Michelle fought open the library door with Valerie and Eric’s assistance, Peter had refused to leave his chair. She wasn’t sure how she’d missed it before, but the vending machine shone like a beacon in the red gloaming of the hallway.
She shooed aside a vine that was checking the coin return slot for spare change and punched in for Janice’s root beer. When it asked for money, she swore at it, hard. The machine decided its continued existence might be best served by not arguing and it reluctantly rolled the bottle of soda into the output tray.
Valerie and Eric had followed her down the hall to help carry.
“Is Janice, uh, like you?” Eric selected something orange and sugary.
Michelle did her best to look offended, “Are you asking me to give away the secret of a woman’s age?”
“Um, no. I
