They must have been walking for a good two hours. The lights of the town are far behind them. The houses disappeared long ago. Now they are walking through the forest and night is falling. Tom is ... [+]
Summer in New York City felt like a heartbeat — fast, loud, and alive.
The sidewalks shimmered in late July heat, and the air smelled like sugar, salt, and the faint buzz of dreams that never slept. On the corner of Bleecker and Thompson, Surreal Creamery was packed with people escaping the sun, milkshakes stacked with cotton candy and cereal spilling over in pastel towers.
At a booth by the window, Spencer, Levi, Ivy, Maya, Caleb, and Angel sat surrounded by melting ice cream and the kind of laughter that came too easily.
"Who's emotionally unstable this week?" Levi teased, flicking a napkin at Angel.
"Hey!" Angel laughed. "I'm just dramatic, not unstable."
"Same thing," Maya grinned, scooping up another bite of bubblegum ice cream. "Besides, sugar fixes everything. It's science."
Caleb smirked. "Pretty sure that's diabetes, not science."
Spencer had been quiet most of the night, staring into his cup as if the answer to something big was hiding in the melted swirl of vanilla. Finally, he set down his spoon and took a shaky breath.
"Hey... remember when I applied to that program I've been dreaming about forever?"
Levi looked up mid-bite. "Uh, yeah? The big one?"
Spencer nodded, his fingers fidgeting with the napkin in his hand. "They called me this morning," he said softly. "I got in. USC's School of Architecture."
For a moment, the booth went silent — even the noise of the shop seemed to fade. Then—
Maya shrieked, nearly dropping her spoon. "WHAT?! OMG!! You got in?! Spencer!"
Levi jumped to his feet, eyes wide. "Say that again, my boy! Congratulations!" He yanked Spencer into a hug, shaking him by the shoulders.
Angel grinned across the table. "No way! You actually did it!"
Caleb let out a low whistle. "That's huge, man. Seriously."
Spencer laughed, but there was a nervous edge to it. "Thanks, guys. I should be thrilled, but... honestly, I'm scared. It's far. Everything's about to change. Once I say yes, there's no going back."
Ivy reached across the table and squeezed his hand. "You're scared because it matters. That's how you know it's worth it."
Angel nodded. "Yeah. It's supposed to be scary. Leaving's hard, but that doesn't mean you can't do it. You've got this."
Levi smirked. "Bro, you've been designing dreams out of Legos since we were kids. You were literally built for this."
Maya wiped her eyes, laughing softly. "You're gonna make us proud. You already have."
Spencer looked around the table at the friends who'd become family and exhaled a trembling laugh. "Guess I'm really doing it," he said quietly. "No plan B."
Ivy tilted her head and smiled. "All in?"
He nodded. "All in."
The table fell into a warm hush, the kind of silence that didn't need filling. Outside, the city glowed through the window, pink neon from the sign spilling over their faces like watercolor.
Later that night, they wandered down to the pier, shoes in hand, the city's hum fading behind them. The Hudson shimmered under the moonlight, calm and endless.
Maya leaned against the railing. "We're all growing up — it's crazy," she said, voice soft. "One day it's ice cream and bad jokes, and the next... you're out there chasing your dream."
Spencer smiled faintly. "Feels unreal."
"Maybe it's supposed to," Ivy said. "You don't grow when everything feels safe."
Angel looked out at the skyline. "We'll still be here, you know. No matter where you go."
Levi grinned, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Like Stitch says — ‘Ohana means family, and family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten"
Spencer's laugh cracked slightly. "You guys are really the best."
They stayed on the pier for hours, talking, laughing, making promises they all knew they'd keep. When the first subway rumbled awake and the city began to stretch, Spencer hugged each of them tight.
"Go make something beautiful," Ivy whispered.
"Go live," Maya added.
Levi clapped him on the back. "And go all in, my boy."
Spencer boarded the train that morning with his backpack slung over his shoulder, a tiny Stitch keychain swinging from the strap. California was louder, brighter, and bigger than anything he'd ever known, but late at night, sketching blueprints in his dorm, he thought of the pier, the ice cream, and the five friends who believed in him.
Months later, a small package arrived at Surreal Creamery with Spencer's handwriting scrawled across the top. They crowded around their usual booth, tearing it open together. Inside was a photo of a tiny rooftop café model made of Legos. Six little figures sat at a table by the window, laughing under pink neon.
For a moment, no one said a word. Ivy covered her mouth, tears glinting under the same glow that used to spill across their booth. Maya smiled through hers, whispering, "He actually did it."
Levi blinked hard and nodded. "Yeah... he really did."
Levi blinked hard and nodded. "Yeah... he really did."
On the back of the photo, written in Spencer's messy handwriting, were three words:
Still all in.
Still all in.
They passed the photo around, quiet smiles spreading through the group. Outside, the city moved on like always — but for a few seconds, it felt like Spencer was right there with them: laughing, dreaming, and reminding them that no dream was ever too far when your ohana was with you.
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