Jaya snorted. “You don’t have to tell me.” When Isha elbowed her, she continued. “But seriously, Isha. Just remember, it’s okay to miss your friends. When the excitement dies down, you’ll probably be homesick. You’ve been through a lot lately.”

“I know,” Isha said softly, her eyes downcast. She laid her head on Jaya’s shoulder for a second. “But I have you. So.”

“And I have you,” Jaya said, squeezing her hand, drawing strength from Isha without her even knowing it.

The heavy wooden doors to the dining hall opened soundlessly beneath Jaya’s hands, and the girls slipped inside. Isha gestured to an arched entryway to their left. “The sophomores eat in there, I think.” She waved, and before Jaya knew it, she was gone.

Suddenly Jaya felt very alone and very small. It was not a feeling she was used to or particularly cared for. “I am Rajkumari Jaya Rao,” she said aloud. “Daughter of Maharaja Adip Rao.” The effect was altogether unremarkable. She still felt small, and now she also felt stupid for talking to herself.

Jaya stood in front of the enormous main entrance hall and looked around, gathering herself for a bit. After a few moments, Jaya navigated her way alone to the cavernous senior dining hall, which was currently empty of students. Bright sunlight angled in through the tall windows, drawing sharp lines of shadow throughout the space, which was dotted with round wooden tables arranged in concentric circles. Above her, the sleek steel fixtures that would normally bathe the room in warm light were turned off. Toward the north end of the hall, waitstaff bustled at glossy steel-and-tile food stations.

Okay, Jaya thought. I’m here. I can do this. She set her bag down at a nearby table.

“Hello,” she said quietly. “Hello, Grey. Pleased to meet you.” She threw her head back and practiced a flirty, throaty laugh. She’d watched several videos online about it and was fairly sure she had it down. “Hahaha,” Jaya said more loudly. Then, clearing her throat, she tried again. “Hahahaha, oh, stop.” She added a coquettish hand wave for good measure.

Yes, that was good. Very good, in fact. Charming, graceful, and natural. Grey Emerson would be drawn immediately in. He’d lean forward and say—

“What are you laughing at? And why are you waving your hands around like that? Bugs are pretty rare at this altitude.”

Jaya jumped and let out a rather unroyal scream. A pair of glittering blue eyes was watching her from another table in a shadowed corner.

“What in the—oh! H-hello.” She took a deep breath. “You scared me half to death.”

The big, bearlike boy from the library nodded once but gave no apology. Rude. So rude. “Do you often make yourself laugh?”

“Only when my company’s lacking,” Jaya said stiffly, trying to recover a modicum of dignity. God, how embarrassing. What else had he heard?