Waking up became quite a task. When Nole finally logged off last night, his brain was buzzing as hard as the cooling fan in his computer, which was saying something. It was an old hand-me-down from his dad, and playing Enix on it sounded like a jet engine with pieces ready to fly off.

  How could he sleep? Even if his body was tired, he was still tossing and turning with a mile-wide smile, replaying the entire day on Enix in his head.

  Half of him was still in the game on the walk to school. As he rolled his backpack up the hill, he imagined it as his Longstaff dragging in the dirt. The school hallways became the forest of Goldwynn, shading him with thick trees and falling leaves. During recess, the dry grass brushing against his ankles took him right back to the open fields of Westfarm. It was all still so vivid in his head.

  A few girls teased him about staring at the ground as he walked, but he couldn't help daydreaming. His imagination ran wild, churning out reel after reel of the fantasy awaiting him. If only he could get back home and disconnect from reality again.

  He had to be at school but didn't want to be. The teachers didn't even like the middle schoolers they taught. But it made sense, as the kids could be awful. They were loud and rude, like little glass cannons firing their barrels at anyone around them without skin thick enough to take it themselves.

  How could anyone focus on academics when being popular was all that mattered? The dating scene in middle school was the same five boys and girls rotating through each other while everyone else watched from the sidelines like a live studio audience. If you weren't on stage, you were sitting in the stands, and Nole was in the nosebleed section.

  The hormones in his body felt like an unruly kid kicking the back of his seat while he was trying to drive. He noticed girls. He couldn’t not notice, now. But it felt like he’d never even talked to one before, and he’d never felt so far away from what he wanted.

  So, screw it. Enix had much greener pastures. At least there, it felt like he wasn't spinning his wheels, getting nowhere. The juice was worth the squeeze, and his efforts found reward. Logging in was better than being caught up in the politics of tweens and teens. Moreso than the game itself, there was now something he was looking forward to in Enix. Someone, rather.

  Nole tapped his feet nervously through the login process like a coin flip.

  “Hey, loser!” Dapple messaged him the moment he logged in. “Remember me?”

  There was a wave of relief. Then, a whole new rush of nerves.

  "How could I forget?" he wrote back. "The hunter with Swiss cheese for gear and butter knives for weapons.”

  "Yup, that's me," she laughed. "Where are you? I'm coming to find you."

  They spent yesterday in the farmlands west of Goldwynn, so this time, they set a rendezvous point at Laketown in the Redrock mountains east of Goldwynn Forest. The sleepy township sat on the banks of Lake Everquill, left to its secluded comings and goings. A big stone bridge reached from the edges of Goldwynn into the roots of Laketown, where Dapple stood waiting.

  "Finally," she shook her head. "What took you so long? I was wondering when you were going to log in. It was getting so boring without you.”

  The sentiment sent shivers down Nole’s spine that left his entire body blushing, but behind a screen, he could hide it. He could keep it cool.

  “Sounds like someone missed me,” Nole smiled. "Is World Chat not keeping you company anymore?"

  “They’re lame today,” Dapple replied. “Everyone’s got a stick up their butt. No one appreciates my jokes, so I’m packing them up and taking them elsewhere.”

  “You mean packing them up and taking them to me,” Nole pointed out.

  "Exactly," she grinned. "Oh yeah. Another thing. Keki was supposed to be on already, but so far, it's just you.”

  Nole's heart sank a little bit.

  "Keki?" he asked.

  "Ya, my friend Keki, remember?" she said. "I could've sworn I told you before. We were supposed to meet up in Laketown today and play together.”

  Nole scratched his head, feeling a little less important now.

  "My condolences," he said jokingly, putting on a good face.

  "I know, right?" Dapple replied. "The jokes I’ve got are too strong for just you alone. I’d hoped to lessen the blow between the two of you, but it looks like you’re taking it on full force now.”

  “How kind of you,” said Nole. “But I think you mean you hoped to get at least one laugh between the two of us.”

  “Did I mention they’re corny, too?” Dapple insisted. “Can you handle this much corn?”

  “Depends on where I’m taking it,” Nole joked. “But I'd hate to crash your playdate if you've got plans with someone already."

  "No, not at all," Dapple argued. "I want you guys to meet each other. You both love my corny jokes, so you guys will get along famously."

  Nole deflated a bit. Dapple was a social butterfly. She was bubbly and charismatic, and it was naive to think he was the only boy she had buzzing around. He felt stupid for assuming as much.

  "Yeah, sounds like a real match made in heaven," he said. "Can't wait to meet ‘em."

  "That's the spirit," Dapple replied, oblivious to his sarcasm. "Tell you what. I'll save the really good stuff until you're both here 'cus I got some leftovers from yesterday."

  "Corny leftovers, you're too kind," said Nole.

  “Expired, corny leftovers," Dapple clarified. "You're a growing boy, after all. Open wide, mister.”

  "For the jokes or the stick?" Nole asked. “Everyone else has one. I think I want the stick.”

  "Stop it," Dapple laughed. "Sorry. All out of sticks, my friend. Only jokes.”

  "It is what it is," Nole yielded. "Do your worst.”

  Dapple limbered out, rubbing her hands together.

  "Alright, Noley Poley,” she began. “Are you ready?”

  “I thought I was,” he replied. “The longer this takes the more I’m reconsidering it.”

  Dapple burst out into laughter, enjoying every second of it.

  “Are you sure you're ready?" she asked, beaming enthusiastically.

  Nole facepalmed.

  “Maybe I’m not ready,” he joked. “I should log out and come back when I am.”

  “Okay, okay,” she assured him. “Don’t get your panties in a knot. Let’s do this.”

  Dapple cleared her throat.

  “So,” she began. “Why did the baker close up shop?”

  Nole shrugged.

  "I donut know," he replied.

  Dapple’s jaw dropped.

  "Are you kidding me?” she exclaimed. "Did you just come up with that?”

  "Wait, did I get it right?" Nole asked.

  "No," she scoffed. "But that’s, like, better than the punchline. Ugh. Now I have to start over.”

  "Take your time," Nole teased. "Everyone knows it’s funnier when you have to repeat it.”

  Just then, footsteps approached behind them. Dapple's eyes lit up the moment she saw who was coming.

  "Keki!" she exclaimed.

  "Well, that didn't take long," Nole sighed as he turned around.

  But what he found was a pleasant surprise.

  "What's funnier?” asked Keki, joining them on the bridge.

  She was a human mage with black hair that covered one eye and spiked outward like ice just above her shoulders. Her blue linen robe covered most of her pale skin, and a crooked staff hanging off her back gave a small magic bonus.

  Dapple ran over and hugged her right away.

  “You’re just in time,” Dapple declared.

  “For what?” Keki asked, looking skeptically at the two of them.

  “Okay, okay, you’ll love this,” Dapple announced, backing away and facing them both.

  Keki waited stone-faced as Dapple cleared her throat and braced herself.

  “Why did the baker close up shop?” she asked.

  Keki tilted her head in confusion.

  "Because he didn’t make enough dough!” Dapple revealed, dropping to her knee with jazz hands.

  “Wow," Keki laughed, shaking her head. "I think these are getting worse."

  "Thank you, thank you," said Dapple, bowing. "I'll be here all week."

  "I don’t know I can last that long," said Nole, clapping from the background.

  Keki turned to Nole.

  "Oh, do you guys know each other?" she asked, glancing between them.

  Dapple paused, staring blankly. Suddenly, a lightbulb flashed in her head.

  “Oh yeah, that's right!" she declared.

  “What, did you forget who I was?” Nole laughed.

  “No, not that," she replied, waving her hands.

  Dapple grabbed Keki by the shoulder.

  "Keki, do me a favor," she said.

  "Huh?" replied the mage. "What is it?"

  Dapple directed Keki at Nole.

  “He thinks I’m a greasy old man," she explained. "I need you to vouch for me.”

  Keki was confused. She looked at Dapple and then at Nole, still not understanding.

  “What?” she replied.

  “Tell him I'm a girl," Dapple insisted.

  "Did I miss the punchline? Keki asked. "These are getting worse."

  Dapple facepalmed before attempting to explain further.

  "No, no," Dapple told her. "Keki. I'm a girl, right?”

  "Um, yeah?" she replied. "We both are?"

  “So tell him," Dapple went on, gesturing to Nole.

  "Um," Keki began, rubbing her arm with all the confidence of a field mouse. "Dapple's a girl."

  Nole cracked up and shook his head.

  "Case closed," he joked. “That settles it. I can see why you wanted your star witness here.”

  Keki jumped to her defense without hesitation, although still half-confused.

  “She is, though?" Keki argued. "She's not old, either. We're both still in middle school."

  When those words left her mouth, Dapple jumped her like a feral cat.

  "KEKI," she seethed. "Why would you tell him that!? Do you want to be abducted?!”

  This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

  Dapple shook her by the shoulders until she backtracked.

  "Um, I mean, just kidding?" said Keki.

  "Too late," Nole joked. "That’s all I need. If you two don’t mind, I’m gonna start the abducting now.”

  "I'd prefer if you didn't," Keki replied sheepishly.

  “Keki, ohmygosh,” Dapple cried out dramatically. “What have you done!?”

  Nole milked it.

  "I'm down the street right now in my van," he said. "If you hear a knock on the door soon, that’s me.”

  "Wow, you're fast," Keki admitted.

  "Keki, you Snake!” Dapple hissed. “You Sneki! You've doomed us!”

  "I'm in middle school too, by the way," Nole added.

  “Really?" Keki asked. "Small world."

  “I wonder if we’re the same age," said Nole. “I’m thirteen.”

  “You and Dapple are," Keki admitted. "I'm a year younger than you guys."

  "KEKI," Dapple fumed, glaring at her. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?"

  "Oh," Keki replied bashfully. "Sorry. I mean, he's the same age as us, though. I think it's fine, right?"

  “You just gave away our identities to a stranger,” Dapple argued.

  "A stranger?" Nole scoffed. "That's cold. What happened to oh, I was so bored without you, Nole! I'm adding you to my friends list, Nole! I thought we were more than strangers.”

  “Oh snap,” Keki giggled.

  “We are!” Dapple backtracked. “I mean, but… we are, but we aren't. You get what I'm trying to say!"

  "You know, I was kidding about the abducting before, but now?" Nole joked. "I'm considering it.”

  “Nole, please,” Dapple groveled.

  “Ut oh," said Keki. "Are you in one of those white vans?"

  "Yup, with the tinted windows,” said Nole. “It says free candy on the side and everything."

  "Oh nice, candy!” Keki exclaimed. "That changes everything. I hope there’s some left, at least.”

  "There’s so much left," Nole pointed out. "It's a problem, honestly. If you could hop in and get started on it, you'd really be helping me out.”

  "Well, I do love candy,” Keki shrugged. "I'm a pushover.”

  “You guys are killing me,” Dapple groaned, rubbing her eyes.

  Nole and Keki cracked up even more.

  "Come on, Dapple," Nole insisted. "Three’s company. Are you climbing aboard the sugar bus, or what?"

  "Hard pass," Dapple told him, shaking her head.

  "Well then, there's no pleasing you," he concluded.

  Dapple put her hands on her hips, raising an eyebrow at them.

  "You two can keep playing touch-butt in the van," she declared. "But as for me, I wanna do some adventuring.”

  Dapple turned to walk across the bridge towards Laketown, but Nole grabbed her shoulder and spun her around.

  "Then you’ll wanna start with the flightpath," he said, pointing her in the opposite direction. "Otherwise, you'll have to run through Goldwynn again to get here."

  "Oh," she said. "Yes. Yes, of course. Right after I get the flightpath, it's adventure time.”

  They formed a team, and Nole led them back across the bridge to the bottom half of Redrock Mountains. The border of Goldwynn Forest was not far off, and everything here was similar in level to that of the region they just came from.

  Next to the road below the bridge was the Gryphmaster. Two hay bins stood beside her, with a Windgryph snoozing atop each. It was smaller than the one back at the starting city, but it was enough to support the traffic of adventurers to outposts such as these.

  After the trio acquired the flight path, Nole took them aside.

  "So, here's the deal," he began. "I'm all for adventure, but everything north of the bridge is too high level. We’ll be mincemeat. Our best bet is to do stuff down here until we get stronger."

  “But I saw some quests over there,” Dapple argued. “I can see the exclamation mark over their heads from here.”

  "I mean, yes, there's quests," he replied. "But we're way lower than the recommended level. Even with the three of us, it'd be bad news, bears."

  “Pfft,” Dapple scoffed. “Have you no faith in our ability?”

  Dapple stood there, puffing her chest and oozing unexplainable confidence, while Keki clutched her staff nervously beside her, shivering like a chihuahua.

  “No,” Nole laughed. “I don’t. Dapple, you might have the worst gear I’ve seen on an actual player.”

  “At least I have gear!” she argued. “All Keki has is a poncho and a walking stick.”

  “Hey!” Keki exclaimed. “Why are you picking on me?”

  "She's probably naked under there, too," Dapple teased. "Keki's neki.”

  “That would be worse,” Nole explained. “But Keki doesn’t need gear. She's a mage. She shouldn’t be getting hit. All her spells are designed to keep distance and immobilize enemies. She gets a slap on the wrist.”

  "I attack from range, too!" Dapple pointed out. "Why are you giving me such a hard time, huh?"

  "You would be ranged if you had a pet," he told her. "You're a hunter. Half your class is pets. But you don't have one, so instead of your pet tanking for you, everything just hits you instead. That wouldn't be so bad, but you have tissue paper for armor and fiddlesticks for weapons. So, no. Not much faith, Dapple.”

  “Pfft," Dapple replied. "I've got pets. I've got two right here! And their names are Nole and Keki. You guys are my tanks. Problem solved!”

  Nole shook his head.

  "Wow,” he laughed. “You’d really have your naked friend tank for you? Throwing Neki Keki to the wolves.”

  “Of course,” Dapple admitted. “Wolves, bears, robot scarecrows. You name it. Keki’s my main girl. She’s got my back.”

  Keki lifted her collar and stared inside her robes.

  “Guys, I’m not naked under here,” she said. “I just checked. For the record.”

  Nole laughed, applauding her.

  “Tremendous work,” he said.

  Keki bowed and did a little curtsy. Meanwhile, Dapple scanned around, looking for adventure. Shortly, her eyes spied a town guard on the other side of the Windgryph pens with an exclamation mark above his head.

  “Hey, that guy has a quest for us,” she pointed out. “Let’s start there!”

  Nole and Keki followed Dapple to the quest giver. He was the town deputy, Sheldon, wearing blue and white armor like the city knights back at Bluestone.

  “These hills are crawling with mongrels and poachers," said Sheldon, beginning the quest chain. "And I don't have the men to spare. I've seen encampments south of this bridge, and their numbers only seem to grow by the day. You may find them camped all along the southern road of Redrock. The mongrels carry hammers, and the poachers carry axes. Slay ten mongrels and eight poachers and report back to me. I’ll reward you with a scout’s wages.”

  With the quest accepted, they set out south into the red hills, where Redrock met Goldwynn. Smoke rose in the distance. A campfire was burning on the other side of the road. Soon, a tent appeared, with bulky figures pacing around the encampment.

  Nole, Keki, and Dapple hid behind a nearby tree stump, peeking their heads over it.

  “That’s them,” Nole declared. “I see axes and hammers.”

  The beasts at the encampment resembled hyenas, walking upright on two feet. They wore armor and carried weapons like people.

  “What were these things called again?” asked Keki.

  “Mongrels and poachers?” Nole replied.

  Keki squinted her eyes, watching them. Meanwhile, Dapple burst out laughing.

  “They’re called Gnolls!” she exclaimed. “Just like you, Nole!”

  “Wait, what?” Nole replied with a confused look.

  He examined the beasts sitting by the campfire, reading the name tags above their heads.

  “Yup, G-n-o-l-l!” Dapple told him. “Any relation, there? Are these your cousins?”

  Sure enough, each hyena had the word Gnoll at the front of their name tag.

  “So, tell us, Nole," Dapple went on. "Are you a mongrel or poacher?”

  Nole grew flustered. Keki giggled, joining in too. Suddenly, his bigshot in-game persona evaporated, and he was his nerdy self at school again.

  “Is this what you named your character after?” asked Keki.

  "What, no!" Nole insisted. "I've never even heard of these things before."

  Dapple milked it, jumping at the opportunity to tease him.

  “I dunno,” she said. “That’s quite a coincidence. Nole, showing us the Gnolls.”

  “You ain’t gotta lie to kick it, Nole,” Keki teased playfully.

  The girls high-fived in the background as Nole was blushing terribly.

  “Yeah, get it all out of your system,” he insisted. “Let me know when you’re done hootin’ and hollerin’ so we can start this already.”

  Dapple and Keki cracked up.

  “I get it,” said Dapple. “Can’t wait to reunite with your fellow Gnolls.”

  “Wait,” Keki interjected, trying to keep her composure. “Nole, do you also count as credit for this quest?”

  Nole shook his head and emerged from behind the stump.

  “Ignoring that,” he replied.

  “Aw, we’re just teasing!” Keki giggled. “Thanks for being a good sport!”

  Dapple and Keki followed behind him, trying to calm themselves. Meanwhile, Nole marked the closest enemy on the team interface so they all could see.

  "Focus on that one," he said, pointing to the Mongrel. “Are we ready?”

  “Ready,” Keki assured him.

  “Ready,” said Dapple with a salute. “Let’s roll, Noley-Nole!”

  He brushed off her remark and began casting. Thick roots rose from the ground and trapped the Mongrel in place. It whipped around, hammer in hand, howling at the trio, but couldn’t budge. Dapple began firing arrows from a safe distance.

  Keki used a fireball, and the Mongrel erupted in flames on impact. But the damage triggered its release from Nole’s roots, and the beast charged the mage. Shortly, she met it halfway, trading blows with her staff.

  With each hit, Keki's health dropped substantially, but Nole quickly topped her up with restorative magic. Dapple kept a steady barrage of arrows going while Keki attacked their foe with fire, and Nole took on the role of healer until the Mongrel was defeated.

  “Keki, use ice next time,” said Nole.

  “But ice is weaker, isn’t it?” she replied.

  “It is,” he admitted. “But your ice spells slow enemies down. You can cast, run, cast, and keep peppering them with shots while they never actually reach you, leading them like a kite. That’s why it’s called kiting. Try it next time.”

  “Okay, sure,” Keki nodded.

  “What about me?” asked Dapple.

  “You’re doing about all you can do,” Nole joked. “It’d be cruel to ask anything more.”

  Dapple made a face and stuck her tongue out at him.

  “I’m just kidding,” he laughed. “You’re doing fine. Keep doing what you’re doing.”

  “That’s more like it,” she huffed.

  The trio prepared to face the Poacher next. Nole’s roots entangled the beast at the feet, followed up with a Moonbolt. Dapple fired a steady stream of arrows, and Keki began casting ice magic instead.

  An ice bolt blasted the Poacher, chopping off a chunk of its health. But the damage also released it from the roots. Just like last time, the beast charged at Keki, but at a slowed pace from the effects of the ice.

  She ran away a few paces and pelted their enemy with another ice bolt. The overgrown hyena slogged after her but failed to close the gap between each new round of frost.

  With no need to heal, Nole shifted his role to dishing out damage. A crackling green light shot out from his hands as he used his forest's wrath and Moonbolt one after the other. Amid their combined firepower, the Poacher soon fell.

  Keki barely sustained any damage. It was over in record time, much smoother than the fight before.

  “That was perfect,” Nole declared. “Let’s get our mana back, then we’ll keep going.”

  Dapple and Keki nodded, and the trio rested momentarily, consuming in-game food to replenish what was lost.

  Keki leaned back against one of the scarce trees in the area, letting out a sigh of relief beneath the red leaves swaying overhead in the breeze.

  “That was much better,” she admitted. “I swear, it feels like I’m playing this class wrong most of the time.”

  "Aw, don't say that," Dapple insisted. "Think of all the mana you save using your staff instead of magic!"

  "Thanks," Keki groaned. "Apparently, I'm a melee mage.”

  Nole smiled and shook his head.

  “It’s not your fault,” he insisted. “Right now, it’s tough because none of us have skills yet that steal aggro back. You hit the hardest out of all of us, so every monster is gonna target you. Fire does the most damage, but then you have angry Gnolls beating you with their hammers.”

  "One Nole is too much already," Dapple teased, drawing with her finger in the dirt.

  “Want me to leave?” Nole asked her. "I'm sure you'll be just fine on your own."

  “Please don’t,” Keki insisted. “I’m pretty useless on my own.”

  Nole walked over and sat next to Keki under the red tree.

  “You’re not useless,” he told her. “You’re doing great. The problem is our dynamic. Mages do the most damage out of any class, but you're so squishy that you need a tank to hold aggro. You're at your best when you can rely on a group, but you can't be at your best if you're the one taking the hits."

  “Ugh,” Keki groaned. “That’s the problem. I’m always taking the hits. I’m usually by myself.”

  “What about Dapple?” asked Nole.

  Dapple looked up from the freshly made horse she drew in the dirt.

  “Yeah, what about me?” she said.

  Keki put her hands up and backtracked.

  “No, don’t get me wrong,” said Keki. “Dapple’s been great. I love playing with her. But I don’t know anyone else in this game. I just can't login this early most days, so most of the time I’m playing by myself at night. And that doesn’t go very well. As you can see, I barely know what I’m doing.”

  Nole scratched his head.

  “Yeah, I hear you,” he said. “Dapple's one of the only people I know, too. Honestly, the reason I log in this early is because I know she’ll be online, too."

  “Aww!” Dapple swooned. "You guys are so sweet. Going out of your way to hang out with little 'ole me.”

  “I try to,” Keki smiled. “When I can, anyways.”

  Nole watched her, thinking it over.

  “You’re a night owl, huh?” he pointed out. “Well, I tell you what. If I’m ever online, just message me. I'll help with whatever you need. Even if you only want someone to hang out with, I’m your guy.”

  "That'd be really nice," Keki admitted. "Thanks, Nole.”

  He nodded and rose to his feet.

  “Sure thing,” Nole told her. “When you guys are ready, we can finish this."

  The trio went to work culling the rest of the encampment. Nole's roots held each foe in place while Dapple and Keki attacked from a distance. When each target eventually broke loose and chased the mage, she kited them.

  Like clockwork, Keki used ice bolts, created distance, and cast again. Nole healed when necessary and attacked with nature magic otherwise, while Dapple supplied them with consistent arrows from afar.

  Sometimes, the monsters caught up. Then, Keki became a melee mage again. But for the most part, her ice minimized the damage taken.

  Other times, the enemies broke away and attacked Nole instead. Enraged at his healing, the beasts battered him with axes and hammers. But he fought back with his staff, tit for tat, until he could entangle them in roots again. Whatever the group needed, he supplied.

  When they’d slain enough Gnolls to complete the quest, the trio returned to Sheldon by the bridge. Gold light flashed atop Nole, Dapple, and Keki as they leveled up in unison.

  “Yeah!” exclaimed Dapple. “A whole level and six pieces of silver? I’m rich!”

  “That’ll barely cover my repair bill,” Keki groaned. “My armor took a beating from all that.”

  “The mage life is tough,” Nole admitted. “You get all kinds of flashy spells, but at the end of the day, you’re just trying not to get hit. Because if you do get hit, it hurts. A whole lot.”

  Keki let out a big sigh, just relieved it was over.

  "The ice helped a ton,” she said. “I like mage. But it's just so squishy. I wish I had even one healing spell, you know? It’s like I spend more time recovering than fighting."

  “Heals are pretty nice,” Nole admitted.

  “I can’t heal, and I was doing just fine,” Dapple argued.

  “Gee, I wonder why?” Nole laughed. “Enemies target whoever does the most damage, and not once did they bat an eye at you. A real mystery, that one.”

  “Hey,” Dapple began. “Once I get a pet, that'll all change. Just you wait.”

  “If you get a pet,” Nole argued.

  Keki smiled. She perked up again at Nole.

  “Thanks again for the tips,” she told him. “I appreciate it.”

  “Oh sure,” he replied. “I just hope it helped.”

  “It did,” she admitted. “Ugh. On that note, this is going to sound awful. But I don’t know if I’m gonna keep playing mage.”

  “You’re not?” he asked.

  “I just don’t know if this is for me," said Keki. "I feel bad giving up on it, especially after you tried helping me.”

  “No, don’t worry about it,” Nole laughed. “It’s not giving up. Look, you can be whoever and whatever you want in this game. That's the point. That's what I'm here for. So, find out what that is and do that. Anything less is just settling.”

  Keki nodded, feeling some wind return beneath her sails.

  “Totally,” she said. “You know, I never thought twice about Druid before today. But after seeing you play, it seems cool. It’s like you can do everything.”

  “Everything but tank,” Nole insisted. “But that all changes in a few levels. I’m biased, but I like Druid a lot. It’s nice being able to fit in wherever.”

  “I agree,” Keki replied. “It’s something to think about, I suppose.”

  “You know,” Dapple chimed in. “Hunter is pretty great too.”

  They both glanced back at her and laughed.

  “Anyways,” Keki began. “Thanks for abducting me in your van for a while, but I’ve gotta go help my sister with something.”

  "What should I do with all this candy?" Nole joked.

  “Hang on to it for me,” said Keki. “I’ll come back for it.”

  Dapple rushed over and hugged her friend goodbye.

  "Keki, I’m glad you could make it today,” she said. "I had so much! I'll talk to you later, alright?"

  “I had fun, too,” she insisted. “I’ll talk to you later!”

  Keki turned around, looking at Nole one last time before leaving.

  "It was nice meeting you, Nole," she began. "I sent you a friend request. If that's alright?"

  Keki caught him off guard. Somewhere at his desk, Nole was blushing bright red as she smiled and waited for an answer.

  “Yeah, totally,” Nole insisted, regaining his composure.

  "Perfect," said Keki. "Then I'll see you sometime soon, okay?"

  “Yeah,” Nole smiled. “I’ll see you soon.”