Mind Games

“I haven’t seen it yet.”

“Thank you can wait till you do.”

Lucy paused at the top of the attic stairs. “Revealing the Foxes’ Den.” And pushed open the door.

Thea rolled her eyes when Rem raced right in. But she wasn’t far behind.

And whatever she’d expected, it hadn’t been this.

Half of the big attic was everything bright and new, with the sloping wall on one side painted her blue, the wall on the other Rem’s orange. Each side had a desk built right into it, with shelves on either end.

The floor, all polished up, held a big hooked rug that married those same colors. A couch sat on it with a chair on either side, facing a wall that hadn’t been there before. A blue slipcover for the couch, orange for the chairs. A stack of floor pillows rested in the corner.

Lucy flipped a switch and the ceiling lights sprang on.

The new wall held a flat-screen that faced the couch. Under the screen, the unit Knobby had built held the game console.

Instead of racing forward, Rem turned, threw his arms around Lucy. “Thank you, Grammie. Thank you so much! This is the best ever.”

“Worth the wait?”

“It’s beautiful,” Thea murmured. “It’s so nice. It’s all so nice. You didn’t say about the wall. Where are all your things, Grammie? The things you save up here?”

“Behind that wall, and there’s plenty of room for them. If I want to put something in, take something out, I just open that pocket door Knobby put in. Thea, you can bring up your laptop for the desk if you want. Y’all can do schoolwork up here, if you want. That’s up to you.

“Now, I’m telling you, if you bring food and drink up here, as I expect you will, you’d best bring the dishes down again. That’s a hard and fast rule of the Foxes’ Den. And keeping it clean’s on both of you.”

“Can we try out a game now? You can play, too, Grammie.”

“I appreciate that, Rem, but I have one more surprise before we try this place out. Maddy and Billy Joe are coming over this afternoon. They’ll be staying for supper, and for a sleepover.”

“Dibs on the Foxes’ Den! We’re not sleeping over up here with girls.”

“We’re not sleeping over here with boys. We’ll sleep in a bed while you’re on the couch or the floor. Thanks, Grammie. I really love it. I really do.”

“First chance you get, you thank Knobby. He put a lot of work and time and thought into making this special for you.”

“Because good takes time,” Rem said.

“A fine lesson learned. Now get that PlayStation going, and show me how it’s done.”

* * *

They had Grammie’s pizza and homemade peach ice cream. They held a tournament, and to Rem’s shock and mortification, the girls edged out the boys.

It griped him, and always would, that when it came to Mario Kart, and pretty much every video game, Thea ruled.

“Rematch,” he demanded.

“Maybe tomorrow, and you’ll still lose.”

“Let’s go down to your room, Thea. It’s called retiring from the field as winners.” Maddy did a shoulder bump. “We’re number one.”

“Cowards!”

“Losers.” And with that, Maddy hooked arms with Thea and retired from the field. “Girl,” she added as they walked down, “you’re a genuine joystick wizard.” She waited until they’d reached Thea’s room and closed the door. “Do you use any of that extra special of yours for the game?”

“No.” At least she didn’t think so. “I just like playing. It’s like a story, and you’re the hero.”