✧ ˡᴼᵛᵉ ᴹᵉ ᵉⱽᵉⁿ ⁱᶠ ⁱᵀ'ˢ ᶠᵃᵏᴱ ✧

✧ take me seriously ✧ pt11

Stella sank into the passenger's seat, mentally and physically exhausted.

"Rough debate, huh?" Min asked, their car revving up.

She glared at them. "Obviously. Half my team got sick, which was only one person because it's Duo Debate week, so I was up there all alone with only half of our research!" She threw her arms up, exasperated.

Sasha peeked out from the backseat. "I'm so sorry Stell, that sounds rough," she murmured considerately. The other two looked at her quizzically. "What?"

"You're too nice," Min sighed, ruffling her hair. She fixed it, still confused. "Alright, are we going to get fro-yo to calm poor Stella-bella?" Stella flicked their nose. "That's a yes- alright guys! Give me directions!"

The other two sighed. "Min, it's just off the highway. We've gone there everyday after school for almost all of this year!" Stella exclaimed, violently pointing at the overpass they needed to get on. Min swerved onto the road and screamed, while Stella yelled at them.

In the backseat, Sasha quietly turned on her sensory headphones and smiled at her loud friends.

When they pulled into the frozen yogurt lab, both Stella's and Min's voices had become hoarse. Sasha pulled her headphones down around her neck and hopped out of the car.

The bell at the door clamored as they walked through, Stella heading straight up and talking to the cashier. She grabbed three cups and smiled, then came back to the less social of the two. "Here, go crazy,"

Min ran to the chocolate-vanilla swirl dispenser, and Sasha followed, getting a dollop of chocolate. Stella, however, filled her cup with orange sherbet. Min added muddy buddies, chocolate chips, M&M's, peanuts, and fudge. Sasha put raspberries and marshmallows. Stella put boba pearls in hers, fruit loops, and a few bits of pineapple.

They left quickly, walking back to the car, and talking heartily as they got into the seats. "I'm one hundred percent sure it was illegal, but I wasn't gonna get up, so I just watched from my window," Stella explained. "They were just lighting firecrackers up and down the street- one was in a bathing suit too,"

"Sounds fun," Min murmured through a mouthful of fro-yo.

Sasha said, "Bad Min," and tapped their nose with her spoon. They smiled back. "अच्छा विचार नहीं," Her mouth moved fluidly through the words. Both of the English speakers stared at her, perplexed. "Not a good idea," Sasha translated. "Hindi,"

Min shook their head, impressed. "Wow," they sighed. "I wish I was bilingual."

Shrugging, Sasha ate a mouthful of her fro-yo. "It's pretty cool, except nobody really understands you. Caiman from the interracial club speaks Spanish, so he can use it more than I can," she explains. "Hindi is beautiful, but not as useful in America,"

"I didn't know they had an interracial club," Stella said. "How many other kids are there?"

Sasha thought. "It's only immigrants, so not many, but I think there's about... nine of us?" She counted off her fingers. "It's interesting to learn so many stories from them!"

Min and Stella glanced at each other, then smiled at their friend. "You're the cutest," Stella said. This startled Sasha, who blushed and averted her eyes quickly.

"Haha... n-no way," She shoveled more fro-yo into her mouth, embarrassed.