Page 44 of Hyperspeed
I whispered in his ear, making him jump. “Even if we don’t win, you were still brilliant today.”
He turned those starry eyes on me, and the smile he gave tilted my world off its axis. It was the brightest I’d seen from him all day, and knowing I’d helped bring it out made me proud.
“Okay, let’s hear some results!” The crowd quietened until you could hear a pin drop. “In third place . . . Jax and Valen’s team!”
Cheers and claps filled the campground as the group of six stood up and walked to the podium. They were all given a bronze KFK medal, with an additional toyshop gift card for the kids.
“In second place . . . Zylo and Cass’s team!”
Zylo gave a mighty cheer, and the kids dog-piled him. Then they scrambled to the podium, red-faced and laughing, to receive their prize. Zylo, being the legend he was, beamed at his teammates and shook their hands, congratulating them for their hard work.
But there was still one award to be announced.
“Here’s the one we’ve all been waiting for. In first place . . .” The campgrounds were silent, and the kids held their breath. So did I. So did Kai. “Despite a mighty tumble, it’s Kai and Rev’s team!”
Our team screamed with joy, Kai louder than all the kids combined. My ears rang as they jumped to their feet, tugging Korvi and me up with them. Kai pulled us into a group hug, and seeing them all so ecstatic, I couldn’t find it in me to complain.
Our gazes met over their heads. “Told you we’d win,” he mouthed with a smug glint in his eyes.
I rolled my eyes, half-heartedly at best, but a smile snuck through anyway.
When I glanced at the kids, I spotted Korvi’s tail whipping with excitement, the lines on his skin flaring in every colour of the rainbow, like a living fireworks display. The sight warmed my chest. Iskari adults rarely lit up like that; they’d long since learned to temper their emotions.
But for a child? It meant pure, unfiltered joy.
When the event was over, and the kids had been collected by their parents, Kai and I looked for Elyn. She was putting away the rings from the laser toss when we cornered her.
“Thanks for a great day with the kids, Elyn,” Kai said, ever the charmer.
“No problem!” She beamed at him. “You two were great. I’ve never seen Korvi so comfortable with the other kids.” Elyn looked pointedly at me, and I couldn’t help the way my skin flickered bright orange.
“He just needed a little encouragement, you know?” I shrugged as if it were nothing. “To feel like he belonged.”
She nodded. “Well, I’m glad he got that from you. And from his new friends.”
“He’s a great kid,” I mumbled, not sure what else to say.
For once, I was grateful when Kai stepped in, commandeering the conversation. “Actually, Elyn, we had a quick question.”
“What’s up?”
“Well, we were just wondering if you’d recorded our individual scores?”
Elyn frowned in confusion. The day was about teamwork, so why would we want to know our individual scores?
But Kai barrelled on. “We were curious to know how we did. I mean, we spend a lot of time working on our own, so we’re used to hearing our individual scores, you know?”
He was rambling, but it seemed to appease Elyn, because she grabbed the clipboard from a nearby shelf. “Yes, of course! Just give me one . . .” She flipped through the pages. “Ah, here we go! Huh.”
“Is everything alright?” I asked, concerned.
“Sorry,” she chuckled. “I was just shocked.”
“Why’s that?” Kai’s smile faltered, just a smidge.
Were we thinking the same thing? Were our scores wrong? Maybe one of us lost remarkably compared to the other, and she didn’t know how to tell us.
“More surprised. Your scores were identical.” She looked up at us with a smile, but we just stared in return.
