Page 66 of Even Beneath the Stars

Suddenly winning feels like breaking a mirror—seven years of bad luck and a hell of a mess.

"Finn—"

"I hate this game! I HATE THIS STUPID DUMB TOURNAMENT!" He kicks the base of the arcade cabinet, and I grab his shoulder.

"Hey, buddy, that's not how we—"

"YOU'RE MEAN!" He jerks away from me, tears streaming down his face. "I'M NEVER PLAYING WITH YOU AGAIN!"

He bolts across the room and into the seating area through a wide archway, knocking over a chair in his path. We can hear him launch himself onto the couch, then his feet pounding against the wall.

My chest tightens. Every instinct screams at me to go after him, to fix this, to make himhappy.But I catch Maggie's eye across the room, and something in her steady gaze keeps me rooted in place. Like a seatbelt—annoying, but maybe the only thing keeping me from crashing.

"That was rough," I mutter, running a hand through my hair.

"That was necessary," she corrects, but her voice is gentle. "You did the right thing, Xave."

I want to believe her. But Finn's tears and rage-filled screams make my stomach churn. Being the bad guy for the right reasons still feels like crap.

Ten minutes crawl by like molasses. Each of Finn's hiccupping sobs feels like a knife twisting in my gut. I pace between the arcade cabinets, unable to remain still. Not while my baby brother is crying his eyes out just twenty feet away.

It’s not just Finn who needs to learn to lose, apparently—I need to learn how to let him.

Maggie leans against the air hockey table, scrolling through her phone like this is just another Saturday afternoon. And how can she be so calm? I want to shake her; demand we go comfort Finnright now.

But every time I take a step toward the seating area, she shoots me this look. She’s made of patience, and I’m a wildfire trying not to spread. Still, her gaze isn't angry or judgmental—just steady. Patient. Like she knows exactly what I'm thinking and why it's wrong.

The sounds from the couch gradually shift from full-on screaming to sniffling. My hands clench and unclench at my sides.

"Okay, let's go chat with him," Maggie finally says, pocketing her phone.

Thank Christ. I'm already moving when her hand catches my arm, stopping me short.

"Just stay calm, okay?" Her eyes lock with mine, serious but kind. "I know this feels awful right now, but trust me, this is how we help him learn to handle disappointment. Give it time. Seriously. I swear you'll notice the difference."

I swallow hard, fighting back the urge to argue. Maggie’s the kind of calm that feels like a challenge—steady enough to make me second-guess everythingI've been clinging to. And my way hasn't exactly been working out great lately, if I'm being honest with myself.

"Fine," I manage. "But if this screws him up, I'm blaming you."

"Deal." She squeezes my arm once before letting go.

I follow Maggie into the sitting area, my hands shoved in my pockets to keep from reaching for Finn. His sobs have turned into hiccupping sniffles, but his face stays buried in the couch cushions.

Maggie settles cross-legged on the floor near him. "You know what?" Her voice stays light, casual. "I lost too. And I still had a blast."

Finn kicks the wall one more time, but softer.

"Did you have fun tonight?" Maggie asks. "Playing games with Xave and me?"

He lifts his head just enough to peek at us with red-rimmed eyes. "Yeah," he mumbles into the cushion. "But only 'cause I thought I was gonna win."

My chest aches. I open my mouth to tell him we can have a rematch, but Maggie shoots me a look that stops me cold.

"That's silly," she says, turning back to Finn. "You can never be totally sure you'll win anything. So if you only let yourself have fun when you know you'll win…" She shrugs. "Well, then you might never have any fun at all." She pauses. "Do you get what I'm saying?"

Finn's shoulders hunch up to his ears. He sniffs loudly and kicks the wall again, but I can tell he's listening.

"Do you think maybe we can have fun even if we don't win all the time at everything?" Maggie prompts.

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