"Hang on—what are you wearing?" Keefe asked as she threw back her covers, revealing the sparkly slogans on her tunic. "Is that a Bangs Boy reference? Because you know I haven't let him into the Foster Fan Club, right?"
Sophie rolled her eyes. "It's an inside joke—and Linh made this for me."
"Yeah, well, it still breaks the fan club rules. As penance, I'm getting you a tunic that says, Empaths Give Me All the Feels, and I expect to see you wear it twice as often as Bangs Boy's."
Ro snorted. "Subtle."
"Ridiculous," Sophie corrected.
"I try," Keefe told them as Sophie took his hand and let him pull her slowly to her feet.
"You good?" he asked when she wobbled from the head rush.
No. But she wasn't going to admit that, so she told him, "I'm up."
"You are. It's pretty amazing."
———
"and you're in this, like, Ultra Knight in Shining Armor mode—"
"Aw, you hear that, Ro? Foster thinks I'm her hero!"
———
Keefe told her. "But I never reveal my secrets."
"Even to me?" she asked, not sure where the question came from.
Her cheeks burned as he studied her—and she didn't want to admit that it stung when he said, "Yeah, Foster—even to you."
She shoved another butterblast into her mouth to save herself from having to respond.
But when their eyes met again, his gaze had softened, and he whispered, "At least for now."
———
"Thank you," she said as he walked her back to the Healing Center and she tried to make a note of the route so she could find the secret cafeteria again. "Tonight would've been . . . pretty rough if you hadn't stopped by."
"I know," he told her. "For me too."
"Awwwwwww, you guys are SO adorable," Ro jumped in."