So you’re going to hang out in that tiny section of woods behind the house and play games on your phones,” Dad said, glancing at me and then back at the road.

We were on our way to my favorite pizza place to bring take-out home for dinner. Since we didn’t have school tomorrow, I’d run the idea past my parents to let me stay out late with my friends, catching video game aliens.

“Yep, that’s the plan,” I said.

He shook his head. “Your games are very different from mine. When I was your age, I stayed in the house with my Atari.”

“If I could go back in time and show your little Atari-loving self what games of the future looked like, you would be pretty psyched. You wouldn’t even consider sitting on the couch and watching home-design shows with Mom.”

Dad laughed, one of his big booming laughs that usually embarrassed me in public. But it was just the two of us in the car, so I didn’t care. I laughed along with him.

“You make a good point, kid.” He gave me a wink. “Maybe I should start downloading some of those games on my phone. Maybe I’m missing out.”

I continued to smile, but on the inside I drew back. I didn’t want Dad to play my games. In fact, after we got the alien problem squared away, I was deleting Alien Invasion and every other Veratrum game from all my devices. This made two games in a row that had unleashed chaos on my town. I wasn’t taking any chances.

Dad’s car slid into a parking spot. He handed me a wad of bills. “Want to run in and get the pizza?”

“Sure,” I said. Anything that got us off the topic of games.

Wolcott House of Pizza was a small, dimly lit restaurant that mostly catered to people getting take-out. But they had a few tables if you didn’t mind the noise and the front door constantly opening and closing while you were trying to eat. I walked up to the counter and checked on our order. It wasn’t ready yet, but I paid the cashier and stepped back to wait.

A couple of Willa’s popular friends—Chloe and Megan—were giggling at a table, and I didn’t want them to see me. So I grabbed a seat behind a giant fake potted palm tree and scrolled through my phone.

“Order sixty-two!” the burly man behind the counter yelled.

I glanced at the receipt in my hand. I was order sixty-four, so it wouldn’t be long.

The little bell rang as the door opened. Willa glided in, her long hair trailing behind her as the wind carried it. She looked like she was in a commercial for expensive shampoo. I glanced down at my reflection in the darkened screen of my phone and noted all the frizz that had escaped my ponytail. I looked like the “before” part of a commercial.

“Sixty-two,” Willa said as she plopped some money down on the counter.

The man handed her a giant pizza box. I thought about getting up to say hi, but before I could, her two friends jumped up from the nearby table.

“Willa!” they called, as they hovered around her like hummingbirds, one fixing the collar of her pink shirt while the other picked off a piece of possibly imaginary lint.

“Hey, guys,” Willa said. “Good to see you. My mom’s waiting in the car, though.”

“Will we see you tonight?” Chloe asked. “At Robbie’s birthday party?”

I watched through two plastic palm fronds. Willa hesitated and got that oh, no look on her face you get when you realize you totally forgot about something.

“You forgot, didn’t you?” Megan crossed her arms.

Willa grimaced. “Yeah, I totally did. I have other plans. I’ll have to miss it. Sorry!”

She turned to leave but then Chloe practically yelled at her back, “Are you hanging out with Bex Grayson?”

Megan made a horrendous face at the mere mention of my name. “Yeah, what is with you lately? Are you turning into a nerd?”

Willa froze in place, the pizza box held out in front of her. Then she slowly turned around.

My heart rose up into my throat. I didn’t want to watch this. I didn’t want to hear it. But I couldn’t turn away. I’d spent the last few weeks trying so hard to trust Willa after she’d thrown our friendship away like an out-of-style sweater. We were so close to becoming real friends again. And now it was all going to blow up right in front of my face. Well, not really, since I was hiding behind an artificial palm tree. But pretty much.

“Yes, I’m hanging out with Bex again tonight,” Willa said. But her voice didn’t show any embarrassment or fear. It was loud and confident.

She raised her chin defiantly. “And, yeah, I am kind of nerdy. It’s who I am. Take it or leave it. You’re my friends, but Bex is, too. I was a jerk to her for a long time, mostly to impress you. But I won’t do that again. If you want to be cool with me, you have to be cool with her. We’re a package deal.”

The girls stood silently for one shocked moment. Then Chloe broke the silence. “Okay, fine. Relax.”

Megan twisted a long strand of hair around her finger and shrugged. “We’ll see you tomorrow then.”

The girls walked back to their table, and Willa walked out. No big fight. No drama. No grand betrayal. My chest rose and fell as my pounding heart slowed back to normal.

“Sixty-four!” the man yelled.

I snuck around the potted tree, grabbed my pizza from the counter, and flew out the door.

Dad was singing in the car. Terribly. He turned down the radio as I slid into the passenger side.

“Hey, was that Willa I saw coming out of there a minute ago?” he asked.

“Um, yeah.”

“Are you friends or not friends these days?”

I grinned to myself. “I’ve been pretty confused about that, but I think I’ve figured it out.”