“You’re welcome.” Xyla Quest shrugged nonchalantly.

By then, waiters had started to serve the dishes. Hence, everyone quieted down and started to eat and drink silently.

Cindy Snyder carefully tugged on Xyla’s sleeve. “Xyla… Can you really get so many autographs at once? It’s not easy to get Josh Batton’s autographs,” she whispered.

“Yes,” Xyla said softly.

Cindy grabbed Xyla’s hand excitedly, “Xyla, even I feel envious of myself. I can’t believe I have a friend like you,” she said.

“Silly girl,” Xyla ruffled Cindy’s hair and chuckled softly.

Cindy laughed along. The way she laughed was as gentle and reserved as she did before.

***

After dinner, Xyla and Stanley Batton walked out of the room together. They were surrounded by everyone else. The group of people went downstairs in batches.

Without a doubt, Xyla and Stanley were among the first batch to head downstairs with Cindy and other female classmates, who were close to Xyla back in school.

When the group arrived at the lob