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training.
    She cleared her throat. They all looked so defeated. What would help turn things around a bit?
    "I'd say this calls for a hot chocolate," Kyla said, patting Hailey's arm comfortingly.
    "Screw that. I need a drink," Hailey said, rubbing at her eyes, smudging some of her makeup.
    A light bulb went off in Tessa's head. She still had the Oaxacan chocolate Ani had sent for her birthday, tucked in her purse. "You have a kitchen here?"
    Hailey glanced over at her. "Well, yeah."
    "And tequila?"
    Hailey grinned. "I think I like you."
    "I know how to make hot chocolate with a kick," Tessa said. "Sounds like we could all use it."
    Stacy smiled. "That sounds like just what we need."
    Within half an hour, she had them set up, complete with sprayed whipped cream over the top. Hailey took a sip and her eyes went wide. "Holy shit, this is phenomenal," she said. "What is this stuff?"
    "Oaxaca Chaka Hot Chocolate," she said. "My abuelita  showed me how to make it, strangely enough. The grownups would drink it around the holidays. It should have heavy cream, but this does in a pinch. It's also got Oaxacan chocolate, cinnamon, chili powder, and tequila."
    "This is so yummy," Kyla said, then laughed as she got some whipped cream on the end of her nose.
    "All this, and a Mystics  fan too," Stacy mused, chuckling. "I knew it. You are so one of us!"
    Taking a sip, Tessa felt her chest warm--not just from the tequila.
    "Which reminds me...did you know that they're having the first Mystics Con in Issaquah?" Hailey grinned.
    "Man, wouldn't that be amazing?" Kyla said. "Speaking of yummy...my God, how hot are those guys?"
    From there, the conversation was off and running. As Tessa slowly worked her way through her hot chocolate, she found herself in the middle of the conversation, and to her surprise, enjoying herself. They segued easily from Mystics  to  Mystics  to  Arrow . Somehow, they shifted to anime-- Attack on Titan , Full Metal Alchemist , Bleach . From there, it was an easy jump to comic books, then video games, movies, novels, and back to TV.
    She was shocked to see that an hour and a half had gone by. Now that the ice had finally broken for her, they were as easy to talk to as Ani. She hadn't had that happen in...well, ever.
    "You guys are great," she thought, then realized she'd actually said it out loud.
    "What's your story, anyway?" Hailey said, taking down her elaborate rolled curls and removing her boots.
    "I'm a programmer," Tessa answered. "I make video games.""
    "That's so cool," Kyla said. "I used to play a ton of Warcraft, but I just don't have time like I used to anymore."
    "Also, she got a little obsessive," Stacy teased.
    "I've loved video games forever," Tessa said. "My brothers used to get them when we were kids, then they'd get pissed when I beat them. I was planning out games from the time I was ten. I told my mother that instead of a fancy dress, I wanted to spend the money on a new computer for my quinceañera ." She smiled ruefully. "That didn't go over so well."
    "But here you are," Kyla said warmly. "They must be so proud."
    Tessa took another sip of the hot chocolate. "Not exactly," she said. "They''re proud that I graduated college and got a good job, but they don't understand what that is. They don't know why I'm so far away from family. And they don't know why I'm not settling down and getting married."
    "Why aren't you settling down and getting married?" Hailey asked, with a wicked smile.
    "Because I haven't accomplished what I set out to do," Tessa answered. "I told myself I'd make it as a game architect, somebody who designs the engines, not just some lackey. I'm not there yet. And I'm not just making it in because of quotas----plenty of people accused me of that. They said I got my job was because I was Latina, or because I was female. Well, I'm going to show all of them. I'm one of the best, and I''m going to prove it."
    The girls cheered, surprising her...both that she'd actually spilled out