“Bet you love being on the same squad as your lover boy,” Mackenzie said with a sneer. Today she was wearing a pink embroidered top and a gold name necklace.

For a moment, Emma felt tongue-tied. She was certain that Mackenzie expected her to deny it. The Mistress of Microaggressions was no doubt thirsting for the sort of vile argument she adored. But then inspiration struck. “I do,” Emma answered, “but he’s not my lover boy.”

Mackenzie and Isabella both blinked with surprise.

“But you wish he was,” said Isabella.

Again, Emma tried to think of the last thing they’d expect her to say. “It wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. Don’t tell me you’ve never liked a boy.”

Like matching androids, Mackenzie and Isabella let their mouths fall open. They gasped and cackled. “Oh, I can’t wait to tell him!” Mackenzie cried.

Suddenly, Emma feared she’d made a mistake. She thought back to the pet post. She’d survived, but never wanted to go through anything like that again. Mustering what little courage she had left, she said, “What difference will it make if you do?”

“Then he’ll know you like him,” Isabella said.

Emma suspected Caleb already knew. And so, of course, did everyone who’d seen the pet post. “And? So?”

Like fish gasping for air on the surface of a pond, the girls’ mouths moved, but no words came out. “You’ll…It’ll…,” Mackenzie stammered. “You’ll be humiliated.”

“If you say so,” Emma replied, and shrugged as if she didn’t care. The truth was, she did. But after the pet post, could they really humiliate her any more than they already had?

After last week’s match, Nathan had felt really good. Those kids had called him the Kill Streak King, and the next morning at the bus stop some other kids had nodded reverently at him. They also must’ve watched the stream. They’d recognized him!

On the bus, it got even better. Nathan listened in while two kids sitting in front of him talked. “You watch the match yesterday?”

The other said, “What match?”

“On Twitch,” said the first. “The eSports club.”

“What eSports club?” asked the second.

“Where have you been?” the first asked. “They play The Good War after school.” He glanced at Nathan. “You’re in it, right?” Nathan said he was. Things couldn’t have been going better.

But then the weekend came. On Friday afternoon after school Nathan had nothing to do. The rule in his house was that he was supposed to stay off the computer until after dinner. It was a warm sunny afternoon, and Nathan wished he had someone to hang out with. But the only kids he was friendly enough with to ask were his Allied squad mates. He could have tried Caleb, but the guy was always busy with after-school activities. Emma Lopez would have been Nathan’s next choice. She seemed nice and smart, but Nathan knew that other girls made fun of her. So being seen with her might make him look bad.