"I don't need everything. Only my name and the order number."
Bria's expression tightened. "You're beginning to test my patience."
Zire folded the confirmation without tearing it. He watched Lenora's phone move above the tray again and noticed a white label partly concealed beneath a napkin. A corner remained exposed, with the same gold border as the premium cards he remembered from Harlon's examples. Bria had placed the napkin there before giving Lenora the food. At least, that was what Zire thought he had seen, and he knew the difference between what he suspected and what he could prove.
"Please don't cover the label," he said.
Lenora raised her fork. "I was told this was for me. Are you really going to argue about somebody else's breakfast?"
"It's not breakfast. It's the meal I ordered for the flight."
"Well, I haven't done anything wrong. The crew offered me hospitality, and I accepted."
Zire looked at Bria. "Then it should be easy to check."
Bria stepped into the aisle between them. "This conversation is over. One more complaint and I will have to report your behavior to the senior crew member."
The threat frightened him more than the missing meal. His mother had explained that supervised travelers were expected to follow instructions, and Zire had no desire to become the reason the airline called Evelyn back to the airport. He imagined her standing behind the terminal glass, thinking something terrible had happened. His stomach tightened, but he kept his voice steady.
"Okay," he said. "Then please let the senior crew member check."
Bria stared at him for a moment as though he had answered a question she had never expected a child to ask. Across the aisle, Lenora lowered her fork and turned her phone face down. What had begun as a complimentary dining photograph was turning into a problem neither woman seemed ready to solve.
The front galley curtain shifted. A broad-shouldered man in a senior crew uniform stepped into view, carrying a slim tablet and the weary concentration of someone responsible for hundreds of details at once. His name badge read MERRICK DUNE. He took one look at Bria's posture, Lenora's interrupted photograph, and Zire's careful grip on his confirmation, and asked what had happened.
"A canceled pre-order has caused some confusion," Bria said immediately. "I've offered a replacement snack, but the passenger keeps interrupting service."
Zire looked at Merrick rather than Bria. "My name is Zire Penn, seat 2A. My meal is paid for, my order number ends in 7KP4, and I think the tray at seat 2C belongs to me. I only want someone to compare the code."
Merrick turned to Bria. "Did we have a cancellation?"