Maya materialized between them like a ghost with perfect timing.
"It's okay," she said, calm and quiet, the eye of the hurricane. "I know Maddie's a bitch. I'm not offended."
Absolute silence.
You could hear the floodlights humming.
Then Maddie exploded into laughter, clutching her stomach like she'd been shot with joy.
"Oh my GOD." She wheezed, tears forming. "I love her. Did you hear that? Zero hesitation. Just—" Maddie did a perfect deadpan shrug "—'Maddie's a bitch.' Straight for the jugular. Iconic."
"I didn't mean it as a—"
"No, no, own it!" Maddie slung an arm around Maya's shoulders like they'd been ride-or-die since kindergarten. "That was chef's kiss. See, Sierra? This is why people are fun. They say the quiet part out loud instead of seething about it like you do every time I breathe—"
"I don't seethe," Sierra said flatly. "I know."
"Exactly! Progress!"
Sierra opened her mouth for the killing blow—
Her phone rang.
The sound hit like a gunshot.
