Sitting two tables away from Flash every day at lunch was getting exhausting. At least he and Claudia had switched sides so he could look at Peter Parker instead. He was definitely easier on the eyes than Flash was. Ever since yesterday in the bathroom, Miles couldn't stomach the sight of Flash without feeling like crying. He hated feeling this weak, but in his defense, he had never had his heart broken like this before. Normally when couples break up, one doesn't get harassed by the entire school either so it was kind of just rubbing salt in the wound. The rumors had slowed down, sure, but that hadn't stopped the stares and the whispers. It was terrible, Miles hated feeling afraid every time he walked down the hallway. He wished he could just retract into the closet, but that wasn't an option anymore.

"You're very in your own head today," Claudia observed, taking a bite of her apple, "Dude, is it weird if I think Ned and Peter are kinda cute? I know they're kind of dorks, but like... Peter's low key hot."

"I think him and our redheaded overlord are hanging out now, so good luck with that," Miles scoffed, his eyes landing on the boy, "Pretty sure Ned's single, though. Ugh, you know who was hot before he transferred? Beth Tju's brother. God, he could get it."

Claudia groaned, "Ugh, I know, right? Didn't he get expelled or something?"

"Dude, I don't know, he's a grade above us and I have no idea any drama outside of the sophomore class. I think I saw him at Starbucks the other day, though," Miles said with a small shrug.

Their conversation was interrupted when a new person slid into the seat next to Claudia. Weirdly enough, it was Liz Allan with a smile plastered on her face. God, she was so pretty. If Miles was into women, he would probably have a crush on her along with the rest of the school.

"Hey, guys!" Liz exclaimed, her voice calm and kind like usual, "So, Miles, I know shit's been kind of rough lately and you're totally not a partier, but my parents are out of town tonight so I was wondering if you two wanted to come to my party? Flash is gonna be there, I'm pretty sure, but I'll like totally tell him to stay away from you or else I'll kick him out. I just know a little teen rebellion always puts me in a good mood. Anyway, put your numbers in my phone so I can text you guys the address and time."

Miles was fairly sure he was having an out of body experience because Liz Allan had just invited them to her party. He didn't know what to say when she slid her phone over to him with a new contact ready to be added besides what any normal person would do, which was smile and put his and Claudia's numbers in.

"Uh, yeah, yeah, that sounds fun," Miles stammered, finally able to get some words out of his mouth so he didn't seem like a total weirdo. However, he wasn't able to get much more out than that.

Liz looked at both of them, her smile beginning to waver as she looked more concerned than anything, reassuring him, "And don't worry, this totally isn't a pity invite or anything, I probably would have invited you if none of this had happened I mean, I've always thought you were really cool, Miles. I mean, you're probably the only guy here who doesn't wear the same jeans and t-shirt every day so thank you for that and you, too, Claudia, you guys both have killer style. Especially for underclassmen. I definitely need to chat with you guys more often. Also, Miles, I'm definitely not afraid to kick Flash's ass for you. I mean, I don't know what the point of starting those rumors was. You definitely don't deserve to be bullied just for being out, that's total bullshit, right? Anyway, I'll text you guys later, let's talk more!"

As she walked away, Claudia looked at Miles with wide eyes, asking in disbelief, "Did that really happen? I swear, it's like an angelic choir plays every time she steps into the room."

"Okay, but like, did you get just a little bit of a gay vibe?" Miles asked scrunching his face up as he looked at the girl walking away, "Like, she seemed very passionate about me being bullied for being gay."

"Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised. No girl that gorgeous and kind could ever limit herself to just men, could she? I mean... wow. I'm pretty sure Beth Tju is a lesbian, too, I heard something about her outing herself in Spanish class the other day, but that might be just a rumor. Once again, way too pretty to limit herself to boys. Ugh, I kind of love women."

Miles jokingly squinted at his best friend, "Claudia... is there something you need to tell me? I mean, I hope you know I wouldn't judge you..."

"You're an idiot," she scoffed, smiling at him as she flicked a small chunk of apple at him. "Was I not just talking about men I found cute? Sheesh! Anyway, we're like, so totally going to this party, right? Like, we can't not go."

"I don't know, I've never been to a high school party, what if kids are like... drinking?"

"Miles, I hate to break it to you, but that's the whole point of high school parties," Claudia said with a loud laugh, smiling over at her best friend, "I mean, there's a first time for everything, right? What harm could a little party do? Besides it's Liz freakin' Allan, we can't exactly say no. She's too nice and ethereal for us to stand her up. I mean, she invited us personally that's kind of insane. Who knew your stupid ex-boyfriend's internalized homophobia would actually make us more popular."

"Well, I wouldn't go that far. I am still very much getting bullied."

Claudia shrugged, "Okay, okay, that's fair, but you get my point. This might never, ever happen again. We gotta take advantage of this while we can, right? I mean, what if for the next few years we never get invited to another party? Like ever?"

"We'll survive, I'm pretty sure," Miles said with a gentle scoff, rolling his eyes playfully at the girl's antics.

Another chunk of apple flew in his direction, which he dodged, as she giggled, saying, "Dude, we're going. If you go with me tonight, I'll totally owe you. Pinky promise, anything you need."

"A pinky promise favor? Just for going to some stupid party?"

The girl nodded, holding out her pinky with so much seriousness you would think she was asking him to kill for her or something equally outlandish. Knowing how important this was to her, he sighed.

"Okay, fine, but I'm not going to be making my mom drive."

"Yes, yes, thank you so much!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands together excitedly. "I love you so so much."

With a smile, he responded, "I love you, too."

Something told him he was definitely going to regret this.

Claudia's gaydar? on point honestly also y'all know how much i love my Liz Allan party scenes are my Busted! readers ready for the first Peter/Kaelyn kiss from an outsider perspective lmao