"This is serious," Liz sounds agitated. "College is important to me. If you were around more, you'd know that."

"You're the one that's been MIA lately," I point out. "You never return my calls. We haven't seen each other since before Christmas."

"And that's my fault?" Liz asks, sounding angry. "You're the one who has had meeting after meeting and couldn't hang out till February 1st. I've been dying to talk to you, but you're unreachable! You have no idea what's going on in my life."

I feel like the room is closing in on me. "And you have no idea what's going on in mine," I complain. "I am under so much stress. Every time I do talk to you, you cut me off. You don't tell me anything anymore and you certainly don't listen."

"That's because I can't find you to talk to you!" Liz accuses. "Mikayla's been there for me. She knows what I'm going through. You and I both know that college is not your first priority. My next move is college. I want to get into NYU. You have no idea how stressful it is thinking about colleges and the pressure I'm under this year to do well. We have different priorities now. I can't party all the time like you and Lauren and Ava."

I feel like I've been punched in the stomach. "I don't party all the time," I say. "And you know those stories are bogus! Even if I was going to events more often, having different priorities never bothered you before." I choke, trying hard to fight back the tears. What exactly is going on here? How did this conversation turn sour so quickly? "What's happened to us?" I ask, afraid of the answer. "I feel like we're worlds apart."

"Maybe we are," Liz says quietly. She doesn't look at me. "Things don't feel the same. Maybe we're just . . . growing apart."

The words hang there and the thought knocks the wind out of me. I blink several times, willing the tears away. "I thought we could talk to each other about anything," I whisper.

"Hey," Mikayla says happily as she slides back into the booth and interrupts our fight. She sees our faces. "Is everything okay?"

"Fine," Liz and I say at the exact same time. The silence at our table, in the middle of the crowded restaurant, just sticks there like the restaurant's pea soup.

One of my tears falls on my wrist and I wipe my eyes quickly with my napkin. This is all wrong. How did I lose my job, my best friend, and my ability to choose all in a matter of a month? I have to get out of here. "I have to go," I say, not looking at Liz. "I forgot I have an interview with Self this afternoon about PYA and FA."

"Eff Ay?" Mikayla asks, looking confused.

"It's what everyone calls Family Affair," Liz explains stiffly.