A/N: Hey there. Adding this here 'cause I had to do a tiny rewrite in chapter four. I forgot to include one specific detail. Just keep in mind that Lillian lent Kohaku a scarf before she and Senku went outside to test out their hypotheses. That's it. Please enjoy! X3

Chapter 6 - The Truth

Kohaku was visibly distraught. One look at her and you could read the fear written all over her face: fear that she was forever doomed to remain on this island for the rest of eternity.

"Hey, now. Why the long face?" Byakuya asked upon seeing how panicked she was getting. "Hiccups are bound to happen in any scientific investigation. So we've hit a roadblock. So what? It's not the end of the world. We just need to find a workaround."

"Heh! For once, the geezer has something useful to say."

"There, you see? Even Senku agrees with me. And that doesn't happen very often," he pointed out, sounding pretty pleased with himself.

"That's right!" Lillian chimed in. "If words ain't cuttin' it, then we should just try somethin' else. What haven't y'all tried yet?"

"Well... we haven't tried any of those other hypo-thingies yet. What were they again?"

"Carrying you off the island was one hypothesis, and giving you a bunch of sentimental items was the other. And since we're already here, let's start with the former. But first, you'll have to turn back into a cat. Although..." Senku paused for a second upon realizing something but thought it best not to be presumptive.

"Although... what?" Kohaku urged him to complete his thought after hearing him express doubt for a brief instant.

"Nothing. Here," he said, pulling his phone out of his pocket and handing it over to her.

She accepted it without question, held it against her chest, and shut her eyes, hoping for the best.

"Now, give it back," he ordered.

After their recent incident on the boat, those words hit harder than Kohaku cared to admit, but she did her best to shrug them off. However, much to her surprise, absolutely nothing had happened as a result of his command. She was still in her human form and left with more questions than answers.

"Tch! It's just as I suspected."

"What? What's wrong?" Lillian was utterly lost.

"It's obvious when you think about it. Man, this is just great," he sneered sarcastically. "And right when we had made so much progress. This is just my luck—shitty as usual."

"Oh, I get it now." Realization dawned on Byakuya.

"Well, I sure as heck don't," Lillian interjected. "Care to explain what's so dang obvious?"

"You see, since vocal commands aren't enough to allow Kohaku to leave the island anymore, then it stands to reason that they wouldn't work to help her change back into a cat either," Byakuya clarified.

"Oh!"

"Yeah, but why?!" Kohaku demanded, growing aggravated by all these setbacks. "It was working just fine an hour ago. Why did it stop all of a sudden? It doesn't make any sense. This is so frustrating!" she griped, stomping over to the nearest dock cleat and kicking it several times.

When that wasn't enough to quell her anger, she intended to kick it even harder but missed and sent one of her platform sandals flying. It shot through the air and went straight for Byakuya's head, nailing him in the left temple.

"Hey, watch it! How is any of this my fault?" he complained, rubbing the side of his head.

"Oops! Sorry," she immediately apologized, hopping over on one foot to retrieve her shoe.

"Nice shot," Lillian said with a grin, giggling under her breath.

"Heh, serves you right, old man. If you ask me, you more than deserve that after the stupid stunt you tried to pull earlier."

"Stunt? Oh geez, Byakuya... Whaddya do this time? Do I even wanna know?"

"No!" everyone else answered at once, both surprising her and piquing her curiosity. But she doubted she'd get any kind of explanation if she asked, so she left it alone.

"And as for you..." Senku added, directing his gaze at Kohaku, "Simmer down, Lioness. It's too early to throw in the towel. Besides, didn't you say that if you try hard enough, you can shape-shift at will? Why don't you try some visualization?"

"Visu-what?" she asked in confusion with a tilt of her head.

"Visualization," he repeated. "It's a cognitive technique where you run mental simulations of a scenario with a specific outcome. Through its application, you should be able to manifest what you perceive through sheer conviction."

Kohaku just gave him a blank stare. "You know, you might think you're explaining yourself, but I can read your mind, and I still don't understand what you're talking about."

"Heh! Nice try, son. But that's no way to describe an unfamiliar concept. You've gotta spell it out in terms that anyone can understand," Byakuya explained upon seeing Kohaku's dazed expression.

"They got a point, Senku. I gotta say, yer explanation is way too complicated. I could barely keep up with it... and I already know what visualization means."

"Don't worry, Kohaku. I'll break it down for you," Byakuya reassured. "Visualization is when you create a mental picture in your mind of something you'd like to achieve. So just imagine yourself as a cat. If you believe it's possible and concentrate really hard on that end result, then you can will it into existence."

"Hah! Now that I understood."

"Wow. Leave it to an experienced teacher to explain things so clearly," Lillian complimented.

"Tch! Don't stroke his ego too much. The geezer just paraphrased what I already said."

"Yeah, but unlike yours, his explanation actually made sense," Kohaku declared.

Senku furrowed his brows at this. For some odd reason, hearing that irked him.

"Okay, so I just imagine myself as a cat, right?" she questioned, shutting her eyes tightly while holding the sides of her head.

"Wait a minute!" she cried, opening her eyes wide. "What do I look like when I'm a cat?"

"You mean you don't know?" Byakuya asked in disbelief with his mouth agape.

"It's a fair question, old man," Senku immediately jumped to her defense. "How many stray cats do you think have access to mirrors?

"Oh, right."

"I know!" Lillian jumped into the conversation. "Ya look like that kitten I found—all cute and fluffy with blonde fur, but bigger."

"And your eyes are blue," Senku added, making the distinction.

"Okay, I got it," Kohaku said with a curt nod, shutting her eyes once more and forming an image in her mind.

"You know, it might even help if you get on all fours," Byakuya joked with a snicker.

"Good idea," she agreed, immediately getting down onto the ground.

"Whaddya go and tell her that for?" Lillian chided. "Kohaku, sweetie, don't listen to him. He's just messin' with you."

"Actually, it might help her get into the right mindset if she sees the world from the same perspective as when she's in cat form," Senku pointed out.

And lo and behold, not a minute later, Kohaku had indeed transformed back into a cat. However, something wasn't quite right about her transformation.

"Oh... my... lord..." Lillian gasped and rubbed her eyes to clear her vision. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"SH-SHE'S GIANT!" shouted Byakuya in astonishment.

"OUCH! What was that for?" he yelped in pain all of a sudden when Lillian pinched his arm.

"Sorry... Just making sure this ain't a dream or nothin'."

"You're supposed to pinch yourself, not the person next to you," he complained, rubbing the patch of sore skin that was now turning slightly red.

"Trust me, I did. I just ain't sure what to believe anymore. She's as big as a... as a..."

"A lion?" Senku offered, completing her thought and chuckling at how appropriate his nickname for her was given her current appearance.

"Yeah!"

"You're right. She managed to shapeshift, but she didn't shrink down at all."

"Well, she did tell me that she's able to change in size," Senku recalled this specific detail from their earlier conversation during the research phase.

"Try again, Lioness. You're in cat form, but it's pointless if you're not small enough for someone to carry you. Use those cats over there as a reference for size," he suggested, pointing to some cats who happened to be nearby.

Kohaku concentrated all her willpower on the image of herself becoming smaller, and that's exactly what happened.

"Perfect," Senku remarked with a contented smirk. "Alright, now jump into my arms."

"Heh! You said that so casually and without any hesitation. I bet you've been dying to tell her that," Byakuya accused with a sly grin, unable to resist a prime opportunity to tease his son for his choice of words.

"Don't start, geezer!" he warned. "This is just for the sake of the experiment."

Just then, Kohaku did as asked and leapt into the air, launching herself within Senku's reach. However, what no one was expecting was for her to jump with such tremendous force that it would be enough to knock Senku off his feet. But that's exactly what happened. The moment he took hold of her, he lost his balance and came crashing to the ground.

"Oof!" he groaned, landing with a resounding thud.

"Senku, are ya alright?" Lillian asked with genuine concern.

"Oh, come on, Senku. I know you're not exactly fit, but this is just embarrassing! Can't you even handle catching a little cat?"

"There's nothing 'little' about her," Senku retorted, in a raspy breath, barely able to lift his head off the ground. The force of the fall had knocked the wind right out of him. And a second later, his head fell limp again.

"Senku!" Lillian knelt down beside him to check up on him.

Likewise, Kohaku did the same, immediately getting off of him and walking up to his face before nuzzling her head against his cheek.

"Don't fall for it, Lillian. He's just trying to cover up the fact that he's so weak and uncoordinated. C'mon Senku, quit being so overdramatic and get up already."

"I don't think he's fakin'. I mean, even if he were a klutz, that jump didn't look strong enough to knock him down like that."

"I'll give you ten billion points for realizing that," Senku said in a shaky voice.

"Senku, can ya tell us what happened just then?" Lillian asked.

"Hell if I know! For some reason, the lioness weighs a ton," Senku responded, finally regaining his composure and propping himself up on his elbows.

"What's that? A ton?" Lillian wondered aloud.

"Heh, don't blame her for your own lack of strength and coordination," Byakuya admonished, insisting that he was simply overexaggerating.

"I'm not making excuses, old man. I'm being ten billion percent serious."

"Oh please. She's a cat! How heavy could she be?"

Out of pure curiosity, Lillian scooted herself closer to Kohaku and tried to raise her into her lap but was quite surprised to discover that she was much heavier than her size would lead you to believe.

"Uh... Byakuya?" Lillian called his attention. "Ya might wanna come and see this for yerself."

"Hmm? See what?"

"Try and pick her up," she urged.

"Ha! I guess it's true what they say. If you wanna get something done, you gotta do it yourself," he declared with an air of arrogance, sauntering over like he was the only capable one among them.

"Alright, then..." he began to say as he took hold of Kohaku. "...upsy dai-."

He took pause when he realized he was unable to lift her even a centimeter off the ground.

"What the?"

"Not so easy, is it, ya geezer?" Senku taunted, content to rub it in his face while finally getting back on his feet.

Now it was Byakuya's turn to be surprised. He tried again, this time exerting a great deal more force than before. It was a challenge for sure, but he was able to carry her successfully.

"Damn! It's like I'm holding fifty kilos," Byakuya claimed. After a few seconds he was unable to support Kohaku's weight for much longer and released his hold on her, letting her drop to the ground.

"You're probably not far off. By the looks of her in human form, I'd say that that's Kohaku's approximate weight."

"Yeah, but why would she weigh so much as a cat? I thought the whole point of her transformin' was so that she'd be lighter."

"I was wondering the same thing. It doesn't make any sense. Back in the woods..." he started to say to himself, thinking back to their initial encounter, and that's when it dawned on him.

When she was sitting on him, it was always in her human form. And when she turned back into her cat form, she was sitting on the ground in the space between his legs. Then, Senku shook his head to clear the mental images of her straddling over him, restraining him in place before his hormones could have a chance to kick in and make his life a living hell again.

"Crap! I royally screwed up," he confessed out of the blue with a facepalm.

"I miscalculated by assuming that her weight being consistent with that of a human was some sort of exception to the known laws of physics. But turns out it's her true weight, and like an amateur, I jumped to the wrong conclusion due to a preconceived notion."

"Some scientist I turned out to be. That was an extremely critical error on my part. And who knows what other oversights I've made due to my own arrogance?"

"Hey now, I don't wanna hear that kinda talk from you," Lillian reproached him with a stern look on her face.

"We all make mistakes from time to time, but beatin' yerself up about it ain't gonna get you anywhere. So I suggest you learn from yer mistakes and keep on pushin' forward. Ya hear?"

Senku couldn't help but be amused by Lillian's reaction. Getting scolded for criticizing himself over his own shortcomings; now that was a first for him. Normally, his father would just make fun of him for his screw-ups. But with the way she was acting, you'd think she was his mother.

"Yes, ma'am," he replied, humoring her.

"Good! So, where's that leave us? Can we still do the experiment?"

"Of course we can!" Byakuya answered without an ounce of hesitation.

"Don't you worry your pretty little head over it, Lillian. It's time to step back and let a real man handle this. You just leave everything in my capable hands," he gloated with all the confidence in the world as he bent over to grab Kohaku once more, hoping to come out of this looking like the hero.

"Oh, great. The old man's gotten full of himself. This can't end well."

Once again, Byakuya exerted a great deal of force to get Kohaku off the ground. And although he had successfully raised her into the air, he had made a huge mistake with his lifting technique. Senku noted this and was about to comment on it, but it was too late.

"AGH!" he howled in pain following a rather loud cracking sound.

After taking just a couple of steps, Byakuya had managed to throw his back out.

"BYAKUYA!" Lillian shouted in alarm.

"D-don't worry, Lillian... I'm doing... just fine," he tried to assure her rather unconvincingly with a wavering tone.

"Don't you lie to me and put on a tough guy act. I can clearly see that yer hurtin'."

"No... really. I can still get the job done." He took another step toward the edge of the dock when his back cracked again.

"Gah!"

"Stubborn geezer. I could've told you that would happen. Just let her go. This experiment isn't worth you ending up in the hospital."

"Not a chance! I didn't give up when it came to the astronaut selection trials, OR when you nearly killed me with that 'training suit from hell'. So I'm not about to give up today, either," he pledged as he continued to trudge forward.

"Almost... there..." he forced out the words through clenched teeth. Then, with the very next step, Byakuya gave one final ear-piercing cry of pain, and it was all over.

...

"Ahh! Easy, Lillian. That thing is scalding," Byakuya whined with a hiss when the hot water bottle made contact with his bare skin as she set it on his lower lumbar region where the pain was most intense.

"Sorry! I'll wrap it for ya."

"Don't apologize to him. He brought this on himself," Senku reminded, joining them in the guestroom where Byakuya lay facedown on a futon on the floor.

"You hear that, old man? You don't get to complain. Just be grateful she's here to babysit you after you willingly put yourself at risk," he stressed with a look of haughty derision. "Then again, I can't be too surprised. You're always butting in where you're not wanted. And you have a tendency to go overboard."

"Hmm, I'm inclined to agree with ya," stated Lillian with a warm smile.

"That's just a rude way of saying that I'm thoughtful and always go the extra mile. So I'll take that as a compliment."

"It wasn't one," Senku asserted with a frown. "You're a pain in the ass, old man. It's about time you accept it."

"Senku!" Lillian's brow furrowed, and she was already gearing up to lecture him about showing his father some respect—especially while he's hurt. But what he said next made her rethink it.

"By the way, heat is the wrong treatment for a back sprain," he pointed out when he spotted the hot water bottle. "The strained muscles will be inflamed after a tear like this. What he needs is to apply cold to the area to bring down the swelling. I suggest using a cold compress."

Lillian's smile returned and spread wider than before. She thought it was so adorable how Senku disguises his true feelings. And in this case, how he used practical advice to hide his concern.

"Oh, really? I hadn't realized. In that case, I'll go and grab some ice," she exclaimed as she rose to her feet and headed downstairs.

"Be right back!" she called over her shoulder as she rushed down the corridor.

Once they were alone, Senku looked at the sorry state his father was in.

"Here. Take these painkillers," he said, handing his father a sheet of pills. You're dead weight if you're bedridden for the rest of this trip."

"And for the record, this is our one and ONLY stop. After this, it's straight back to Tokyo, 'cause you're braindead if you think a whole-ass tour of Japan is still an option."

"Alright," he agreed instantly, which was an obvious warning sign for Senku. Byakuya wouldn't have agreed so readily if he didn't already have something else up his sleeve.

"I won't argue with you. We'll just have to invite Lillian to spend Christmas at our place."

And there it was. Byakuya's new scheme. Luckily it wasn't anything outlandish, and he can enjoy the comfort of his own home. But he couldn't breathe a sigh of relief just yet. He knew his father all too well, and one way or another, he'd find a way to torment him.

"And of course... your new girlfriend should join us too," he said with that all-too-familiar sly grin.

"After that little tryst you two had in the bathroom, I imagine you wouldn't want to be without each other for the holidays. Ah, hah, hah, ha! Must be why you wanna help her so badly."

Getting that thrown in his face again, combined with Byakuya's boisterous laughter, Senku couldn't help that his face turned slightly red. When Byakuya noticed this, he drove the joke home with one final push.

"Just promise that if you take things to the next level, you'll use protection."

When Senku's face grew even redder, his father burst out laughing even harder.

"BAH, HAH, HA! Ooh, ah, oww!" Byakuya laughed so hard he aggravated his back, and Senku took that as an opportunity to change the subject.

"Tch. Look at you. You look pathetic. Making fun of me when you're the one who's whipped. Was getting injured really worth trying to show off for her?"

"What? I wasn't trying to show off for anybody. I did it to help your girlfriend, remember?"

"Cut the crap, geezer! We both know you're full of shit. And to top it off, that pitiful display of strength hasn't gotten you anywhere."

"Hasn't gotten me anywhere, huh? That's what you think? Boy, do you still have a lot to learn."

Senku was taken aback by this. He didn't have the slightest inclination as to what he was implying.

"I'm back," Lillian announced as she entered the room with some ice wrapped in a hand towel.

She knelt beside Byakuya, and Senku watched how she cared for his father and showed such careful consideration toward nursing him back to health. Normally, he'd dismiss her kindness as a trait of her compassionate nature, but he had spent enough time around Taiju and Yuzuriha to pick up on the minute details of their body language to see that there was something else brewing between them.

Suddenly, the thought of Byakuya and Lillian getting together didn't seem so far-fetched. And if he were honest with himself, having Lillian for a stepmother didn't sound half bad. If it wasn't outside the realm of possibility, perhaps he could give things a little shove in that direction.

"Hey, Lillian," he called out to her, making her look up at him. "If the old man starts complaining of pain again, a light massage to the lower back could help stimulate blood flow and alleviate some of the tension."

Before Lillian could utter a single word, Senku turned on his heels and left for the tearoom where Kohaku was waiting for him.

—That little punk. Did he just help me out with Lillian? Guess that means he's learning.— Byakuya thought as he smiled to himself.

.

"How's your father?" Kohaku asked the second that Senku walked into the room.

"Better than you'd think, apparently."

Kohaku wasn't sure what he meant by that, but after reading his mind, it didn't take long for her to connect the dots. Then she smiled when she heard his sentiments toward that potential prospect. However, his musings didn't last long before he turned to her and got his mind back on track.

"So, it looks like you've gotten the hang of transforming at will," he noted, seeing as she was no longer in cat form.

"Yeah! It's so much easier when I picture it in my head. That visual-whatever was a really great idea. How'd you know that would work?" she asked with great intrigue.

He found her fascination with his rationalization skills mildly entertaining and couldn't help but smile in amusement. But once he realized what he was doing, he forced himself to look anywhere but at her.

"Simple inductive reasoning," he answered.

"Hah! And again, I have no idea what you're talking about; not that it matters. All I care about is the end result. And thanks to you, I've made more progress and learned more about myself in one day than I've been able to do on my own in the last one hundred years. You're really incredible, Senku."

Her sudden compliment really took him by surprise. After that, he could no longer resist the urge to look at her, an action he regretted the second his eyes landed on her. Her gleaming eyes and warm smile made the sincerity of what she said all too apparent for him to see. For a second he thought his heartbeat had gotten louder but chose to ignore it.

"What? Never received a compliment before?" she teased when she read in his mind how he scrambled to cover up how flustered he had gotten. "Why so quiet all of a sudden?"

Her playful tone helped him relax, and he finally snapped out of his little trance.

"Save your flattery for when we've accomplished our goal and gotten you off this island. There's still a ton we need to do, so let's get back to work."

"Hah! Now you're talking. So, what's the next step?"

"Well, now that we've conducted our experiments, it's time to move on to step five of the Scientific Method: data analysis."

"We're on step five already? That means there's only one step left until we're done. So we'll have the answer soon, right?" Kohaku inquired excitedly with an expectant grin.

"Well... not exactly."

Kohaku's smile faded at hearing this.

"What do you mean? I thought we were nearing the end."

"Unfortunately, the Scientific Method isn't a list of instructions that you follow. It's a systematic procedure often filled with trial and error. Multiple run-throughs are to be expected."

"What does that mean?"

"It means since our initial experiments failed, we're going over everything we learned from them and making adjustments wherever necessary. So essentially, we're starting back at step one."

"Starting over?" she asked in disbelief. "You mean we have to do everything all over again? And maybe more than once? That'll take us hours!"

"Heh! What's the matter, Lioness? Your freedom not worth the effort?"

"Of course it is. I'd give anything to be free. But aren't you leaving tomorrow? What if we run out of time?"

"Relax. Things will go much faster now that we have a basis to work off of. And I'll admit, I got a little ahead of myself and already started processing all my observations. Now I'll transcribe everything and see what insight I can gather from it," he said as he opened up his notebook and started making notes.

Once Senku had written everything down, he pondered over a few pressing questions that he desperately wanted answers to, writing them down as he went.

—Alright, so questions to consider are, why did Kohaku vanish, and is it a repeatable event? Secondly, why are verbal commands no longer a viable option?— he wondered to himself.

—Another notable detail is the fact that reclaiming my cell phone no longer has any effect on Kohaku's transformations. Why is that? Does that mean it doesn't have any power over her anymore? But Kohaku had said the effects should last for three days, and it hasn't even been a full twenty-four hours yet.— This was quite perplexing.

—Last of all, if my cell phone doesn't impact her transformations anymore, then how was she able to maintain her human form? She needs something important from one of her shrine patrons in order to shape-shift. So what am I missing here?—

Senku mulled over these questions and went back through all his notes to look for anything that might be useful. He paid particularly close attention to the section about offerings and how they contribute to her wide array of abilities.

He thought back to the events of when this all started, which was the moment he unknowingly offered a prayer by "making a wish" to go back home and get that flash drive from his father as soon as possible. But then he realized that he wasn't the only one who offered a prayer. Lillian had as well.

As he continued going down the list, the part about food offerings stood out to him. He remembered how he gave Kohaku a cup of water, one of the most essential things for life. And again, Lillian had given Kohaku her fish. Then there was the big one. The personal item.

Senku had given, or rather, had his cell phone taken. But what about Lillian? He looked over at Kohaku, who was now resting with her face in a puddle of her own drool. She had lain her head on the table and dozed off while Senku was making notes.

He looked at her closely, and the thing that stood out to him was the wine-red scarf wrapped around her neck. The scarf that belonged to Lillian. It was hardly something of sentimental value, but it would still count as an offering. Could that be the answer?

Senku shot to his feet. "Lioness!" he shouted.

She awoke with a start and looked up at him with sleepy eyes.

"Follow me," he instructed as he grabbed her by the hand and started dragging her back to the guestroom.

Suddenly her eyes were wide as saucers as her face flushed a deep red from him holding her hand. They barged into the room without so much as a knock on the door before he finally let go of Kohaku.

"Lillian!" he called out upon entry.

"Senku? What's goin' on? Did ya figure somethin' out?"

"Maybe. But first, a test. How do you feel about Byakuya? Would you ever go on a serious date with him?"

"What?" Lillian asked in shock, her cheeks burning red.

"SENKU! Are you crazy? Don't put her on the spot like that," his father reprimanded.

"I... I..." Lillian looked back and forth between everyone, unable to form a single sentence.

"Don't answer that, Lillian. Senku, targeting Lillian just 'cause I was teasing you earlier, is going too far."

"That's not what I'm doing." Kohaku, what did you hear? Whisper it in her ear."

"Huh?" Byakuya was totally lost at this point.

Kohaku walked over to her and whispered something in Lillian's ear: something that made Lillian's blush intensify tenfold.

"Oh my gosh, this is so embarrassin'!" she exclaimed, burying her face in her hands.

"Judging by your reaction, I take it she guessed correctly. Only it wasn't a guess. You read her mind, didn't you?" He directed the question at Kohaku.

"What?" Lillian and Byakuya asked simultaneously.

"Kohaku, is that true? You can read my mind too?"

"Yes. I've been able to hear your thoughts since you made that prayer at my shrine. You wished me happiness in my next life."

She just gasped in response.

"Now for the real test. Take back your scarf."

"Huh? Why?"

"To prove my theory. It's important. Just do it," he insisted.

"Umm... okay. Kohaku, gimme back my scarf."

Then, everyone watched as Kohaku transformed back into a cat against her will. Senku's expression turned to one of satisfaction at discovering that his theory had indeed been correct.

"Heh! It's just as I predicted. The lioness can be bound to more than one person at a time. And Lillian... it looks like your bond with her is currently stronger than the one she has with me," he said with a smirk.

And yet, on some level, acknowledging that out loud didn't sit too well with him. Where would things go from here, he wondered.

To be continued...

A/N: Finally! Here I am again, with another late update, as per usual. So sorry to keep you waiting. TwT

I was hoping to have the final chapter out by now, but preparing for the holidays made it challenging to find the time to write. So I bring you this lone chapter instead. Oh well, progress is progress.

Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed the story up to this point. Start gearing up for the finale 'cause I've got two more chapters to go. Let's aim for the conclusion before the end of the year. With any luck, I'll be able to meet one of my goals on time.

Stay tuned for another update in the coming days. I'm looking forward to sharing more of this story with you.

For now, thanks for reading! I greatly appreciate it. And as always, catch you in the next one. Happy holidays!