Surviving High School

winning this one?”
    In truth, she didn’t feel good, and the worst thing was, she didn’t quite know why. She had everything she wanted, didn’t she? The crowd had cheered for her—Ben had even made her a sign—and she’d beaten Dominique in every race. So why did she feel so hollow?
    Because it was built on deception, all of it. The moment her dad found out about her new friends or her dates with Ben, he’d put a stop to everything. She’d be grounded, monitored at all times, probably even in her sleep. If there was a way for her dad to get inside her dreams and watch her there, he’d find it.
    And if she got caught, she’d be right back where she had started: nearly friendless and utterly single.
    “Being a champion means winning when it matters,” her dad said after a few seconds. “Sara set her record at Junior Nationals. And she needed every millisecond of that time to edge out Amy—Willings? Williams? The second-place girl. No one remembers her name.”
    Emily had heard this speech a thousand times before, andshe tuned out as her dad spoke. She felt empty, her guts scraped out like a jack-o’-lantern’s. There was no certainty, no stability. Her new life seemed destined to crumble at the slightest touch. Worst of all, Emily couldn’t imagine a future where things were any different. What if she couldn’t be happy, no matter what? Even when she won, she couldn’t win.
    “Disaster!” said Kimi the next day as she walked on a treadmill next to Emily in the high school weight room, dressed head to toe in black and white, right down to her pristine Chuck Taylors. “I’m starting to think I shouldn’t go to the dance with Phil!” Around them, other girls pretended to lift weights while they talked about potential homecoming dates.
    In the meantime, Emily was going at a full sprint on her treadmill, barely able to breathe. She managed to take a gulp of air and ask, “What happened?”
    “Since we’ve been hanging out, I’ve been learning all kinds of things about Phil that I’ve been adding to his spreadsheet,” said Kimi. “Like did you know he used to date Mallika? Or that he spends an hour gelling his hair every morning?”
    “Huh,” said Emily as she turned her treadmill’s pace from “sprint” to “jog” so she could cool down.
    “And in the meantime, Marcus’s spreadsheet is looking better and better! Like did you know he’s going to be in a bathing-suit ad for this clothing catalog? Well, not his face, but you’ll be able to see his abs and one of his legs.”
    “That’s cool,” said Emily. “But what about Phil? Aren’t those two friends?”
    “It’ll be hard,” said Kimi. “But Phil will get over it. I’m going to have to tell him it’s over. We’ve had a lot of fun together, and I’ll always look back on our relationship fondly, but—”
    “You’ve been together for, like, a week!”
    “Has it been that long already?” asked Kimi. “I’d better get this over with so I can let Marcus know I’m available for the dance. Oh! Speaking of homecoming, have you talked with Ben yet?”
    “Yeah,” said Emily.
    “And?”
    “And he wants to take me.”
    “Em!” Kimi shouted. “That’s amazing! I’d give you a hug if you weren’t totally covered in sweat.”
    “Thanks.”
    “I don’t know how you can stay so calm at a time like this,” said Kimi. “All of your hard work is finally paying off! People are really starting to recognize how great you are. The coolest guy in school is taking you to homecoming, and your best friend is going to the dance with her choice of hotties.”
    Kimi was right. It sounded like the perfect life. But didn’t Kimi realize how doomed it all was? Emily felt like a passenger on a train who had seen the bridge out ahead, except that if she tried to tell everyone around her, they’d just assume she was being silly.
    But it was true. Her dad would find out, and he’d happily knock her new life to pieces as if it were a piñata. Emily tooka breath. Maybe it was time to discuss all this. Rationally, if possible.
    “I guess—” she started. “I guess I’m just worried my dad is going to find out about everything.”
    “He won’t.”
    “How do you know?”
    “Because people around here value their lives way too much to mess with my best friend,” said Kimi. “If anyone says a peep about Ben or the dance to your dad, I’ll kill ’em.”
    “You’re sweet,” said Emily, less reassured than ever.
    Kimi