The Social Pyramid Scheme

Maya's mom stood in the kitchen doorway, holding out the neon orange gummy like it was a peace offering. "Your vitamin, honey. Brain health!"

"Ma, I'm literally late," Maya groaned, grabbing it and shoving it in her mouth. The artificial strawberry taste made her cringe, but anything to get out the door faster.

Today was crucial. She was on a mission—a stakeout, really.

At school, the social hierarchy operated like a pyramid. At the top: the Royals, led by Chloe, whose Instagram stories were basically religious texts. Then the mid-tier wannabes, and everyone else. Maya existed comfortably in the "everyone else" category until last week, when someone created a fake account in her name and started posting weird stuff.

"You're basically a spy now," her best friend Ji-hoon had declared yesterday at lunch, sliding her his phone. "Look at this profile. Who's 'maya_real2'?"

The account had posted three photos of Maya—candid shots she didn't remember anyone taking—with captions about her "secret life." Maya had spent hours trying to figure out who was behind it. Chloe? The new kid, Alex? Her own paranoia was creating enemies where there might not be any.

Her plan: spend lunch in the library, which had perfect sightlines to the senior tables. She'd watch for anyone acting suspicious, anyone on their phone too much, anyone laughing at inside jokes she wasn't part of.

The bell rang. Maya slipped into the library, claimed a spot behind a stack of books, and waited.

Twenty minutes later, she saw them: Ji-hoon and Alex, hunched over a phone, giggling like idiots. Alex looked up, spotted her, and quickly hid something behind his back.

Busted.

Maya marched over, ready to confront her so-called best friend. "Are you seriously behind that fake account?"

Ji-hoon's face went bright red. "What? No! Alex was just showing me this—"

"Show me," Maya demanded.

Alex hesitated, then handed over his phone. It was open to Canva, where a ridiculous promotional poster was taking shape: MAYA'S VITAMIN GUMMY EMPIRE, it proclaimed in comic sans. JOIN THE PYRAMID. EARN COMMISSIONS.

"We were gonna make it your birthday surprise," Ji-hoon said, looking at his shoes. "You know, cause you're always talking about how your mom makes you take those gross vitamins, and we were like, what if you started a business?"

"A pyramid scheme?" Maya stared at them. "That's my birthday present?"

"It's funny!" Alex protested weakly.

Maya stared at the stupid poster. She thought about how she'd spent the whole week paranoid, spying on her friends, convinced someone was out to get her. Meanwhile, these two dorks had been planning the most on-brand, ridiculous surprise ever.

She started laughing. She couldn't help it. The absurdity of it all—her mom's vitamin obsession, Ji-hoon's terrible humor, the fact that she'd literally played spy over a Canva draft.

"You guys are the actual worst," she said, grinning. "I love it."

Ji-hoon's face lit up. "So we're good?"

"We're good." Maya checked her phone. "But you're both buying me boba after school. Non-negotiable."

From her pocket, her phone buzzed. A notification from her mom: don't forget your omega-3 today!

Maya rolled her eyes. Some mysteries were better left unsolved.