“Yeah,” he agrees. “Catnip.”

I glance over the crowd, most of whom are zooming their phones in on Kippie and Jingles, and can’t help but wonder if this would happen to me, if I ever got a boyfriend. Like, if I was sitting with him on a bench in the playground, would all the school gather round and film us, just eating our sandwiches? ’Cause I don’t really want that. I’m not a circus act. Yet somehow, this whole ‘coming out’ thing – it’s like a big ‘TA-DAH!’ and I really don’t want it to be. I just want to be me, and being me is just getting on with it, no fuss, you know?

A cameraman and a woman with a microphone seem to be heading in our direction. “Let’s go,” I say. “Committee meeting starts in ten minutes.”

We start to push our way out through the crowd. I glance over my shoulder and my stomach tingles when I find Aaron staring at me. Maybe he’s still mad after I screwed up our science project in Year 9 – we basically haven’t spoken since. But he nods at me, so I nod back, then hurry away through the penguinmad mob.

*

“It’s just a bromance.” Danny Mills leans back in his chair, legs spread wide apart, like he’s really proud to be showing us all his crotch.

Information: If Danny Mills was the last boy on Earth I still wouldn’t fancy him, or even make myself try to. He’s supposed to be in charge of arranging the entertainment for the prom – a position that’s resulted in him booking his older brother’s indie folk band, when the request was very clearly some sort of cheesy tribute act.

And he’s not done yet.

“Penguins can’t be gay. Gay’s a human thing, isn’t it.” He shrugs. It’s a statement, not a question.

Molly carefully puts her pen down on the desk. “Please tell us more of your bullshit, Danny,” she says, smiling sweetly.

Danny laughs. “All this gay stuff, it’s all new. There barely were any gay people back in the day.”

“Back in what day, Danny?” Molly says. “Like the Greeks, for example?”

“Yeah.” Danny shrugs. But then he clearly feels how the atmosphere in the room has turned against him and adds, “All I’m saying is, they’re just male penguins who happen to be mates. Bromance. Get over it.”

“Exactly, Danny.” Molly scowls. “Get over it.”

There’s a super-awkward silence until Priya, the long-suffering Prom President, meekly says, “So, about the balloons?”

“See, I think, if anything, it proves being gay is nature, not nurture,” Molly suddenly says.

We all turn to her. I don’t want to hear any more opinions about the goddamn penguins, but she’s staring at Danny, eyes full of fury.

Danny holds his hands out, like what the hell are you talking about?

“Because some people think,” Molly continues, “that talking about it in school, or letting little kids read books about it, or seeing gay people on TV or whatever, some people think that makes you gay. Like you can catch it, or some shit.”