“Wow, the trust here is thriving.”
“You’re deflecting.”
“Mondays and Thursdays,” I repeat, holding up a hand. “Scout’s honor.”
She eyes me like I’ve personally wronged her entire family, then writes it down.
“And just so we’re clear,” she continues, clicking her pen aggressively, “I take thisseriously. This is a big deal to me, I have to win this grant. Ok?”
“Good thing it’s important to me too, Mittens.”
“We’ll see.”
I lean back, crossing my arms. “You really think I’d sign up for this if I didn’t want to win?”
She studies me for a second, like she’s debating if she actually believes me.
“I’m awinner, Greer,” I say, grinning. “Or did you forget summer already?”
Her expression hardens instantly.
“We are not talking about camp.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Come on, Mittens, you’re not still mad about?—”
“I said we’re not talking about it,” she snaps, her voice edged with finality.
I smirk, because now I’m definitely going to bring it up again.
“They said we have a week to visit the site and start brainstorming,” she says, tapping the edge of her notebook. “But I want to get ahead.”
“Why do I feel like you've already made a list?”
Delilah doesn't confirm or deny it. She just flips to another page.
There's already a list. I try not to laugh.
“I've already been by the site once,” she admits. “The location's actually pretty good—south-facing, which means wecould incorporate solar panels. The structure's sound, but it's horribly outdated. I'm thinking we could repurpose most of it rather than tear it down completely.”
“Delilah Greer, younaughtygirl”—I lean forward—“why have you already been to the fuck-toilets?” She rolls her eyes but I notice a slight blush when I said naughty. Interesting.
“Ok, fuck-toilets? Really?”
I shrug. “That’s what they are.”
“I have not done that there, thank you very much. And, even if I had, asking about it is an infraction on rule number 2. You’re officially on a warning, Hawkins.”
“Whatever. Handcuff me, baby.”
Her scowl deepens so far and I’m worried I might actually be towing the line of her tolerating me, so I quickly 360.
“So your idea, I like it. I feel like most people might be going down the rip it all out route since it’s so dilapidated there, so this could be a better angle,” I say. “Repurpose into what, though?”
“That's what we need to figure out. The brief says it should be sustainable, functional, and enhance campus life. I was thinking maybe a mix of study space and social area? But I want to do a proper site survey first—check out the surroundings, measure everything, see what kind of foot traffic it gets at different hours.”
“We should map the sun path too,” I add. “If we're going with solar on the roof, I'd want to calculate the optimal panel angles and placement. Also need to look at water management—that area floods every spring.”
Her brow lifts slightly. “That's... actually a good idea.”
