The mystery had barely been solved before Lindsay Pagano slipped neatly into place at Freddy’s side, laughing at everything he said while he walked her through the mechanics of the trap like he was giving a presentation.

Her hand settled on his arm. She leaned in close. Freddy, pink-cheeked and modest, just rubbed the back of his neck.

“Aw, it was mostly the pulley system—”

“And this!” Lindsay said, reaching up to straighten his ascot with careful fingers, smoothing it against his chest like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Freddy blinked, then smiled — but his eyes had already lifted to you across the room, warm and familiar.

“Thanks.” he told her automatically, never breaking that look toward you, like you were the person he actually wanted the approval from.

Velma’s glasses slid all the way down her nose. Daphne’s jaw dropped before she slapped a hand over her mouth. Shaggy choked on absolutely nothing while Scooby’s ears shot straight up.

All of them stared at you like they were bracing for impact.

Freddy took a small step in your direction, still completely unaware of the tension in your posture, his expression softening the closer he got.

“Oh, hey — there you are.” he said, like you were the only thing he’d been trying to find in the first place. “Did you see the net drop? It worked exactly how I planned.”