Stephanie walked into the cafeteria and looked around. About half of the student body was already there, talking and laughing. It was Monday afternoon, and Stephanie already felt exhausted. She was not ready for a whole new week. Derek was already sitting at their table, talking to some of the other football players. She looked over and saw Zeke sitting where he usually did, but when he looked up she quickly moved her eyes away. When she did she saw Virgil coming towards her.

"Hey, Stephanie!"

"Oh, hey Virgil!"

"How's it going?"

"Oh, you know. Gotta love Mondays."

Virgil smiled. "I know it. Hey, thanks for hanging out with us Friday night."

"Oh, no problem, it was fun."

Virgil's smile faded a tiny bit and he lowered his voice. "You seemed to be kinda quiet after Zeke talked to you."

"Oh, uh, I guess so."

"Look, Steph, I know that it's kinda crazy at first, him being a foster child and all, but he's a really good guy. He's not that different, he just has a slightly different background."

Stephanie nodded. "I know, Virgil. I do want to hang out with you guys more. It's just, I don't know, it seems hard to be around Zeke, sometimes. Like it's just hard to relate to him."

"I know it can feel like that. But really, it's not that hard once you get to know him."

Stephanie nodded again.

Virgil smiled a little bit again. "I would love it if you could hang out with us more, Stephanie. But if you don't want to, that's ok too."

She was about to say she would love it too, then sighed. "I'm not sure what I want to do right now, Virgil. I think I would like to, but I just don't really know. Give me some time, ok?"

Virgil nodded, then smiled a little bit. "Is it too much to invite you to lunch? Cafeteria food isn't all that great, I know, but we have a pretty good view of things from our table."

Stephanie hesitated, then laughed. "I think a change of view will be good for me."

With another smile Virgil offered his arm, which Stephanie took with a laugh. But they both got quieter once they actually reached the table. Zeke looked up and in looked between the two of them for a few seconds, then shrugged and looked down again. It looked like he was trying to fix a watch.

Stephanie glanced at Virgil, then they sat down.

"So," Zeke said without looking up, "since when do you hang with us at school?"

"Is that ok?" Stephanie asked softly.

"Of course it is, Steph," Virgil said quickly, but she still looked at Zeke to answer.

"Yeah. I just didn't know if you'd ever get around to doing it."

"Why wouldn't I?"

Zeke looked up and studied Stephanie's face for a few seconds, then went back to working on the watch. "Are you kidding me? People are already starting to stare. Popular cheerleaders just don't sit with people like us."

With shock Stephanie started to look around. People really were staring. As must as she hated to admit it, Stephanie knew Zeke was right. She felt her face get hot. Why did people have to be like that?

"Steph, you can leave if you want to," Virgil said softly.

Stephanie had no idea what she wanted to do. She really would like to eat with Virgil, and even Zeke, but what would other people think about her? She had to admit it, she was a people-pleaser. She wanted to make everybody happy. How could she do that in this situation?

"Hey guys." Charlie's voice interrupted her thoughts as he sat down out the table. "Oh, uh, hi Stephanie."

Suddenly she heard footsteps and saw Derek hurrying over to her. "Stephanie, what are you doing?!"

"Derek, uh..." What could she say?

"You can't eat with them!" Virgil, Zeke, and Charlie were all just staring at them. So was everyone else in the cafeteria.

"Why not?" she whispered. Everyone had gotten quiet, and Stephanie could practically feel their eyes boring into her.

"You're my girlfriend. You don't eat lunch with other guys! Besides, everyone has their tables, and this is not yours!"

"Steph, it's ok," Virgil said quietly.

Her eyes appologized to him, but she said nothing as she slowly moved to sit with Derek. Everyone slowly started talking again, but they talked quietly, most of them looking over at Stephanie every few minutes. She wished she could just crawl into a hole somewhere, away from everyone else.

Derek didn't say anything, but she could tell he was embarrassed and angry. She wanted to please everyone, including Derek, but how could she please Virgil and Derek at the same time? How could she live in two different worlds?

Virgil sighed as he looked down at the table. Charlie looked uncomfortable, and Zeke stopped working on his watch.

"How long's it gonna take?" Zeke asked quietly.

"What're you talking about?" Virgil answered, looking up at his friend.

"When's she gonna choose who's side she's on?"

"Stephanie?"

Zeke nodded.

"This is really hard for her, dude," Virgil answered.

Zeke shook his head. "It shouldn't be hard to tell who your real friends are."

"It doesn't seem like it, but it can be hard."

"Maybe. But she's gotta figure out who's side she's on, because right now she can't be on both."