OUR LONG GAME | josh matthews

senior projects

that afternoon, sophie sat in her living room, staring at a blank sheet of paper. nothing was coming to her. she was supposed to be brainstorming ideas for her senior project, but her mind was as empty as the page. it didn't help that her whole family was hanging out, eating chinese takeout and chatting loudly in the background.

they'd just got back from a cruise, too, so that wasn't helping with the focus. first day was wild: luke "caught" some girl, and zuri was convinced she was a mermaid. second day? italian island, jessie's necklace turned cursed, luke and ravi too busy impressing girls to notice anything, and sophie got stalked by a 10-year-old tour guide's little brother. last day? jessie had enough of everyone's bickering and turned the boat around, driving them straight into a storm, almost tossing emma off the side. a real disaster. but they all made it home safe... eventually. and now sophie was stuck catching up on the schoolwork she'd missed.

"my fortune says, you will be blessed with many children," jessie read aloud, glancing around at the family with a raised eyebrow. "i don't know about blessed."

"mine says i've got a large sum of money coming my way. did something happen to grandma?" luke asked, hopeful, leaning forward.

"try to sound just a tad bit concerned," sophie muttered without looking up from her paper.

"ooh, i'm going to be on a magazine cover!" emma squealed, her excitement cutting through the room.

"that's your fortune?" zuri asked, skeptical.

"no, i just got an email. oh, sophie, check your email," emma added, already pulling out her phone.

sophie sighed, setting her notebook aside, and unlocked her phone.

"what's it say?" ravi asked, leaning in.

"i'll be modeling for a brand and... oh, looks like i'm dancing for austin moon for his new york shows," sophie said, her tone both excited and relieved.

the group cheered, especially jessie, who couldn't hide her excitement.

"that's amazing, honey," jessie praised.

before sophie could text austin, bertram walked into the room, holding the foam head his toupee used to sit on. "ok. who stole my hair?"

"father time?" "mother nature?" ravi and sophie said in unison, not looking up from their phones.

"no, i mean my toupee. i already lost my hair once! i can't lose it again!" bertram grumbled, sitting on the couch.

"can't you just get a new one? something more brad pitt, less armpit?" zuri suggested, standing up.

"no, it was custom made. my concert's in a few hours, and 'the hair' can't be the only guy in the band without hair!" bertram said, pacing.

"don't worry, bertram. i'll help you find it," jessie said, standing up. "it'll be perfect practice for my audition. i'm up for the role of detective phyllis marlowe in a film noir tv commercial."

"we know, we've been making you watch all those 1940s mystery movies," luke said, rolling his eyes.

"the mystery is how we stayed awake," zuri added with a laugh.