I scooped up a forkful of cafeteria mac and cheese, the kind that's more glue than food, and glanced at Nina across the table. She was picking at her salad, her eyes still bright from laughing about Selma and Becky's Mean Girls audition.
My brain kept replaying that moment in class where I'd swooped in to save her from the clique trap. It felt good, but also… maybe too much?
"Was that, uh, okay?" I asked, my fork hovering mid-air. "Me jumping in like that? With Selma and Becky?"
She looked up, her head tilting slightly, a leaf of lettuce dangling from her fork. "Okay? Kofi, it was awesome." Her voice was firm, no trace of her usual teasing. "I was drowning back there. They were trying to rope me into some dumb party I'd rather die than go to. You were my lifeline."
