Chapter Three

One of the most annoying things about moving is that everything needs to go someplace, but no one can agree where that place should be, or if they have decided, something else has already been put there.

“Mom, there’s no space for these old DVDs!” I call down the hall. It’s the first Saturday since I started school, and I was looking forward to sleeping in this weekend. Unfortunately, my parents have had me working since eight-thirty.

“Try the cabinets under the TV.”

“Andrew already filled them with video games.” I glare at the boxes at my feet. Mom put me in charge of clearing out the boxes in the living room, but they’re filled with so much miscellaneous crap that it’s impossible. Which is why she gave me the task.

“Well, I don’t know,” she calls. “Just find a place, honey.”

I sigh and shove my sweaty bangs off my forehead. The bangs were an impulsive choice a few months ago when everything blew up with Paige, Caden, and my old D&D group and I needed a change. I grabbed a pair of scissors and started chopping—thinking I might look like a dark-haired Taylor Swift—but it turns out I’m not good at haircutting. Or making life decisions in general, apparently. They’re taking forever to grow out, like they want to stick around to remind me of my past mistakes.

“Hey, Patrick’s here!” my brother yells from the front door. “I’m heading out.”

Andrew is a year younger than me, and it’s taken him exactly five days to completely integrate into our new high school. He’s been a soccer phenom since he was seven, so all he needed to do was join the indoor winter soccer league at the rec center—the only indoor team in the area—and he had an entire built-in friend group within hours. He even had a date with a pretty sophomore last night.

I’m trying to be a good big sister, but it’s hard not to loathe him.

“You’re going out again?” Dad sticks his head out of his office, where he’s organizing his bookshelves. His short hair is disheveled and his glasses are askew, but his blue and white button-up is pressed and tucked in as always. Button-ups are his uniform. “I thought you were going to come with me to Grandma’s house later this afternoon? I want to get her garage cleaned up.”

“Sorry, the guys want to condition. I already told them I would.”

Dad sighs. “All right, fine. But you need to save time next week to visit her. We didn’t move to the same town just for you to be too busy to spend time with her.”

I turn back to my unpacking and roll my eyes. Andrew gets away with everything. But since he’s into a more socially accepted hobby, his interests always take priority.

Once Andrew’s gone, I leave my box and walk over to the office. Mom is there, too, wearing yoga pants and an oversized shirt from her college years. She whispers something to Dad and they start giggling. They never finished their honeymoon stage. Everyone else thinks it’s sweet, but as their daughter who has to watch them mooning over each other every day, I’m over it.

“Hey, guys?”

They turn and smile in unison. “Hey, hon. How are the DVDs coming along?”

“Not well. And no one watches DVDs anymore. You should donate them.”

Dad adjusts his glasses, looking appalled. “Over my dead body. I don’t trust these streaming clouds. They say you own things, but what if they decide to stop streaming them? I’d never see my favorite episodes again! No, it’s good to have a physical copy of everything you love.” He points at me like he’s imparting an important life lesson. “Physical copies.”

“Right. Thanks for the advice.” I swipe at my bangs again. “Don’t forget I need to leave soon too.”

Mom gives Dad a confused look. I love them, but they aren’t the most organized people. That’s one of the reasons this move has been and continues to be chaotic.

“Where are you going?” Mom asks, and tucks her short dark hair behind her ears. “You don’t know anyone here yet.”

I put a hand on my hip. “I know people. Kashvi invited me to that D&D game I mentioned.”

Now, granted, I don’t know Kashvi’s last name or any other details about her, but I still technically know her.

“Can you reschedule?” Dad asks. “Grandma’s going to be so disappointed if neither of her grandkids come over today.”

“But you let Andrew go without grief.”

“I know, I know.” Mom takes Dad’s hand. “Don’t tell this to Andrew, but you know how much she loves you. You always make her day so much brighter.”

I hesitate. For all her quirks, I do like spending time with Grandma. It’s never boring with her—she always has a new hobby or a funny story from when she was younger or an idea of something we can do together. But I think even Grandma would agree I need to make new friends here.

“Kashvi was really nice to invite me today, and it would be rude to blow her off. You know how hard it is to meet people. Do you want me to be sad and alone forever?”

Dad blows out a breath and Mom puts up her hands in surrender. “You don’t need to lay it on that thick,” Mom replies. “We’ll tell Grandma you had plans you couldn’t break.”

“Thank you!” I clap my hands. “Can I take the car?”

“Fine, fine,” Dad says, and waves me off.

“Tell her I promise to visit soon,” I call as I run upstairs to get a shower.

“You better, or she’ll insist on driving you to school every morning,” Mom says with a laugh.

I shouldn’t pin all my hopes for future happiness on this afternoon, but you better believe I’m doing it anyway. It takes me an embarrassingly long time to decide what to wear to the game, particularly given the fact that it shouldn’t matter. That’s one of the (many) great things about D&D—no one cares what you look like. You can come in wearing a ball gown, ratty pajamas, or elf ears and it would be cool…assuming you have a group that doesn’t judge. I end up choosing a patterned maroon maxi skirt, cropped blue top, and my olive-green cardigan that’s long enough to hit the backs of my knees. It’s one of my favorite outfits, and also super comfortable. I add hoop earrings and three long necklaces because I don’t feel like myself unless I’m wearing one too many pieces of jewelry. I’ve heard the advice about looking in the mirror and taking off one accessory before leaving the house, but I’m the opposite. I grab two lapis bracelets and head for my car.

Twenty minutes later, I take a deep breath and knock on the door at the address Kashvi gave me. Here goes nothing.

A second later it flies open, but instead of Kashvi it’s the boy she was standing with in the parking lot the first day. Given how similar they look, I assume it must be her twin brother. He has short dark hair and is wearing sweatpants and a Laurelburg High Robotics shirt.

“Whatever you’re selling, we don’t want it.”

I blink, completely thrown. “Uh…I’m not selling anything. Is Kashvi here?”

“Everyone’s selling something.” He cocks his head and studies me. “Even if it’s themselves.”

My jaw drops and I step to the side to look at the big wooden numbers screwed into the post of their porch. Welp, this is definitely the address Kashvi gave me. I shift away from him, unsure what to do.

“It’s all good!” he says with a laugh. “Just messing withyou.”

“Sanjiv, stop antagonizing our guest! Move!” Sanjiv stumbles out of sight and Kashvi takes his place in the doorway, her hair tousled and smile tight. “Sorry about that. Come in.”

I walk in hesitantly.

“Just ignore my twin. That’s what I do when he’s likethis.”

Sanjiv sidesteps a line of neatly ordered shoes in the entranceway. “No one can ignore me. And I needed to test if she was going to cut it with us.” He rubs his chin. “I’m not convinced yet.”

She rolls her eyes. “Go fill your face with Doritos and let us talk.”

He shrugs and saunters off into the house. “I wanted to get to the door before him, but I was upstairs.” She looks over her shoulder. “He’s not usually that bad, but he’s playing an overly philosophical cleric, and it makes him unbearable when he’s in character. I’m so glad this campaign is almost done.”

She beckons me inside and we sit down in a very formal living room. Her house is amazingly clean. I mean, my house looks like a cardboard box retail store right now since we’re unpacking, but it’s cluttered even at our best. This looks like a showroom.

“How’ve you been?” Kashvi asks.

I’m embarrassed to admit that the closest I’ve gotten to a fun night in Laurelburg is watching Wheel of Fortune with Mom and Dad. And even they were texting with friends half the show, while I had nothing better to do than solve the “Rhyme Time” puzzle with only one of the vowels.

“Okay,” I tell her. “Happy to be here.” Somewhere in the house, guys are laughing, and it sends a tingle of nerves up my spine. Between Kashvi’s warning from before and Sanjiv’s comment, I’m starting to wonder how well I’m going to fit in. “So, did you say your campaign’s over?”

“After today. We’re wrapping up this afternoon, which is why I thought it would be a good day for you to come over. So you can experience us at full force.”

“Oh.” I try not to let my disappointment show. “Well, thanks for the invitation. It got me out of chores.”

“No problem. And don’t worry—we’re starting up a new campaign soon, so it’s the perfect time to bring in someone new. If you’re up for it.”

Her words ratchet up my nerves further. Why does she keep insinuating that I might not be “up for it”? It’s D&D—what could be so intimidating about that? Unless the other players are jerks. I have all too much experience with that and no interest in joining a new toxic group.

“Let’s gooooo. We’ve got an evil wizard to kill,” Sanjiv complains as he walks into the living room.

The guy who doesn’t like coats follows him in. Today his long hair is down and falls to his shoulders. He’s wearing a marching band shirt and carrying a two-liter of Dr Pepper. “Hey.” He nods. “You’re in my chem class, right? What’sup?”

“Hey,” I say with a wave.

“That’s Mark,” Kashvi says. “You met Sanjiv at the door, and you already know Logan from that first day.”

Ah, he does play with Kashvi! Logan comes in and I wave, trying to be nonchalant so he doesn’t realize how happy I am that he’s part of the game too. Today just got even better.

“Quinn, hey. This is a nice surprise.” His smile sends warmth rushing through me. “I didn’t realize you were friends with Kashvi.”

“It’s good to see you all again,” I say. “Kashvi was nice enough to invite me over today.”

“I thought it’d be fun to have her sit in on the game,” she explains. “She used to play at her old school. Speaking of, we better get downstairs before Sloane comes looking forus.”

I follow as the group heads through the kitchen to the basement stairs, and Logan comes up beside me. “How’s pre-calc going?”

I groan. “Not good. Our unit doesn’t line up at all with my last school, and Mr. Winchester goes over stuff so fast.”

“I’d offer to tutor you, but only if you’re hoping for lower grades than you’re already getting.”

“What an appealing offer,” I reply, though honestly I might be willing to take the low grades in exchange for more time alone with him.

Mark looks over his shoulder. “Who cares about school when there’s D&D to be played. Quinn, are you ready for the epicness you’re about to experience?”

“Um, I guess?”

“You guess.” Sanjiv snorts. “Be grateful you’re allowed to witness us firsthand.”

Mark cracks a smile. “Most mortals never get the chance.”

That’s enough to set my nerves ablaze again. Before meeting this group, I felt pretty confident about my D&D knowledge, but now I sense that I’m the newest of newbies. It’s too late, though. I’m already down the stairs, so there’s no turning back.