I press my lips together, trying not to laugh because I refuse to reward this behavior too soon. We are standing outside the community center where I’m holding tonight’s Lit with Lily class, and I’m overjoyed I am not already sweating through my shirt before the event even starts.
Tonight, I have real help that I asked for.
Zea pulls a clipboard out of her tote bag and flips a page up. “Okay, I made a setup checklist based on the notes you sent me. I also made a content plan, but we don’t have to talk about that until after I get some behind-the-scenes footage. I need the van doors opening, supplies coming out, you looking stressed but cute, and then the room transformation.”
“No videos of me looking stressed.”
“You always look a little stressed before events. That’s part of your brand.”
“It is not.”
Javonte coughs into his shoulder.
I point at him. “Do not agree.”
“I didn’t say anything.” He smiles. “I thought you looked cute.”
Zea looks between us and groans. “Okay, I’m going inside before y’all start making eye contact for too long.”
She takes the sign-in folder and a bin of brushes from me, then marches toward the door like she has been doing this job since I started.
Javonte watches her go. He shifts the tables in his arms. “Where do you want these?”
I look into the room through the open door. “Two by the windows and two in the middle. Leave enough space for people to walk around without bumping into the water cups.”
“Got it.”
I stand by the van for a second, holding a bin of table covers against my hip, and let myself notice everything happening right now.
This is what I needed:people I trust, doing the things I asked them to do.
Inside, Zea has already set the sign-in sheet on the front table and is filming a slow pan of the empty room.
“Don’t get the trash can in the shot,” I tell her.
“I already moved it.”
I blink. “You moved the trash can?”
“It was ugly.” She shrugs and continues filming.
I turn away so she doesn’t see my smile. Javonte walks past me to grab another table, and his hand grazes my lower back for half a second. I can’t keep the grin off my face.
The three of us fall into a rhythm faster than I expect. Javonte handles the tables and chairs. Zea counts brushes, cups, and aprons while narrating half her thoughts out loud. I lay out the paint and canvases, checking colors against the sample I made last night.
There was a part of me worried this would feel weird after everything. Like bringing Zea into Lit with Lily would blur lines or make it feel like Javonte was still quietly steering things through someone else.
But it doesn’t feel like that.
Zea asks questions. She waits for answers, most of the time. She takes direction, even if she adds commentary. Javonte stays in the background unless I call for him. I am still the one in charge.
By the time the first guests arrive, everything is set and ready. The tables are perfect, and Zea has already posted a quick story with a sticker that says tonight’s class is full. She shows it to me, and I love how professional it looks.
“You’re amazing!” I tell her.
A group of women walk in laughing, and Zea immediately switches into customer service mode. “Hi, welcome to Lit with Lily. You can sign in right here, and aprons are on the table in the very back.”
I close my eyes for a second.
