Green Teeth & White Screens

Maya's phone vibrated against her thigh, the little buzz that controlled her entire social life. Another notification. She was basically a professional spy at this point, obsessively tracking Liam's Instagram stories, his Spotify activity, his vague tweets that definitely weren't about her but she convinced herself they were.

"You're staring again," Jenna said, sliding into the cafeteria seat across from her. "It's getting creepy."

Maya jumped, almost dropping her iPhone. "I'm not staring. I'm strategically observing."

"You're cyberstalking. There's a difference." Jenna pointed at Maya's tray. "Also, you have spinach. Like, a lot of it. In your teeth. Everywhere."

Maya's face burned. She'd been carrying that spinach around through THREE PERIODS. The entire school had seen her looking like a failed photosynthesis experiment. This was it. Her social life was over. She might as well transfer schools. Maybe move to another country.

Then she saw it across the cafeteria: Liam, laughing with his friends, pointing at someone. Her. He was pointing at her green teeth, laughing with that perfect smile that made her forget basic motor functions.

"Total bull, right?" Jenna said, following her gaze. "He's probably making fun of you."

But Liam wasn't laughing. He was walking over. Actually walking over. WITH PURPOSE.

"Hey," he said, sliding into the seat next to Maya.

Her brain short-circuited. "Hey."

"I noticed you had..." He gestured vaguely at his own teeth. "Spinach? In first period?"

"You saw?" Maya wanted to die immediately.

"Yeah. I was gonna tell you but I chickened out." His ears turned pink. "Which is ironic because I literally have spinach in my teeth right now."

Maya started laughing. She couldn't help it. Liam Phillips, the guy whose Instagram stories she'd memorized, had spinach in his teeth. Had HAD spinach in his teeth ALL DAY while everyone treated him like he was perfect.

"We're disasters," she said.

"Professional disasters," he agreed. "Maybe we should form a club."

"The Spinach Squad."

"Please no. Anything but that." He grinned, and yeah, there was definitely spinach stuck in his front teeth. "Maybe next time, we can tell each other? Before we walk around looking like that all day?"

"Deal," Maya said, and for the first time all day, she put her phone face down on the table and didn't pick it up again.