Cristina was still smiling at the doorway like she'd just been invited to a birthday party and not, you know, crashed a top-secret girls' night.
Ana looked at Cloe. Cloe looked at Ana. Then they both looked at Loe with twin expressions of ultimate betrayal:
Big, sparkly, pleading eyes. Tilted heads. Slight pout.
Loe's soul left her body.
"Don't," she said flatly, stepping back like their cuteness was a physical attack.
"Pleaseeeee," Ana begged.
"She already brought a gift bag," Cloe added dramatically, "it would be inhumane to send her away."
Loe crossed her arms and replied telepathically to Cloe, "That's not my problem. I didn't ask for glitter goblins tonight."
Ana slipped her arm around Loe's. "Come on, Loe. She's just a kid. And she might know juicy stuff about Michael…"
Loe raised an eyebrow.
But the puppy eyes returned. Ana and Cloe, both wide-eyed and twinkling like anime characters straight out of a Saturday morning show.
"…Fine," Loe grumbled, rubbing her forehead like she was already regretting it. "But she sleeps on the floor."
"Yay!" Cristina skipped into the house like she owned the place, not surprised by the fact that Loe was talking.
Leon, from behind the flower vase: "Traitors. All of you."
Back upstairs, the chaos only escalated. Cristina was now trying on one of Loe's oversized hoodies while Ana set up a game of "Would You Rather."
"Okay, okay!" Ana grinned. "First question for Loe: Would you rather kiss Michael Hart or eat a spoonful of mustard?"
Cloe gasped. Cristina squealed. Loe deadpanned.
"Poison. I choose poison," Loe said.
"Not an option!" Ana giggled.
Cristina leaned in. "You like him, don't you? That's why you're so mean."
Loe stared at her. "You want to sleep on the roof?"
Cristina gulped.
Later, after a suspiciously intense round of charades, the girls finally collapsed in a heap of pillows and blankets.
Cristina was halfway through braiding Ana's hair when she glanced at Loe, who was curled up at the far end of the room with her back to them.
"You okay, Loe?" Cristina asked softly.
Loe didn't turn around. "I'm fine."
But her voice was too quiet, too clipped.
Ana and Cloe exchanged a look.
Cloe nudged Ana, who shuffled closer to Loe. "You don't have to talk," Ana said gently, "but if you ever want to… we're here."
There was a pause. Then Loe said, "Thanks."
Cristina smiled and tossed a marshmallow at her. "Let us know before you turn all broody again. I almost braided Ana's ear."
Loe huffed a tiny laugh.
Cloe yawned dramatically. "Alright, bedtime. And Cristina, if I find glitter in my sheets again, I'm stuffing your socks with toothpaste."
Cristina gave her a cheeky grin. "No promises."
Later that night, the girls crept downstairs on a mission: Operation Midnight Snack.
Cloe led the charge with a flashlight under her chin like a horror movie villain. "Shh! No talking unless it's in snack-related code."
Ana nodded solemnly. "Choco-chip Alpha requesting marshmallow reinforcements."
Cristina whispered, "I heard there's a secret stash of cookies behind the rice jar. We must retrieve the treasure."
They tiptoed into the kitchen, giggling—only to freeze at the sound of rustling.
A shadow moved by the open fridge. Then a head popped up.
Leon.
He was mid-bite into a sausage roll when he spotted the girls. His eyes went wide as dinner plates.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" he screamed, flinging the sausage at Cristina like it was a weapon. "ROB-BERS! INTRUDERS!"
Loe slapped a hand over his mouth. "Leon! It's just us!"
Too late.
Thudding footsteps echoed down the hall. The lights snapped on.
Their parents appeared in the doorway, half-asleep and alarmed.
Their dad blinked. "...Why is Leon holding a sausage roll like a sword?"
Their mom looked at the four girls frozen in front of the fridge. "And why does it smell like marshmallows and betrayal?"
Leon pointed dramatically. "They ambushed me! In the dark!"
Cloe crossed her arms. "You were stealing snacks."
Leon scoffed. "So were you!"
Their dad sighed, rubbing his temples. "Everyone, back to bed. We'll deal with the snack politics tomorrow."
As they filed back upstairs, Cristina muttered to Ana while hiding a bag of cookies using Loe's jacket, "Totally worth it."
Loe, holding a cookie in her mouth, nodded in agreement before suddenly pausing and looking at Cristina, "Hold up . . . is that my Jacket?".
Cristina looked at Ana before the latter quickly told her to run