“What about you, Mack?”
“Judging people by their looks and not who they are.”
Sofia’s expression softens.
I turn away, not wanting to look at them. I feel like a fourth wheel on a three-wheeled bike.
“Look, we’re here. So, what was the clue again?”
“Uh, it was something round, something blue, something borrowed, something canoe,” Mack says.
“I hate games like this,” I moan. “I’m terrible at them.”
Mack bounces up on his toes, looking around. “The kayak shed.”
He leads us over there, but though they search, they can’t find it. I’m sitting on a log, looking at the small river when I see a blue disk on the nearest tree.
“Mack!”
Mack ducks out, looking at me. He always listens when I call him. He values what I have to say. I know we met because of her, but we bonded because we’re perfect for each other. I point to the disk.
“Yes! Good work, Elijah.”
He races over to it. “Got the next clue.”
We all gather around him.
“Berry sad to greet you again!”
“The berry bush near the road out of town!”
Sofia laughs. “Go, Eli!”
She throws herself at me, ignoring the grumbling puppy, and hugs me. She threads her fingers through mine, and we walk to our next clue.
We find it and the next one, and the one after that. All the while, we answer the questions that are on the sheet, and I find myself enjoying every moment.
We fit together so easily. Our morals and values line up, what we want out of life. Maybe I have a place on this bike. Perhaps she could learn to like me a little bit.
“What do you want in the future?”
And that question that Mack asks kills the mood faster than I’ve ever seen. Sofia goes quiet; she focuses on walking Danger, avoiding looking at us.
“It’s okay if you don’t know or you can’t decide.”
“We can’t have what we want,” she mutters and then stomps ahead of us, leaving Mack scratching his head.
I rush after her, pulling out a flask.
“Sofia, stop.”
She does, but she doesn’t turn to face me.
“Drink something.”
“No, I-”
“Omega, you haven’t had a drink in an hour. You don’t have to tell me what’s wrong, but please drink something.”
