Ava “Fitz” Fitzgerald, the person who completes our trio, appears before us, looking frazzled but fabulous in a white blouse with long flowing sleeves paired with a denim button- down skirt belted at the waist and black ankle booties. Her strawberry blonde hair is secured in a high ponytail with a scrunchie, rainbow drop earrings dangling from her ears. It’s a total look she’d present on If the Shoe Fitz, her fashion- focused YouTube channel—sans the tiny drops of sweat that bead above her perfectly arched eyebrows.

“I’m here!”

“Finally,” Henry says.

“I’m sorry! Luna’s files corrupted in post and three hours of footage disappeared.”

“Shit,” I say. “Are they okay?”

Fitz shakes her head. “We were up until three a.m. trying to recover them.”

Luna Blue is a teen BookTuber who lives in Anaheim. Fitz met them for the first time at a YouTube convention last year. Fitz called from that convention and came out to me as bi with the tipsy proclamation, I’m kinda in love with Luna Blue! They dated for half of sophomore year, until the long distance became Too Much and they decided that for now they’re better as friends.

“Sorry. Anyways. Y’all ready?”

Her bubblegum pink lips break into a smile that’s impossible to not reciprocate.

“So ready!” I knock on Mrs. Mulaney’s door.

“Come in!”

I push the door open and we enter the office, seating ourselves in the wooden chairs in front of Mrs. Mulaney’s desk. Her aesthetic—purple slacks and a floral print blouse—is office chic, according to Fitz. She tucks a rogue strand of her chin-length blonde bob behind her ear and plasters a welcoming smile on her cherry lips.

“What can I help you with this morning?”

Henry launches into our script. “Thank you so much for meeting with us—”

We deliver our proposal with the passion of a closing night performance. There is no way Mrs. Mulaney cannot be captivated by the possibility of the drama club putting together an epic, original, inclusive production that highlights issues that matter to us. When Fitz delivers the concluding line, my heart swells in my chest. We nailed it.

Except, there is no standing ovation. Mrs. Mulaney’s expression morphs from intrigue to intense consideration to… I don’t even know what. Her cherry lips turn upside down and my stomach drops because I have never seen an expression morph so quickly.

“I thought you knew.” Her forehead creases. Not the reaction I anticipated. “I don’t know how to say this, but we can’t afford to replace Miss Bryant’s position, not with the budget cuts. The turnout—between the number of participating students and the average audience sizes—just isn’t enough to warrant the cost. I’m sorry, but there won’t be a drama club. Not this year.”