Maddie slammed her tray onto the canteen table as she dropped in her seat. Her face scrunched up in frustration, wailing, "Lila, I swear, Professor Andrews is trying to ruin my life. Why me, why?"
Lila, sitting across from her with her usual calm and serene expression, raised an eyebrow. She took a sip of her iced coffee as if nothing surprised her anymore. "What is it this time? Did he ask you to assist the music club again?"
"Oh, God, I don't know what's worse!" Maddie threw her arms up in resignation. "So, get this. He wants me to help out with the student council. THE STUDENT COUNCIL, Lila! Those entitled—"
Lila covered her mouth immediately and looked around. She hissed. "Don't say that. We don't want any problems with them."
Maddie removed her hand and leaned forward dramatically, her brown eyes wide with disbelief as she whispered, "How am I supposed to handle it? Like, do I even have time for that? I barely have enough hours in the day to help the juniors as it is!"
Lila sighed as she suggested, "You could just... say no?"
Maddie groaned and cupped her face with her hands. "I know! But it's Professor Andrews, Lila. The Professor. He's like this walking, talking guilt trip, and he asked me nicely!"
She peeked in between her palms, her voice dropping to mimic the professor's deep tone. "Maddie, you're one of the most dedicated students I've ever had. The council could really use your enthusiasm."
"More like easy to cajole," Lila commented, shaking her head.
"Hey!" Maddie pouted, protesting, "I'm not. I have boundaries."
"Uh-huh, says someone who got easily cheated out of her month's allowance because of a sob story." Lila looked at her pointedly.
"Oh!" Maddie slammed her head on the table softly. "You reminded me of that again! Stop talking about that! Seriously, what am I supposed to say to the professor? 'No, sorry, I have to go trick some freshmen into thinking that learning is fun?'"
Lila gave her a small, sympathetic smile. "You could say it's too much, and you're already busy."
Maddie sat up, grabbing fistfuls of her hair in frustration. "But that's the thing! I am busy. I'm basically the unofficial babysitter for half the junior class. You know how much time it takes to help them with their lesson plans? It's like herding cats. Very confused, very lost cats. And now Professor Andrews wants to add more to my plate? Jeez, I can barely keep my life together as it is."
Lila nodded as she smiled softly and pinched her cheeks. "Sounds like you've got a lot going on."
Maddie slumped back in her seat, staring blankly at the ceiling. "Ugh. What should I do? I need you to tell me what to do, Lila. You're my voice of reason. Help me out here."
Before Lila could respond, a third voice chimed in—loud, exhausted, and very dramatic.
"Maddie! Lila! I'm dying."
Maddie and Lila both looked up at Nina, their other best friend, slumping down into the seat next to Maddie. Nina was a tiny ball of energy on most days, but today she looked like she'd been through a war zone. Her dark hair was pulled into a messy bun, and the bags under her eyes could potentially carry groceries.
Maddie let out a snort. "What happened to you?"
Nina groaned, dropping her head onto the table with a loud thud. "Architecture happened to me. I'm telling you, if I knew it was going to be this hard, I would have just, like, signed up for basket weaving or something. I haven't slept in three days."
Maddie's eyes widened. "Three days? Nina, that's not healthy. Are you still my friend? The Nina I know sleeps 18 hours out of the 24. That's not even human."
Nina lifted her head just enough to look at Maddie, her expression deadpan. "I'm not human anymore. I'm a zombie. A sleep-deprived, caffeine-fueled architecture zombie."
Maddie burst out laughing. "I told you architecture was intense! You're basically building tiny cities in your brain every day. What were you expecting, finger painting?"
Nina groaned again, dramatically dropping her head back on the table. "I don't know, okay? I thought it'd be fun. Like, 'Ooh, I'm going to design cool buildings and sketch stuff all day!' But instead, it's like, 'Here's 500 pages of structural engineering you have to memorize by tomorrow or you fail.'"
Maddie patted her on the back, still giggling. "Well, at least you're building those tiny cities, right?"
"Yeah, tiny cities of pain," Nina mumbled, her voice muffled by the table. "I don't know how that bastard George still has time to trick girls," she added in a whisper.
"Pardon?" Maddie asked.
"Nothing." Nina sighed and buried her face in her palms.
"What do you think, Lila? What should we do?" Nina questioned, looking up at her friend. But Lila was unresponsive, just sipping her coffee.
"Earth to Lila?" Maddie waved her hand in front of her.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Lila asked with a strained smile.
Maddie noticed something was off. Lila had been extra quiet lately, more than usual. She also spaced out a lot.
And for Lila, "quiet" wasn't exactly new, but... this was different. She'd been spacing out in the middle of conversations, her mind clearly not here. And Maddie couldn't put her finger on why.
"Okay, Lil," Maddie said, narrowing her eyes as she leaned forward, "what's going on with you? You've been zoning out a lot lately. Is everything okay?"
Lila flinched; her soft smile faltered for a second. "What? Oh. Yeah, I'm fine."
Maddie wasn't buying it. "Uh-huh. Sure. You've been more spaced out than usual. Don't think I haven't noticed."
Nina, still half asleep on the table, raised a finger. "Yeah, I even noticed. And I'm basically dead right now, so that's saying something."
Lila's smile grew a little tighter. "I'm fine, really. Just... tired, I guess."
Maddie glanced at Nina, and they both exchanged a look that said, 'We don't believe you.' Maddie was about to press on the issue, but before she could, Lila stood up abruptly.
"I'm going to grab some food," she said, her voice a little too cheerful. "Do you guys want anything?"
Maddie frowned. "Uh, sure. I'll take a—"
But before she could finish, Lila swayed on her feet. Her face went pale, and suddenly, her knees buckled. In what seemed like slow motion, Lila's body crumpled, and she collapsed to the floor.
"LILA!" Maddie screamed, jumping out of her seat so fast she nearly knocked her chair over.
Nina, who had been half asleep two seconds ago, suddenly jolted upright, her eyes wide with panic. "What the—LILA!"
Both of them scrambled to Lila's side, their hearts racing. Maddie kneeled next to her, shaking her shoulders gently. "Lila, hey, hey! Wake up! What's going on?!"
Nina was already yelling for help. "Somebody! We need help! She fainted!"
A few students turned to look, but one guy—tall, muscular, and clearly not panicked—rushed over and crouched down next to them. He didn't say a word; he just scooped Lila up into his arms like she weighed nothing.
"We need to get her to the clinic," the guy declared, his voice firm but calm. Without waiting for a response, he took off, carrying Lila out of the canteen like some kind of superhero.
Maddie and Nina followed, their hearts pounding in their chests. Her mind was racing a mile a minute. What the heck just happened? Lila had never fainted before. Was she sick? Was it stress? Was it something worse? Oh my God, does she have cancer?
Maddie stopped and slapped herself for thinking that.
"What now?" Nina asked in exasperation and dragged her, running to the clinic.
By the time they arrived, Maddie was practically vibrating with anxiety. The nurse immediately took Lila into the back, leaving Maddie and Nina pacing in the waiting area. They kept throwing each other worried glances.
After what felt like forever, the door opened, and the nurse gestured for them to come in. Lila was sitting up on one of the clinic beds, looking pale but otherwise okay. Maddie let out a breath she didn't even realize she'd been holding.
"Oh my God, Lila!" Maddie rushed over to her side. "You scared the crap out of me. What happened? Are you okay?"
Lila looked down at her hands, her expression tense. She refused to meet Maddie's eyes.
"I'm... I'm fine," Lila replied, her voice barely above a whisper.
Nina, still looking a little shellshocked, crossed her arms. "Uh, no offense, but people don't just faint for no reason. What's going on?"
Lila swallowed hard, her eyes filling with tears. Maddie's heart sank. She had never seen Lila like this.
"Lila?" Maddie called out softly, her voice full of concern. "What's wrong?"
For a moment, Lila didn't say anything. She just sat there, looking down at her hands, tears slipping down her cheeks. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she whispered, "I'm pregnant."
The room went silent. Maddie's brain short-circuited. Pregnant? Lila? Her sweet, quiet, always-in-control best friend?
Nina, ever the blunt one, was the first to speak. "What? Like… seriously? There's a bun in the oven? You multiplied yourself? Did I hear you right?"
Lila nodded, her shoulders shaking slightly as she wiped at her tears.
Maddie's heart broke for her. It was apparent that Lila was struggling, but she needed to ask the most crucial question.
"Lila…" Maddie took a deep breath and sat down next to her on the bed. "Who's the father?"
At that, Lila broke down completely. She shook her head, sobbing into her hands. "I... I can't... I can't tell you."
Maddie exchanged a shocked glance with Nina. This wasn't like her at all. What was going on? Why wouldn't she tell them?
Maddie put a hand on Lila's shoulder, her voice soft. "It's okay, Lila. We're here for you. You can tell us."
But Lila just shook her head, her sobs getting louder. Maddie's stomach twisted with worry. This was bad. Really, really bad.
Nina and her exchanged glances. What should they do?