Friday Night Zombie Protocol

Maya felt like a literal zombie as she dragged herself through the crowded hallway. Three hours of sleep + AP History exam = walking dead status. Her purple streaks hung limp, and her usual confident stride had degraded to a shambling stumble that would make any zombie movie extra proud.

"Yo, May! You alive or what?"

Jordan fell into step beside her, somehow looking annoyingly fresh despite having the same exam. They'd been texting for weeks — situationship vibes, confusing and electric — and Maya still didn't know how to act around him IRL.

"Barely," Maya managed. "My brain is officially mush."

"Cool. So you'll be perfect for gaming night."

Wait, WHAT?

"Gaming night?" she echoed, trying to sound casual while internally screaming.

"Yeah, at my place. The squad's coming over. You should come."

Maya's first instinct: panic. Her second: figure out what to wear. Her third: realize she'd agreed before actually processing.

Fast forward to seven hours later, and Maya stood outside Jordan's door, heart hammering like she was about to face a boss battle. The setup inside was impressive — gaming monitors, RGB everything, and...

"Whoa, your cable management is actually aesthetic," slipped out before she could stop herself. NERD ALERT.

Jordan laughed. "Thanks? Took forever.

The night blurred into rounds of whatever zombie shooter was trending, enough snacks to feed a small army, and Jordan's friends being surprisingly chill. Maya was actually having fun until SHE walked in — Chloe, Jordan's ex, looking effortless in a way that made Maya question every life choice.

Chloe sat next to Jordan, close enough that their shoulders touched. Maya felt her stomach twist, metaphorically and literally. Because somewhere between the Doritos and energy drinks, she'd made the fatal error of eating the spinach artichoke dip.

Spinach. In her braces. The ultimate social crime.

She excused herself to the bathroom, ready to die of embarrassment. Staring at herself in the mirror, green specks mocking her, she heard the door open.

"You good?" Jordan's voice, soft.

"Fine. Just... spinach. Classic me."

He grinned. "I was gonna say something, but I didn't want to make it weird."

"Too late for that."

"Maya?" He leaned against the doorframe. "I invited you tonight. Not her."

The words hit like a vitamin boost to her system — sudden, essential, clarifying.

"Oh."

"Yeah, oh."

They stood there for a moment, the bathroom suddenly feeling intimate, charged. Outside, the zombie shooter continued without them.

"So," Jordan said, "want me to help you with the spinach situation?"

Maya laughed, genuine this time. "Please."

And that's how Maya learned that sometimes the most embarrassing moments become the best stories, zombie mode and all.