RACHEL
It's go time.
Cassie's driving her mom's beat-up minivan like we're in the middle of a covert op. Which, I guess, we kind of are. Only this time, instead of sneaking into a Yeerk pool or morphing into predators to chase down Controllers, the mission involves food, balloons, and a cake shaped like a gorilla.
Ax is in the passenger seat in human morph. He insisted on dressing himself this morning, which explains the bubblegum-pink polo that's at least three sizes too big, the swim trunks covered in cartoon sharks, the mismatched socks—one with pizza slices, the other with hot dogs—and the metallic gold Crocs. To top it off, he's wearing a sequined fanny pack slung across his chest like it's tactical gear, and a plastic crown from a particularly memorable visit to Burger King.
Yet, somehow, he's pulling it off with the dead-serious expression of someone about to give a TED Talk on intergalactic war.
I wish I could say this is the weirdest thing I've seen lately. It doesn't even crack the top ten.
He's fiddling with the knobs on the ancient radio like it's a piece of alien tech. Which, to him, I suppose it is. His expression is one of deep, philosophical awe.
"Remarkable. Able. Re-mark-able," he says, twisting the volume dial with reverence. "So many genres. Human music is a vast and bewildering landscape."
Cassie leans over the steering wheel and grins. "Don't break it. That's like the only thing in this van that still works."
I'm in the back seat, buried under decorations, a giant cooler, gift bags, and, of course, the pièce de résistance: the gorilla cake. It's a ridiculous monstrosity with bulging fondant biceps, a charming smile of bright white frosting teeth, and a chocolate-frosted six-pack. Jordan helped me bake it because she's the only person I know who could pull off something like this. She's an artist, I swear. She called it "horrifying but structurally sound."
When she asked why the gorilla, I told her Marco had a deep, lifelong connection to King Kong. She gave me a long look and asked if "King Kong" was a euphemism. I told her to mind her own business.
It's Friday. Marco's birthday. Jake's got him distracted under the pretense of seeing the new zombie movie downtown, while the rest of us are heading to the valley to set up his surprise party.
It feels… good, planning something like this. Something stupid and normal. Something that doesn't involve morphing or dying or watching your friends break in ways you can't fix. Something purely human.
Of course, I'd never admit that out loud. It's enough to feel it.
I glance out the window at the trees blurring by. The light's golden and warm, the kind of soft glow that makes everything feel still, like the world's taking a breath. There's a breeze, and for once, no nagging sense of doom trying to eat my brain.
I almost feel like a regular girl.
Then I remember I'm taking a day off from battling mind-controlling aliens to throw a birthday party. A birthday party next to a spaceship I helped steal, surrounded by friends—most of whom can turn into animals at will. One of them used to be human but now just hangs out as a very sarcastic bird. Oh, and did I mention another friend is an actual alien who's currently freaking out over bad country music and the promise of birthday cake?
I could laugh as all my warm, fuzzy feelings of normalcy vanish.
We pull off onto a narrow dirt road near the valley. The van creaks and groans in protest as we bump over potholes the size of small moons. After a while, Cassie parks in a shaded spot between the trees.
I hop out and stretch, feeling the familiar strain of muscles protesting after being crammed in the van for too long. Then I head into the woods to dig up the alien tech Ax and I hid earlier this morning: a flat platform from the Yeerk ship, roughly the size of a pool table but rounded like a chrome surfboard. With the push of a button, it can hover a foot off the ground with a soft blue glow, completely silent. Ax calls it a "grav-stretcher." I call it magic.
It makes hauling supplies through the forest a whole lot easier. You'd think hiking through the woods with a giant gorilla cake and a cooler full of snacks would feel ridiculous, but honestly? This is just my life now.
We load everything onto the stretcher and start the trek towards the valley.
"Is this all really necessary?" Ax asks as we walk, still fiddling with his fanny pack like he's trying to figure out if it's a weapon or a utility belt. "Why must we surprise him? Would it not be more efficient to simply present the celebration without subterfuge?"
Cassie laughs. "Because humans like surprises. They like effort. It's how we show we care."
"Ah." Ax considers this seriously. "Effort. Care. Noted. No-ted. Ed."
Cassie looks over her shoulder at me and says, with just a hint of mischief, "Some humans go above and beyond when they really, really care."
I narrow my eyes. "Do not start with me."
She holds up her hands. "Just saying. You've basically devoted every waking moment this week to planning this."
"For all of us," I mutter, kicking a rock off the path. "Not just for—"
"Uh-huh."
I throw a roll of steamers at her head.
/
When we finally reach the clearing, Tobias is already there, perched on a low branch near the edge of the Hork-Bajir camp. The free Hork-Bajir are visible in the distance, busy building their nest-like homes. It's quiet here. Peaceful.
[Looks like party prep is in full swing] Tobias says, gliding over to land beside me.
"You're just lucky I didn't make you help carry things."
[Hard pass.] He peers at the cake. [Is that supposed to be Marco as a gorilla?]
I can't help but smirk. "He wishes."
[I mean, it's been a while since I've been in a science class, but I'm pretty sure those biceps are not anatomically possible.]
Cassie snorts as she sets down the cooler. "Don't listen to him, Rachel. It's amazing."
[It's definitely something] Tobias says, but I can hear the affection behind it.
We get to work setting everything up: streamers strung between trees, tablecloths placed over folding tables, balloons tied to tree trunks. The boom box plays a rotation Marco's favorite cheesy pop songs and old-school rock. The gorilla cake is placed dead center on the main table like some absurd deity.
Cassie glances at her watch. "We've got about ten minutes."
After one final look, we crouch under a table as Ax starts practicing his timing again.
"Surprise," he says solemnly. "Surprise. Surrrr-priiiiiise. Surprise!"
"Try not to yell it like you're ambushing him in a dark alley," I whisper.
Ax nods, serious.
Cassie leans in and says lowly, "So… you nervous?"
I blink. "Why would I be nervous?"
She shrugs, all casual. "Because Marco's going to love this. And you clearly want it to be special."
My stomach does a weird little somersault. "It is special. For all of us."
Cassie smiles. "Mm-hmm."
"I hate you," I mutter.
"Love you, too."
We go quiet. The wind rustles the trees. I peek out from under the tablecloth. In the distance, two birds circle down—an osprey and a peregrine falcon. Marco and Jake.
My pulse kicks up. Not because I'm nervous. Just… anticipation. That's all.
They land, and Jake starts demorphing immediately, while Marco follows, looking slightly confused.
His dark hair is messy, falling into his eyes, and he's wearing his morphing clothes—grey joggers and a tight long-sleeve black shirt that clings to his arms and chest. Not that I notice. Barefoot, his feet are dusty from the landing, but at least we've all started keeping a stash of extra shoes and clothes in the ship, so there's that small mercy.
Cassie and I exchange a quick glance, then both leap out from under the table. "Surprise!" we shout in unison.
Ax springs up a beat later only to promptly trip and fall on his face.
"Surpriiiiiiiiiise!" he yells from the ground.
Marco freezes, staring at the decorations, the food, the cake, and then at all of us. His mouth opens slightly, stunned.
Then he smiles. Wide. Genuine. One of my favorite Marco smiles that make the corners of his eyes crinkle.
"No way," he says. "This is… for me?"
"Is there someone else we should be celebrating today?" Jake asks and claps him on the back.
Ax scrambles to his feet and thrusts a party hat at him. "You must wear the festive head cone!"
Before Marco can even react, Cassie is there, gently placing the hat on his head. "It was all Rachel's doing," she adds with a teasing grin, her eyes sparkling with mischief.
Real subtle, Cassie.
Then he turns to me.
His eyes soften as they meet mine. "You did all this?"
"It was a team effort," I say quickly. But my voice is quieter. He's still looking at me.
He smiles, slower this time. "Thanks, Blondie."
Before I can even respond, he pulls me into a hug, his arms wrapping around me with surprising warmth and solidity.
He holds me like he means it, not like it's a joke or a bit.
My heart thumps hard in my chest. I close my eyes for half a second. Just long enough to memorize how he smells. Warmth, outdoors, and something uniquely Marco.
He pulls back after a beat, still smiling, though now it's quieter, more genuine. "This is incredible," he says, his voice thick with something I can't quite place.
I nod, feeling the sudden heat on my cheeks, awkwardness creeping in. "Yeah. Well. You deserve it."
God, I take a couple says off from trying to save the world and it's like my brain is mush. At least that's what I'm telling myself.
He looks like he wants to say more, but before he can, Jake interrupts, breaking the moment with his usual timing.
"Alright, let's eat before Ax devours the cake whole."
We all laugh and dig in. Plates start to pile up, and Ax eagerly tries everything on the table, taking second and third helpings with no shame. Tobias circles above, occasionally dropping sarcastic comments. The Hork-Bajir wander over one by one, curious but shy. Cassie explains birthday parties to them with gentle patience. They listen with wide, fascinated eyes.
I'm trying to focus on the food, but Marco keeps gravitating back toward me. He's sitting across from me now, still cracking jokes with Jake and Ax, but every few moments his eyes flicker my way. It's subtle, but it's there.
I feel something shift in me. I'm not sure what it is, but it's like the air between us has thickened just a little. I try to play it off, laughing along with the group, but every time Marco's gaze meets mine, the world narrows to just us.
After a while, the conversation picks up, and it's easy again. There's noise and laughter, a familiar rhythm to the evening. But for a fleeting moment, I catch Marco looking at me again—only this time, it's not playful. There's a softness in his eyes, something deeper, and it makes my heart skip a beat.
But before I can process it, Ax lets out an exaggerated grunt, his mouth full of cake. "This is the best thing I've ever eaten!" he announces to no one in particular, and just like that, the moment slips away, swallowed up by the familiar chaos of our group.
I don't know what it all means, but for tonight, maybe it doesn't need to mean anything at all.
/
Later, as the sun begins to dip and the clearing glows golden, we start the presents. Cassie gives him old records of his favorite bands—classic stuff, handpicked by Tobias. Jake gets him a skateboard with flames on the underside.
Ax's pile includes a lava lamp, a troll doll, a wind-up lobster, and a mug that says World's Best Coworker. Marco is delighted.
Mine is last.
He opens the small gift box. A sleek digital camera rests inside. Compact, high-res, something I saw him staring at in the mall window ages ago.
His breath catches.
"No way."
He turns it over in his hands like it's fragile. "Rach, this is… perfect."
His voice is quiet. Different.
Then he looks up at me. Really looks. "Thank you."
I don't answer. I can't, not with the warmth crawling up my neck, the heat spreading through my chest that refuses to fade. I just stare at him, trying to hold it together.
From the corner of my eye, I catch Cassie watching us. She's leaning forward, chin resting on her hand, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips that's a little too knowing.
But I don't look away from Marco.
Not this time.