Page 41 of Cosplay & Consequences

“Moment’s over.” Paige pulled out of my grip, but only took a few steps before turning back to face me. “Are you sure?”

I beamed at her. “It’s fantastic! You can’t pass this up. Besides, we’ll see each other all the time.”

Paige’s gaze dropped to the floor.

“What?”

Paige said nothing, and I realized there had to be more to the story. Once again, Faye broke the silence.

“It’s in Toronto.”

My heart sank. Toronto? I tried to keep a smile on my face. “Oh. Well. That’s not too far away.”

Paige rolled her eyes. “It’s in another country and on the opposite side of the continent! You’re thinking of Vancouver!”

I refused to budge on this position. “It’s just a hop on a plane. You’re doing this.”

For the first time in years, I watched my sister burst into tears. And then she willingly hugged me. I put my arms around her and rocked back and forth.

“Don’t get mushy on me,” I whispered to her.

She punched me in the shoulder. But she didn’t put any strength into it this time. “Shut up.”

I eventually made my way back to my room, claiming I needed to keep reading. At least I tried to . I kept going over the same sentence again and again.

I couldn’t stop thinking about Faye and Paige. I had seen Faye every day of her life since she was one year old. And at the end of the season, she would be gone.

Paige was moving on. After thirteen years, she deserved it. I couldn’t deny that, but I had taken it for granted that she would at least be close by.

I closed the book, and my thoughts spiraled. I went after the role of Tyrst’an because of Faye and her love for the series. I thought this would be an experience we would share together. If she wasn’t a part of this, what was I even doing it for?

“Hey.”

Paige stood in the doorway, holding an envelope. “With all the dramatic reveals when you got back, I forgot about this.” She tossed the envelope in my lap.

I opened it and found a ticket to a small theater not far from the convention center for this evening. “What’s this?”

“Tickets to an event tonight. That Brayonna girl reached out to Stella. She thought it would be good for you to spend time out there with the nerds, rubbing elbows,” Paige explained. “It’s a Dungeons and Dragons thing. You should go and stop pretending the whole Toronto thing isn’t messing with your head.”

“That obvious?” I said, exhaling hard.

Paige ran her hands through her hair and grimaced. “I love you, Danny. I-”

She stopped, clenched her fist and knocked it against the door frame. I hadn’t heard her say that to me in years, and I could see how awkward it made her feel.

“I know Paige. I love you too,” I said, enjoying her discomfort. “Sorry, I had to make you say that out loud.”

The tension left her shoulders, and she pulled herself upright. She flipped me off with a smirk before marching away. I returned to my reading.

Jess

The stage at the Raivo Theater had been transformed into a fantasy setting, and as I walked in, I couldn’t help but be excited. Brayonna had assembled her regular players from her Dungeons and Dragons streaming show, Critical Chaos, on stage for a special MVFC adjacent show. She had secured a ticket for me in the front row which was a nice treat. I’ve been a follower and supporter of Bray since the beginning, so a free ticket wasn’t a surprise. However, a surprise awaited me when I got to my seat and saw who sat next to me.

He sat there with a flat expression on his face staring at the stage until he spied me approaching. When he smiled, I had to take a quick breath to steady myself.

I tried but failed to keep my pulse from racing when I saw him there. My face couldn’t hide my delight in seeing him again. He wore the same outfit from earlier in the day, though his mood seemed off. His shoulders were slouched, and he was rubbing his neck.

“Hey,” Daniel said, standing up to greet me. “What are you doing here?”