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It's weird to take the path of the Troll's Lair rather than Lex's office when I'm back to work on Monday

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It's weird to take the path of the Troll's Lair rather than Lex's office when I'm back to work on Monday. My melancholy is brushed aside as soon as I enter the room.

The guys are all here, and upon seeing me, Mason launches himself into Eminem's famous song. "Guess who's back?" They look around, feigning cluelessness. "Back again," Mace continues before pointing at me. "Andy's back! Tell a friend."

"Andy's back," the others tell each other.

It's so corny and adorable that I burst out laughing. "I can't believe you just did that," I say between giggles.

"It's nice to have you with us again," Oliver welcomes me. The others chime in with approval.

"It's nice to be back. I've missed you guys. Working with Lex like that was interesting, but it's not the same."

"Tell me about it. I can't imagine working so close to the boss for so long," Steven says. "I'm feeling anxious just thinking about it."

"Especially our boss. I think he'd fire me after three days. I know how annoying I can be," Brian concurs.

I get what they mean because I felt the same way early on. But it was incredibly helpful for the app's development and led to an interesting turn of events. "He's actually pretty chill," I explain. "We didn't talk much, but seeing the genius in action was great."

Oddly enough, the topic on everyone's lips today isn't the convention. Kelex's eighth anniversary is right around the corner, and everyone's excited about the party. It's a lavish affair every year, where everyone gets to enjoy an evening of fun.

Since neither Lex nor Kev know exactly when to establish Kelex's official birth date, they picked September 23rd a while back. It's a significant day since it matches the one Richard Rhodes invented the audiophone—the very first hearing aid. As it turns out, it's also the anniversary of Nintendo, so it became a thing over time to celebrate dressed up as characters from the company's games.

Because I have a Mario costume I never got to wear, it's perfect. Alas, Oli already called dibs on it, so he slickly proposes I come as Peach instead. But as clever as his suggestion is, it won't fly. Like proper geeks, we settle it in the Arena of Doom during lunch. Playing him like a master puppeteer, I make him pick table soccer as a game and end up crushing it. Poor him, but how could he know we have one at home, and I used to kick Tyler's ass at it?

As a price for his failure, Oli is now supposed to come as Birdo, and we can't wait to see that happen.

When we get back to work, I find myself enjoying the little things my return with the guys provides. At some point, Steven throws a ball of paper to the trash can on the other side of the room with a very confident "Kobe!" and fails miserably. For the next fifteen minutes, we all discard our work and turn the place into a basketball court to determine who can score a hoop from the furthest spot. Mason wins, and when Brian jokes that he has an advantage, being black, Mace insists it is pure, unaltered talent.

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