After only the slightest hesitation, Leo shrugged and walked off after Rahul. Grey wondered how much longer it’d be before they decided Grey wasn’t worth the trouble. He could see DE, Rahul, and Leo remaining friends through college. He, on the other hand, wouldn’t even make it to college.

Grey was wondering if he should go back to his room when Jaya Rao glided in. And, without quite realizing it, he forgot to breathe.

Jaya

Jaya walked through the open set of double French doors with Isha. It had been chilly on the walk over, but several large outdoor heaters had been placed all over the expansive rooftop, making it almost balmy. Although, maybe it wasn’t only the heaters. There were almost two hundred people here. Jaya took off her bolero and stuffed it into her bag as she and Isha looked around.

It was beautiful, Jaya had to admit. She’d been to her share of gorgeous functions at the palace, of course, but this was different. Perhaps because she was surrounded by her peers rather than stuffy old officials and her parents’ friends, Jaya felt a thrum of excitement. She felt like a proper teen tonight, not just Rajkumari Jaya Rao. Smiling, she took in the ornate white stone railing and dozens of large potted topiary plants, draped with thick strands of twinkling lights that cast a golden glow on everything. There was a large table to her right, on which snacks and drinks of every kind were on display. Waiters in tuxes walked around with canapés and glasses of punch on silver trays. Hidden speakers thumped out party music that vibrated the stone floor under Jaya’s feet. Above her, the star-sprinkled night sky stretched on, infinite.

Couples and groups of people were clustered around the rooftop, everyone’s faces shining. The girls sparkled with makeup, expensive jewelry, and anticipation. The boys—hair slicked back or hanging in their eyes carefully—smirked with a practiced nonchalance, but their glowing cheeks gave them away too. There were teacher chaperones present, but they kept themselves tucked away, talking quietly to each other.

“Hi, Elliot!” Isha called from beside her, and the shorter white boy from the library, now surrounded by a group of students—sophomores, from the baby-faced looks of them—waved enthusiastically. “I’ll see you later, okay, Jaya?” Isha said, and before she could respond, her little sister had danced off to join the boy.

Jaya opened her mouth to call after her little sister and then closed it again. She had other, more pressing business to get to at the moment. Where was Grey Emerson?