Laws of e(Motion)

Eight: #0078E6

Even just seeing the shop's soft lighting from halfway up the final set of stone steps made Emilia feel calmer, relief settling over her shoulders. The bell on the door was never too loud or too harsh, the temperature of the shop was always somehow just right, and unlike some of the other buildings in town, it never smelled strongly no matter how much stock had been brought out of storage. That was one of the biggest reasons Felix's was where she'd chosen to frequent for years now, instead of Rufus McAllister's comic store next door.

The door was unlocked when she entered, and the gentle bell alerted Felix of her arrival. He appeared from the depths of the stockroom at the back of the shop to greet her.

"How's my favourite customer?" He asked as she sat down, dropping her bag at the stool's feet. "You look stressed."

"You know how every year I forget what school's like over summer, and then complain to you that school's the most chaotic place ever?" Emilia explained in the question. "That. There's a new girl and I don't know what to think of her." She didn't want to talk about Poppy's developing friendship with Arielle, and the last thing she wanted was to become like the people she disliked for judging others before knowing a thing about them. Regardless of how uncomfortable she'd felt in Poppy's presence, she didn't really know anything about her.

"Interesting," Felix acknowledged, sensing her hesitance to add anything else, and changing the subject away from her school and social life entirely. "Remind me if I get carried away, I've got a demo in the back somewhere for you. You can have it."

"Really?"

"Yeah, the company went under so it's not like it'll be in production anyway," he shrugged. "I've got no use for it, unless you love it enough to lend it back for a playthrough of course. I'd love to know what you think of it."

"Right, okay," Emilia said in nothing but acknowledgement while she processed not only what Felix had actually said to her, running the words through her head again for a second listen, but also what he meant and how much he actually wanted the game back. She could clarify that later though. "Thank you."

"Not a problem," Felix concluded the conversation before she could refuse out of politeness. Besides, he had more gossip to ask after that he felt was far enough away from anything seriously chaotic. "So, how's mystery boy? Go on, give us an update." She couldn't remember a time when she hadn't confided in Felix, from the girls in her middle school relentlessly harassing her to the fights with her mother that started to get more serious after she turned fifteen, to the endless boy dramas though her mid-teenage years. He'd become a regular viewer of the Emilia show.

"I'm basically besties with him and his friend now." If her laugh hadn't done it, the shift in her language made her nearly-sarcastic, lighthearted tone obvious.

"Interesting, interesting," Felix replied as if he was reacting to an in-depth report on something highly scientific, like a breakthrough in humanity's understanding of the world was about to be made. He always at least looked like he took interest, and it meant the world to Emilia to know someone was listening to her.

"Athletics training started up again today, so Daisy wasn't around over lunch," Emilia continued, mentally preparing herself to recount the events aloud. Maybe hearing it aloud would make her overthink everything all over again and prompt her to avoid the group so much that she requested a few class changes. Or, there was a chance revisiting everything would clarify it in a way that made her feel actually okay.

"And?" Felix interjected. When he interrupted her, it was never out of rudeness, and actually made her vent sessions feel more comfortable.

"And I was invited to join them for lunch instead," she said. "It was easier than I'd expected." Gratitude warmed her as she recalled how friendly the whole group had been towards her. Despite all their differences, the one thing the six of them had in common was how warm they were to other people.