--sophie foster--

Dex is helping me apply some kind of fancy Vacker facial cream.

"It kind of burns," I admit.

"I'm sure it's fine," Dex reassures me confidently. He goes back to work and is almost done when Biana opens the door to the spa. She has changed out of her bathing suit and into a tight purple dress with her favorite heart sunglasses and purse.

"Hey, are you guys hungry?" she asks. Dex and I nod.

"Great. I'll knock on Fitz's door to get him. Keefe said he and Tam are still drawing-"

"What else could they possibly be doing, after all?" I interrupt. Dex looks at me quizzically.

Biana glares, but her eyes are crinkled. "I looked into the room. They're actually drawing, Soph."

"I'm confused," Dex says, closing the facial cream. What a turn of events.

Biana clears her throat. "On the other hand, I think Linh and Marella want some time to themselves."

"Are they-"

"Think so. Marella's lipgloss was smudged." Biana nods approvingly. "It was the sparkly kind I gave her. Sparkles make everything better."

"Do you think Linh would agree?" I ask teasingly.

Biana nods, smirking, two strands of hair (that were probably messed up by me, I think with a touch of embarrassment) separated from the rest of her dark tresses looking a lot like devil horns. "Think so." She smoothes them out and her face is flat serious again. "Dex, can you get Fitz?"

Dex climbs out of the spa tub and disappears through the glass door.

"How are you, girlfriend?" Biana teases when Dex's dripping-wet footsteps disappear.

"Pretty good now that you're here, girlfriend," I tease back. I push my hair behind my ears. "Oh, by the way, does my hair look curlier than usual? I used this product Dex found that makes it less flat."

Biana squints. "Not yet. I think you might need to apply some again later if you were just in the water. Your hair is perfect either way, though."

I laugh. "You're too much sometimes."

"What? I told you, I'm a caterer at heart."

"You? Biana Vacker? Caterer?"

"Only to you, maybe." Biana winks and I feel disappointed Dex and Fitz are on their way to us now. My face is still stinging with pain from the facial cream, but I brush it off.

Sure enough, they show up in no time. Dex has borrowed one of Fitz's shirts, and while it's a little too big for him, it would fit much more amusingly a few months ago. Dex is right in the middle of his extremely late growth spurt right now, which he often brings up in arguments. Fitz is wearing a forest green collared shirt that says Happy Saint Patrick's Day and brown pants.

"You look like a tree," Biana says to her brother. Fitz rolls his eyes and we go down to the kitchen. Biana groans when she notices it's completely empty. Gnome-less.

"I forgot about the BLTs!" she says mournfully. "They got off from work just now. They're probably up in the hot tub right now."

"Now how are we going to get our food?" I ask her.

Everyone looks at Fitz. He glares at me and Biana.

"Fine, I'll cook," he mumbles. "I'll make brizzlebread, I guess."

I look at Biana for answers. "Oh, it's this savory dish that tastes like human mac and cheese. I'm allergic to it, though." She glares back at Fitz. Fitz ignores her and takes out a package from the fridge that reads Brizzle Flour.

"Wonderboy, are you really gonna let your sister just starve?" Dex teases as he explores the kitchen, wrinkling his nose at the oven. "I could build a better one."

Fitz cups Dex's face with his oven mitt and kisses Dex on the forehead. "I'm sure you could, Dex. I'm sure you could." Biana looks at me and mimes a gag. I stifle a laugh and wince as the pain on my face sharpens a little.

"And I'm still sitting here, hunger clawing out my insides," Biana mumbles loudly. A bag of cheap pretzels hits her in the face.

"So you won't starve." Fitz's smile is thin and fake, like a Kardashian. I am now picturing Kim K with teal eyes and I don't like the image I am seeing.

I am spaced out, imagining Kourtney with a crisp accent when a savory smell blesses my olfactory cells and my nightmare disappears in the glorious aroma of the dish Fitz is carrying to the counter. Dex gingerly places plates and napkins for us.

"This is delicious," Dex comments through a mouthful of food. "As always, of course." Fitz grins at him.

"Can I have some of yours, Dex?" Biana asks him, empty bag of pretzels laid in front of her. Dex rolls his eyes but scoots his plate of brizzlebread closer to Biana.

"How was the spa?" Fitz asks me and Dex. Dex and I hold up our nails proudly.

Fitz whistles. "Biana wasn't kidding when she said she stocked the yacht with everything we needed."

"Everything was taken care of," Biana boasts. She's listing all the things she brought in her suitcase when she looks at me and her eyes widen in horror. Fitz and Dex exchange alarmed glances.

"Uh, Soph? You good?" Biana says cautiously.

I blink. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

Biana reaches into her purse and takes out a small makeup mirror. I look into it and almost faint.

My face is covered in bright red and white blisters. My skin is cracked like dry mud and one of the blisters below my eye is even bleeding.

"What happened to you?" Fitz exclaims.

I look at Dex and say slowly, "Dex, what was the name of the facial cream you were putting on my face?"

He shrugs. "Some lemon coconut thing. Why?"

We rush back to the spa and Biana grabs the disc of the cream. Her eyes widen again.

"Dex, that stuff you put on your cousin's face? That was pyrokinetic toothpaste. It uses a certain type of pyrokinetic fire to burn bacteria on your teeth. The burn you're experiencing is comparable to a sunburn. A really, really bad one."

We all look at Dex and burst out laughing, him included.

"I am so, so sorry, Sophie," he says between laughs. "I had no idea!"

"Some lemon coconut thing, huh?" Fitz cackles. Dex groans.

"I'll get a washcloth," Biana snickers. She's still laughing as she runs a washcloth under ice water and Dex and Fitz are rolling on the floor by now.

"Dex, when we get this over with, we need to have a talk about skin care products," Fitz teases. Dex glowers at Fitz, but neither he nor his boyfriend stop grinning.

"I think I need a picture," Dex murmurs as Biana places the ice washcloth over my blisters. I glare at him.

Biana shakes her head, but even she can't stop herself from smiling. "Dex, I think it's time for you to go."

"Oopsies," Dex whispers to Fitz as they both leave. I catch a few scolding words from Fitz as they both leave.

"It'll be back to normal in a few hours," Biana says as she presses the cold washcloth harder against my face. Now that Fitz and Dex have left, I am suddenly aware of her legs on top of mine and her fingers grazing my (albeit burned) skin.

"It better be," I mumble. Biana laughs.

"You're still gorgeous. Much more than Dex," she notes. Now it's my turn to laugh.

"And Fitz."

"And Keefe."

"And Tam."

"And whichever man invented that toothpaste."

Our eyes meet. "Ew, boys."

This time, we laugh together.