Page 51 of The Baby Dragon Bakery
Lavinia loved what she did—she loved learning and studying and working hard—but sometimes, she was just so tired. She sighed, leaning on her arms, the sleeves of her light sweater soft against her cheek.
She wanted to be done already, to have reached the end, but she knew also that to reach the end without any of the hard work required wouldn’t be as satisfying. So she continued studying until it was time to head home.
She walked across campus. While it was evening by then, the university was bustling. She passed ivy-covered buildings as students and faculty members walked along the pathways, big bags on their shoulders and hot to-go cups in their hands. There were students sitting on benches reading books or eating snacks or just catching a break.
When she entered her home, it was warm, and she heard sizzling coming from the kitchen as dinner was being cooked. The familiar scent helped ease some of her fatigue; what a joy it was to have a comfortable home to return to.
“Pumpkin, is that you?” Garrett called from the kitchen. Lavinia closed the door, kicking off her shoes.
“It’s me!” Lavinia called back. She walked into the house, where Beena stood at the stove in the kitchen, stirring a pot. Garrett was at the counter beside her, chopping up cauliflower.She went over and kissed her parents hello, then went across to the living room, where Alfie was lying down on the carpet with Biter on top of him. He giggled as the little red draggo walked across his stomach, tickling him with her tiny paws.
“Give her to me,” Lavinia said, scooping Biter up off him. She cuddled with Biter, who was getting a little bigger now, pressing her cheek against the baby dragon’s. “I need this.”
Alfie sat up, watching her.
“Being a grown-up is very difficult,” she told her little brother. “I wouldn’t recommend it.”
He gave her a confused look. “You’re a grown-up?”
Honestly, a valid question. “Technically?” she replied. “I am twenty-four.”
Alfie’s eyes widened. “Wow, youareold.”
“Thanks.” Then she lay down on the rug, putting Biter onto her stomach, squealing as Biter’s paws moved.
Alfie lay down six inches away from her. “Biter, jump!” he said, pointing to his stomach. Biter cocked her head. “Come on, jump!” Biter prepared, then hopped across, wings flapping as she landed on Alfie. Lavinia smiled.
It wasn’t all so bad.
After dinner, she had Beena put oil in her hair before going up to her room to study for her anatomy class. It was her hardest class—and the one she was currently doing the worst in. While she ordinarily got As, she was barely making a B in this class at the moment, and most of her final grade hinged upon the massive midterm she had coming up in two weeks.
Taking a deep breath, Lavinia put on a playlist titled “watching the stars on a quiet night” before opening up her notes. After she had done an hour of uninterrupted studying,Lavinia took a break. She rolled off her bed, landing on her feet, then went to her vanity to get her phone.
She realized she should probably call Calahan, since they hadn’t talked today. Embarrassment flushed through her at the fact that she hadn’t thought of him sooner.
When Lavinia picked up her phone, she saw that she had missed a video call from Theo from half an hour ago. She called him back, and he immediately picked up. His face filled the screen and she smiled.
“Hey!” she said, but the word came out funny and she realized she had already put her retainer in for the night. “One sec, let me take this out.”
She put the phone down and dashed to the bathroom, pulling her retainer out and sticking it in her retainer case. Then, she glanced in the mirror. She was wearing a stretched-out T-shirt from middle school and had her oiled hair back in a braid that made her look like a seventeenth-century lord.
She didn’t mind that Theo was seeing her like this; she just thought it was funny. She could be any version of herself with him; she never had to be self-conscious about herself.
“I’m back,” she said, picking up her phone again. She’d been right, Theo was totally unfazed by her appearance. “How was your day?”
“Busy,” he replied. “We got a last-minute order, so I had to stay after to help. Just got back and showered, then I called you.”
His hair was still a little wet, the brown of his locks darker. He was wearing a black hoodie, and he looked tired, but his eyes were bright as he talked with her.
“Ooh, sounds like a lot,” she said, going back to her bed.She kicked her books to the side and got comfortable. “What was this big last-minute order about?”
Theo told her about it, explaining in detail how hectic things were all day, and how each of his coworkers was behaving and reacting. She knew each of them by name—she’d heard Theo talk about them so often—just like Theo knew all her professors by name, and even the names of some of her classmates, particularly the ones who annoyed her or who helped her out.
As Theo gave her the play-by-play, Lavinia listened. Video-calling like this reminded her of when they were undergrads. He had gone to university a few hours away to get away from home, and they would talk on the phone almost every day, giving each other a recap like this. She remembered talking to him while walking between classes, or on her way to grab lunch, or during a coffee break.
“Anyway,” Theo finished. “We figured it out and everything got done, but now my arms are like jelly, we did so much.”
He sighed, looking exhausted, the way he had every time he talked about work lately. Before, he would be tired after a long day, but he would be satisfied and accomplished, too, proud of the work he’d done. Now, he was just tired, and she didn’t think it was just a funk he was in.
