[Xander – 12 years]

"Yes, Xander?" Mr. Franklin asks as I look between him and Quinn.

"You two respect each other a lot, right?" I ask.

"I respect him very much," Mr. Franklin says. "He's a talented guard, and he excelled in the magic special forces. When he's on duty, he carries them out perfectly."

"And you?" I look at Quinn.

"Of course," he says. "Frank's strong and powerful, cares for those under his charge, and doesn't leave everything to his subordinates. He never asks us to do anything he's not willing to do himself, and he makes sure the job gets done and everyone's safety is assured."

"What's brought this on?" Mr. Franklin asks.

"Just wanted to see something," I say.

"You've been asking random pairs of guards this all afternoon," he tells me. "Ever since Luke and Parker left. And you've included Katie in this at times. In fact, considering how close we are to the kitchen and the fact that you're leaving with her soon, I get the feeling you wanted to ask this involving her as well, whether for me or for Quinn."

"Yes," Katie says. "You've been acting a little strange, Xander. Everything alright?"

Should I tell them? Well, they already know I have some degree of psychic ability since they know I can tell when people are lying. And as former special magic forces members, I don't think Mr. Franklin or Quinn would be unsettled. Katie probably wouldn't be, either.

I take a big breath, then let it out.

"I think I'm empathic," I say. "That I can feel the emotions in other people's minds. But I think it relates to mutual feelings. Maybe more slightly ones that aren't. Like if it's directed at me and it's very strong. But I think I can tell if two people feel the same way about each other. Like you two respecting each other. Or Katie and Trey being in love with each other. Or Luke and Parker. Or Luke and Tyler. Or S.G. and Connor. Or Sam and Isaac. I haven't gotten confirmation from all of them about it, but I'm pretty sure they do feel that way, even if they aren't dating. And that might be why I keep feeling like people are dating. I can feel them crushing on each other."

"You didn't know?" Katie asks.

"You did?" I ask.

"Trey and I figured it out awhile ago," she tells me. "We thought you knew and were just avoiding telling us."

"Oh," I think for a few moments. "How'd you figured it out? I only figured it out 'cause I thought Parker and Luke were dating but they said they weren't. Well, Luke got confused. He's really smart, but he apparently doesn't understand that some people crush on others of the same sex instead of the opposite. It's weird. I don't get why he doesn't understand it, he's definitely into Parker. I don't need my power to know that, either."

Luke is always hugging Parker when he gets excited about something, and the two of them are always sharing snacks with each other when everyone has access to the same snacks. And when Luke got tired in the lake on Saturday, he laid down next to where Parker was and just relaxed by him and they were even holding hands, sort of.

So I really thought they were dating.

"And so I wanted to ask S.G. if he and Connor were dating last night," I continue. "Except it turned out that Connor, Sam, and Isaac all wanted to learn magic, too. So there were four people, and I didn't want to ask in a group again. That's too many people. So I wanted to see if I was right about S.G. and Connor."

"Only them?" Quinn asks. "Not Sam and Isaac?"

"For reasons I do not wish to get into," I say. "I don't need to ask."

I saw them give each other quick kisses. Nothing gross. They're definitely dating for sure, and I don't need my empathy to know. And when I'd woken up in the middle of the night during the sleepover on Interception Day, they were snuggling each other, even if they weren't when they fell asleep or when I woke up. The same thing happened during the last sleepover, too.

So I'm fairly certain they are, they're just hiding it. Since I already know they're both bisexual – they mentioned it when telling me how they met – it wasn't hard to figure it out with them.

"But yeah," I say. "I wanted to see if it was empathy. That's why I was asking the guards and Katie about respecting each other. Because I get the feeling of it from you guys when you're near each other. But it seems like it's only when both feel that way about the other. And it seems like a lot of guards respect Katie but she doesn't respect them. But I don't think they're bad people, I think she just doesn't know them well enough. I think they all think she's some sort of secret knife-wielding master, too."

Katie laughs.

"I said that out loud, didn't I?"

"You did," she chuckles. "Why don't you get ready to go?"

"Okay."

I locate my shoes and after pulling them on, grab my backpack and meet Katie by the front door. Then, we get into her SUV and she starts driving us to the store.

"Xander?" She asks.

"Yes, Katie?"

"It might be better not to ask people about their feelings for others," she says. "It can upset people. The guards were fine with it – they do all respect each other, after all, and probably felt you were just trying to make sure they were all good people – but others can get annoyed. Especially if they don't realize they have feelings for someone, or were trying to keep it a secret. You've had help learning how to acknowledge your feelings for others, but many kids your age can't. You're at an age with a lot of emotional ups and downs, too. A lot of kids can feel embarrassed by their feelings for another, or shy. And sure, you probably heard about this kid or that dating while in the seventh grade, but that doesn't mean everyone is okay with it. And some only do because they feel pressured to."

"But why?" I ask. "It's not that big of a deal. It just means spending more time with them and texting them and sitting beside them when eating. And maybe hugging and holding hands and kissing, but not the gross kissing some adults do."

"Like I said," she says. "You're at an age with a lot of emotions going on. Puberty does some funky stuff with your emotions and a lot of kids can be shy about some stuff even if not others. Or in denial about things, too. You said that Luke got confused, right?"

"Yeah," I nod. "And Parker was really moody for some reason, but I think that was 'cause Luke was calling him jealous of Tyler."

"Luke definitely has feelings for Parker," Katie tells me. "Trey and I have discussed that before. It's pretty obvious to us when we look at how they interact, such as when Luke puts his arm around Parker's shoulders for a moment, except it lasts longer than it normally would. He just gets comfortable like that. But Luke himself doesn't realize that he has these feelings, so he'll say he doesn't. I bet you noticed that, didn't you? That he was 'being honest' when he said he didn't? That's because he doesn't know he has them. And it's better to let people figure stuff like that out on their own. Otherwise, it can lead to doubt, denial, and even frustration or anger if you push it."

"I guess… that kind of makes sense," I say. "But what does that have to do with puberty messing with our emotions?"

"It's some of the chemicals which affect your mood," she says. "They're changing a lot during puberty. This can cause your emotions to fluctuate quite a lot, or even intensify them. It's also an age where you're going through various stages of change, discovering yourself, figuring out who you are, and more. It can be a confusing time with a lot going on in your heads. And if someone comes up and starts asking you about things you yourself don't know about, it can sound like an accusation, and agitation from that can be amplified due to your hormones. Does that make sense?"

"Sort of, I guess."

"Alright," she chuckles. "Just keep that in mind. Now, I want to know for sure why you think Sam and Isaac are dating, Xander. You said you don't need to ask them, and I want to know why. It's possible there's something bad that you don't know is bad. If that's happening, then it's important that an adult knows so it can be stopped."

I'm pretty sure that what's happening isn't bad at all.

"They snuggled during the sleepovers," I say. "But only once everyone else was asleep, and they stopped before everyone normally started waking up. I think they faked being asleep so they could wait until then, then woke up a little earlier so they could separate and not get caught. And I saw them sneaking kisses. But not gross ones that some adults do. Like-like the kind that I'm nervous to ask Russell. I know we're both going into eighth grade, and I saw some kids do bigger kisses in the halls at school last year – and then get into trouble for it – but I still get nervous. What if he's more comfortable with just our hello and goodbye hugs?"

"Can you explain the difference in the kisses?" She asks. "I want to see if I'm understanding you correctly."

"Yeah," I say. "High schoolers can do longer kisses than middle schoolers. And adults might sometimes use tongues. That's also really gross and should really be kept at home, not in the middle of the pasta aisle in the store. But then for us middle schoolers, like us in or going into the eighth grade, it's just a quick one on the cheek. Or maybe a quick one on the lips. But not the gross kind. That's just gross."

"Alright," she chuckles. "Just make sure to be careful and don't let yourself get pressured into things."

"Yeah," I say. "Trey told me that. And that if I ever start feeling unsafe with a boyfriend and want to escape, I can text him and he can tell me to come home, so that I can tell them that he told me to come home. But I don't think Russell would pressure me into anything, he doesn't seem like that. And I can tell he really likes me."

"Just something to keep in mind," she says. "Have you and Russell kissed?"

"No," I answer. "I've thought about it, and I feel like I want to, but then I feel awkward and unsure and light-headed and anxious, like it's the wrong move. So I just ask if I can give him a hug instead, and he lets me."

"Alright," she chuckles again. "Don't try to force yourself. You might not be ready yet. Everyone is ready at different stages. I didn't have my first kiss until I was nineteen, and it was one of those 'short' kisses you mentioned. Just a quick peck. You're six, seven years younger than that."

"I know," I say. "Landon told me that, too."

"He's a smart man."

"He really is."

"So," she says, her tone a little bit different. "What are you planning on baking today? I know we're going to the store to buy more ingredients for you to do another mega bake, but not the what of it."

Oh. I forgot to tell her when I asked if she would be willing to take me to the store. Thank goodness she changed topics, that was really uncomfortable.

"I wanna do the strawberry and shortbread cookie with a cream cheese filling," I tell her. "But big. Around three feet in diameter. Based on the size of the ones we make, that's about thirteen and a half times the recipe. I made sure to multiply the area of one cookie by twenty-four, since a batch makes twenty-four."

Whether I'm right or wrong with how I should've done the math, I'll find out once the cookie is made.

"Alright," she says. "And you have the ingredient list for the bigger size?"

"I do."

"Good," she says. "How did your post-class worksheet go? You didn't ask any of us for help today, and I don't think you asked Luke again, did you?"

Is she checking to make sure I did the packet before this? Trey already told me I had to make sure it was done first.

"I feel like I probably failed it," I tell her. "We did homophones for spelling words today and I had to use them in the right sentences for part of the packet. That was really confusing. And Mr. Massey was teaching perfect verb tense. I tried my best to answer the questions properly, but I still don't understand why they have to be perfect."

"Your answers don't have to be perfect," Katie tells me. "That's the term for what you were learning. As long as you try your best, that's what matters."

"I try my best," I tell her. "It's still confusing, though."

"Try not to think about the name too much," she says. "That's all it is – the name for what you were learning. Not a requirement. Okay?"

"Okay."

We reach the store a little while later, and Katie pushes the cart while I grab the things I want to buy today. Then, we return home and take everything out to the back deck, where Katie and I prepare things for the stream. I only change into a better-looking outfit once that's finished, then I make sure to switch into my streaming glasses.

"Ready?" Katie asks.

"No," I answer. "But it's okay to start now."

"Alright," she chuckles. "Starting in three… two… one… go."

"Hello," I wave. "X-Xander here, for another baking stream. First, though, let's talk for a little bit so people have time to show up.

We talk for about six minutes, then a strange question shows up.

[EatPumpkins]: Why did you raid Bastion last week? He was playing a game no one really likes over here and he couldn't even talk with his teammate cause she speaks English. Most of its players are European.

[EatPumpkins]: And streamers usually raid people doing the same thing as them. I'm here for baking content.

What a strange username.

"Why did I raid S.G.?" I ask. "Because we're friends. Simple as that. And I don't know other baking streamers. Why would I care about that, though? I'd rather raid my friends since they're pretty cool people. I think that's how that's used. And I could understand what Lexi was saying. Though I-I'm not entirely sure why she was calling him a goat. He's a boy, not a farm animal. I was also afraid to ask S.G."

I've tried coming up with possible errors in my knowledge of that word, but no, she was referring to a farm animal there. When I tried searching it up online, there was nothing I could understand about it with the possible meanings, so I think it's a European streamer thing. She didn't seem like she was trying to insult him, at least.

[Davy99]: What's the difference between SG and Sig? Some people called him Sig and others called him SG, but he calls himself Seb

"Oh, that," I say. "Seb's what he wants to get called as a streamer, I think. S.G. is what people call him in-person, and Sig is a nickname only allowed to be used by people he's close to."

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

[EatPumpkins]: So you're not close with him? Since you call him SG?

"He gave me permission to call him Sig," I say. "At the very first sleepover I went to with him, he went 'Xander!' and then he went," I snap and make finger guns. "'You can call me Sig!' But then he said 'only if you're comfortable with it, so don't feel like you have to!' And I dunno, I just feel weird trying to call him that. So I don't. But he wants his streamer name to be 'Seb', I think, so call him that."

[Kathy97]: You said you could understand the girl he was playing with? You speak English?

"I know English," I say. "But I speak Zrebzialan natively. I also know French and Swedish. Oh, but chat has to stay in Zrebzialan so that Katie and Trey can understand the messages while moderating. If you don't use Zrebzialan, your message will probably get deleted."

[GarbledGargle]: are you a black belt?

I remember that username.

"Didn't you ask that last week?" I ask. "I'm pretty sure it takes a lot longer than a week to become a black belt. I'm still a white belt."

I keep talking with chat until fifteen minutes have passed, then begin the baking portion of the stream. First, I show the supplies and ingredients I have, then I begin making the dough. So that my viewers can tell what's going on, I sometimes tint the normally-invisible magics green.

"So the usual method for strawberries," I pick one up. "Is to first cut out the green part, like this," I cut out the green part using a paring knife. "Then, slicing it like this," I slice up the strawberry so it's small enough to use. "Also, using fresh strawberries over frozen is better for this. They don't leak their juices everywhere and turn the entire cookie red, and they're easier to slice without being thawed. I mean, it's not that much more difficult for me if they're still frozen, and I can probably use magic to make it so they aren't leaking juices everywhere. But that's not the point."

I hold out my hands, and all of the strawberries in the containers float up into the air.

"Removing the green parts," I say. "And slicing them all into smaller pieces by hand would be very tedious for a cookie of the size I'm making. It takes more than a dozen times as many strawberries, and cutting those already takes time, even if you use a chef's knife to chop many of them up. Especially since you don't want big pieces or you'll be overloaded by strawberry in some spots and not at all in others more easily.

"So I'm just going to use magic," I say as the green parts all separate off of the strawberries, then drop into the waste bowl. "Both for removing the greens and for chopping them up into little bits, like this."

There's a slight fwsoo-fwsoo sound and the strawberries start to drop into the bowl with the dough, funneled by magic and in a lot smaller pieces than before.

"Quick and easy!" I say. "And once they're all in, it's time to fold them into the dough."

Once that's done, I prepare the filling, then split the dough in two and spread out half of it before putting the filling on. Then it's topped, the sides are pinched, and I do the little roll so it's a ball.

"Time to bake it!" I say after using telekinesis to put the ball onto the cookie tray I made in Greyson's workshop earlier. "And now to do two more."

"You don't need to make one for me and Trey," Katie says. "They're a bit bigger than we can eat."

"I know," I say. "But you can save the rest for later."

After finishing preparing the other two cookies, I bake all three of them. Trey shows up while I'm doing that and he seems amused for some reason. At least, he's doing his small smile and quiet chuckling he normally does when he's amused. So I think he is.

"And now it's time for the cream cheese drizzle," I say. "We don't always make that for this one, but I want to this time so I'm going to."

After drizzling it onto the cookies, I give Trey and Katie each theirs, then sit down.

"And now it's time to eat mine," I say. "And no, we're not going to do a gamble on how fast I can eat it. I don't know why you want to gamble away money."

"It's not money," Katie says. "Viewers can get 'points' by watching the stream. They don't earn physical benefits, they can just be used within the stream. It's an engagement method."

"Oh," I say. "Well, no gambling."

----------------------------------------

[Sig – 13 years] → starts during Xander's PoV

"Welcome back," Aunt Rachel is in the kitchen when I arrive home, pouring something out of a blender.

Huh. She didn't ask about the shirt this time. I guess she's realized that at least around here, boys tend to go shirtless when it's hot out, especially if they're doing physical work. That's a relief. Getting asked about it every time I got home was really annoying.

"Doing health smoothies?" I ask as I pull off my backpack.

"It's for you, sweaty boy," she says. "You really do work your butt off, and Paul did say to make sure you have something to refresh yourself with after. Do you really need to work all day, Bas?

"Aunt Rachelllll!"

"Sorry," she says. "Sig?"

"And yeah," I say. "Gotta make sure I got plenty of food and snacks, for bowling, for other fun activities, for making sure my computer's fine, for having clothes-"

"You don't have to worry about most of that now," she says. "You'll always be able to get new clothes when you need them, and from time to time, with me. And I'll always have food and snacks here."

"You don't earn that much."

"I earn enough," she says. "And you earned plenty this weekend, Sig. Isn't that alone more than a month's normal earnings? And you'll be getting another one this weekend, if things work out. You can take some time off to relax and just enjoy the summer."

"Two checks ain't much," I say. "Not when I've got a computer and games. And I wanna buy one of those glasses once they're available, they're freaking awesome!"

"You can take it more easy," Aunt Rachel says. "I'm not saying to stop. But you don't need to work yourself as much. It seems like most weekdays, you're going out and doing various things for either half or most of the day to earn money."

"Well, yeah, but-"

"But nothing," she says. "You're living with me now, Bas. You'll always have food to eat here, okay?"

"But-"

"No," she says. "Sig, remember how you're not allowed to mention Xander's 'secret' snacks to him or ask him for them?"

"Yeah," why is she bringing that up? "It's because he doesn't feel like he'll have food to eat and if someone does that, he'll feel like he has to give it up. But that has nothing to do with this, Aunt Rachel."

"It has everything to do with this," she says. "You have similar feelings, Bas. Your parents made you feel like you were responsible for having food of your own. It's given you a habit and mindset of needing to work for your food. Look in the fridge. Bas, look in the fridge."

I look in the fridge and find a lot of food in it.

"Ooh! Pudding!" I look at Aunt Rachel. "And butterscotch, too! I love butterscotch pudding! Can I have some?"

"After your smoothie," she points at the glass.

"Awww… you used coconut milk in it, didn't you?"

"And you can't taste it," she closes the fridge door, as I still had it open. "And this is my point, Bas. Xander is scared of not having food. You're used to needing to buy your own because you wouldn't have any if you didn't. You don't need to buy your own food anymore, just whatever extra you want beyond the snacks I get for you. And now that you're getting proper magic lessons at a cheaper rate, you're spending less on that as well. That's two big expenses down for you. Rather than working to continue earning that much, enjoy your time. Spend more with your friends. Okay? I'm sure you'd rather relax, play video games, and hang out with your friends more, right?"

"Well, yeah, but-"

"Then that's settled," she says. "Now drink that smoothie, you need to replenish your body's nutrients."

"Can we put the pudding on top?" I grab the glass.

"I said after the smoothie," she snorts. "Drink up, Sig."

At least she called me the right thing that time.

I down the smoothie, which is actually pretty delicious, then she lets me get a big bowl of the pudding.

"Where are you taking that?" She asks.

"Gotta take a shower!" I tell her. "I feel all gross and yucky!"

"You're not eating in the shower!"

"I was gonna eat it after!"

"Leave it in the fridge," she rolls her eyes. "I'll bring it down in about fifteen, alright?"

"Aye!" I salute. "Oh, and I wanted to stream Duty of Loyalty again before the others come over. Well, I'm gonna play it regardless, but I wanted to stream it, too, since getting to talk with chat while doing that was actually really nice."

"I'll be able to be moderate in about twenty minutes or so," she tells me. "I'll let you know when I'm ready."

"Got it!" I say, then put the pudding back in the fridge and head downstairs.

When Aunt Rachel brings me my pudding after my shower, she's carrying it on top of a big box.

"What's that?" I ask.

"Delivery for you," she says. "Since it's from the devs of World of Myst, want to wait until Thursday and open it on that stream?"

"They sent me something?" I ask. "Why?"

"Open it and find out," she says.

"Will do!" I move the pudding to my desk, then take the box and set it beside my chair. "But on this one. Are you ready yet?"

"Give me another five minutes," she ruffles my hair, then pauses. "You use a hairdryer?"

"Makes it so I don't have to wait for my hair to dry!" I say. "Ever try pulling on a shirt with wet hair? Gets the shirt all wet!"

"Alright," she snorts. "I'll be ready in about five minutes."

"Cool, thanks!"

She heads upstairs and after a few minutes, messages my chat to say she's ready. I activate the loading screen to give people a few minutes to get in, then I switch to the camera.

"Hey, everyone!" I say. "TheUltimateBastion, back for more fun in Duty of Loyalty! Ever wanted to see a kid obliterate a flying monster with grenades? Or a sniper-med take out most of the enemy in a team match? Well, you're in luck because this is the place! I actually got a team match request during the loading screen, about thirty seconds before I switched to camera! And it's from Lexi! Looks like she's got a team together rather than doing a random matchup, and she wants one more person for it! So today, you'll get to see a thirteen-year-old sniper med in a team match with the only person he's ever had actually found a match in as an opponent, working together while communication is basically dead due to a language barrier! Let's get to it!"

I join the team and we're immediately sent into a matchup lobby, where it takes about three minutes for us to find a qualified team to challenge. All of the other teammates are definitely from the Kingdom of Britain, their accents similar to Lexi's. I can't understand them, but I can recognize that much.

Someone also says something about a crazy bastard, which just causes Lexi to laugh.

"I'm pretty sure they're talking about me," I snicker, making sure my in-game mic is muted for that. "I understood 'crazy bastard'. I've heard that enough times to know it."

My chat starts laughing in response to that.

When the match begins, we manage to communicate well enough for me to take out two of the enemy, Lexi to take out two of them, and one of the other teammates to take out the last one – all in the first ten minutes. That means we've got a lot of time where it's just us against the monsters in the ruins of this city, and we're able to set up our temporary base well before the difficulty increases very much.

"And that is how you do it!" I tell my chat once the match ends.

"Bastion, again?" Lexi asks.

"Yeah!" I respond. "Again!"

We play another match which goes just about as smoothly as the first one, and Xander raids into my channel during the next one.

"Hello, everyone!" I mute my in-game mic. "I'm at the start of a team match with some other players! One of them is the same girl I teamed up with last week, but this is a five-member team against other players with some of her friends! I won't be able to chat much as we work on this but welcome!"

I turn my in-game mic back on in time to let the team know I saw someone heading toward them. Connor, Sam, and Isaac show up towards the end of the match, so I let Lexi know I'm logging off now once the match is over… as best as I can.

"Have fun!" Is what I think she says before I log out.

"Alright, chat!" I say. "Thanks for watching! I'm gonna hang out with my friends now! Have fun, everyone! Byeeee!"

I end the stream, then lean back and look at Connor, Sam, and Isaac, who're sitting on my bed.

"Hey, guys!" I say.

"Hey," they respond.

"Xander messaged the group chat," Connor tells me. "Russell's going to join him for bowling tonight. Want to invite him to the sleepover, too? In case Xander wants to come?"

We're not really friends with Russell like we are with Xander so we normally wouldn't invite him, but he seems like a pretty nice dude and Xander's close with him. Inviting him doesn't bother me.

"Sure!" I say. "He's a cool guy! Though Xander'll probably decline again. He always seems really tired when it's time."

"Doesn't hurt to try," Sam says. "And we all talked about it before coming in here, we don't mind Russell coming with Xander."

"Then that settles that," I grab my phone. "Lemme let him know, then we can see what Aunt Rachel's doing for dinner. Oh, crap!"

"What?" My friends asks.

"I forgot to open the package," I say. "Oh, well! I'll do it on Thursday! Come on, let's find out what's for dinner!"

----------------------------------------

[Xander – 12 years]

"-and this is Lena," I tell Russell. "Hi, Lena."

"Hi, Xander," Lena smiles at me. "Who's this?"

"This is Russell," I tell her. "He's my boyfriend and he's gonna join me for bowling today. Trey's gonna join the other dads this time. And this is Russell's dad, Mr. Jackson. He's gonna join the dads as well, if they'll let him. And tonight's pie is an apple pie."

They gave me permission to bring dessert again, so I brought them some, too. I use telekinesis to move their pie onto the counter, minus the stasis box it's in. Telekinesis is also used to move the smaller container of ice cream I brought for the staff onto the counter as well.

"Thanks, Xander," she smiles. "So it'll be two for your lane and two for another, or just two for one lane right now?"

"Two for one, two for another," Trey answers. "Though we'll only play one game, then join the other dads when they arrive."

"Alright," Lena says.

Russell and Mr. Jackson have to rent their shoes, and Trey gives her the money for that and the lane rentals. I bring Russell over to Lane 20 to put our things down, then lead him to the refreshments area, where we meet back up with Trey and Mr. Jackson.

We aren't paying for them tonight – Mr. Jackson had given Trey the cash for their rentals, and Mr. Jackson is paying for Russell's snacks. I let them order first and once Mr. Jackson pays, I step up to the counter.

"Hey, Xander!" Chris greets me.

Oh, right. Now I know two Chrises: this one and the one I met at the park the Saturday before this one. But they're different people, the other Chris is about my age and just moved into the area. He seemed pretty nice, but I don't know if we can be friends.

Plus, we only even met the one time.

"Hi, Chris," I greet this one.

"What would you like tonight?" He asks.

"May I please have three burger combos," I answer. "No mustard, the drinks lemonade. Three pretzel combos, please. Also with lemonades for the drink. Nachos and cheese, please, and three orders of mozzarella sticks and three orders of onion rings, please."

"Sure thing," he says. "Will that be all for you?"

"I think so."

I'm not going to order a dessert this time, so that should be everything. That also equals thirteen things, if including the combos as one each rather than three. Thirteen is good.

"Alright," he looks at Trey. "And for you, sir?"

Trey places his order, then we head to our separate lanes with Chris promising to have my food brought over to me once it's ready. On the way, two kids spot us. I don't remember their names, but they're the mean kids who were friends with Parker until Parker dumped them.

"Hey, look," one of them says. "It's that freak from the park. The one who claims to be an expert bowler."

"Huh?" The other one says. "Oooh! We'll get to see his lame ass-"

"Would the parents of the two boys on Lane 11 please come to the service desk?" Lena's voice comes over the often. "I repeat, would the parents of the two boys on Lane 11 please come to the service desk?"

That's the lane those two boys are on, and Lena doesn't use the intercom very often, only for important stuff. As much as I want to know why she's calling their parents to the desk, I keep focused on reaching Lane 20 with Russell.

"Those two kids are jerks," he grumbles.

"They made fun of me at the park," I tell him.

"What?" He looks over at them. "When? Why?"

"They said I talk funny."

"You just talk a little different, that's all," he says. "Nothing wrong with it."

"So you noticed it?" I ask. "I do?"

"Yeah," he answers. "And yeah. But it's not like I can't understand you fine. Anyone who makes fun of you for it is a lame loser who needs to choke on a cactus."

That's a really angry look on his face. It's not me he's mad at, is it? He was insulting them while glaring in their direction.

"That would be really painful, though."

"Exactly!" He says. "Let's bowl!"

I try to let Russell put his name in first, but he insists on me being first since he came here to bowl with me and it's my usual activity. While I don't understand that logic, it makes me a little bit happy that he's willing to let me go first, even though I don't mind not being first. I don't understand that feeling.

As we're about to start bowling, Russell taps me on the arm, making me jump.

"Sorry," he says, his voice quiet. "Look over there."

I look over to where he's indicating and find that the two jerks are leaving with their parents… and bowling alley security. Well, the latter probably isn't leaving, but they're walking with the kids. The alley always has at least two security guards around that I know of, but I almost never see them actually doing anything.

I always thought they were there to deter problems.

"They're leaving?" I ask.

"Yeah," he says. "Security's escorting 'em out. Wonder what happened."

"Dunno."

We start our game and a couple of turns in, Chris comes over with my food.

"Hey, Xander," he starts putting it out onto the table. "Here's your stuff, man."

"I'm not a man, I'm a boy."

"You're a little man," he says. "Not a big man."

"How come those other boys got escorted out?" Russell asks before I can make sure Chris knows I'm nowhere near old enough to be a man, and I don't even look like a man, just a boy. "I came here for PE earlier this year and even some of the more rowdy kids just got told to calm down."

"Hm?" Chris looks down. "Oh, those two kids? There are cameras and mics at all of the lanes, allowing us to make sure everyone is behaving. There are some pretty clearly-posted rules at the entrance to the alley, and that includes being respectful of everyone. Calling anyone a freak isn't really allowed here, and doing it to someone who's passing by and not interacting with them – and who happens to be one of our best customers – isn't something we take kindly. I think it was supposed to just be a warning to the parents. The only reason I even know what happened is because voices got raised, then I heard a request for security over the walkie."

"You guys can hear everything?" I ask.

"Yup," he smiles at me. "They were installed right before you started coming, actually. Had some parents trying to claim their kids weren't bullying some others with 'there's no proof', even after we said that we'd actually seen it happen. So the owner installed the cameras and microphones. Next time it happened, the parents were shown the recordings of the incidents and told they and their kids weren't welcome back."

The cameras must be why they didn't try to talk with me separate from Trey when he first came with me even though the other boys and their dads were. They were probably watching the cameras out of concern that I was being forced to say what I did. While watching, they probably heard us talking and figured out that I was honest and he was just my new foster dad.

"Oh," I say. "That's really neat."

"It helps us out a lot," he says. "If there's an incident or someone claims something happened, we can just check the footage. I'm going to get back to work now, you two have fun."

"Thanks for bringing over my food," I tell him. "Bye, Chris."

"Bye, little man," he waves, then walks off, and I look back to Russell.

"I love this bowling alley."