I flushed so hard my face probably matched Aly’s lipstick. I waved my hand, mouthing,Stop it!But that only made them louder.
I wonder…
I wonder if he would have the same reaction, of course not thesame,but would he react positively?
Would he even see me?
My heart did that stupid, uneven thing it always did when he slipped through my thoughts.
We slipped into our usual spot by the big window in the cafeteria, sunlight spilling over the table, glinting off the girls’ iced coffees.
The air buzzed with low chatter from other students, but our corner felt like its own bubble of noise. Layla was humming, Jennie sketching on her napkin, Aly already reaching across the table with that mischievous grin that always meant trouble.
Before I could even unlock my phone, she plucked it out of my hands. “Password?”
I blinked. “W-what?”
“Password,” she repeated, wiggling her perfectly manicured fingers. “Don’t make me guess. I will guess.”
“It’s… 1-0-0-4,” I muttered, tugging the straw between my teeth.
Layla tilted her head, confused. “Isn’t that like… Miles’s birthday?”
Jennie gasped dramatically. “Oh my God, you’resooooooooointo him,” she said, dragging the so for at least five seconds.
Their eyes snapped toward me, teasing, waiting, and I could already feel the heat creeping up my neck.
“It’s—” I cleared my throat. “It’s not… It’s not because of Miles. Koreans call it Cheonsa, meaning angel.”
For a second, they went still. And then all three of them hummed, nodding together.
Layla spoke first, “Suits you, our little precious angel.”
Jennie nodded afterwards, agreeing. “Very fitting.”
The sound of typing filled the air again. I leaned over, trying to peek, but Aly angled my phone away from me.
“What are you—”
“Making you an Instagram account,” Jennie sang. “You’re too pretty to stay off social media.”
Layla nodded. “Plus, we could send random reels to each other. Insta reels are crazy”
“Depends on the algorithm,” Aly chimed in, “but yes, crazy, especially the shit Jen sends”
Jennie smiled, wiggling her eyebrows, and that made me giggle a bit.
It didn’t take long for Aly to start scrolling through my gallery, and then she froze. “Wait…”
Jennie leaned in. “What?”
Layla peered over her shoulder, and then all three of them gasped as if I’d committed a crime.
Oh, here we go again.
“Aurora Mae Campbell,” Aly said slowly, turning my phone toward me. “There are no selfies. None. Zero. Not even one blurry bathroom mirror picture.”
I shrugged, fiddling with the edge of my sleeve. “I—I don’t take photos of myself.”
