" HEY THERE! " sky ward arrives and is bullied into a one-armed hug, coached into a seesaw motion that sways their vision of the street. solana is positively beaming downwards at him, " you're the newbie, right? the transfer? s'your first shift? " she runs her mouth like there is a surplus of questions she could ask, but then the earth beneath them chooses then to ominously rattle.

" ⸺we were looking for the trouble, but it looks like the trouble found US, ey? " she laughs like she'd just told a particularly funny joke and the building next to them groans. she lets him go in favor of walking up to it, placing her palm flat on the miles of glass that climb towards the sky. ON CUE⸺ they all shatter at once and she brings up her arms to shield her eyes from the spray of glass that follows. millions of shards rain down upon the street, thankfully empty, and it clicks what they're dealing with, now.

" oh, hey. " mani perks up when the mug hits the breakroom table, face unfolding from their hands, thumb pausing in massaging precise circles into their temple. the is a growing headache they're starting to learn, but jamie must have noticed too⸺ whatever he brought them smells like peppermint, ginger, and a little bit like lemonade. they thread their fingers through the mug handle and rest their cheek in her their hand, peering up at him with confusion scrunching their nose.