Page 100 of Outdrawn

“Girl?” Mom had sat back down in her car, so it’d taken her a minute to come up the walk. I posed for her photo. It was the least I could do, considering they’d waited so long.

“Happy birthday, my beautiful girl,” she sang before pulling me in for a hug. “You have a new girlfriend?”

“Don’t be weird,” I begged as I ushered her in. “Please, none of you be weird!”

“Weird?” Dad asked. “Who’s that? No one here has that name.”

“Ha ha,” I said deadpan once I’d cleared the stairs.

Sage stood leaning against the back of the couch, looking as cool and calm as ever. I’d been about to spiral into a full panic before locking eyes with her; she smiled at me in her easy way. What was once pompous was now my lifeline. Without even touching me, she made me feel like I wasn’t alone and reminded me it was possible I’d never be alone again.

Liana, with a disapproving frown, studied the clutter tucked into the corners of our apartment. Dad shook Sage’s hand, complimenting her on her grip.

“She’s cute,” Mom whispered.

“Don’t take a picture,” I warned.

“I know how to handle myself around strangers, thank you.” She bumped her shoulder against mine before joining my dad in getting every bit of information out of her.

“We’re not eating here,” Liana announced after eyeing my row of Funko Pops.

“Why not? We’ve brought the food in.” Mom gestured to the bags in Dad’s hand and the plastic container in mine.

“Noah doesn’t have plates…” Liana side-eyed my kitchenette.

“I’ve been a little busy,” I said.

“It’s fine,” Mom said with a look of sympathy. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say she was looking at an injured puppy in the rain.

“Yeah, don’t be so hard on your sister,” Dad chimed in. “Life of an artist is a struggle.”

“Like you’d know,” Liana mumbled with an eye roll.

Agreed, but I couldn’t say so verbally. To side with my sister, even slightly, would be the greatest kind of defeat.

I could feel Sage trying to catch my eye, but I was too embarrassed to look back yet. They’re not even saying anything that bad, but I knew where it’s going, and I didn’t know if I’d be able to stop it.

“Speaking of work, Sage is co-head of the Leisah project. She’s one of the best artists at the company. Her work won a ton of awards, and her fans are pretty rabid—in the good kind of way,” I said, feeling a little lighter at being able to brag about her. Who would have thought bragging about Sage would bring me joy?

“Fascinating,” Liana said as she looked down at her phone, scrolling through places to eat nearby.

“Oh, so you’re an artist, too?” Dad nodded. I can tell by the way he raised a brow that it was a red flag for him. I wanted to launch in full scale to defense, but Sage opened her mouth before I could.

“I am.” She smiled easily as she spoke. “Got lucky.”

“Nothing lucky about the paycheck,” Dad joked with a light chuckle.

Sage’s smile didn’t change, but something in her eyes did. “It’s a pretty good one.”

“How about we not talk about money—” I tried.

“The little comics you draw,” Mom spoke over me. “Are they in stores? Noah always shows us stuff, but it’s only on the Internet.”

My jaw tightened. I dumped the plastic container on the counter and grabbed a glass of water to cool myself down.

It’s not a big deal. It’s her not understanding technology. Do not take it personally.

“We have print runs.” Sage nodded. “Go into any comic bookstore, and you’ll see our work, but digital copies outsell physicals six to one. Having art online is vital for a modern artist, and Noah is really good at keeping up with her community. She’s nothing like me when it comes to that. Her community loves her for who she is outside of work. That’s hard to do when you’re in a sea of content.”

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