"How about you do my bio homework and I write your English essay?" asked Savanna.
"No way, I'm just as bad in bio as you. Ask the brains over there," said Kylie, pointing over at Lizzy.
"Not a chance," said Lizzy, a smile on her face.
The three teenagers were on the school cafeteria having lunch, Kylie and Savanna sitting opposite Lizzy.
"C'mon, you're so much better in bio than I am! I'll buy you ice cream?" asked Savanna.
"My answer is still no," said Lizzy.
"Please?"
"Nope."
Savanna sighed. "Ugh, you're the worst."
"Oh yeah, I'm terrible for not doing your work," said Lizzy.
All three girls laughed.
"Speaking of school work…" started Lizzy, "I wanted to let you guys know, that, I, uhm, I'm officially going to be in your classes for a while, at least until we graduate..."
Kylie and Savanna looked briefly at each other, then back at Lizzy. Slowly, their mouths opened in surprise.
"You're staying here?" asked Kylie.
"Yeah," said Lizzy with a smile.
"Oh my god!" Kylie and Savanna squealed at the same time.
Savanna stood to give her a hug, Kylie following close behind.
Lizzy laughed at their reactions.
"This is awesome!" said Savanna.
"This is great!" said Kylie, sitting back down again. "Wait, how, how are you staying here?"
"I'm staying with Pete and Ellie… permanently"
"You're getting adopted?" asked Kylie, eyebrows raised.
"I am," admitted Lizzy.
A few seconds passed while Kylie and Savanna digested the news.
"But wait, what about your birth mom?" asked Savanna.
"I'll still see her from time to time," said Lizzy, "but I won't live with her."
"Will she still have any sort of custody over you? Sorry, I'm just new to this," said Savanna.
"It's okay, and no, her parental rights were terminated on our last court date."
"Oh, I'm sorry," said Savanna.
Lizzy shook her head. "It's fine."
"Wait, so, that day when I drove you to meet with her…?" asked Kylie.
"She didn't have parental rights anymore," explained Lizzy.
Kylie's moth dropped open in surprise. "Gosh, I had no idea…"
"I still wanted to meet her and see how she was doing, though," said Lizzy. "She'll still be a part of my life, just, in a different way."
"Wow… well I think it's cool you're still able to see her," said Savanna.
"Yeah," smiled Lizzy.
"How do you feel about, you know, being adopted and all?" asked Kylie.
"Well," started Lizzy, "I tried pushing Pete and Ellie away, and that didn't work so…" she shrugged, "I don't know, I guess I'm stuck with them."
The two friends looked at each other briefly, feeling uncomfortable.
"I'm joking!" said Lizzy. "I'm happy, okay?"
"Oh!" the girls breathed a sigh of relief.
"Actually, I wanted to thank you guys," said Lizzy, "for being so understanding throughout this whole process. I know I haven't shared much… it's been hard to wrap my head around things sometimes, but, I'm finally in a good place, and I appreciate you guys being by my side."
The two girls smiled.
"Of course, that's what we're here for," said Kylie, extending her arm across the table.
"Always," said Savanna, extending her arm out as well.
Lizzy took both their hands and smiled.
"So, I guess no more fosters, huh? They're officially gonna be your parents!" said Savanna.
"Yeah, I guess!" Lizzy laughed.
"Are you calling them 'mom' and 'dad'?" teased Kylie.
A smile crept up on Lizzy's face. She lowered her gaze and blushed. "Does it matter?"
Kylie raised her eyebrows. "Oh my god, you are!"
Lizzy let out a laugh. "Fine, yeah, I am."
"Aww!" squealed Savanna.
"That's so cute!" exclaimed Kylie.
Lizzy blushed. "Anyway," she said, "the reason I bring it up is because our adoption court date is next week, and I wanted to invite you, guys. It would mean a lot if you could come."
"You have a court date already?" asked Kylie.
"Yeah… We've had a court date for a while but… I don't know. I guess it didn't feel real until recently."
"That makes sense." said Savanna. "Well, count me in!"
"Me too!" said Kylie. "Just text us the deets, we'll be there," said Kylie.
"Thank you, guys, you're the best," said Lizzy.
The three teens looked at one another with smiles on their faces. Lizzy had never felt so lucky to have them as her friends. Now there was only one other person she needed to invite…