The Thunderman household was buzzing with energy as Phoebe stood in the living room, pacing back and forth with a determined look on her face. She had been rehearsing this speech in her head all day, and now was the moment to finally convince her parents to let her have the ultimate teenage experience—a sleepover.

Hank sat on the recliner, flipping through a newspaper, while Barb bustled around the kitchen, humming to herself. Across the room, Melanie lounged on the couch, scrolling through her phone, only half-listening to Phoebe's pitch.

"Mom, Dad, you know how we moved here, and I was the new kid?" Phoebe began, clasping her hands together as if she were about to present the most important case of her life.

Hank lowered his newspaper slightly. "Mmhmm."

"Well, then I met Cherry, and we became besties, and then I met Ashley, Sarah, and Kelsey."

Barb beamed. "I know, sweetie! I read your blog. Do you see my comments? I'm proudmama."

Phoebe groaned. "And I'm embarrasseddaughter."

Melanie snorted but said nothing, clearly enjoying the exchange.

Phoebe sighed and pushed forward. "Anyway, now that I have friends, the only thing that's missing is a sleepover so I can get closer to my girl crew."

Hank scrunched his nose. "I don't know, honey... about the sleepover or the term 'girl crew.'"

"Come on, Dad! Sleepovers are what normal girls do in Hiddenville! My friends are starting to ask questions."

"Like what?" Hank asked, crossing his arms.

"Like why haven't I had a sleepover yet?" Phoebe threw her arms in the air for dramatic effect.

Hank and Barb exchanged glances. Having non-supes in the house was always risky, but before either of them could protest further, Melanie sat up, finally inserting herself into the conversation.

"Okay, I actually think this is a good idea." She swung her legs off the couch and stood up. "Sleepovers are, like, a teenage rite of passage. You have to have at least one dramatic, slightly chaotic night where someone eats too much candy, someone else gets weird about a crush, and someone ends up sobbing into a pillow over something completely unrelated. That's just how it works."

Hank raised an eyebrow. "That doesn't exactly make me feel better about it."

"It should," Melanie countered. "Because if this sleepover doesn't happen, Phoebe's friends are gonna start thinking she's hiding something. And if they get too curious—" She wiggled her fingers in the air ominously. "Boom. Exposure."

Barb gasped. "Melanie's right! We can't let people start thinking we're weird!"

"Barb, we are weird." Hank gave her a pointed look.

"Yes, but we don't let other people know that."

Barb turned back to Phoebe, sighing in defeat. "Fine, you can have the sleepover. But remember, no superpowers."

"Or glitter!" Hank added firmly.

Melanie snickered. "Still not over Glitter Man, huh?"

Hank shuddered. "You weren't there. First, it's all fun and shiny, and then boom—you're blinded and flying straight into a flagpole."

Melanie patted his arm sympathetically. "Tragic."

Just then, the house alarm blared.

"Alert, alert! Non-supe approaching."

Phoebe rushed to the door, throwing it open just as Cherry bounced in, her usual energy on full display.

"Cherry, guess what? I'm having a sleepover tomorrow!"

Cherry's smile instantly dropped. "Phoebe, guess what? I hate sleepovers!"

Phoebe gasped. "What? Why?"

Cherry crossed her arms dramatically. "Because I'm cursed."

Melanie, intrigued, leaned against the counter. "Ooh, this sounds interesting."

"The last time I had a sleepover, I burned the popcorn."

Melanie blinked. "...That's it?"

Cherry shook her head gravely. "Then a helicopter crashed into our deck. They say it was unrelated, but I know the truth—cuuuurse!"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Okay, but we're all going to be here watching our favorite movie—D Teen Romance."

Cherry hesitated. "The one where Ryan Bronson puckers up and it's like his lips are in your living room?"

Phoebe nodded eagerly.

Cherry's face softened. "...I'm in."

Both girls squealed, jumping up and down excitedly.

Melanie smirked, crossing her arms. "This is already shaping up to be a mess. I love it."

That night, Melanie lay sprawled across her bed, scrolling through her phone with half-lidded eyes. The house was finally quiet, and she was this close to dozing off when—

CREEEAK.

Her door slowly swung open, and a shadow slipped into the room.

Melanie didn't even flinch. "Max, if you're trying to be sneaky, you failed. I heard you breathing like three seconds ago."

Max huffed, shutting the door behind him. "Rude. But whatever, I just came to say..." He plopped onto the end of her bed with a satisfied sigh. "I'm happy."

Melanie raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "Okay? And why do I need to know this?"

"Because, for once, the house is gonna be peaceful. Phoebe's busy with her girl squad, Mom and Dad are all wrapped up in making sure she doesn't expose us, and I—" He stretched his arms behind his head. "—get to enjoy a night of uninterrupted, glorious silence. No chaos. No noise. Just me and my lair."

Melanie sucked in a sharp breath. "Oh... about that."

Max frowned. "About what?"

She sat up, suddenly finding it very difficult to look him in the eye. "Sooo, technically... there might be some slight chaos tonight."

Max narrowed his eyes. "Melanie."

"I may have agreed to have a sleepover with Phoebe and the girls."

Max shot up. "What? No. No way. Absolutely not!"

"Okay, well, it's already happening, so..." Melanie shrugged.

Max groaned dramatically, flopping back onto her bed. "You betrayed me! You're supposed to be my one safe space in this house!"

"Oh, come on, it's one night," Melanie reasoned. "Just ignore them and go do... I dunno, Max things."

"Do you know what happens at girl sleepovers? They shriek. They giggle. They have deep emotional conversations at 2 AM and force each other to talk about their feelings." He shuddered. "It's a nightmare."

Melanie smirked. "What, scared you'll get roped into a face mask?"

Max pointed at her. "That almost happened once, and I am never speaking of it again."

Melanie couldn't help but laugh. "Look, just stay out of the way. They won't even know you're here."

Max shot her a deadpan look. "You do realize Cherry is coming, right? The human embodiment of bad luck? There's a 99% chance something's going to go wrong."

Melanie shrugged. "Eh, I like those odds."

Max groaned again, covering his face with a pillow. "This is my villain origin story."

Phoebe practically bounced on her toes as she hung up the phone, grinning from ear to ear.

"This is going to be epic!" she declared.

Melanie, who had been lounging on the couch scrolling through her phone, glanced up with an intrigued smirk. "Honestly? I think this is a great idea."

Max, who had been eavesdropping from the kitchen, snorted. "Yeah, great—if you love ear-piercing squeals and the scent of ten different perfumes mixing together in an unholy cloud of disaster."

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Oh, please, like you're not going to be lurking around trying to hear our 'boy talk.'"

Max scoffed, crossing his arms. "Yeah, right. Like I care about whatever ridiculous teen romance nonsense you all swoon over."

Melanie grinned. "Oh, come on, Max. Don't act like you won't suddenly have a reason to 'accidentally' walk through the living room every five minutes."

Max glared at her. "I do not lurk."

"Sure you don't," Melanie teased, tossing a pillow at him.

Just then, Hank and Barb walked into the room. Barb was carrying a tray of freshly baked cookies, and Hank had his arms crossed, looking wary.

"Okay, I just want to reiterate," Hank said, giving Phoebe a serious look. "No superpowers. No flying. No lifting furniture for fun. And absolutely no glitter."

Barb sighed dreamily. "Oh, but glitter is so fun."

Hank shook his head sharply. "No. Glitter Man ruined that for me forever."

Max leaned toward Melanie, whispering. "Here we go. This is the part where Dad monologues about his arch-nemesis."

"Glitter Man," Hank continued, his voice dark. "The cruelest supervillain of all time. It starts as fun and sparkly, and then—BAM!—you're blind and flying straight into a flagpole."

Melanie stifled a laugh. "That's... tragic."

"Oh, it was," Hank said grimly.

Barb patted his arm comfortingly before turning to Phoebe with a bright smile. "Sweetie, as long as you stick to the rules, you can have your sleepover."

Phoebe clapped her hands excitedly. "This is going to be the best night ever!"

Melanie smirked. "Unless, of course, Cherry's curse strikes again."

Max raised an eyebrow. "Wait—curse?"

Phoebe waved dismissively. "Oh, she just had one bad sleepover where she burnt popcorn and then a helicopter crashed into her deck."

Max's eyes widened. "That's... a lot more than just burning popcorn."

Melanie shrugged. "Sounds like she's got main character energy. I say we let the chaos happen."

Hank groaned. "No chaos, please. Just one normal, human sleepover. That's all I ask."

Max smirked. "Yeah, sure, Dad. Totally normal. Nothing weird ever happens in this house."

Melanie grinned. "I, for one, can't wait to see how this plays out."

Max leaned against the kitchen counter, lazily munching on a cookie while Phoebe bounced around, gushing about her upcoming sleepover. He rolled his eyes. "Oh great, a bunch of giggling girls taking over the house. Can't wait," he muttered sarcastically.

Before Phoebe could fire back, Melanie appeared beside him, arms crossed. "Max, listen to me," she said firmly.

Max raised an eyebrow. "What now? Are you about to threaten me with a makeover if I ruin your little slumber party?"

Melanie smirked. "No, but if you mess this up for Phoebe, you're dead."

Max let out a dramatic sigh. "Fine, fine. I promise I won't ruin the sleepover. Happy now?"

Without another word, Melanie grabbed his face, kissed him quickly on the lips, then leaned in with a dangerous glint in her eyes. "Good. Because if you do, you're dead."

Then, with a confident flick of her hair, she walked away, leaving Max frozen in place, wide-eyed. He blinked a few times before looking at Phoebe.

"Did she just—?"

Phoebe smirked. "Yup."

Max touched his lips, a small smirk forming. "Huh. Maybe this sleepover won't be so bad after all."

☆

The living room was a total sleepover paradise—fluffy pillows, endless bowls of snacks, and the unmistakable buzz of three best friends having the time of their lives. Phoebe, Cherry, and Sarah were all sprawled out on the floor, adjusting their oversized -D glasses, while Melanie perched on the couch, munching on a handful of popcorn with zero concern for the mess she was making.

"All right, all right," Phoebe said, clapping her hands. "Glasses on, ladies! It's time for -D Teen Romance!"

Cherry gasped as she adjusted her glasses. "Whoa! These things really work. It's like the chips and dip are right here!" She reached out dramatically, pretending to grab the air.

Sarah followed suit, waving her hands around. "It feels so real!"

"And now we need more snacks," Melanie deadpanned, tossing a piece of popcorn at Cherry's head.

As the girls giggled, Sarah leaned toward Phoebe. "So, is your brother Max gonna watch the movie with us?"

Phoebe snorted. "Nope. In fact, he won't be watching anything."

Just then, Max's voice echoed from the hallway. "Or will I?"

The girls turned to see Max standing in the doorway, wearing his own pair of -D glasses, smirking like he was about to unleash pure chaos.

"-D TV," he announced dramatically. "It's like it's coming right at you."

The girls groaned as Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Max, seriously?"

Cherry clapped her hands together. "Oh, he's such a trickster. What a fun guy!"

"He's not fun, Sarah!" Phoebe snapped, whirling back to her friend. "But this sleepover is!" She grabbed a bottle of glitter and dramatically threw a handful in the air.

Melanie watched the glitter rain down with a raised eyebrow. "Okay, that was unnecessary. But also? Kind of impressive."

As they marveled at their sparkling surroundings, Phoebe suddenly froze. "Wait a second... Where's the TV?"

Cherry gasped. "Oh no! My slumber party curse strikes again! I'm sorry, Phoebe! I should just leave before the helicopter gets here!"

Melanie blinked. "Wait. Helicopter?"

Phoebe groaned, rubbing her temples. "It's not a curse, Cherry." She narrowed her eyes. "Max took the TV."

Sarah gasped. "He is a trickster! What a fun guy!"

Melanie just laughed as Phoebe stormed toward the door. "Oh, this is gonna be good."

Melanie watched as Phoebe stomped out of the room, clearly ready to wage war against Max. She shook her head and smirked. "Welp, there she goes."

Cherry was still spiraling. "Oh no, oh no, this is bad. Every time I go to a sleepover, something goes wrong! First, it was the indoor rainstorm at Maggie's, then the bird infestation at Lisa's, and now... this!"

Sarah gasped dramatically. "Wait, does this mean we won't be able to watch -D Teen Romance?"

Melanie quickly stepped in before the situation could spiral any further. "Okay, ladies, let's not panic. We don't need a -D TV to have fun! You know what we do need? Treats."

Cherry tilted her head. "Treats? But we already have snacks."

Melanie waved her hand dismissively. "Yeah, but homemade treats just hit different, you know? We could bake cookies, brownies, or—ooh!—cupcakes! It'll be fun, and by the time we're done, Phoebe will have the TV back, and we'll be drowning in sugar."

Sarah's eyes sparkled. "Ooh, baking! That does sound fun! I've always wanted to try making those fancy swirly cupcakes with the frosting that looks like a rose."

Cherry gasped. "Me too! But every time I bake, something catches on fire, or the batter explodes, or—"

Melanie clapped her hands together. "And that is why I'll be supervising."

Sarah grinned. "Wait, do you even know how to bake?"

Melanie scoffed. "Nope! But how hard can it be?"

Cherry hesitated. "I mean... last time I tried to bake, the oven caught on fire. And the firefighters said I was 'officially on a watch list.'"

Melanie blinked. "Okay... so maybe supervising is a strong word. But look, it's either this or we sit here complaining about Max, and trust me, that's exactly what he wants us to do."

Sarah nodded. "She's got a point. Let's bake!"

Cherry clapped excitedly. "Yes! And maybe this time, I won't set off a city-wide alarm system!"

Melanie blinked again. "You know what? Let's just start with something easy."

The three girls hurried into the kitchen, already laughing as they tied on aprons that were way too big for them. Melanie smirked to herself—she may not have a thundersense, but when it came to distractions, she was a genius.

The room buzzed with laughter as Phoebe tried to salvage her sleepover. Glitter-covered pillows lay scattered across the floor, remnants of their earlier crafts, and the half-broken TV flickered in the background.

"Okay, minor technical difficulties with the TV," Phoebe said, brushing off the glitch. "But we do have more glitter!"

The girls giggled, but Cherry sighed dramatically. "Let's just go to my house and watch the movie there."

Sarah perked up. "Do you have a cute twin brother I can throw myself at?"

Cherry blinked. "Yeah."

Sarah's eyes widened. "Oh... I wasn't expecting that. I'm in."

Phoebe forced a nervous smile as Sarah and another girl reached for their bags. Panic crept in—she couldn't let this be the sleepover where everyone left early!

Phoebe grabbed Cherry's arm. "Help me! I can't be known for having the one sleepover where no one actually slept over!"

Cherry tilted her head in thought. "Yeah, that would be bad. Even after the helicopter crash at my birthday, my friends stayed. We couldn't sleep because of the sirens, but no one suggested leaving."

Phoebe groaned. "Okay, that's a lot to unpack. But what do I do?"

Cherry snapped her fingers. "Ooh! 'Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board' always gets people excited!"

Phoebe gasped. "Levitating! That's perfect!" She spun around, clapping her hands. "Alright, everyone! We're playing Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board!"

Sarah raised an eyebrow. "That never works."

Cherry waved a hand dismissively. "Pfft! My cousin's friend's older sister's boyfriend's neighbor said it worked once."

Sarah sighed, but flopped onto the floor anyway. The girls gathered around, placing two fingers under her.

"Light as a feather, stiff as a board..." they chanted, voices overlapping.

At first, nothing happened. Then, suddenly—Sarah began to rise.

Her eyes widened as she lifted higher and higher. "The power of our friendship is literally lifting me up!" she squealed.

The door swung open. "Sorry to interrupt, but your father needs an energy—"

Melanie froze mid-sentence, eyes darting to Sarah, who was now hovering several feet above the ground.

She blinked. "Oh. Okay. We're just casually defying gravity now?"

Phoebe gulped. "Uh... We were using the power of our friendship to lift Sarah."

Melanie smirked, arms crossed. "Mmm-hmm. And I'm sure Max isn't going to be mad he missed this."

Cherry threw an arm around Phoebe. "See? You saved the sleepover! I told you this would be fun!"

Melanie shrugged. "Yeah, yeah. But good luck topping this next time."

Phoebe sighed, but even she had to admit—it was shaping up to be a pretty unforgettable night.

Just as the girls burst into laughter, marveling at Sarah's unexpected levitation, the door swung open again—this time with more force.

"What in the world is going on in here?!" Barb's voice rang through the room.

Sarah yelped, startled, and immediately dropped back onto the floor with a thud. The other girls scattered, trying to look innocent, but the sight of floating glitter and the faint electric hum still lingering in the air wasn't exactly helping their case.

Phoebe forced a smile. "Oh! Hey, Mom! We were just, um... practicing physics?"

Barb crossed her arms, giving her daughter a knowing look. "Really? Because it looked like someone was levitating in my house."

Cherry raised a hand eagerly. "Technically, we were testing the power of friendship! And guess what? It totally works!"

Melanie snorted, shaking her head. "Yeah, that's definitely gonna fly."

Barb sighed, rubbing her temples. "Alright, girls. Step outside the room. Now."

Phoebe groaned but obeyed, leading the others toward the hallway. As they filed out, Cherry whispered, "Maybe she just wants to congratulate us on our groundbreaking discovery?"

Melanie patted her shoulder. "Yeah, sure. Let's go with