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A large poster board with a detailed map of the catacombs is laid out on the table, half of it covered in black paper.

I study our positions. Our miniatures—Jenn’s painstakingly painted high elf paladin, Ryan’s right-out-of-the-box orc barbarian, Adib’s red Power Ranger figure (he’s a bard, don’t ask), and my chipped dwarf cake topper from Stacey’s Snow White–themed eighth birthday party—are all surrounded by Erica’s hand-sculpted and painted ghoul minis.

They’re amazingly creepy and detailed. I’m really impressed by how Erica’s art style has grown and developed in the last few years, but on the other hand, I’m annoyed that we’ve gotten ourselves in this situation with no clear way out.

Fancy, Erica’s fluffy Himalayan cat, gracefully walks atop the board, soliciting coos from Ryan before settling in Adib’s lap. Erica repositions the pieces Fancy knocked over and continues without missing a beat.

“Are you sure you want to do that with your action?” Erica asks.

I hesitate.

“You seem super distracted,” Adib says. “You okay?”

“I met a cute girl and got her number, but she didn’t text me back,” I mumble.

“I’m sorry, dude,” Ryan says. “That sucks.”

Jenn puts her hand on my shoulder and squeezes. “I bet she was just busy. She was really excited about your date, right?”

“What’d you say the second time again?” Erica cocks her head and gestures for my phone.

She scrolls through my messages and looks at all the texts I sent to the four maybe-Kats.

She throws her head back and laughs at me.

“You didn’t say it was you! She probably thinks it’s just a rando.

” She types quickly and presses a button before I realize what she’s doing.

“Hey!” I glance back at the message she sent, a simple oh this is Brenda from the coffeeshop btw;)

Oh. Why didn’t I think of that? Simple, flirty, cute.

“Thanks,” I say gratefully.

“Of course,” Erica says, tossing her hair over her shoulder proudly. “Just making sure. You’ve got this.”

“Don’t overthink it,” Adib says.

Jenn sways back and forth in excitement. “You’ve got a date!”

“I’ve got a date,” I say breathlessly as my friends cheer.

“Now let’s get back to the game,” Erica says. “Well?”

“I cast Detect Magic,” I repeat.

“All right, do a Perception check for me.”

“Oh no, no no no.” Ryan shakes his head, his brown curls flopping erratically. He even grabs Adib’s shoulder in anticipation, and Adib’s cheeks pink a bit.

Jenn mouths Gay at me, and I snort. The boys’ long-standing crush on each other has been going on since middle school when we got the party together.

Their characters have just started flirting with each other in game, so maybe that will translate to some confessions of feelings in real life at some point.

I roll and get a decent fifteen with my modifier.

Erica’s grin spreads from ear to ear, and her voice drops down low as she jumps into her storytelling cadence. “A prickling aura of dread runs down your spine as you cast your spell. From the three ghouls around you, you detect Mage Armor on all three—”

“Objection,” Adib says. “Ghouls can’t cast—”

Erica gives him a cold look. “I’m not done!”

Jenn elbows Adib and he sighs, gesturing for Erica to continue.

“From just beyond the hall, you detect a surge of power, strangely familiar… something—some one is casting a terrifyingly strong aura—”

“Oh shit, oh shit,” Ryan says, gripping the edge of the table.

Jenn gasps as Erica plonks down another figurine, one we’ve all been dreading: a broad-shouldered man with demonic armor, carrying a half-moon staff and wearing a pendant with the symbol for the god Boccob.

“Lord Stackwell!”

“No, I thought he died in the Battle of New Celiorn!” Ryan groans.

Erica shakes her head and mischief glitters in her eyes.

“He suffered grievous injuries at the hands of your party, but his viciousness and sheer hatred pushed him to survive. Lord Stackwell walks toward you, his deep, throaty laugh echoing in the catacombs, his eyes sunken and his jaw set with the sweet angle of revenge …”

With our nemesis back from the dead, our battle goes from terrible to we’re all gonna die .

“Come on, Brenda! It’s all up to you!” Adib scowls over his character sheet and at his most recent attack roll—a dismal four, which pretty much seals our fate.

Jenn gives him a reproachful look. She got some damage in, but it’s not enough for us to make it out of here just yet. “You can do it. Justice needs you!” Ever the paladin.

I tap my character sheet for Resna, my dwarf wizard.

I assess our situation. Narwhal the orc is unconscious, and Sir Prentiss and our bard, Halfaerd, are both grievously injured.

Erica always has tricks up her sleeve. An impulsive attack could cost us everything if I waste it on something Lord Stackwell might have immunity to, but I have to take the chance.

Plus, I just leveled up. I have new spells at the ready.

Confidence surges through me as I grin. “I cast Lightning Bolt directly at Lord Stackwell!”

Erica gasps dramatically and gestures for me to roll.

I grab my lucky d20, the one I splurged on at Comic-Con last year, a galaxy of gold and blue and green specked with sparkles. I toss it and it lands decisively on the table with a solid sixteen.

Ryan thumps the table in excitement. “Yes, yes, yes!” he shouts.

Erica is busy making notes, shaking her own set of dice in turn. We watch in avid anticipation as Erica rolls for Dexterity on each of the ghouls in the line of fire, and for Lord Stackwell and his numerous modifiers.

She grins. “White-hot lightning zips through the air, lighting the catacombs with a fierce energy as it scorches three ghouls and Lord Stackwell! His lead armor sizzles with heat, and for the first time since the Battle of New Celiorn, you feel like you have a fighting chance against Lord Stackwell and his undead army.”

Adib’s phone buzzes so violently it shakes off his character sheet and onto the catacomb map, jostling over one of the ghouls.

“Ack, sorry, that’s my alarm! I have to get home. Pick this up next week?”

Ryan is already packing up. “That was awesome, Brenda! Er, can you tally up the damage and finish this round so we can start back here next week?”

“Already on it,” Erica says, making final notes. “Great game, everyone! I’ll see you all next week!”

Ryan nods, turning to Adib. “Hey, dude, can I get a ride?”

The excitement of the game is thudding through my veins, and now that it’s done, my anxious mind swirls back to Kat as I check my phone again. Nothing.

I exhale. It’s okay. She likes you, otherwise she wouldn’t have said yes to the date and given you her number. She works in a coffeeshop—of course she’s busy! I’m cute, I’m smart, I’m a great catch.

I tap Resna’s mini and look proudly at the toppled-over ghouls. Yeah. I got this.