40

GARETH The low hum of conversation scatters around me as I stare at my phone. I can’t help the small smile that tugs on my lips, and one of my friends—the fake ones—says to stop scrolling. I’m not, but they can’t tell with the privacy screen. They want to do some late afternoon group study in a local coffee shop, and I usually join them just to incapacitate them and make them feel like they can never be at my level. Without even saying anything. They still like my company, though, which isn’t a surprise—I’m the most interesting person I know. Well, I don’t show all my interesting parts, but they’re still mesmerized by the image I project, which is a superpower in and of itself. I reply to a few texts from Rachel—yes, the one who’s Kayden’s mom. I went to say goodbye at the airport two days ago and got her number before she left despite Kayden’s attempts to stop it. So Jina demanded to have my number, too, which I gladly gave. We’ve been texting regularly in this group chat I made for t