The Pyramid Scheme of Us

My hair looked like a small animal had died on it. Not that it mattered when you're sprinting at full tilt toward the school parking lot.

"Sam! Wait up!"

I kept running. Milo's golden retriever, Buster, had somehow escaped his yard again and was currently chasing me down Pine Street, because that's just my life. The dog had better social skills than half the sophomore class.

"I'm gonna be late for English!" I yelled over my shoulder, dodging a parked minivan.

"You're already late! Just hear me out about the baseball thing!"

Nope. Not doing this. Not today. Not after Jordan decided that making varsity meant upgrading his girlfriend from "weird art girl" to "cheerleader named Kayla."

Here's the thing about high school: it's a pyramid. At the top? The athletes and the popular kids. The base? Everyone else, trying not to get crushed. Jordan had ascended. I was left holding the emotional popcorn at the bottom.

Buster finally cornered me near the baseball field. Of course. The universe loves its little ironies.

Milo caught up, breathless. His normally neat hair was wild. "He didn't mean to—"

"Skip it." I sat on the bleachers, and Buster immediately flopped onto my sneakers. "I'm done. Whatever."

"Jordan's been asking about you."

"Good for Jordan. Tell him Kayla probably wants to go to Applebee's."

Milo sat beside me. "Actually, he quit the team."

I looked at him. "What?"

"Yeah. Turns out baseball isn't his thing. He's trying out for the fall play. Said something about how the whole pyramid is bullshit anyway."

Buster sneezed on my shoe.

"Wait," I said. "He quit? For theater?"

"Apparently he's always hated it. Just did it for his dad." Milo shrugged. "He wants to know if you'll help him with his audition monologue. Since you're, like, actually good at that stuff."

The pyramid didn't feel so steep anymore. Or maybe I'd just grown taller.

"Tell him to meet me at the drama room," I said, scratching Buster's ears. "And Milo?"

"Yeah?"

"Your hair's a mess."

"Yeah, well." He grinned. "Buster chased me through two backyards to get here."

"Worth it."

And for the first time since Jordan's "upgrade," my hair didn't feel like the most important thing about me. The pyramid could wait. I had better things to do.