Time passed, and Quinn, Sarah, and Leona all returo school. Goonie had met with the Principal ahead of time to ehat Leona would have any special provisions she might need as a freshman. Thankfully, the Principal was uanding. He promised to keep Leona’s transgeatus fidential and ehat any staff who knew would do the same. This granted Leona some discreet privileges to help her navigate the school enviro without drawing unwatention.

  Quinn, ever the big sister, took it upon herself to introduce Leona around campus. As a result, Leona ied some of her sister’s social credit, which made starting fresh a little easier. She appreciated the boost—especially since, apart from Sarah, none of her ret friends would be attending this high school. Without Quinn’s help, she’d have faced the daunting task of building friendships all ain from scratch.

  But things with Sarah were plicated.

  Since Leona’s fession, the dynamic between them had shifted. Sarah, always the dutiful daughter, had told her parents everything when pressed. Their response was as strict as Leona had feared: they insisted Sarah keep her distahey worried about her reputation, her future. The warmth they’d shared in the backseat of Quinn’s ow felt distant. Though they were still best friends in name, Sarah’s parents had forbidden sleepovers, particurly visits to Leona’s house—anything that might deepen the bond they feared.

  The distanawed at Leona. One day, uo ehe uainty any longer, she fronted Sarah directly. “Hey, why have you been kind of avoiding me?”

  Sarah sighed, gng around nervously before tugging Leona into the girl’s bathroom. She locked the door and checked to make sure they were alone before meeting Leona’s gaze. Her expression ologetic, almost pained. “I’m so sorry about this,” she said softly. “My parents… they told me to keep my distahey’re worried about my reputation, and they’re just thinking about my future. You know how they forced me to tell them everything when I got home te that night.” Her voice trembled, but she pressed on. “But no matter what happens, please remember—you’re still my best friend, and I still love you.”

  Leo out a slow breath, relieved by Sarah’s siy. “I get it,” she replied, though the ache of it lingered. She had just begun to rex when Sarah suddenly seized her shirt, her expression serious, and yanked her forward.

  Before Leona could process what was happening, Sarah kissed her—deeply, thhly. Leona’s eyes widened, her knees bug as a rush of warmth flooded her. She melted, her mind spinning, lost in the ued iy of Sarah’s lips against hers.

  What is happening?! she thought, barely able to breathe. Best friends didn’t kiss like this… did they?

  When the kiss broke, Leona was still reeling, struggling to keep her legs from giving out entirely. Sarah’s eyes sparkled with mischief as she smiled warmly. “I’d love to sneak more kisses with you soon,” she whispered, her cheeks flushed. “But even a nice hug now and then would be oo.”

  Leona stared, speechless, her mind a whirlwind. All she knew was that she had feelings for Sarah—fusing, plicated feelings. No matter the circumstances, she was in too deep now.

  To fill the growing void in her heart, Leona decided to take a step forward and fe friendships beyond Quinn’s circle, which most would graduate with her anyway. It started smoothly enough. She met new people, formed bonds with surprising ease, and for a while, it was liberating to have ay separate from her sister’s reputation. She ughed more, felt lighter—until Sarah noticed.

  Sarah, with that familiar blend of sweetness and stubbornness, couldn’t stand the idea of bei out. She affably ied herself into Leona’s newly formed group, her warm smile masking the subtle possessivehat had begun to creep into their dynamic. Though her presence felt like a tradi to the boundaries her parents imposed, Leona couldn’t deny the fort it brought.

  But the ued challenge came from the group itself. For reasons Leona couldn’t fathom, her new friends seemed determio pair her off with boys who expressed i—and there were many. Far too many. Each time, Leona politely deed, her heart never fluttering in the way it was supposed to. At first, her friends were puzzled, but eventually, they got the message.

  Instead of matchmakers, they became her protectors. They formed an unspoken alliance, shielding her from the endless advances with subtle interferend pyful distras. Their loyalty created a safer space for Leona, and the more time she spent with them, the fewer is she faced.

  The ued be of this dynamic was the growing sense of normalcy. Being part of a group, feeling included and accepted, made the distance from Sarah a little less sharp—though not enough to quiet the lingering ache entirely.

  Leona ractically vibrating with excitement, her smile stretg wider than it had in years. "Justi!? Are you kidding? Really?" she blurted, boung ooes with the enthusiasm of a child at their first theme park.

  Sarah’s grin widened. "Yeah! I looked into it and found out that it’s supposed to be held in Seaside City! Thankfully it isn't too far, and I wao have a look at that city myself. Anyway, since I wao make up for blurting about you to my parents, I saved up for a couple of tickets." She leaned in spiratorially. "I also didly tell my parents I was inviting you specifically, so… mum’s the word, okay?" She ughed, lighthearted but nervous.

  Leona’s heart swelled, the warmth spreading through her chest. "Of course I won’t tell a single soul… except foonie and Quinn! I usually have to watch these kinds of things online on YouRube. Between Goonie's support and the cost of my healthcare, we just couldn’t swing tickets, even knowing that this was a on a lifetime opportunity. But—wait—does this mean yoing too?"

  Sarah nodded slowly, brushing a stray lock of hair behind her ear. The gesture was soft, almost shy, but there was an undercurrent of tension in the way she fidgeted. “Yeah. I figured you’d love going with me. You know, I like superheroes too, maybe not as much as you, though. I thought it’d be fun to go together, so it’s a little bit for me too.” Her voice softehe uainty clear in her eyes. She hesitated, gng away before tinuing. “But… Leona. we clear something up?”

  Leona’s breath caught. The way Sarah’s tone dropped hi something more serious. She nodded, her pulse quiing, w what else Sarah had to say. Were there ditions? Did Sarah have sed thoughts about giving her one of the tickets?

  For a moment, Sarah said nothing, biting her lip as if weighing her words. Theook a deep breath, her lips twisting into somethiween a grimad a sad smile. “What with how I’ve beeing you tely… does it hurt?” Her voice trembled slightly. “I’d uand if you didn’t want to go with me.”

  Leona didn’t hesitate. She snatched the ticket from Sarah’s hand, the paper kling slightly in her grip as she squeezed Sarah’s fiightly. “Are you kidding? I wouldn’t go if you weren’t going too!” Her voice was fierce, emphatid then it softened. “And it’s okay. I mean…” She trailed off, the flush creeping up her neck. “It’s kind of fusing how bad forth things are between us, but… but…” She faltered, searg for the right words. “Through it all, you were thinking about me, Sarah.”

  The words tumbled out ear and raw, and Leo her face heat with embarrassment. She blushed harder when she realized how tightly she was still holding Sarah’s hand and quickly pulled away, the loss of tact leaving her fiingling. She was reminded of the boundaries Sarah’s parents had set. Flustered, she gnced down at the ticket clutched in her hand, trying to ground herself—and froze.

  Her breath hitched.

  Her eyes widened. "Oh my gosh… these are—"

  "GAMMA TICKETS!" Sarah beamed, practically boung with pride. "They’re for the whole weekend, with all the extras—panels, meet-and-greets, everything!"

  Leona’s breath caught, and for a moment, she just stared, overwhelmed. Her voice softened with genuine awe. "Sarah, this… this is exactly what I’d want."

  Sarah, still giddy, leaned forward. "Really?" she whispered, as if needing reassurance.

  Leona’s response was to hop on the spot, her ughter bubbling out untrolbly, and Sarah joined her, their giggles iwining. They barely noticed when an emo-looking girl pushed into the bathroom, pausing to stare at their boung. Her lip curled in disgust before she hurried into a stall, smming the door behind her.

  Leona and Sarah froze for a sed before colpsing into quieter giggles. "This is going to be my first-ever vention!" Leona whispered excitedly. "And Seaside City… I've dreamed of this!"

  From the stall came a loud, forced gagging noise. "Aughhh!"

  Sarah covered her mouth, trying not to ugh, while Leona grinned mischievously. The bathroom echoed with their shared excitement—and the unmistakable sound of the stall oct’s exaggerated suffering.

  When she was younger, despite her deep love for superheroes, Leona spent a fair k of time intrigued by supervilins. The question g her: Why do they exist? How could someone be so bad, so cruel? Her curiosity wasn’t born from admiration but from a o uand the darkhat lived in the same world as the light. She would pester her parents with endless questions about why vilins did what they did, what drove them to hurt others, and if they ever felt sorry. Her inquiries were met with varying degrees of dismissal—her mother too busy with work, her father ued, always brushing her off with a grunt or a wave of his hand.

  Even at a young age, Leona had dreamed of going to ventions where heroes and vilins alike were celebrated, dissected, aed. She’d beg her parents to take her, imagining the sights, the es, and the thrilling energy she’d only ever seen on grainy web videos. But her mother’s sparkling smile, warm and kind, was always apanied by a gentle shake of the head and an apologetic, “Maybe ime, sweetheart.” Her father never offered such soft denials. He simply scoffed at the idea, muttering something under his breath about “wasting time on nonsense.”

  What little Leona remembered before ing to live with Goonie was fading with every passing day, though she’d never fet her mother’s sparkling smile. But there was aark image that stood out in her mind aside from the inside of her mother’s old dress chest: the moment her father destroyed her Vanguard a figure.

  Her father never seemed to like superheroes, but that memory lingered more than any other. She still had that figure, salvaged from the old house by Goonie along with her other precious possessions and her mother’s mementos. It was a little melted, the pstic ed from the impact. Her father had thrown it into the family’s cheap CRT television with enough force to break through the gss.

  Leona swallowed hard. “I—I just don’t know what else to say—”

  “As long as you say ‘yes’, that’s all I want to hear,” Sarah said, grinning. “So, it’s the first week in December and, this being a dry-ish year in California, I’d guess we’re not going to get any snow, so I think it’ll be fun—at least I hope so. And by then, I should have a little more allowance saved up for some goodies!”

  “Me too.” Leona grinned. “I’ll make sure I save up plenty so I get you a gift from the dealer’s floor.”

  “Great idea! Let’s find the best gift ever for each other and surprise each other with what we picked!” Sarah grinned eagerly.

  Her enthusiasm was iious, and for a moment, Leo a rush of warmth in her chest. She bit her lip, suddenly aware of how much she wahis trip to happen, how much she wa to be something real for both of them.

  The idea of surprises, of getting something just right, felt like the perfect way to show Sarah how much she cared—without needing to say anything more. She already khe trip would mean more than just a vention. It was a ce for something to shift, a ce for their love to blossom all the more. The unspoken e between them had always been there, but now, with something as simple as a gift, it felt like they might be opening up to something deeper.

  Leona’s heart fluttered at the thought, but she quickly masked it with a teasing grin. “Alright, it’s a deal. Best gifts ever, here we e.”

  Sarah’s eyes lit up with excitement. “It’s a promise!” she decred.