CHAPTER 111: ROOKIE RULES

Nina pushed through the crowd with a focused determination, her small group trailing behind her like a line of ducklings, and she led them directly to the less-crowded sandwich counter, a place that smelled vaguely of vinegar and processed turkey.

"Okay, this is faster," Nina announced, her eyes scanning the menu board above the counter, "everyone figure out what you want, we don’t have all day."

Jake, seeing another opportunity for his master plan of ’normal human interaction,’ immediately turned to Ruby, "So, uh, Ruby, what are you thinking? The club sandwich looks pretty classic."

Ruby looked at the menu for a moment, her gaze quiet and thoughtful, "...The turkey and avocado one looks good."

"An excellent choice," Jake said with a nod that was a little too serious, "I will also have the turkey and avocado, to show solidarity."

Nina rolled her eyes and turned her attention to the weakest link in their chain of social functionality, ’Okay, Thea is going to freeze, I just know it.’

She was right, because Thea was staring at the menu board as if it were written in a dead language, her expression completely blank, and Kofi, noticing her panic, stepped in smoothly.

"She’ll have the ham and cheese on white," Kofi stated to the person behind the counter, his voice simple and direct, "and I’ll have the same, just add mustard."

’He is so good with her,’ Nina thought, a small, warm feeling blooming in her chest, ’he just knew what to do, without making a big deal out of it.’

Thea looked at Kofi, a flicker of relief in her eyes, and she gave him a tiny, almost imperceptible nod of thanks.

They got their sandwiches, which were wrapped in wax paper and placed on plastic trays, and Nina led them to a small, round table in a slightly less chaotic corner of the service station, where they all sat down. The seating arrangement happened naturally, with Jake and Ruby on one side, their shoulders almost touching, and Nina, Kofi, and Thea on the other, with Kofi acting as a buffer between the two girls.

Jake, feeling bold, continued his conversation with Ruby, "So, about that documentary on ancient Egypt, did you see the part about the boat pits they found next to the pyramids?"

Ruby’s eyes lit up a little, "Yes! I thought it was so interesting how they buried them fully assembled."

Nina watched them for a second, a small smile on her face, before turning to her own target, and she nudged Thea’s arm with her own, "So, how’s the sandwich? Is it a good sandwich?"

Thea, who had been nibbling on the crust of her ham and cheese, looked up, a little startled, and she nodded once, "...It’s good."

"See?" Nina said, turning to Kofi with a triumphant look, "I told you the sandwich place was the correct strategic move, my leadership is flawless."

"It’s a ham sandwich, Nina," Kofi said, his voice completely deadpan as he took a bite of his own, "it’s not a complex military operation."

"Everything is a complex military operation if you’re dedicated enough," she shot back, stealing one of the pickles from his tray, and he just let her.

Thea watched the easy back-and-forth between them, a strange feeling in her chest, because it was not like any interaction she had ever seen up close before, it was so... easy.

A crackly voice came over the service station’s loudspeaker, a tinny announcement from Ms. Lail telling all students to return to the buses, as their break was ending.

Nina stood up, already gathering her trash, "Alright, team, that’s our cue, let’s move out before we get left behind."

They all cleaned up their trays and walked back out into the bright afternoon sun, heading toward the waiting buses, and this time, Thea walked beside Kofi, not behind him.

They got back on the bus, the warm air inside feeling stuffy after the relative cool of the service station, and they all settled back into their previous seats. Jake and Ruby’s quiet conversation started up again almost immediately, and Nina, after a moment of scrolling on her phone, let out a dramatic sigh.

"Ugh, I have no signal out here, this is a travesty," she announced to no one in particular, before leaning across the aisle toward Kofi, "entertain me, you’re the least boring person here."

"I’m trying to read," he said, gesturing to the manga volume he had pulled from his bag.

"That’s not entertaining, that’s just you looking at pictures of angry people with big swords," she countered, "tell me a story."

"Once upon a time, there was a girl who wouldn’t let her friend read in peace, the end."

Nina stuck her tongue out at him, a gesture that was surprisingly childish, and Thea, who had been watching the exchange from her window seat, felt the corner of her own mouth twitch upwards in a smile she quickly hid.

The bus rumbled back onto the highway, and the landscape began to change again, the pine trees growing thicker and the mountains looming larger, their peaks sharp against the bright blue sky. Thea’s attention was once again captured by the world outside the window, her gaze fixed on the vast, wild scenery.

Kofi noticed her complete absorption, so he put his manga away, and he took out his phone and his headphones again. He held one of the earbuds out to her, a now-familiar, silent offer.

She took it from him and placed it in her ear, and the quiet, simple piano music started again, a private soundtrack for the two of them as the bus carried them deeper into the mountains, and closer to a destination that felt like a different world entirely.

---

The bus continued its steady climb into the mountains, the quiet piano music a shared secret between Kofi and Thea as she remained captivated by the passing scenery of towering trees and deep, shadowed valleys.

After another twenty minutes of tapping aggressively at her phone screen, Nina let out a frustrated groan, tossing the device into her bag.

"Ugh, this puzzle is impossible, and my brain is turning to mush," she announced to the aisle, "it’s time for a mandatory team-building exercise."

Jake and Ruby, who were now deep in a debate about the historical accuracy of a pirate movie, looked over at her, their conversation cut short.

"A team-building exercise?" Jake asked, his interest piqued.

"Yes," Nina confirmed, a determined glint in her eyes, "we are going to play a game, because if I have to sit in silence for another hour, I might actually explode."

Kofi pulled one of his earbuds out, giving her a questioning look.

Nina leaned forward, her arms resting on the back of the seat in front of her, "We are playing Two Truths and a Lie, it is a classic for a reason, and I will go first to show you all how it is done."

She cleared her throat dramatically, "Okay, statement one, my favorite food in the entire world is spicy beef ramen, statement two, I once won a regional dance competition, and statement three, I have a secret collection of over two hundred different kinds of cute stationery."

Jake immediately jumped in, "The lie is the dance competition, there’s no way."

"Wrong," Nina said with a triumphant smirk, "the lie is the ramen, I hate spicy food, I am a queen of both dance and adorable pens, you have all learned something valuable about me today, now, Jake, you’re next."

Jake’s face went a little pale, the sudden spotlight making him nervous, and he thought for a moment before speaking, "Um, okay, so, one, I can name every single king and queen of England in chronological order, two, I have seen every episode of that alien conspiracy documentary series at least five times, and three, I am very good at talking to girls."

Nina and Kofi looked at each other, then back at Jake, their expressions completely deadpan.

"The lie is number three," Kofi stated simply.

"Yeah, it’s definitely number three," Nina added.

Jake deflated with a sigh, "It was that obvious, huh?"

"It was very, very obvious," Nina confirmed, before turning her attention to the other side of the aisle, "Ruby, your turn."

Ruby seemed a little hesitant, but she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and spoke, her voice quiet but clear, "Okay, um, my grandfather was a cartographer, so I can read most old maps, I have a pet tortoise at home named Sheldon, and... my favorite color is bright orange."

Nina’s brow furrowed in concentration, ’Okay, the map thing sounds plausible, and the tortoise is a classic quiet-girl pet, but bright orange? It doesn’t seem like her at all.’

"I’m going to say the lie is the orange," Nina declared.

Ruby shook her head, a small smile appearing on her face, "No, that’s true, I just don’t wear it much, the lie is the tortoise, I’ve always wanted one, but my mom is allergic."

"Wow, a secret orange-lover," Nina said, impressed, "you are a woman of mystery, Ruby, I respect that, alright, Kofi, you’re up."

Kofi thought for a second, his expression unchanging, "Okay, one, I once beat an entire RPG in a single twenty-four-hour session, two, I know how to cook over fifty different dishes from scratch, and three, my parents think I’m a responsible, well-adjusted kid."

The group went silent, considering his statements.

"That’s a hard one," Jake mused, "the RPG thing sounds real, and the parents one also sounds real, but fifty dishes? That seems like a lot."

Nina narrowed her eyes at Kofi, trying to read his completely unreadable face, "The cooking one, the lie is definitely the cooking one, you can barely make stir-fry."

"Wrong," Kofi said, a flicker of something that might have been amusement in his eyes, "the lie is number three, my parents know I’m a mess, I am a master of both video games and, as of recently, culinary arts."

"You are not a master of culinary arts," Nina shot back, though she was smiling.

The group’s attention then, inevitably, turned to the last person, and Thea, who had been listening to the game with a quiet intensity, immediately froze as four pairs of eyes landed on her. She shrank back against the window, her knuckles white where she gripped the edge of her seat.

’They’re looking at me, they want me to talk, but I can’t, I don’t have anything to say, I don’t have any truths that aren’t sad and I don’t know how to lie.’

Kofi saw the panic on her face instantly, so he held up a hand, his voice calm and casual, "She’s new to the team, so she gets a pass on the first team-building exercise, it’s in the rules."

Nina caught on immediately, giving a decisive nod, "He’s right, rookie immunity is a sacred tradition, you can play next time, Thea, no pressure."

Thea looked from Kofi’s calm face to Nina’s easy smile, and the tight knot of panic in her chest loosened just a little. She gave a small, jerky nod, her gaze dropping back down to her lap, a quiet wave of relief washing over her.