The circle rotated. April found herself between different people now, Killian to her left and Caleb to her right.
"Organized chaos," Liam murmured, and Arthur's mouth twitched.
Caleb pulled next: "Person across from you moves to sit behind you."
He looked at Mateo, who was directly opposite. Mateo rose smoothly and settled behind Caleb, close enough that Caleb could lean back against him if he wanted.
Three more blocks came out in quick succession, more movement tasks, more repositioning.
"Round two," Arthur said. "Write one new block each. Category: interaction."
Everyone grabbed fresh blocks and Sharpies. This time they wrote at the table, shoulders touching, close enough to almost see each other's handwriting but not quite.
The tower had grown taller with the additions from round one. Arthur rebuilt it quickly, incorporating the new blocks.
Liam went first this time, pulled: "Make eye contact with April for ten seconds."
He looked at her. April looked back.
Ten seconds of Liam's steady, analytical attention. It should have felt awkward. It didn't.
"Time," Arthur said.
Liam's mouth curved slightly before he looked away.
The next block: "Give April something to drink."
Mateo was already moving before anyone identified who'd written it, returning with water and pressing it into her hands with the solemnity of a man who took hydration personally.
"That's obviously yours," Jax said.
"Hydration is important," Mateo replied.
Another block: "Tell April one thing you noticed about her today."
Jiro had pulled it. "You laugh with your whole face," he said simply. Then he leaned in and brushed a quick kiss to her temple.
The game continued, conversation weaving around block pulls. Caleb sprawled forward on his stomach to reach a difficult piece. Liam leaned back on his hands. Jax had given up sitting cross-legged entirely and stretched his legs out. They’d all angled toward her.
"Round three," Arthur announced after the tower had fallen once and been rebuilt. "New blocks. Category: comfort escalation."
"That sounds ominous," Caleb said.
"It's strategic progression," Arthur corrected.
April wrote her block, watching the others do the same. Everyone was looser now, bodies draped in comfortable angles, touch normalized, the space between them shrinking.
The new tower went up. Mateo pulled first: "Remove one item of clothing."
The room went quiet.
Then Mateo calmly removed his watch and set it on the table.
Everyone laughed.
"Technically accurate," Liam observed.
"That's cheating," Caleb said.
