re going."
It was not a suggestion.
The ran shop was small and warm, slling of rich broth and toasted sesa oil. They squeezed into a booth in the corner, Kofi and Thea on one side, Nina, Jake, and Ruby cramd into the other.
A waitress ca and took their order. Nina insisted on getting a large plate of gyoza for the table, declaring them "victory dumplings."
Thea had been quiet since they left the school, her new ribbon now carefully tucked into the pocket of her jacket. She sat beside Kofi, watching the others, a silent observer.
Ruby, in a surprising move, was the one who broke the silence. "Thea, your drawings were really beautiful. The way you did the feathers on the hawk’s wing... it looked so real."
Thea’s head ca up, her cheeks turning a faint pink. "...Thank you."
"Yeah, man, they were aweso," Jake added, leaning forward eagerly. "It’s like you can see the way the birds think, just from their eyes. It’s a real talent."
Thea looked down at her hands, which were twisting a napkin in her lap. ’They’re not just being nice. I think they actually an it.’ The sincerity was a new and unsettling feeling.
The ran arrived in large, steaming bowls. For a few minutes, the only sound was the quiet slurping of noodles.
Kofi watched Thea out of the corner of his eye. She was eating slowly, thodically, but she was eating. A few weeks ago, the idea of her sitting in a crowded restaurant, surrounded by people, would have been impossible. Now, she was just... here.
Nina put her chopsticks down with a decisive click. "Okay, so now that Thea is a famous artist, we need to discuss her next move. A gallery show? An exclusive contract with a major art supplier? I’m thinking I should be her agent. I’ll take a ten percent commission."
Thea looked up, a flicker of panic in her eyes. "I’m not... it was just a school thing."
"Nonsense," Nina said, waving a dismissive hand. "This is just the beginning. Today, the school festival. Tomorrow, the world."
Kofi saw Thea shrinking into herself, so he gently kicked Nina under the table. She shot him a look, then seed to understand.
"Okay, fine," Nina conceded with a sigh. "We can hold off on world domination for a little while. But you should at least get a better sketchbook. A professional one."
The rest of the al was light and easy. Jake and Ruby got into a surprisingly intense debate about whether ninjas or pirates would win in a fight, a conversation that Thea actually seed to be listening to with so interest.
When they finished, Nina insisted on paying, slapping her card down on the bill before anyone could argue. They walked back out into the night, the streets of their boring town feeling different, brighter.
They walked Ruby ho first, then Jake, leaving just the three of them—Kofi, Nina, and Thea—standing at the corner where Kofi and Nina always t.
"Well," Nina said, rocking back and forth on her heels. "This was a good day. We should do it again soti. The winning part, I an. Not the almost-having-a-nervous-breakdown part."
She looked at Thea, her usual teasing energy softening into sothing genuine. "You were really brave today, Thea. For real."
Thea just looked down at her shoes, a small, embarrassed smile on her face.
Nina then turned to Kofi, and the easy atmosphere between them once again beca charged with all the things they were not saying.
"I’ll, uh, see you on Monday," she said, her gaze not quite eting his.
"Yeah. See you."
She turned and walked away, leaving Kofi and Thea alone under the streetlight. They started the short walk back to their apartnt building in a comfortable quiet. The silence was different now. It was not empty. It was full of the shared experiences of the day.
As they rode the elevator up, Thea spoke, her voice so quiet Kofi almost missed it.
"She’s right, you know."
"About what?"
"You are a good commander."
He looked over at her. She was looking straight ahead at the elevator doors, but he could see the small, genuine smile on her face.
He felt his own lips curve into a smile in return. "Nah. I’m just the guy with the slip-on shoes."
She did not respond, but her smile did not fade. They got off the elevator and walked to their apartnt. He unlocked the door and held it open for her. She walked inside, and for the first ti, it did not feel like she was entering a stranger’s house. It felt like she was coming ho.
He followed her in, the door clicking shut behind them, sealing them into the quiet, simple space that had sohow, against all odds, beco theirs.
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