“I’ll call her when she gets off and ask,” Eri volunteered.
“Great! Let’s meet at my house on Sunday at noon. I’ll make brunch for us,” Avian said.
She and Nesiah agreed, and they ended the call. Eri turned her attention to the designs for Koa.
“Hey, Eri,” Romi greeted later that evening.
“Hey, girl. I have a quick question for you.”
“What’s up?”
“We’re planning a group trip for mid or late October to Aspen, and we wanted to know if you wanted to come. I know you just started working, but I thought I’d ask.”
“Do you know what days we’d be gone?” Romi inquired.
“We’re thinking of flying out Thursday evening and coming back Monday afternoon.”
“Yeah, that should be fine. I work four-day weeks, and I can do any work I need to for Monday when we get back or start on it before we leave.”
“Are you sure?” Eri asked. Since they’d decided to leave on Thursday after the shop closed, when they were driving, she didn’t see them changing it just because they were flying. That way, the shop would only be closed for three days, and Avian wouldn’t miss teaching her classes on Thursday.
“Yeah. Just let me know how much I owe and who I need to send what to.”
“We’re meeting at Avian’s on Sunday to plan everything. You’re welcome to come.”
“Okay, send me the address, and I’ll meet you all there.”
Eri agreed, and the two spoke for a few more minutes before ending the call. She brought up her favorite shopping app on her phone and decided to look through a few options. If they were going skiing, she’d need a cute little suit.
38
Eri knocked on the door and waited. Koa had texted her a few days ago asking if they could meet. This time, she’d given Eri her address. Part of her was nervous that the other woman was having an issue with the designs she’d sent over, but figured if that were the case, she wouldn’t have approved them, and told her so as soon as she sent them over.
“Eri, hey,” Koa greeted when she answered the door. “Come in.” She stepped aside to allow Eri to enter.
“Hey,” Eri replied. “Was there something wrong with the designs I sent? Did they not translate to the merch well?” she asked, getting to the point.
“No, they were great. The merch is the reason I asked you to come over. Follow me.”
She followed her down the hall and into a room that had been turned into a storage area for her merch. Shelves and racks lined the walls, and the closet door had been removed. Koa pulled a keychain out of one of the bins on a shelf, a tumbler off another shelf, and a shirt off one of the racks.
“These are some of the items I had made with the initial designs you made for me. The rest sold out pretty quickly, but I wanted you to have these.” Koa handed her the items.
Eri looked them over with a smile. It wasn’t the first time she had seen something she designed come to life, but the feeling was still the same. It excited her. Gave her a sense of pride knowing she was the one who created it. Knowing that the others had sold out quickly gave a boost to her ego, and she mentallypatted herself on the back. It wasn’t that she ever doubted her work because she always put her all into it, but those words were confirmation that others enjoyed it also.
“I’ve got so much more coming in over this week, along with the items for Halloween’s drop. I’ll put some things aside for you when it comes in, and again when I order the Christmas merch.”
“Thanks,” Eri replied. “I’d like that.”
“While you’re here, do you want to sneak a peek of the Halloween special animation?”
“Is that a serious question?” Eri asked. “Of course I do.”
Koa laughed and led her across the hall into another room. This one was filled with what Eri would equate to a gaming setup, except she knew it was where Koa created magic. She pulled the chair from the second desk and gestured for her to sit as she got everything pulled up.
Eri took the room in as she did. Everything was organized and had a specific place. She was sure it made it easier for Koa to work that way. At least, that was how it was for Eri.
She got to see the first five minutes of the special, and she couldn’t wait for it to drop. She looked at the timestamp and noticed that the episode was almost forty-five minutes long. Typically, Koa’s episodes ran between fifteen and twenty minutes.
