Chapter 1
Am I gay? Mae started thinking to herself, sitting in class as everything around her began to blur. The sharp snap of her pencil breaking brought her only briefly back to reality.
bell rings -
“Mae! Mae!” Jason called out.
“Huh? What?”
“It’s time to leave,” her boyfriend said, already gathering her things.
“Oh, right. Right. It’s time to go.”
“You were so deep in thought,” he said, concern in his voice. “You zoned out all class—way quieter than usual, which is really surprising coming from you.”
Mae tried to laugh it off. “Yeah, right, right,” she said, but her mind wandered again.
“See? You’re doing it again.”
Suddenly, she remembered something. “Oh, wait—Mrs. Jones, is there any way I could take the social studies final on Tuesday?
I’m really busy Wednesday and might not make it. Or maybe I could come early Wednesday and take it first period instead of fifth?”
Mrs. Jones considered. “I’m not sure about Tuesday—everyone’s supposed to start at the same time to make it fair.
But I can see if you can take it first period. Is that cool with you?”
“Yes, thank you so much. Anything works.”
“No problem. I appreciate you keeping your grades in check. Don’t be late for lunch, Mae,” Mrs. Jones said, giving her a knowing look.
As they walked out, Jason turned to Mae. “Hey, what was that all about?”
“What do you mean? I just need to make sure I take my exam so I can pass this semester.”
“No, not that. I mean you not coming to school—why? Is this about what’s been going on? We haven’t really been talking a lot lately.
I’m getting worried about you. I want you to know I’m here if you need to talk.”
Mae hesitated. “No, it’s nothing like that. I’ve just been… lost lately. Studying more, so I haven’t had much time to talk.
My cousin’s coming into town, and I have to pick her up at the airport. That’s all.”
“Oh, okay. I just wanted to know,” Jason said, stopping at her next class. “I’ll see you at lunch, right?”
“Yeah. Of course.”
Jason handed Mae her things and leaned down, wrapping her in a slow, lingering kiss.
he hesitated, uncertainty flickering across her face—not because of the people around them, but because her mind was crowded with thoughts she couldn’t name.
Still, she returned the kiss, letting the moment happen. When they parted, Jason smiled.
“See you at lunch.”
Mae offered a small, distracted smile and headed into her classroom, her thoughts still swirling.
