"Low-ranking but talkative. Got it."
"And dress sharp," Daisy added. "First impressions."
"I'm literally the sharpest guy here."
"You're wearing sneakers with anime laces."
"They're limited edition," Rex defended. "And emotionally significant."(of course, it was a lie, He'd just randomly grabbed whatever old Rex had in his closet. The emotional significance? Zero.)
Sophie cackled. "If we win this project, it'll be because of those emotionally significant shoelaces."
"Don't underestimate footwear energy," Rex said solemnly. "It's very feng shui."
"Moving on," Hannah cut in before the conversation spiraled into shoelace philosophy. "Timeline check. We have fourteen days. Week one is for research, outreach, and contact. Week two—fieldwork, data consolidation, and final presentation prep. We'll meet every other day. No excuses."
Daisy raised a brow. "And if someone forgets their part?"
Everyone turned to Rex like it was a group reflex.
