The Social Pyramid Scheme

Maya hadn't slept properly in three days. Finals week turned everyone into a **zombie** — hollowed-out versions of themselves shuffling through the hallways with dark circles under their eyes like permanent smudges. She caught her reflection in the bathroom mirror: messy bun, hoodie three sizes too big, the kind of vibe that said "I'm emotionally unavailable but somehow still functioning."

"You look dead," said Riley, leaning against the sink. "Like, actually deceased."

"Thanks, you really know how to make a girl feel seen."

Riley smirked. "I mean it in a supportive way. You're slaying the zombie aesthetic."

Maya's phone buzzed. Again.

The social **pyramid** of Northwood High had spoken. Someone — and Maya had her suspicions about exactly who — had started a rumor that she'd hooked up with Tyler at Jordan's party on Friday. The truth was so much more embarrassing: she'd fallen asleep on a beanbag chair by 10 PM while Tyler had spent the night arguing with someone about anime lore on the back porch.

She felt like she was living in a surveillance state. Someone was always watching, always recording, always ready to **spy** on your worst moments and broadcast them to the entire school within minutes. The gossip moved faster than she could process it, mutating and growing until the original truth was unrecognizable.

Track practice was her only escape. **Running** until her lungs burned and her legs turned to jelly was the only thing that shut up the noise in her head. Coach Miller blew her whistle — that shrill sound that meant "faster than you think you can go" — and Maya pushed harder, letting the rhythm of her breath and her footfalls drown out everything else.

"Hey," Tyler said, falling into step beside her as she walked to her car after practice. "I heard what people are saying."

"Yeah. It's —"

"**Bull**," he said. "Total bull. You passed out on a beanbag chair. I have the receipts." He held up his phone, showing a photo of Maya asleep with a dorito chip still in her mouth, looking unreasonably peaceful. "Also, for the record, I didn't hook up with anyone. I spent two hours explaining why Naruto is mid to someone who wouldn't listen."

Maya stared at him, then at the photo, and then she was laughing so hard she had to lean against her car for support.

"Send me that," she said, wiping tears from her eyes. "I need it for my mental health."

"Consider it sent." He grinned. "Hey, Maya?"

"Yeah?"

"Next party, maybe we could both stay awake? Like, on purpose?"

The pyramid didn't matter anymore. The rumors didn't matter. Maya felt something warm and genuine blooming in her chest, and for the first time all week, she didn't feel like a zombie at all.