Page 82 of Triplet Babies for my Ex's Best Friend

Bee:Wow

Bee:That was easier than expected

Bee:Are you alright or has stress finally made you agreeable?

I let out another quiet breath that might almost qualify as amusement.

Ethan: Don’t push it

Bee:Fair

Bee:We’ll make a weekend of it

Bee:Actually…

Bee:I could come up early if you need anything

Bee:Haven’t seen the empire in a while

That slows me a little.

Because yes.

Actually, yes.

There are still architecture issues with the demo sequence I’d prefer another mind on, particularly one that remembers the older framework instincts before scale made everything cleaner, safer, and more committee-approved. Jeffrey is excellent in the right contexts, and the current team is strong, but Bee has always seen patterns in systems from angles most people miss. Structural weaknesses. Elegant redundancies. The way code begins to betray its own assumptions under pressure.

And if he’s coming anyway…

I exit the path briefly to the edge of one of the smaller plazas, slowing to a walk.

Ethan: Come sooner

Ethan: There are a few projects I’d like another set of eyes on

The response is instant.

Bee:There he is

Bee:Knew you missed me

Bee:What kind of projects?

Ethan: AI stabilization demo

Ethan: Some architecture revisions I don’t fully trust yet

Ethan: And gala prep, unfortunately

There’s another beat, then:

Bee:Unfortunately?

Bee:You used to love this stuff

That stops me more effectively than the cold air.

Used to.