With a shrug, Jon took the pastry from Sarah, and took a bite.
It was delicious.
The graham cracker base and the buttercream frosting cut back the sour bite of the lemon curd, combining to create an explosion in Jon's mouth that mellowed as he chewed.
"This is really good!" Jon said as his eyes shot up his forehead. "Karyn, you should try one."
The newly-blonde tomboy skeptically reached for another piece of the same cake, but found herself practically melting into it as she took a bite. She didn't want to give Sarah the satisfaction of a compliment, but her body language was speaking for her without her consent.
"I knew you two would like that one," Sarah gushed. "Oh, I just love feeding people!"
Jon and Karyn exchanged a glance. They'd never seen this side of Sarah before, but maybe this bake sale, or bake give-away, was just her comfort zone. Maybe she was just so pleased with herself that it overrode her normal posturing and snarkiness.
"Karyn, I don't think I've ever noticed how similar our hair types are," Sarah followed up, coming closer into the girl's personal space than she was normally comfortable with. "Can I give you some advice, just girl-to-girl?"
It wasn't passive-aggressive, it wasn't sarcastic. Sarah was genuinely asking if it was okay to share her knowledge. Karyn took another small bite of cake and nodded her head.
"Once a week, I just take a quarter-cup of coconut oil and coat my hair with it in the shower. Just run my fingers through, make sure it gets over everything, then let it sit there for about ten minutes, and shampoo the heck out of it. You won't believe how shiny your hair looks afterwards."
Karyn mumbled an acknowledgement while trying to chew.
"Promise me you'll at least try it, okay?" Sarah's enthusiasm was infectious.
Karyn swallowed. "Okay, I'll try it, I promise."
Sarah squealed with delight, then moved to continue her way down the hall. "I've got to get to class, see you two later. Enjoy the cake!" She took a few steps before turning around. "And tell me when you've tried the coconut oil thing, I want to see how you turn out!"
And then like a maelstrom she was gone, and Jon and Karyn were just left in her wake, each with a half-eaten piece of cake left in their hands.
