The Pyramid Finally Crumbled

Maya stared at the seating chart in the cafeteria, that invisible social pyramid everyone pretended didn't exist but followed religiously. At the top: the varsity jacket crew. At the bottom: the theater kids, the band geeks, and her — the new girl who'd already managed to trip in AP Bio on her first day.

"You're bearing this way too hard," said Jasper, sliding onto the bench across from her. He was wearing a shirt that said 'Professional Cat Herder' and had somehow made friends with everyone from the debate team to the stoners behind the gym.

"I'm not bearing anything," Maya lied, adjusting her glasses.

"You're literally bearing a burden so heavy I can see it from across the room," Jasper said, stealing a tater tot from her tray. "Look, the pyramid's not real. It's just anxiety with better marketing."

Maya snorted. "Easy for you to say. You're everywhere. You're like — " she searched for the right word " — socially ubiquitous."

Jasper shrugged. "I just stopped caring what people think. It's literally that simple. Also, I went viral last year when my cat filmed a TikTok of me falling off a hoverboard."

"Your cat filmed you?"

"Long story. Point is, nobody actually cares. They're all too busy worrying about their own pyramid position."

Maya looked over at the popular table where Tyler, the quarterback, was laughing so hard at something that he'd accidentally knocked over someone's chocolate milk. Not exactly the stuff of legends.

"You know what," Maya said, feeling something shift in her chest, "I think I'm done climbing."

"Good. Because the view's better from down here anyway." He gestured at their table, where the debate captain was passionately arguing about climate policy while simultaneously trying to open a juice box, and two freshman were having a heated discussion about whether hot dogs were sandwiches.

"So," Maya said, finally smiling, "what's your cat's handle? I need to see this hoverboard video."

"Oh, it's deleted. Too cringe, even for me."

"But you just said — "

"I know what I said. Some pyramids deserve to crumble."