"Wait, maybe this one?" She pressed something else.
A sudden blast of icy water erupted from the foot-massage jets at ground level, hitting us like we'd personally wronged them.
"THAT'S NOT HELPING!" I yelled, my voice echoing off the tile like I was in a cave.
We were both soaked, fumbling blind in the steam, water attacking us from every possible direction. Anna's shoulders shook with laughter as she groped for the panel. "There's got to be an off switch?—"
"You'd think!"
Finally—finally—she found the central "OFF" button.
We stood there, dripping and gasping. Water pooled at our feet. My hair was plastered to my forehead. Anna looked like she'd just survived a shipwreck.
We looked at each other.
And completely lost it.
"Where—" I gasped between laughs, flinging open cabinet doors. "Where in the world are the towels? How are thereno towelsin this bathroom? Why does Topher have an ottoman but no towels?"
Anna tried to wring out her shirt. "Maybe the ottomanisthe towel?"
"That's not how furniture works!"
I was freezing now, teeth starting to chatter. I desperately looked around for the climate controls. My eyes landed on the expansive mirror above the sink, backlit by these subtle, fancy embedded lights.
Voice-activated. Had to be.
"Mirror," I commanded, "show controls."
The mirror rippled.
Then it became a video call screen.
And there was Topher. In a suit. In what looked like a very serious boardroom full of very serious people.
His eyes went wide. "Luke? Anna?" He took in our drowned-rat appearances. "Why are you calling me from my guest bathroom? And why do you both look like you fell in a pool?"
I couldn't even speak. I was laughing too hard. "Wrong... button..."
Anna doubled over. "We were just... we were trying to..." She wiped tears from her eyes. "Your fancy mirror!"
Someone in the background of Topher's call leaned into frame, clearly confused. Topher held up a finger—one moment—and turned back to us with a smirk. "You know, I've taken a lot of weird calls in my career, but this is a first. Not gonna lie, Luke, this is exactly the kind of chaos I expect from you."
"Happy to deliver," I managed.
Anna waved at the screen. "Enjoy your meeting!"
"Oh, I will." His grin widened. "Try not to destroy anything else."
The screen went dark.
There was a knock at the door. "Tornado warning's over," Tom called through. "You're free to leave the bathroom."
I glanced at Anna. Damp hair clinging to her face, cheeks flushed, eyes still sparkling with laughter. She looked like she'd just emerged from some beautiful disaster, radiant and completely unaware of how hard she was making this for me.
I looked away fast, clearing my throat.
We squelched our way out into the hallway, leaving a trail of water like a crime scene. Anna turned to me, that small, devastating smile playing at her lips. "Well. That was an adventure."
