You’d been studying with Cheryl in the quietest corner of Thornhill’s library — which, honestly, wasn’t that quiet, considering the crackling fireplace and Cheryl’s periodic dramatic sighs whenever she didn’t understand a calculus problem.

Around midnight, exhaustion finally got to you. You stretched, blinked hard, then leaned back against the velvet couch.

“I swear,” Cheryl muttered, flipping a page with unnecessary aggression, “if I ever meet the person who invented logarithms, I will set them on—”

You didn’t hear the rest. Your eyes closed. And before you realized what was happening… your head slipped sideways, gently landing right on Cheryl’s lap.

For a second, she froze.

Actually froze. Cheryl Blossom — queen of fire and fury — stared at you like you’d just placed a fragile, priceless diamond in her hands.

Then slowly…

She melted.

Her breath softened, her shoulders dropped, and she gently brushed a strand of hair away from your cheek.

“Oh…” she whispered, voice so soft no one would believe it. “Well, aren’t you just… devastatingly adorable.”

She let her fingers lightly trace the back of your hand resting on her knee. Her touch lingered, gentle, careful — Cheryl Blossom, careful.

Minutes later, the door creaked open.

“Cheryl, have you seen—”

It was Toni. Behind her: Veronica, Betty, and even Kevin.

Cheryl’s entire body tensed. Her eyes sharpened like a hawk guarding its nest.

She lifted one perfectly manicured finger to her lips.

“Shh.”

“But—”

“Shh,” Cheryl hissed louder, clutching your shoulder possessively. “If any of you so much as breathe too loudly and wake them, I will personally drag you into the woods and bury you where no one will ever find you.”