Eventually, a group of seekers came around the side of the school, calling for the others. Kat heard them find Darius, though she couldn’t say where he had ended up, and a scant time later, there was a group at the bottom of her tree.

“You going to come down, or do we need to call the fire department?” Jonas called.

“Depends. Did I win?” She shouted down.

“Gus is still out there someplace,” Seth reported.

Kat shook her head. “Nope. Can’t come down yet, then. Go off and find him if you’re not talented enough to get up here.”

“I’ll give it a go— “ Seth said, but Darius hopped up into the branches.

Kat followed his spidery silhouette through the branches as he climbed, sending bits of bark tumbling down. Within a minute he was only a few feet below her, even though she’d climbed to a higher perch.

Darius paused and folded his arms over a branch to look up at her, obviously pleased with himself. “Hey there,”

“Hi. You don’t happen to be part spider monkey, do you? You’re a good climber.”

 “Thanks. Give up, or do I need to catch you?”

“You can try,” Kat moved in a flash, did an underbar, and swung down onto a different branch several feet below, then walked it toward the school’s roof.

“Hey—“ Darius cried, dropping onto the branch.

Kat shimmied towards the roof and gathered herself to leap, springing from the branch.

Something snagged her ankle, halting her momentum.

The world swirled into a blur of bricks, sky, and grass. Her breath caught in her throat. She dangled upside down in the air, her hoodie around her ears. As her swinging stopped, she caught a glimpse of everyone’s faces below, looking as startled as she imagined hers did.

She twisted and looked up. Darius crouched on the branch above, one hand gripping her ankle, the other fastened around a knot.

“Tag,” he said triumphantly.

“...G-geez.” Kat finally found the air to speak, though her heart was in her throat. “W-Wow. I take it back.”

“Take what back?” Darius asked, carefully backing up on the branch, bringing her closer to the tree trunk. He braced himself, lifting her slowly.

“What I said about being competitive! D-don’t drop me, please,” she said, finishing in a quiet voice.

“Don’t worry. I won’t let you go,” he assured.

When Kat was close enough, she grabbed a branch and scrambled upright while Darius steadied her with a hand. She smiled tightly, extricated her limbs, and hopped down to the ground. He landed behind her, his expression a hair’s breadth from being a smirk.

“Safe and sound.” He said, and she nodded unsteadily, adrenaline still racing through her veins.

Jonas looked at the two of them with an odd expression. “Looks like you met your match,” he told Kat. “Someone else as insane as you.”

They still had to find Gus, so everyone split up again. Egg went off alone, and Genie and Jonas walked hand in hand, whispering with their heads close together.

“Where do you think he is?” Kat wondered.

“Hm? Gus?” Darius said distractedly, watching the others leave.

“No, Carmen Sandiego.” Kat joked, nudging him in the side with an elbow. “Man, I can’t get over that catch. You freaked me out! I thought I was about to splat into the ground.”

“I think I was more scared than you!” Darius said. “Thanks, though.” He chuckled. “I couldn’t just let you get away. You’re okay, right?” He studied her expression as they walked.

“I’m fine, and no kidding! Sheesh. If we play another round, maybe I don’t want you to be it!” Kat spun around to walk backward while she talked.

“Next round, I’m definitely it,” he promised. “I want to catch you again.”

“A challenge!?” Kat’s eyebrows shot up.

“You really think you can get away from me?” Darius’s eyes narrowed playfully.

“We’ll have to see!” Kat said mischievously, spinning around.

Darius reached for her hand, and she stuffed both into her pockets before she could stop herself.

A flicker of hurt crossed his face, and Kat’s heart sank.

“Sorry. It’s not you, it’s... I’m not... big on holding hands,” she said as gently as possible.

He brushed it off and looked away. “Sure. You don’t have to explain.”

Kat watched his face carefully, then shifted gears.

 “Now. Since we’re slacking off in seeking, spill it. How are you so good at climbing? Maybe you were on the track team or something in high school? Rock climb on the weekends?”

He laughed. “Not really. Never been good with teams. I get too competitive. I’ve been jogging lately, though, and I’ve recently started practicing free running since you mentioned you’re into it.” He explained. “Maybe you could teach me some things?”

“You’re already a good climber.” Kat bounced in place. “I know this cool indoor parkour place. We could go sometime. With your build, I bet you’d be a natural at Kong vaults.” She said excitedly.

“Because I’m built like a monkey?”

“Kong’s an ape, of course!” She wagged a finger. “And yes, you’re built like an ape. All humans are.”

“Right, right. So what’s a Kong vault?”

Kat happily explained while they continued the search for Gus. Ten minutes later, Seth found him hiding inside the school. He’d tucked himself in the vestibule between two glass doors and grinned like a bandit when they found him.

They declared him the winner, but when Jonas insisted that made him ‘it,’ he balked.

“I’m bushed, guys. I’m going to head back to the dorms.” Gus yawned. “I need some real food.”

Seth then declared that he was starving, too, and because he was Egg’s ride, suddenly there were four of them as the others left to visit their favorite taco place by campus.

“What do you guys think? Hang out here, or get some food or something?” Jonas offered, draping his arm across Genie’s shoulders.

“Love to, but I can’t. I have a presentation in the morning,” Genie explained.

“Gotta make sure you’re rested, then,” Jonas gave Genie a special look before turning to Kat and Darius. “That was fun, you guys. We should do it again sometime. You two be careful getting home, yeah? Things have been a little sketchy.”

“I’ll take good care of Kat.” Darius drifted closer to stand at her elbow.

“Good night!” Kat waved at Jonas as he and Genie walked to his beaten-up green car.

Jonas gave Kat one last look. “Alright, then. Night, you two!” He nodded at her and opened the passenger door for Genie, then climbed in himself, wrestling with the engine, then pulled away.

“You have work tomorrow morning,” Darius pointed out, watching the couple leave before he turned his vibrant gaze to her. “Want to head back?”

“I kinda want to stay,” Kat confessed. “Do you actually want to learn some parkour basics? We could try some stunts.”

Darius’s eyes lidded. “I’d love to.”

Kat beamed. “Okay! The first thing you’ve got to know is how to land...”