"Who?" Keeley asked, looking around the lobby. The competition was taking place inside a conference room at a hotel downtown. She didn't see anyone Talon had a grudge against, namely her brother. She'd forbidden him from attending after sticking pictures of decapitated Peeps in Talon's backpack.
Talon's lips curled up in a sneer. "Kevin Chang. Five time regional champion. All the blogs said he was out with the measles." His eyes narrowed. "Damn bloggers. He must have paid them off. So much for journalist integrity."
"I don't know what I find more disturbing—the fact that you read these blogs or that there is more than one of them."
"This is no time for your joking, baby doll."
"Who's joking?" she murmured under her breath.
"Not only does Kevin Chang have one of the highest scores in Peeps history, but his dioramas are political satires that always win the judges over. Clever bastard. I knew we should have gone in a different direction," he muttered.
She ran a hand over his shoulder, massaging the knots out. "I've never seen you this worked up. Not even during football season."
"That was football. This is...." He waved a hand in the air. "It's just different."
Keeley turned her head to hide the smile. She supposed it was different for him. Football was something he did, Peeps was something he loved.
The muscles under his shirt bunched. Giving her a covert look, he whispered, "He's coming over. Look confident."
She nodded, putting on a solemn expression. He would never forgive her if she made him look bad in front of the competition. Smoothing her hair, she tucked a piece behind her hair and turned.
Whatever she was expecting it was not this. An eleven-year-old boy stood before them in chinos and a sweater vest. Several gold pins were displayed on the collar. Each boasted of a Peep-O-Rama win.
The boy welcomed her with a warm smile, which instantly cooled when he turned to Talon. "I didn't think you'd come back. Not after last year's loss."
"I'm not a quitter."
"Might be better for your ego if you were," Kevin responded.
Talon grabbed Keeley's hand. "Watch out, Chang. This is my year to shine."
Kevin looked at the cart next to Talon. It had a towel draped over the diorama so no one could peek. "We'll see." He opened a miniature wallet and slid out a business card. Handing it to Keeley, he said, "If you ever feel like working with a winner." Then whistled as he sauntered away.
"You certainly make friends wherever you go," Keeley told Talon.
He took the business card and ripped it into shreds. "He's going down. Come on, we got to set up."
Two hours later, Keeley found herself hovering over a depressed Talon, handing him pack after pack of Peeps. "Third place isn't so bad," she cooed.
"He won," Talon mumbled.
"His diorama wasn't even that good," she assured him. It wasn't good...it was great. Every item perfectly rendered and placed. Damn that kid had mad skills. "Look, why don't we drive to the pier and spend the day at the arcade. We can try to win the grand prize that you've been wanting."
He drew her down for a kiss. "You're the best."
She licked a grain of sugar off her bottom lip. She used to it by now. There were always bits of colored sugar sticking to him. "Does this mean I don't have to help you next year?" she asked, crossing her fingers.
"Don't be ridiculous. Tomorrow we start drafting up plans. I'm going to win first place even if it kills me."
"Oh joy..."
***
A/N- This is Keeley's picture board in her room. :)
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