I looked at the giant prize and then back at her tiny face.
“Here,” I said, tearing off a strip from mine and placing it in her hand. “Now you have more.”
Her eyes got huge. “Really?”
“Really.”
She lit up like I’d handed her the keys to a kingdom and immediately ran off toward the basket.
Something warm settled low in my chest.
I straightened, smiling to myself, only to find Maya watching me.
“What?”
She tipped her head. “You always do that.”
“Do what?”
“Make yourself everybody’s favorite person without trying.”
I blinked. “That felt surprisingly nice.”
“It wasn’t.”
I stared at her.
She gave me a dazzling smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “I’m kidding.”
“Uh-huh.”
She sipped her drink and looked me over again, slower this time. “You’re lucky being sweet works for you.”
I let out a quiet breath through my nose. “You are being weird tonight.”
“I’m being honest.”
“Same difference.”
She rolled her eyes and moved on to the next basket.
I stayed where I was for a second.
Not upset.
Just… aware.
Maya had always had a way of saying things that made it hard to tell whether she was complimenting you or slipping a blade between your ribs. Most days I ignored it because it wasn’t worth the energy.
Tonight, though, something about her tone felt sharper.
Maybe it was the crowd.
Maybe it was the kind of place we were in.
Or maybe she was already in one of those moods where she needed to be the prettiest girl in every room and didn’t particularly care how she got there.
I dropped the rest of my tickets into the baking basket and stepped back.
