Neil passed rows of wigs, masks, and an entire shelf of face paint and gaudy makeup. The entire back half of the store was devoted to costumes. The five men spread out between the racks to search. Neil doubted he'd find anything, but he was curious enough to look. He couldn't believe how many options there were, even if some of them bordered on the ridiculous.

"People don't really wear these, do they?" Neil asked after pawing past a cereal box and a giant sponge. Nicky sent him a curious look, so Neil pulled the next one off the rack. It was a milk carton with a cutout for the wearer's face and a bold "Have you seen me?" printed beneath it.

"Oh, that's perfect, Neil," Andrew said. Neil sent him a dirty look. Andrew laughed and held up a mottled costume. "Nicky! Look! A cow. I think you should be this."

"Cow tits," Nicky said, pointing at the rubber udder in disgust. "At least let me be a bull, as in hung like a. Or Matt. Same difference, right? Dan is so lucky."

"I'm going to pretend I don't know you," Aaron said.

"What else is new?" Nicky asked breezily.

"Just hurry up and find something. I don't want to spend all day shopping."

"You have somewhere to be?"

"I've got a paper due Monday."

"Do it tomorrow," Nicky said. "Saturdays are supposed to be lazy."

"That attitude is why your grades are so terrible," Aaron said.

Nicky muttered under his breath as he turned his attention back to the costumes. Kevin pulled something long and dark off the rack closest to him and went up front to look at decorations. Andrew watched to make sure he didn't go far and then went back to his search.

Neil's phone hummed in his pocket, and Neil pulled it out to find a message from Dan: "where u guys at". Neil tapped out the name of the store, and Dan responded almost immediately: "important txt when otw back".

Neil closed his phone but was slow to put it away. Wondering about Dan made him think about last night's game. Neil had an idea, but he could already guess how the others would take it. His chances of winning this argument were slim to none, but Neil had to try. He tucked his phone back in his pocket and looked up. Andrew was pulling costumes off their hangers and dropping them on the floor.

"We should invite the others to come with us," Neil said.

Nicky turned to stare at Neil. "What?"

"No," Aaron said. "We don't go out with them."

"We need them," Neil said, keeping his eyes on Andrew. Andrew hadn't slowed but Neil knew he was listening. "Talent alone won't get us to semifinals. If that was enough, you'd have made it last year. You have to stop breaking this team in half."

"Don't have to anything," Andrew said.