I opened the ssage, my thumb feeling clumsy.
> Nina: how is she?
The question was so direct it felt like a test.
> : she’s ok. i walked her ho. she was pretty shaken up though.
The three little dots appeared instantly.
> Nina: i’m not mad at you.
I read it twice, but it didn’t feel real. She had to be mad.
> : you looked pretty mad.
> Nina: i was but not at you, i was mad at the whole situation and i was scared. i just wanted to help her and i didn’t know what to do.
> Nina: you were right to stop . i would have just made it worse. i was just being emotional.
That didn’t feel right. I was the one who screwed up the explanation.
> : no, you weren’t. i’m the one who’s sorry. i explained it badly. i get why you were angry. i would have been too.
I waited, my breath caught in my throat.
> Nina: you’re a dumbass.
A real smile, the first one I’d had all afternoon, spread across my face. That was her, that was the Nina I knew.
> : is that so.
> Nina: but a good one, i guess. thanks for looking out for her, and for , even when i was being a jerk.
The rest of the weight just vanished from my chest, and I felt like I could actually breathe again. We were okay.
> Nina: so you just skipped class to be a hero? you’re going to get detention.
> : already did. staying after school tomorrow.
I could almost hear her sigh through the phone.
> Nina: you are so much trouble. what am i going to do with you?
> : be my pillar?
> Nina: ugh, fine, but the pillar contract now includes a clause where i get to make fun of you for getting detention. it’s non-negotiable.
I started laughing quietly to myself. She was unbelievable.
> Nina: so what are you drawing? is it another one of your epic swords? or have you moved on to brooding heroes who stare into the distance?
I looked down at the sword on my page, then at the little misshapen bird next to it. She was getting way too good at reading my mind.
> : how do you know i’m drawing?
> Nina: because it’s what you do when your brain is in the clouds.
The bell rang then, a loud, jarring sound that made jump. Free period was over.
I looked up from my phone and across the classroom. Nina was looking right at , a small, soft smile on her face. It was enough, I smiled back and gave her a little nod. We were good.
Thank god, my heart would not have been able to handle it.
A few hours later, the bell rang again, school was over and god, It felt like I aged a decade in the last few hours.
The classroom erupted into the usual end-of-day chaos, the scrape of chairs and the chatter of people suddenly free.
I just sat there for a second. My brain felt like it had been run through a blender, and my ribs were giving a steady, aching protest to the whole day. All I wanted was to go ho and lie down for a week. But first, detention.
I watched the other students stream out of the room, their energy feeling like it was from a different planet. I slowly started packing my bag, each movent sending a dull throb through my side.
"So," a quiet voice said. "Detention, huh? You’re a real delinquent now."
I looked up. Nina was standing by my desk, a small, teasing smile on her face. Most of the other students were gone, and the room was getting quiet.
"Yeah, well," I said, a small smile forming on my own face. "Soone’s got to be the bad boy around here. It’s a tough job, but I’m willing to make the sacrifice."
She laughed, a light sound that made the heavy feeling in my chest lift a little. "Just try not to get into any more trouble without . I’ve got a reputation as a pillar to uphold, you know. Can’t have my dumbass friend getting shivved in the library over a late book."
"I’ll do my best."
She hesitated for a second, her smile softening. "I’ll text you later, okay? To make sure you survived."
"Okay," I said. It was such a simple thing, but it felt like a promise.
She gave my shoulder a light bump, a silent ’you got this,’ then turned and walked out of the classroom, disappearing into the now-empty hallway.
I was just about to pull my book out to actually do so work while I waited for Ms. Lail, when I saw him. Jake was hovering by the classroom door, looking like he was trying to work up the courage to do sothing terrifying, like defuse a bomb.
’Oh, you have got to be kidding ,’ I thought, my brief mont of peace shattering completely. ’Not now.’
He saw looking and took a hesitant step into the room, his eyes wide and full of a desperate, nervous energy.
"Hey, man," he said, his voice a frantic whisper. "Got a minute? We gotta talk about the plan."
I just stared at him. The last thing on earth I wanted to do right now was talk about Operation: Don’t Die Alone. My social battery was not just dead; it had been taken out, shot, and then run over by a truck.
"Jake," I started, trying to sound a lot more patient than I felt. "Now’s not really a good ti. I’ve got detention."
His face fell, his hopeful expression crumpling like a piece of paper. "Oh. Right. Detention." He looked down at his shoes, then back up at . "But I did the howork! I watched the whole Nazca Lines docuntary! I have theories, man. Alien theories."
I put my head in my hands and rubbed my temples. This was my life now.
"That’s great, Jake. But I really can’t right now."
"But what about Phase Two?" he pressed, taking another step closer. "You said we’d talk about it! I need to know the next move. What if I see her tomorrow? What do I say?"
He was starting to spiral, his words coming out faster and faster. I knew that feeling. The panic of not having a plan, of not knowing the right thing to say.
I let out a long, slow breath. I had promised him. And Nina was right, I was his friend now, I guess. Pillars don’t just ditch their dumbass friends, even when those friends are annoying gossips with terrible timing.
"Okay," I said, my voice heavy with resignation. "Fine. Just... give a second."
I glanced toward the teacher’s lounge. Ms. Lail wouldn’t be back for at least a few minutes. We had a window.
"The roof," I said, standing up and grabbing my bag. "Now."
Jake’s eyes lit up. "The roof? Like, for a secret eting? Aweso."
"It’s not aweso," I muttered, limping toward the door. "It’s just the only place we won’t get interrupted."
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