"Is everyone here?"
Fry was standing at the front, arms crossed over his chest, his eyes moving from face to face as he silently confirmed the attendance. Before he could finish his mental count, Chris broke the silence,
leaning slightly toward him.
"Rion hasn't arrived yet."
Fry didn't respond immediately. He pulled out his watch, glanced at it for a few brief seconds, then lifted his head and said in a calm but decisive tone:
"We'll wait five minutes. If he doesn't come, we move without him."
No one objected…
A few moments passed. As everyone's gaze drifted instinctively toward the teleportation gate, someone noticed movement in the distance. A figure approaching quickly, holding a small box, clearly trying not to draw attention… and failing.
It was me.
When I reached the meeting point, I stopped in front of the teleportation gate, taking a deep breath as I tried to calm myself.
Fry turned to me immediately, as if he had been waiting for me.
"What delayed you?"
I scratched the back of my head awkwardly and said, "Sorry… I was baking cupcakes for you."
A short silence followed—long enough. Almost everyone's expressions changed at the same moment, their neutral looks turning into open surprise. Fry spoke with unconcealed astonishment:
"Cupcakes?"
I nodded. "Yes."
I slowly opened the box and said, "I thought it might be… something nice before the mission."
No one replied right away. Their looks alone were enough to show their surprise, so I didn't wait any longer. I closed the box slightly and took a step forward, heading toward Lina.
I stopped in front of her for a moment, hesitant, then said in a quieter voice than usual: "I'm sorry about what happened last time."
Lina slowly lifted her gaze to me. There was no anger in her eyes—only something closer to caution. She looked at the box in my hands, then back at me.
"You made them yourself?"
I nodded and held out a piece to her. Her hand hesitated in the air, as if she were deciding whether to take it at all, but in the end, she did.
She stared at the piece for a few seconds, turning it between her fingers without tasting it.
I smiled lightly, trying to break the silence. "There's no poison in it—if that's what you're thinking."
She hesitated again, then brought it closer to her mouth and took a small bite. At first, her expression didn't change… but just two seconds later, her eyes widened slightly without her realizing it.
She lowered the piece slowly and looked at me, then said in a tone she tried to keep casual: "…It's better than I expected."
I raised an eyebrow. "So that means it's bad…?"
She paused, then answered honestly: "No, it's actually really good."
A brief silence followed before she added, looking at the piece in her hand: "Did you really make this yourself?"
I replied with a smile, "Yes."
She looked up at me again, a hint of unhidden surprise in her voice: "That's strange… I didn't imagine you'd be this good."
Lina paused for a moment, then took another bite—smaller this time, almost unconsciously.
I didn't comment. I just gave a short smile and stepped away, continuing to hand out cupcakes to the others. I wasn't sure what kind of reactions I was expecting, but I knew that stopping completely wouldn't do me any good…
Though I did like being praised, so I kept pausing every time, waiting for their comments.
I stopped in front of two people standing together a short distance from the others. A young man with wavy black hair stood relaxed, and beside him was a girl with purple hair tied tightly back, looking less at ease.
They were Zion and Gina.
I handed a piece to each of them without saying a word.
Gina looked at me with clear surprise, then at the piece in my hand, but she didn't reach out. She remained hesitant, as if wondering whether it was appropriate to take it or not.
Zion noticed immediately. He calmly took both pieces and looked up at me with a smile.
"Thank you."
I smiled back and nodded, while Gina turned to him with mild surprise, then finally took the piece from him without saying a word. She didn't comment, but her expression looked less tense than before—and that was enough for me.
Only one person remained.
I walked toward Fry, who was standing a little apart from the others.
I offered him the last piece. He paused, looked at it, then raised his eyes to me. He said nothing, and that brief silence made my heart beat a little faster…
Only one thought echoed insistently in my mind: Take it… just take it.
He finally did. He lifted it calmly and tasted it without commenting right away.
Then he said at last, in a gentle tone, a smile never leaving his face: "It's really good."
I said, clearly embarrassed: "Thank you."
Fry finished his cupcake, then closed the box and handed it back to me...
Then he said kindly, "Well then… since everyone is here, there's no need to wait any longer."
He turned toward the glowing teleportation gate and added with a smile: "Let's go."
Without another word, everyone began moving toward the gate, one after another...